Saline County puts federal dollars toward local child care needs

28 Friday, July 28

Saline County puts federal dollars toward local child care needs

info2023-07-28T07:43:17-05:00July 28th, 2023|

Saline County invested in a local organization that is combating local child care issues, beginning with low wages and limited availability, as part of a big-picture effort to develop the workforce and find long-term solutions. This week, the county awarded the Salina Area United Way $400,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds to be used in their ongoing efforts to address a persistent local need for child care around Salina. Dedicating some of the ARPA funds toward childcare initiatives has been on the county's radar since the ARPA funding first came available. Source: Salina Journal

28 Friday, July 28

USD 501 Topeka teachers to see raises

info2023-07-28T07:42:10-05:00July 28th, 2023|

Teachers in Topeka USD 501 have a new contract — one that will pay them at least $2,000 more over the course of the 2023-24 school year. The district and representatives from Topeka’s chapter of the National Education Association teachers union on Wednesday finalized negotiations on the master contract, which sets the terms of employment and pay scales for more than 1,000 teachers in USD 501. USD 501 teachers are set to make at least $2,000 more than their previous years’ salaries, in addition to any already scheduled increases for additional years of experience and education. Source: CJonline

27 Thursday, July 27

“Rural by Choice Champion: Empowering Her Community through Big Initiatives and Transformative Parks and Trails”

info2023-07-28T07:30:14-05:00July 27th, 2023|

Brittney Holum, one of the twelve grant recipients of the Rural by Choice Champions Program, has been hard at work on the Independence Rural Connection project. This initiative focuses on building trails, wellness, pedestrian and cyclist safety, beautification, and arts and culture through connecting partners and resources to build a stronger rural community. Accepting her charge to be the connector across partners and resources, early on in the initiative Brittney focused on traveling to other rural areas throughout the State to connect to other successful organizations and network with key players across the State. One example of this is she actively [...]

27 Thursday, July 27

Wichita names site for new WSU-KU Wichita Biomedical Center: ‘This is going to be big’

info2023-07-28T07:30:37-05:00July 27th, 2023|

On Tuesday, the Wichita City Council will consider a last-minute agenda item that’s a memorandum of understanding between the city, the University of Kansas Medical Center and Wichita State University for the new Wichita Biomedical Center in downtown. “This is going to be big,” said Assistant City Manager Troy Anderson. “This project is going to transform not only downtown but our entire region as it relates to healthcare (and) medical.” The city has two sites — the southeast corner of Broadway and William where a parking lot is and the southeast corner of Topeka and William where the Wichita Transit center [...]

27 Thursday, July 27

SpaceX ‘superloads’ traveling through Kansas again

info2023-07-27T23:27:10-05:00July 27th, 2023|

The Kansas Department of Transportation says SpaceX "superloads" are making their way through Kansas again Thursday through next Tuesday. KDOT tweeted a map of the planned route, with the loads starting in the northeast and making their way southwest. "Be aware as you travel, as this could affect your travel time," the tweet said. The last time the loads came through the Sunflower State in late May, they were traveling at only 45 mph, and the giant structures took up the entire roadway. Traffic backups were several miles long at times. Source: KAKE - News

27 Thursday, July 27

Wichita water usage is higher than last year in midst of ongoing drought

info2023-07-27T23:24:28-05:00July 27th, 2023|

The City of Wichita is warning people to watch how much water they're using after reports show a 6% increase in water usage commercially and 12% increase residential compared to June 2022. The city has also been in stage one of a drought since January and it says with the amount of water being used stage two is closer than before. "A couple of months ago we would say that stage two would maybe be February of 2024 but now those projections are creeping up," said Megan Lovely a spokesperson for the city. Source: KAKE - News

27 Thursday, July 27

Upset over a school closing, residents of one Kansas town want to cut ties with their district

info2023-07-27T23:22:55-05:00July 27th, 2023|

Kansas residents upset over the closing of their rural high school want to disband their school district and start over, and the move could set a precedent for other towns dealing with enrollment declines. Voters in the Central Plains district near Great Bend will decide Tuesday whether to dissolve the district. If the measure passes, the Kansas Board of Education would redraw boundaries and assign the district’s territory into neighboring districts. The proposal surfaced after the Central Plains school board voted to close Wilson High School earlier this year, citing declining enrollment and rising costs. Source: KCUR News

27 Thursday, July 27

Parsons PD receives lifesaving K-9 gift

info2023-07-27T23:16:33-05:00July 27th, 2023|

It is being called a heartfelt donation in Parsons. The police department has received two specialized K-9 trauma kits from the national nonprofit Protecting K-9 Heroes. Each kit -- one for each of the department's two K-9 officers and their handlers - is valued at more than $100 - and includes first-aid gear for the dogs. Things like a heat blanket, bandages, eye solution, and Narcan. "It's extremely important just to have it so we can at least save the dog's life if we have to. We pray that we never have to use them, but at least now we have [...]

27 Thursday, July 27

Pittsburg reexamining nuisance ordinance & “camping” in city limits

info2023-07-27T23:15:26-05:00July 27th, 2023|

In an effort to "spruce up" the city this year, Pittsburg city leaders are taking a deeper look at a nuisance ordinance that's been in place for nearly forty years. Since 1988, the city hasn't allowed camping inside city limits. Last month, the Pittsburg Police Department asked the prosecutor what was considered camping under the ordinance. After looking at the ordinance, the prosecutor determined there was no real definition. So Tuesday night, Pittsburg city commissioners worked to better define that and see if that only includes campers and RVs or should it also include tents, tarps, and blankets. Source: KSNF/KODE

27 Thursday, July 27

Cleanup nears end as Iola talks storm recovery

info2023-07-28T07:33:27-05:00July 27th, 2023|

By the end of the week, Iola’s crews may be close to doing their first full sweep through town to haul off piles of brush, limbs and downed trees toppled in the July 14 storm that roared through Iola and Allen County. Workers in Iola’s street and alley department, as well as helpers from other departments, continue to clear up brush piles across town. By Thursday, they had reached the final quadrant of town, the northeast section, Iola Assistant City Administrator Corey Schinstock said. “We’d like to be done Friday, but it may roll over into next week,” Schinstock said. “There’s [...]