City of Topeka awarded $90,000 to help people get internet access

15 Wednesday, March 15

City of Topeka awarded $90,000 to help people get internet access

info2023-03-15T10:15:28-05:00March 15th, 2023|

A grant that will be awarded to Topeka aims to help spread awareness and increase participation in a program that helps households get better internet access. City of Topeka spokeswoman Gretchen Spiker reports that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will award Topeka with a grant to boost participation in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). This program provides qualifying households with a discount on broadband and a one-time discount on connected devices. Those who qualify are eligible for a discount of up to $30 a month on internet service and up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer or tablet from [...]

15 Wednesday, March 15

Leawood talks next steps for ‘Purple Twist’ sculpture

info2023-03-15T10:12:07-05:00March 15th, 2023|

Leawood is considering whether to make the temporary purple sculpture near Leawood City Hall a permanent fixture. The Leawood Arts Council earlier this month discussed the next possible steps for “Purple Twist,” the city’s current Art on Loan piece. Through the Art on Loan program, an artist gets to temporarily display a personal art piece just west of city hall after undergoing a selected process by the city. Source: Prairie Village Post

15 Wednesday, March 15

Lawmakers urged to retain local sales tax on groceries; Senate president proposes plan for filling gap

info2023-03-15T10:09:38-05:00March 15th, 2023|

They came with stark choices. Cut police. Cut fire. Cut roads. Cut employee benefits. Or raise taxes. Local government officials presented lawmakers with those untenable options as they implored them Monday to keep local sales taxes on groceries. The House tax committee on Monday began debating a that was already passed in the Senate that eliminated state and local sales tax on groceries by next year. As the bill originally came out of a Senate committee, it would have only exempted state and local sales taxes on healthy food products. Source: Sunflower State Journal

15 Wednesday, March 15

Cities criticize bill limiting power to regulate sale of good, services

info2023-03-15T10:06:19-05:00March 15th, 2023|

Cities and counties turned out in force to fight a bill stopping them from regulating any consumer products and services allowed under state law, saying it would keep them from limiting fireworks, tobacco, massage therapists and land use. They urged the House commerce committee Monday to reject a bill pushed by the Kansas Chamber of Commerce that was introduced after Wichita officials considered - but later dopped - a ban on retailers from selling dogs and cats. Source: Sunflower State Journal

15 Wednesday, March 15

Southwest Kansas missing out on university system

info2023-03-15T10:03:49-05:00March 15th, 2023|

We have often wondered why there is no state college in southwest Kansas, since there is one in every other quadrant of the state. Of course, the locations of our state universities (hardly anyone goes to a “college” anymore) were not according to any plan. Their genesis depended as much on local support and effort as anything. The story begins in 1863 when the Kansas State College of Agriculture and Applied Science formed in Manhattan as the nation’s first land-grant college. The University of Kansas came along three years later, and the state was set to grow two great universities. Both [...]

15 Wednesday, March 15

Hutchinson health educator testifies on fentanyl strips

info2023-03-15T10:00:16-05:00March 15th, 2023|

As the amount of fentanyl deaths continue to increase, Kansas lawmakers are introducing a bill that would make synthetic opioid testing strips legal. Last week, the substance misuse health educator for Reno County, Seth Dewey, gave testimony before the Kansas Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee with regards to Bill 2390. The House passed the bill a few weeks ago. Drug overdose deaths in Kansas have increased throughout the last decade, a September 2022 Kansas Department of Health and Environment report stated. ... Kansas House Bill 2390 would decriminalize testing strips for fentanyl, ketamine, flunitrazepam and gamma hydroxybutyric acid, sometimes known [...]

15 Wednesday, March 15

Colorado city looks to Kansas for first female manager

info2023-03-15T09:41:59-05:00March 15th, 2023|

The Florence City Council voted to offer a contract to hire its first female city manager in recent history. In a Special Meeting, the council voted to offer a contract to Amy Nasta. Nasta's job offer comes after the city spent more than 18 months without permanent leadership. ... Nasta currently serves as the Deputy City Administrator in Gardner, Kansas. Source: KRDO

15 Wednesday, March 15

Atlanta firefighters to hold chicken and noodles dinner

info2023-03-15T12:16:16-05:00March 15th, 2023|

The Atlanta Volunteer Fire Department and women’s auxiliary will hold its 20-something annual homemade chicken and noodle dinner with vegetables, salads and desserts March 25 at the Atlanta Community Building. The firefighters will begin serving at 5 p.m. ... This is a fundraiser to benefit the fire department, and free donations will be appreciated with the money received going to various current and future projects. Source: Cowley CourierTraveler

15 Wednesday, March 15

Goose reduction efforts working at Derby park

info2023-03-15T12:16:35-05:00March 15th, 2023|

For several years, Derby has dealt with issues of invasive geese – particularly on the east side of town, near High Park and Rock River Rapids. According to an annual report from Director of Public Works Robert Mendoza, those remediation efforts are working, as evidenced by the decreasing numbers seen in the city’s annual goose roundup efforts in 2022. While McConnell Air Force Base used to assist Derby through its water fowl harassment program, the city now partners with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Fish and Wildlife Service to help manage the geese at high park through the latter’s capture [...]

15 Wednesday, March 15

Reno County taking action after years of residents having high nitrate levels in water

info2023-03-15T08:51:11-05:00March 15th, 2023|

Reno County is working to find a new water source for some residents after another test showed high nitrate levels in Rural Water District 101, the district that serves the Yoder area. Water collected early last week had a nitrate level of 10.5 mg/L, which exceeds the Kansas and federal (EPA) maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 10 mg/L for public water supply systems. The County says nitrates have increased due to people using inorganic fertilizers and because of animal manure in agricultural areas. Source: KSN-TV