Wichita Public Library announces new streaming service and 28 day internet bundle access checkouts

The Wichita Public Library announced new services this week. On Wednesday, the library announced that residents with a Wichita Public Library card now can stream movies, documentaries, foreign films and TV series with Kanopy. Kanopy is a video streaming platform dedicated to thoughtful and thought-provoking films. Each month, customers can check out seven films, access two courses from The Great Courses, and watch content on Kanopy Kids. This is a free service only accessible through the library.
Source: KSN-TV

Ranson Financial2021-12-02T01:45:02-06:00December 2, 2021|News|

Officials discuss options to fix county’s radio coverage gap

County officials are reviewing options to correct a 800 MHz radio system coverage gap in the northeast corner of the county. The $8.3 million radio system from Motorola became fully operational in early July and is to be used by first responders with all the agencies in the county. Law enforcement and emergency management officials reported Nov. 17 there is a 12-square-mile section of “dead space” in the northeast, as well as some possible coverage lapses in the southwest and west-central parts of the county. It appears that missing data from the radio testing period could be responsible for some of problem, officials said.
Source: Local News | republic-online.com

Ranson Financial2021-12-02T01:42:50-06:00December 2, 2021|News|

Moundridge Communications named Smart Rural Community Provider

The communities of Moundridge and Goessel today announced that Moundridge Communications was recently named a Smart Rural Community (SRC) provider by NTCA, the Rural Broadband Association. SRC is a national network of communities powered by innovative rural broadband providers that are building a brighter future for small-town America.
Source: McPherson Weekly News » Feed

Ranson Financial2021-12-02T06:56:11-06:00December 2, 2021|News|

Importance of ‘ruralpreneurs’ touted

Rural Kansans tend to overlook the benefits of their small communities, said Ron Wilson, who has spent recent decades focused on how to build them up. “I think we under-appreciate the good things about where we live in the rural heartland,” Wilson said. With COVID-19 causing a shift of employees to remote work, rural Kansas can take advantage of that by drawing more people to live and work via computer link from its rural communities. “We believe it’s a window of opportunity,” said Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University in Manhattan. Wilson spoke at the Marysville City Building recently at the last in a fall lecture series funded by Kansas Humanities.
Source: The Marysville Advocate

Ranson Financial2021-12-02T06:56:34-06:00December 2, 2021|News|

Pottawatomie County to pay 3% cost of living increase, $600 bonus

Pottawatomie County government employees will receive a 3% cost of living adjustment (COLA) for 2022. Along with the COLA, those employees still on staff who worked during the COVID-19 shutdown will receive a $600 one-time bonus. The decision came Monday after a long discussion that spanned several Pottawatomie County Commission meetings. The adjustment will come from the general fund while the one-time bonus comes from federal American Rescue Plan Act funds. Commissioners had considerable debate on how much should be funded in each area – or even if the bonus should be funded at all.
Source: themercury.com

Ranson Financial2021-12-02T06:56:45-06:00December 2, 2021|News|

Public weighs in on planned tourist attraction in Derby

The City of Derby heard public feedback Tuesday night on a project developers say would bring a quarter of a million people to town each year. The project is called “Crystal Lagoons,” a tourist attraction with a public beach, aquatic sports, hotels and more. The plans come with a hefty price tag, about $130 million. Last month, the Derby City Council voted to expand its STAR bond district to fund the Crystal Lagoons project planned for acreage near Rock Road and Patriot Avenue. The proposal for the project comes from the same developers behind the Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City. “This developer is proposing a public/private partnership to bring in a new attraction, a public-access lagoon where people can do watersports, plus Marriot Suites hotels connected to an indoor waterpark,” Derby City Manager Kathy Sexton said.
Source: KWCH.

Ranson Financial2021-12-01T07:22:36-06:00December 1, 2021|News|

Kansas has many older houses and too few workers in skilled trades, statewide survey says

Older housing stock, limited options for low-and-middle-income residents and a lack of workers in the skilled trades are among the problems plaguing the state’s housing supply, according to interim findings from a statewide housing survey. The survey, the first of its kind in 30 years, is set to be released in full later this year. But representatives from the consulting firm that handled the report kicked off a statewide tour to unveil a snapshot of the results Monday in Topeka, with no shortage of areas for lawmakers to address. Improving housing access has been a common theme in urban and rural areas alike and economists have pointed to it as a key element in strengthening Kansas’ economy moving forward.
Source: Salina Journal.

Ranson Financial2021-12-01T07:16:27-06:00December 1, 2021|News|

Augusta lights up with historic theatre lights

The Augusta Historic Theatre’s marquee has been dark for over a decade due to storm damage, but with help from the community tonight they are shining bright. Young and old gathered in awe as the marquee neon sign above the Augusta Historic Theatre glimmered bright. “It’s awesome. Actually, I kind of forgot what it looked like. It’s kind of a staple for the downtown area,” said parent Tanner Lee. The theater, which was built in 1935 had been without lights on the marquee for 11 years after a storm damaged it in 2010.
But with help from the community the town was able to restore it.Source: KAKE – News

Ranson Financial2021-12-01T07:01:13-06:00December 1, 2021|News|

Fort Scott residents celebrate life of Gordon Parks on his birthday

The last day of November means something every year to the people in and around Fort Scott. November 30th is Gordon Parks’ birthday. He would’ve been 109-years old today. And the museum that bears his name held a special celebration. “Gordon Parks is an internationally known photographer, film maker, writer, musician, poet, you name it – he’s done it. He’s a renaissance man,” said Kirk Sharp, Executive Director of the Gordon Parks Museum. The Gordon Parks Musuem located at Fort Scott Community College is celebrating the trailblazer.
Source: KSNF/KODE

Ranson Financial2021-12-01T07:00:37-06:00December 1, 2021|News|

Visit Wichita study calls for new convention center to replace Century II

A consulting firm hired by Visit Wichita says it’s time for the city to replace the Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center with a new facility, even as the national convention industry remains mired in a COVID-19 funk. Conventions, Sports & Leisure International, which also recommended replacing Century II in a 2013 study, has produced a second feasibility study saying that the historic facility has outlived its usefulness as a convention center and that the Wichita market could support a new facility. The study makes no explicit recommendation on what should happen to Century II’s existing facilities, including its iconic blue dome. It mentions that a “new” convention center could mean either a brand new facility or the redevelopment and expansion of Bob Brown Expo Hall, which was added to Century II in 1986.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

Ranson Financial2021-12-01T06:55:37-06:00December 1, 2021|News|