Study looks at ambulance response times in Shawnee County

14 Sunday, January 14

Study looks at ambulance response times in Shawnee County

info2024-01-14T09:08:06-06:00January 14th, 2024|

Ambulance response times appear to be getting worse in Topeka. That’s according to a Wichita State University study, but American Medical Response is pushing back on those claims. The percentage of “late calls” by AMR, Shawnee County’s ambulance service, nearly doubled between 2020 and 2022 in “Zone 1,” which covers most of Topeka, Topeka City Council members were told Tuesday by Tom Jenkins, project associate and technical expert for the Public Policy & Management Center at Wichita State. Jon Antrim, AMR’s regional director, took issue with that... Source: CJonline

14 Sunday, January 14

Speaker at Salina forum shares strategies to end homelessness

info2024-01-14T09:05:37-06:00January 14th, 2024|

People passionate about homelessness in Salina braved the bitter cold to listen and packed into a standing-room-only setting to hear about and discuss solutions Thursday night. The City of Salina invited Julia Orlando, a consultant from New Jersey who also is the director of the Bergen County Housing, Health and Human Services Center, to speak about strategies it used to bring homelessness to "functional zero" in that county. Source: Salina Journal

12 Friday, January 12

Governor Kelly Announces Nearly $5M for Digital Skills Training

info2024-01-12T14:35:36-06:00January 12th, 2024|

Governor Laura Kelly today announced a $4.75 million initiative to improve the digital skills of Kansans not yet able to maximize the power of the internet. The Digital Opportunities to Connect Kansans (DOCK) program strengthens access to necessary digital tools and opportunities.... DOCK promotes access to digital resources by providing awards for digital skills development programs. The maximum individual award is $250,000, with required matching funds at 5 percent.... The Kansas Office of Broadband Development (KOBD) encourages local governments, community organizations, educational institutions, and others to partner in making the DOCK program a success. Source: Governor of the State of Kansas

12 Friday, January 12

Shawnee Mission superintendent to step down. District will start search for new leader

info2024-01-12T14:34:43-06:00January 12th, 2024|

Shawnee Mission Superintendent Michelle Hubbard, who was recently named 2024 Kansas Superintendent of the Year, will retire after this school year. The school board accepted Hubbard’s resignation during a special meeting Thursday evening. Hubbard, who was named superintendent in 2021, will serve the remainder of her contract through June. Source: Joco 913 News

12 Friday, January 12

Great Bend Fire Department answered over 2,583 fire and EMS calls in 2023

info2024-01-12T14:34:21-06:00January 12th, 2024|

With the ringing of a new year, the Great Bend Fire Department thought residents might be curious about the number of calls it handled in 2023, Fire Chief Brent Smith said. The information was presented to the City Council. “We thought you may wonder just how many calls we respond to in one year,” Smith said. This is the number of calls from Jan. 1 through Dec. 18. In all, the Great Bend Fire Department made 2,583 fire and Emergency Medical Services runs in that time span... Source: Great Bend Tribune

12 Friday, January 12

Shawnee moves forward with new rules for Airbnbs

info2024-01-12T14:17:36-06:00January 12th, 2024|

The Shawnee City Council Committee is getting closer to setting new rules and restrictions for short-term rentals like Airbnb and VRBO. On Monday evening, the committee reached a consensus for amendments to Shawnee Municipal Code Chapter 5 to regulate short-term rentals through the city’s business licensing department. Short-term rental property owners would also face penalties if they violate existing ordinances, like noise violations or health and safety codes. Source: Johnson County Post

12 Friday, January 12

Overland Park mulls changing development rules

info2024-01-12T14:16:35-06:00January 12th, 2024|

As Overland Park continues to build its new comprehensive plan, the city is also mulling some possible updates to regulations for future development and redevelopment projects. That collection of ordinances called a Unified Development Ordinance, or UDO, lays out the rules for development in a community, including land use and architectural standards. The plan is to work with a consultant to review the UDO, the cost of which Overland Park Senior Planner Danielle Hollrah said is already budgeted into city’s 2024-28 capital improvement project list. Source: Johnson County Post

12 Friday, January 12

County commission approves cost of living increase for county employees

info2024-01-12T13:06:45-06:00January 12th, 2024|

The Chase County Commission approved a 3.5% cost of living adjustment across the board for county employees at its meeting Monday morning. Commissioner Matt Miller said he was in favor of making the 3.5% increase standard for all county employees, regardless of full-time or part-time status, to help with cost of living increases. “The departments have done a good job of getting some internal pay scales and structures put in place. We have made a lot of progress there with department heads meeting and updating our leave policies. Those are definitely big steps forward,” Miller said. “I encourage us as we [...]

12 Friday, January 12

“Need rural water!”

info2024-01-12T13:02:26-06:00January 12th, 2024|

After fighting for clean, oil-free water since September, mother of three and wife, Jenna Krob, says she’s tired of being redirected. “I feel like I’m getting tossed around just like I did when I didn’t have water at first,” said Krob. “Now I’m being tossed around again just trying to find a permanent solution.” The problem began as a foul smell filling their newly purchased home located at SW Thunder Rd and SW 150th St in rural Augusta. Soon after, their plumbing pipes, toilet tank, shower and sinks were coated in a black oily substance. The family suspected crude oil to be in [...]

12 Friday, January 12

‘Wage war’: Sedgwick County hikes pay for sheriff’s officers after Wichita police raises

info2024-01-12T13:00:49-06:00January 12th, 2024|

Sedgwick County boosted pay for sheriff’s office employees Wednesday in an escalating law enforcement wage war with the city of Wichita. The county will transfer approximately $4.5 million from reserves to cover 8.7% increases for all sheriff’s employees, including Sheriff Jeff Easter, who presented the funding request to commissioners Wednesday. That’s on top of the 2% increase that went into effect at the beginning of the year. The new raise comes a month after the Wichita City Council voted to give police employees 13.27% raises and one-time $5,000 bonuses. “If people don’t believe that we’re going to lose people to Wichita, they’ve got [...]