Six in one; half-dozen in the other

In a four-hour session with nearly 40 people in attendance, the Crawford County Commission discussed extending the moratorium on green energy development in the county.
EDF Project Developer Alan Blaesser and Community Engagement Manager Leif Clark spoke directly to the commission expressing their company’s concerns about a 12-month extension, saying that such an action would be a serious threat to the project. In May, EDF asked to be excluded from the moratorium but were denied. As it stands now, according to Clark, the company is extremely concerned about a long extension. EDF has already spent millions of dollars in developing the project and cannot afford to invest in what Clark called an “ambiguous community.”
Source: Morning Sun

info2024-12-11T09:09:43-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

USDA Invests $6.3 Billion to Strengthen Rural Infrastructure and Create Good-Paying Jobs in 44 States

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that USDA is investing $6.3 billion in rural and Tribal communities across 44 states to expand access to a clean and reliable electric grid, provide safe drinking water and create good-paying jobs. More than 200 projects are being financed to strengthen the nation’s infrastructure in rural places, growing the American economy from the middle out and bottom up. These projects will help ensure everyone in rural America has access to reliable electricity to increase economic opportunity and improve quality of life. Funding will benefit Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin.
Source: USDA – Latest News Releases

info2024-12-11T09:05:57-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

Wichita’s mayor tried to turn down a pay raise. This was the City Council’s response

The Wichita City Council blocked Wichita Mayor Lily Wu from fulfilling one of her campaign promises — not accepting any pay raises. The council’s and mayor’s salaries are bundled with other non-union city employees’ annual salaries, although the city’s agenda report did not explicitly say that the mayor and council members would be voting on their own raises, or what their salaries are. They were all set to receive a 4% raise starting next year. As the council complimented city staff on their roles in running the city and prepared to approve the raises during a City Council meeting Tuesday afternoon, Wu stepped in. Wu — whose salary is $125,970 a year — moved to exclude the mayor’s salary from the wage increases. Her motion failed because no one on the council would second it — a requirement under the city’s rules for an item to be voted on.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

info2024-12-11T09:04:08-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

Raises approved for Wichita police officers amid calls for contract delay

Wichita police officers will receive substantial raises in 2025 as part of a new Fraternal Order of Police contract approved by the City Council on Tuesday. The unanimous approval came over objections from multiple public speakers who called for a delay on the vote until the FOP and Wichita Police Department agree to address several recommendations from Jensen Hughes, a consultant hired in 2022 for $214,000 to develop a roadmap to restore public trust in police and improve the culture within the department.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

info2024-12-11T09:00:24-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

More routes or shorter waits? Officials discuss what would make JoCo’s bus system better

Given a hypothetical choice between shorter wait times at a bus stop and having a wider choice of places to go, county commissioners went with the shorter wait times as they considered how to build a better suburban transit system. The commission had a high-level discussion last week as they continued talks about what needs to be done to attract more riders. Previous work sessions have looked at adjusting fares and services on express routes and the microtransit service.
Source: Johnson County Post

info2024-12-11T08:58:42-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

Shawnee Mission finalizing new ‘age appropriate’ cellphone rules for students

A policy intended to clarify students’ use of cellphones and other electronic devices in Shawnee Mission schools was deemed not quite ready for approval at a board meeting Monday night. But the issue is scheduled to come up again at the board’s next meeting on Jan. 13, and board members said they hope to begin implementing it by February. The draft policy sets different rules for elementary, middle and high school students, in an effort to make it “age appropriate,” said Superintendent Michael Schumacher. “This is one of the hardest decisions I think we’ll make this year,” Schumacher said. “But if we can protect instructional time at the high school without fail, that is a huge step in the right direction.”
Source: Johnson County Post

info2024-12-11T08:57:43-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

Dodge City fire chief to retire

Dodge City’s fire chief is retiring. According to the City, Fire Chief Ken Spencer will step down on Dec. 20. Spencer started his career 28 years ago as a maintenance worker for Dodge City before becoming a firefighter a year later in 1997. He became a fire engineer in 2001 and a fire captain two years later. He was promoted to Deputy Fire Chief in 2015 and became Chief of the fire department in 2019.
Source: KSN-TV

info2024-12-11T08:56:12-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

Regulation change could be boom for hemp in Kansas

On Jan. 1, 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture takes over regulating hemp grown in Kansas. “I think there’s a lot of potential to be opening up markets,” said Kelly Rippel, co-founder of Kansans For Hemp. “This change is a big deal.” The change Rippel is talking about is the Kansas Department of Agriculture essentially turning over control of hemp regulations to the feds. The USDA will now be the primary regulating agency over hemp production in the Sunflower State. For years, Rippel has worked with state lawmakers and other state leaders at the KDA to grow the hemp industry in Kansas.
Source: KSN-TV

info2024-12-11T08:54:48-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

This city in Kansas will pay you to move there

More than 20% of U.S. residents say they are more likely to move now that the election is over, and some cities are offering cold hard cash to attract newcomers. The pandemic-era rise of remote work made it possible for employees to work away from their company’s home base. Cities such as Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Columbus, Georgia, have tried to attract those workers with incentives worth thousands of dollars. Other initiatives, like the Choose Topeka program in Kansas, are available to workers who relocate to the area even if they don’t work remotely.
Source: KSN-TV

info2024-12-11T08:53:14-06:00December 11, 2024|News|

Abilene to again vote on tax for youth sports complex

Voters in Abilene will again be asked to vote to approve a sales tax to pay for new youth sports facilities in the community. In August, voters rejected a sales tax initiative to fund the project. The 0.35% sales tax, or .0035 of every cent spent in Abilene, would go towards funding the new facilities, which would include playing fields for youth baseball, softball, men’s and coed slow pitch, and pickleball, along with seating and support facilities.
Source: KSN-TV

info2024-12-11T08:51:17-06:00December 11, 2024|News|