Former Wilson Czech Opera House to become open-air theater

26 Friday, January 26

Former Wilson Czech Opera House to become open-air theater

info2024-01-26T07:55:15-06:00January 26th, 2024|

The Wilson Czech Opera House has made strides in restoring the property after a fire that burned most of the building. Constructed in 1901, the opera house, 415 27th St. in Wilson, was initially called Turner Hall, made from quarried stone from five miles outside of Wilson.... In November 2009, a fire from a neighboring building spread to the opera house, reducing the venue to ruins despite attempts to extinguish the flames. ... Fully rebuilding the opera house proved to be an unachievable task, as Ford said the expenses could exceed well over $10 million. To preserve the remnants of the [...]

26 Friday, January 26

Students name new Valley Center subdivision

info2024-01-26T07:36:50-06:00January 26th, 2024|

The Valley Center City Council last week approved the final plat for Harvest Place near 93rd North and Meridian.... The subdivision and the roads in it were named by Valley Center school district students during a contest initiated by the city. The middle school contributed Spirit Court, the high school Stinger Avenue, Abilene Elementary Sunflower Drive and Sunflower Court, Wheatland Elementary Hornet Lane and Hornet Court, the intermediate school Chance Avenue and West Elementary Harvest Place. "It was fun to have the school district involved through the naming process of the subdivision and some of the streets that will lie therein," [...]

25 Thursday, January 25

Municipal Bond Trends for January 24, 2024

Henry Schmidt2024-01-25T10:35:58-06:00January 25th, 2024|

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS "investment grade" yields. Every issuer's credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

25 Thursday, January 25

Topeka’s welcoming nature drawing attention of large media outlets, mayor says

info2024-01-25T10:30:18-06:00January 25th, 2024|

A Wall Street Journal reporter was in Topeka on Tuesday working on a story expected to highlight its welcoming nature, after the city benefited from a Telemundo story that did the same thing last October, Mayor Mike Padilla said. The Wall Street Journal story is anticipated to focus on a family of Colombian immigrants who live in Topeka and hope to stay here permanently, Padilla said at his monthly news conference with interim city manager Richard U. Nienstedt. Source: CJonline

24 Wednesday, January 24

Overland Park is overhauling its long-range development plan. Where do things stand?

info2024-01-24T11:23:50-06:00January 24th, 2024|

Overland Park is getting closer to adopting its first new long-range land use plan in decades, which will serve as the roadmap for development into the future. The much-anticipated draft plan was recently handed over to city planning staff for a preliminary review, Overland Park’s Strategic Planning Division Manager Erin Ollig told the Overland Park Planning Commission earlier this month. Right now, city planners are going through some edits and revisions with the consultant. That puts the Overland Park City Council on track to finalize the plan — dubbed FrameworkOP — in the next few months, likely early in the summer. The city’s existing comprehensive plan is roughly [...]

24 Wednesday, January 24

City leaders give update on Topeka’s city manager search

info2024-01-24T11:20:32-06:00January 24th, 2024|

City leaders are getting closer to selecting Topeka's next permanent city manager. Richard Nienstedt has served in the interim position since June, 2023 when former City Manager Stephen Wade took an extended leave of absence and was ultimately fired. Alongside Mayor Mike Padilla at a city briefing Tuesday, Nienstedt said the city is working with a consultant to hire a long-term city manager. He said he anticipates the city council will have a list of candidates by mid-February or the first of March. Nienstedt said finding the right city manager for this city will take time. "This is an important city in the state. [...]

24 Wednesday, January 24

New Johnson County assistant county manager Adam Norris begins work

info2024-01-24T11:12:16-06:00January 24th, 2024|

Johnson County Government is proud to announce that Adam Norris, who has 20 years of executive leadership and management experience in government, has joined its leadership staff as assistant county manager. Norris began his duties on Jan. 22. Most recently, Norris was deputy city manager and assistant city manager in Independence, Missouri, though his career in public service had its start in Johnson County. While still in school, Norris worked for the Overland Park Public Works Department where he repaired potholes, served on chip and seal teams, and even provided traffic control. “From an early age, I knew I wanted to dedicate [...]

24 Wednesday, January 24

Leawood weighs reducing office space quotas required in mixed-use projects

info2024-01-24T11:10:46-06:00January 24th, 2024|

Revisions to Leawood's zoning requirements soon could reshape how developers approach mixed-use projects. Leawood's current mixed-use zoning requires developers to dedicate a certain percentage of a project for specific uses, setting quotas of 15% for office space, 5% for retail and at least 15% for residential. In an effort to keep up with economic trends in commercial real estate, city leaders will review an amendment to the Leawood Development Ordinance softening those ratio requirements for mixed-use projects. The change has been prompted by feedback from local developers representing projects along the 135th Street Corridor. Last fall, the City Council received a letter from area [...]

24 Wednesday, January 24

How many Wichita schools could close? Superintendent answers that and other questions

info2024-01-24T11:07:19-06:00January 24th, 2024|

The Wichita school board has directed staff to formulate a plan for closing some elementary and middle schools at the end of the spring semester. It’s a cost-cutting measure USD 259 hopes will save at least $16 million as Kansas’ largest school district scrambles to address a projected $42 million budget shortfall. Superintendent Kelly Bielefeld fielded questions Tuesday about the building closure process and the district’s financial path forward. Here’s what we know so far. “I think it’s fair to say we’re looking in the area of four to seven schools total,” said Bielefeld, who took over as superintendent in July. The school board will have [...]

24 Wednesday, January 24

Healthcare tops concerns for rural Kansas townsfolk

info2024-01-24T11:02:55-06:00January 24th, 2024|

Rural Kansas communities are critical to the future of our state. We know that for our communities to thrive, rural Kansans require core services to raise a family — access to early childhood services, high quality education and health care. Our two organizations — Thrive Kansas and United Methodist Health Ministry Fund — are based in rural communities and are invested in improving the health and future of all Kansans. We are committed to improving the health of rural communities and support innovative policies that sustain health care and encourage the development of vitally important services. To better understand rural Kansans’ concerns and ideas, [...]