Where is De Soto? Here are 4 things to know about Kansas’ new Panasonic battery factory

This week Gov. Laura Kelly announced that the Japanese company Panasonic will be building a $4 billion factory in De Soto, Kansas. This factory will focus on building batteries for electric vehicles and will bring over 4,000 jobs to De Soto. Here’s what you need to know about De Soto, Kansas, and the new Panasonic factory on the way. De Soto is a small city in Johnson and Leavenworth counties. The city is northwest of Olathe and is about a 30 minute drive from Kansas City proper. It also sits along the south bank of the Kansas River. The town has a population of just over 6,300 people, according to 2021 estimates from the Census Bureau. The Panasonic factory will be taking over the old 9,000 acre Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant, which closed in 1992. In January, De Soto annexed 6,000 acres of land from the site, in preparation for the development of the Panasonic plant, The Star reported.
Source: KC Star Local News

Ranson Financial2022-07-15T07:30:52-05:00July 14, 2022|News|

Panasonic’s $4 billion electric vehicle battery factory will bring 4,000 jobs to De Soto, Kansas

Panasonic announced on Wednesday it has chosen De Soto, Kansas, as the site of a massive new factory. The plant will be the largest vehicle battery production facility in the world and will cost $4 billion to construct. As one of the Kansas lawmakers who had to sign a non-disclosure agreement while working for months to land a mysterious economic development project, Rep. Stephanie Clayton, a Democrat of Overland Park, says she could not be happier with the final outcome. State officials announced on Wednesday that Japanese electronics giant Panasonic would build a $4 billion factory in De Soto to produce batteries for Tesla’s electric vehicles. They estimated the plant would eventually create 4,000 jobs for Johnson County and thousands of other jobs in the surrounding region. “This was a heavy lift on the part of so many people, not just in the legislature, but also for a lot of our local chambers, local economic development officials, the city of De Soto and the entire state, ” Clayton said.
Source: KCUR

Ranson Financial2022-07-15T07:32:06-05:00July 14, 2022|News|

Here’s how much Kansas offered Panasonic to bring massive battery plant to De Soto

While early estimates put the cost of the incentives at $1.3 billion, the Kansas Department of Commerce on Wednesday said Panasonic would be eligible for $829 million in tax credits, exemptions and other incentives. The state’s new incentive program created refundable tax credits, which allow firms to not only reduce their tax burdens but receive cash from state coffers for meeting certain hiring and investment goals. Paired with an expected local property tax incentive from De Soto, the state deal means taxpayers will fund close to a quarter of the projected $4 billion cost of the project. Kelly said the cost to the state would more than be recovered by Panasonic’s investment, both in full-time employees and the thousands of construction crews who will build the factory.
Source: Wichita Eagle

Ranson Financial2022-07-15T07:33:39-05:00July 14, 2022|News|

High-Speed Internet Grant Application Window Opens July 18 (Webinar on July 21)

Governor Laura Kelly announced today that more than 21,000 Kansas homes and businesses are set to receive high-speed internet access for the first time thanks to an $83.5 million grant program through the Kansas Department of Commerce’s Office of Broadband Development. The new grant program results from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s approval of Kansas’ Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund (CPF) broadband infrastructure plan. … The Kansas CPF broadband infrastructure grant application window will be open for four weeks beginning July 18. A full list of program guidelines and the application will be posted on the Office of Broadband Development’s website next week. The Office of Broadband Development will also be conducting a webinar to review program guidelines on Thursday, July 21, at 12:30 p.m. CDT. Registration for the meeting can be found here.
Source: Kansas Department of Commerce

Ranson Financial2022-07-15T07:37:23-05:00July 14, 2022|News|

County recycling might change destination

Recyclable materials from Marion County may soon be taken to a recycling center at Fort Riley instead on one in South Hutchinson that charges $120 a ton. Josh Housman, director of the county transfer station, told commissioners Monday that Fort Riley contacted him and was willing to start taking county recycling, apparently for free. Making the change would not be instant, however.
Source: HILLSBORO Star-Journal

