At the Garden Plain City Council meeting held last Wednesday, Feb. 9, local resident Sheldon Irwin used the citizens’ comments period to voice his opposition to the idea of adding one or more Flock Safety license plate cameras to the community. Interim police chief Alissa Imperatore had shared some information on Flock Safety cameras at the city council meeting last month.
Source: Times-Sentinel Newspapers » Feed
Sierra Club lobbyist Zack Pistora told lawmakers he could talk at length about the “big mess” plastic bags have created for aquatic ecosystems, landscape and infrastructure in Kansas. But the real problem with Senate Bill 493, he said, is an assault on democracy. The Kansas Chamber, manufacturers of plastic bags, and service industry representatives asked the Senate Commerce Committee to adopt the legislation, which would ban cities and counties in Kansas from restricting the use of plastic bags and containers. Pistora said the bill is “disingenuous” because it doesn’t provide a way for communities to reduce the accumulation of trash caused by these products. He asked lawmakers to embrace the popular saying: “Don’t tread on me.”
Source: The Lawrence Times
James Sutton will serve as the interim superintendent at USD 231 for the next four months. Mark Meyer had served as acting superintendent after the departure of Pam Stranathan last December. Sutton will serve as interim thru July while the board of education conducts an employment search for a permanent replacement. In a statement Sutton said, he is very excited about getting to know everyone in the district and communities as much as possible. He recently retired from Belle Plaine, Kan., after 40 years in education. Sutton was born and raised in Pennsylvania outside Pittsburgh, but his undergraduate degree in elementary education came from Missouri Southern State College in Joplin, Mo. He attended Pittsburg State University attaining a Masters and then Education Specialist degrees.
Source: Gardner News
The City of Conway Springs is getting out of the housing industry. No, the city has not been building homes, but it had been selling lots in the local subdivision. At their meeting last week, members of the Conway Springs City Council voted to sell the final lot in the Countryview Addition. Because it is the last lot available, and because it was a smaller lot, the city sold the home site for half price.
Source: Times-Sentinel Newspapers » Feed
Derby parks were feeling the love last week, as the parks department and PROS Consulting held a kickoff event Feb. 15 (at Derby’s Madison Avenue Central Park) to launch the community engagement portion in forming the new Parks Master Plan. The crowd on hand was not shy in giving input, either, which is exactly what PROS representatives said they are looking for throughout the planning process. PROS assisted Derby with its previous master plan and President Leon Younger commended the community’s reputation as a “can-do city.” Considering that, Younger said his company is looking forward to engaging the community once again to form a plan that will be embraced in Derby.
Source: Derby Informer | News
Kansas will get federal assistance to help with damage done by devastating wildfires in December. On Friday, President Joe Biden approved Governor Laura Kelly’s federal disaster request. The wildfires on Dec. 15, 2021, were driven by high winds gusting between 60 and 100 mph. The fires damaged buildings, crops, pastureland, bridges, roads, and public utilities. The damage estimate is $15 million. Kelly requested public assistance for Barton, Brown, Clay, Cloud, Doniphan, Edwards, Ellis, Ellsworth, Ford, Geary, Gove, Graham, Grant, Gray, Greeley, Hamilton, Haskell, Hodgeman, Jewell, Kearny, Lane, Lincoln, Logan, Marshall, Meade, Mitchell, Morris, Morton, Nemaha, Ness, Osborne, Ottawa, Pawnee, Republic, Rice, Riley, Rooks, Rush, Russell, Saline, Scott, Sheridan, Smith, Stafford, Stanton, Stevens, Sumner, Trego, Wabaunsee, Wallace, Washington, Wichita, and Wyandotte counties.
Source: KSN-TV
A new report from the League of Kansas Municipalities, using data from the 2020 U.S. Census, has named Maize the fastest growing city in Kansas. Residents and city officials said they aren’t surprised at all. “I don’t see how any other community among the state could be any busier,” City Administrator Richard LaMunyon said. “It’s just impossible. And then this came out to kind of justify what we were saying.” LaMunyon has lived in Maize for over 40 years. Residents are used to seeing new homes, apartments, businesses and lots of construction every day. “We can tell,” resident Andrea Graham said. “I mean, there’s just so many more families and apartment buildings going up.” Graham said she likes living in Maize because it has all the perks of a small town along with cool activities.
Source: KAKE – News
Johnson County’s Central Resource Library in Overland Park is set to re-open Tuesday after being partially closed for a year. When the library closed for renovations last February, the staff walled off a small portion of the building and called it Little Central to keep patrons safe from construction. Little Central closed on Feb. 14 of this year so workers could finish final touches and knock down the partition wall. Librarians at Central said they are excited to welcome patrons back to a space that’s nature-themed in staff spaces and throughout, which Johnson County head librarian Sean Casserley said connects employees and patrons to the larger, overarching goal of the library. “Having a connection to nature was really important in the sense that it was calming, relaxing,” said Casserley. “And I think that’s the thing, the role the public library plays, which is we have no agenda. We’re not trying to sell you something. There aren’t any politics. We are completely neutral, and our goal is to find something that interests you.”
Source: KCUR News
To make more space in the crowded Sedgwick County Courthouse, 10 agencies may be on the move. The decision to move them could be as early as the next county commission meeting, on Wednesday, February 23. “COVID has been a huge monkey wrench in the wheels of justice, so it is very difficult to get trials completed, particularly criminal trials you have to be sure that issues like due process are followed,” said Judge Phil Journey, a judge in the Sedgwick County District Court judge. According to one Sedgwick County commissioner, Sedgwick County has about 170 people being held on murder charges, and not enough space to meet the backlog. “Right now, this thing is clogged up and we’ve got to find a way to get back on track, and so that’s moving out of the building is just a huge investment in helping make our solution come forward,” said Sedgwick County Commissioner Jim Howell.
Source: KSN-TV
The Winfield Noon Kiwanis Club has a mission to help the children of the world, one child at a time. This mission has been demonstrated through the presentation of the “Don’t Meth with Us” program in two of the four Winfield Elementary Schools. Methamphetamines have been determined to be in the top five most addictive of drugs, along with cocaine, heroin, alcohol and nicotine. “Don’t Meth with Us” is designed to educate children and families about the consequences of meth, arming them with the tools necessary to combat illicit drug use and addiction. To accomplish this, we go into the schools and engage students on a personal level, opening their eyes to a bright, drug-free future. To date, this program has been presented to the fifth-grade classes in Whittier and Lowell elementary schools. As the students complete the one-hour program, they are presented with a T-shirt, pencil, wrist band and a pledge card. This program was started in San Juan County, N.M., and is now presented in multiple states throughout the U.S. Kansas Kiwanis has embraced this program, and this program is available to schools through their local Kiwanis Club. The Winfield Noon Kiwanis Club is scheduling dates for both Irving and Country View elementary schools.
Source: The Arkansas City Traveler
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