Kansas lawmakers debate sales tax holiday for back-to-school shopping

24 Tuesday, January 24

Kansas lawmakers debate sales tax holiday for back-to-school shopping

info2023-01-24T00:12:11-06:00January 24th, 2023|

Three bills that would help Kansas parents trying to save money on school supplies were received favorably by legislators on Thursday. During a Senate Committee on Assessment and Taxation meeting, Sen. Caryn Tyson, R-Parker, committee chair, said she was optimistic about passing some form of legislation to help out Kansans buying for school in August. Tyson said states that had some form of sales tax holidays, such as Missouri and Oklahoma, were taking dollars from Kansas parents who needed supplies. She said some of the original opposition to this sort of sales tax holiday in 2011, when it was first discussed, [...]

23 Monday, January 23

Derby school employee recognized for promoting student-police synergy

info2023-01-23T23:17:15-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

After Dr. Jennifer Cox, physical therapist for the Derby school district, attended a safety and security in-service training last fall she turned her attention to developing a plan to ensure special needs students and security officers were in sync during emergency situations. As a result of her leadership, Cox, known to her co-workers and students as Dr. Jenn, was awarded the 2022 Derby Police Department Volunteer of the Year Award on Jan. 9. The ceremony took place with students and co-workers at Tanglewood Elementary School, the site of the in-service training. Source: Derby Informer | News

23 Monday, January 23

As other real estate markets cool, Kansas City among ‘hottest.’ JoCo city is most popular

info2023-01-23T23:10:22-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

When he bought his first home 25 years ago, real estate agent Bill Allen said buyers could attain the quintessential Prairie Village home — a cape cod spanning about 1,500 square feet — for about $100,000. Now, those homes go for $400,000 or more. “That’s amazing, above-average appreciation,” he said. And the real estate market in the northern Johnson County community shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Real estate giant Zillow recently named Kansas City among its top 10 “hottest” real estate markets. And last month, the company named Prairie Village as its most popular city of 2022. That [...]

23 Monday, January 23

Crawford County hotels experience record-breaking stays

info2023-01-23T23:05:21-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

A new report shows a record number of people stayed in Crawford County hotels last year. According to "Smith Travel Research", in four out of the last five years, Crawford County surpassed one hundred thousand hotel room stays in a year. Last year that number hit 109,750, the highest ever reported for the county. Tourism leaders say contributing factors include allowing spectators back in sporting events, as well as construction projects like the new Fed Ex building and the highway construction. Source: KSNF/KODE

23 Monday, January 23

Abilene named finalist in best historic small town contest

info2023-01-24T07:06:51-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

Abilene will have another shot at being named as the best historic small town in 2023. USA Today's 2023 Reader's Choice Best Historic Small Town content includes the town of Abilene for the fifth year in a row, according to Julie Roller Weeks, Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau director. This will give Abilene another opportunity to take the number one spot after being rank second in 2022. "This is so exciting," Weeks said. "Receiving this recognition once is a big deal, let alone five years in a row. It's unimaginable!" Source: KSNT 27 News

23 Monday, January 23

Public input sought on Wall Park playground

info2023-01-24T07:08:13-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

The McPherson Public Lands and Facilities Department invites the public to give feedback on the playground design for Wall Park. The Wall Park Playground, which was put in place in 1988, was removed from use in 2019 for safety reasons. Most of the money required to buy new playground equipment has been raised, thanks to contributions from an unidentified donor and Larry and Pat Bruce of McPherson. The project can now proceed after a little over three years. Seven designs were collected from five vendors. The City of McPherson, McPherson Public Lands and Facilities, and the park department are asking for [...]

23 Monday, January 23

Lawrence to hold public feedback meeting on land development code assessment

info2023-01-24T07:08:47-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

A committee has assessed the document that regulates how land is used and what can be built where in Lawrence. Now, members want feedback from the public to know how well that assessment reflects needed changes. The city’s current land development code is based on a nearly quarter-century-old vision for the city, and it’s due for an update, local leaders decided last year. The city’s strategic plan, published in 2021, and an updated comprehensive plan, Plan 2040, are serving as guiding documents for the update to the code. Source: The Lawrence Times

23 Monday, January 23

Mayor of Cameroon visits Hays, signs friendship resolution

info2023-01-23T08:22:39-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

Mayor Fongu Cletus Tanwe is the Mayor of the English-speaking region of the country of Cameroon. He is Mayor of Bamenda III Council, NKWEN region. A meeting with City of Hays Mayor Mason Ruder and Mayor Fongu Cletus Tanwe was held Thursday afternoon at 3 p.m. at City Hall. It was agreed that they would sign a friendship resolution on Friday before Mayor Fongu departs. Mayor Fongu met Cindy Elliott and Mehran Shahidi through Sister Cities International (SCI) about 10 years ago, when he attended one of SCI’s annual meetings in Virginia Beach. He attended subsequent meetings in Aurora, CO and [...]

23 Monday, January 23

Rural economy growing slowly, headwinds on horizon

info2023-01-23T08:17:37-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

The Creighton University Rural Mainstreet Index (RMI), that was released on Thursday, climbed above the growth neutral threshold, 50.0, for a second consecutive month, according to the monthly survey of bank CEOs in rural areas of a 10-state region dependent on agriculture and/or energy. Economist Ernie Goss said that the ag sector has actually done fairly well lately. ... Farmers generally are doing pretty well cash wise, which is good news for them, but not necessarily for the bankers that the survey covers, but as conditions soften, Goss sees use of credit by farmers as more likely soon. "That's going to [...]

23 Monday, January 23

As Douglas County expands to 5-member commission, a look at nearby counties that have done the same

info2023-01-23T08:13:14-06:00January 23rd, 2023|

Though voters will have to wait nearly two more years to fill the two vacant seats on the newly expanded five-seat Douglas County Commission, at least one nearby county has completed the same process in recent years and could provide some clues about what’s to come here. Douglas County voters approved a ballot measure that expanded the commission from three seats to five in November, and since then county leaders have crafted a new map of commission districts and have decided when the two new commissioners should be elected. Based on the commission’s recommendation, Gov. Laura Kelly gave her approval last [...]