Ranson Financial2022-07-14T18:37:14-05:00July 14, 2022|News|

Panasonic battery project likely to create major demand for growth in Eudora, Lawrence, leaders say

About a century ago, Wichita began to learn what being in on the ground floor of the aviation industry could do for an economy. Now, there are predictions Douglas County and the surrounding area may soon experience a similar boom by being an early player in the electric vehicle industry. “I don’t think the idea of how much potential there is for growth is really understood by the public yet,” Eudora Mayor Tim Reazin said as Panasonic Corp. announced Wednesday that it plans to build a $4 billion battery plant for electric vehicles in De Soto, which is only about 5 miles from Eudora and the Douglas County line. … The state is estimating that number at 16,500 jobs. That’s potentially a lot of new residents coming to the region, looking for places to live near their new worksite. Not all of them will end up in De Soto. “All the way into east Lawrence,” Reazin said as he contemplated the future growth pattern. “I think there is potential for quite a bit of growth along K-10. The idea of Lawrence growing only to the west is going to change.” Steve Kelly, vice president of economic development for the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development Corporation of Lawrence and Douglas County, said the Douglas County area will have opportunities to land both businesses and new residential housing as part of the project. A longtime executive with the Kansas Department of Commerce before serving Lawrence, Steve Kelly said the only other Kansas project that seems analogous to the Panasonic deal — the governor said it is the largest in the state’s history by dollar amount — is the development of Wichita as the Air Capital of the World.
Source: LJWorld

Ranson Financial2022-07-14T08:00:35-05:00July 14, 2022|News|

Municipal Bond Trends for July 13, 2022

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.

Ranson Financial2022-07-15T07:38:02-05:00July 14, 2022|News|

Governor Kelly signs multi-state commitment to expand computer science education

TGovernor Laura Kelly recently signed onto a multi-state agreement to expand computer science education in K-12 schools. The agreement, spearheaded by the National Governors Association, comes after Gov. Kelly signed bipartisan House Bill 2466 in May to promote computer science education, provide training for current and aspiring computer science teachers, and create a pilot program to assist students in their transition to the workforce. “Promoting K-12 computer science education is one more way my administration is working to prepare our students for the future,” Gov. Kelly said.
Source: Derby Informer | News

Ranson Financial2022-07-14T07:39:12-05:00July 13, 2022|News|

KDOT supports ‘Safe Streets’ grant applications

The Kansas Department of Transportation is encouraging cities, counties and other local entities to submit a grant application to the 2022 Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A), a new U.S. DOT discretionary grant program. The SS4A program and the new Kansas SS4A Match Pilot Program represent an opportunity to leverage federal and state funding to create safety plans for city streets and county roads. Once Safety Action Plans are completed, projects identified in the plans may be eligible for future federal grants or other project funding through KDOT. State funding provided by the KDOT pilot program will contribute to the local match required by the SS4A grant. For more information on the program, visit https://www.transportation.gov/grants/SS4A or https://arcg.is/1qKLCr0.
Source: Derby Informer | News

Ranson Financial2022-07-14T07:39:33-05:00July 13, 2022|News|

KCK resident hopes closing ‘Bank of KDOT’ will improve safety of Interstate 70 tight curve

As Interstate 70 exits Kansas and enters Missouri, a tight right-angle curve is a sight of many accidents over the years, Leo Eilts has witnessed. Eilts, a resident of the Strawberry Hill neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas, bought a building 16 years ago with a fantastic view overlooking the point where the Kansas and Missouri river meet. He quickly found his building offered a less pleasant view of accidents along that harrowing curve and fixed his security cameras on the point. “I have a front row seat to a massive demolition derby just down from my building,” Eilts said.
Source: Atchison Globe Now

Ranson Financial2022-07-14T07:40:17-05:00July 13, 2022|News|