De Soto clears path for massive solar farm

10 Monday, April 10

De Soto clears path for massive solar farm

info2023-04-10T23:41:46-05:00April 10th, 2023|

The City of De Soto is figuring out how it'll handle what could be the largest solar farm in the nation, which City leaders expect to eventually pop up near Panasonic's $4 billion electric vehicle battery plant that is under construction right now. On Thursday, City leaders approved a permitting process to allow a Utility-Scale Solar Facility (USSF) of up to 3,000 acres that could create between 600-800 megawatts. Industry experts say that much energy could power roughly 500,000 homes at the same time. Source: KSN-TV

10 Monday, April 10

Wichita considers raising fees to improve golf courses

info2023-04-10T23:40:09-05:00April 10th, 2023|

As the City of Wichita displayed an improvement to one of the City's public golf courses Thursday, it said other improvements are needed. The improvement the City pointed to on Thursday involves the MacDonald Golf Course's driving range not being near the clubhouse like at other golf courses. "It creates a big challenge for not only customers, staff, First Tee with their programming, having to figure out to transport the balls from the clubhouse to here. It's a big issue," Jesse Coffman, the City's golf director, said. Source: KSN-TV

10 Monday, April 10

Paola turns dispatch duties over to county

info2023-04-10T23:38:48-05:00April 10th, 2023|

A staffing shortage has forced the city of Paola to turn its dispatch duties over to the Miami County Sheriff’s Office beginning May 1. Paola City Council members, during their March 14 meeting, agreed to make a reduction in force and transition to the Miami County Sheriff’s Office to provide dispatch services for the city of Paola beginning May 1. Paola City Council member Dave Smail, who is a former Paola police chief, abstained from voting. Miami County commissioners, during their March 29 meeting, voted 5-0 to take over dispatch services for the city of Paola, effective May 1. Source: Local [...]

10 Monday, April 10

Riley County agrees to enter opioid lawsuit settlement

info2023-04-10T23:37:26-05:00April 10th, 2023|

The Riley County Commission on Monday unanimous authorized participating in a nationwide settlement agreement in an opioid lawsuit. Five companies, Teva, Allergan, CVS, Walgreens and Walmart, agreed late last year to provide settlement funds to the cities and counties who opt into the settlement by the April 18 deadline. While the exact payout for each entities hasn’t been determined, the total settlement is estimated to be several billion dollars, Clancy Holeman, Riley County counselor, said during the meeting. By participating in this settlement, Riley County will have to waive its ability to sue these five companies on their own. Source: themercury.com

10 Monday, April 10

Study analyzes land ownership by location

info2023-04-10T23:35:52-05:00April 10th, 2023|

Experts expect nearly 40% of American agricultural land will transition ownership in the next 15 years. As Kansas farmers retire and land is either sold or inherited by farming or non-farming heirs, the makeup and location of the new owners of that land has been changing over time, reports Kansas State University agricultural economist Robin Reid. Reid worked with the Kansas Property Valuation Division of the Department of Revenue to analyze agricultural land ownership by location. The researchers used data from 2015, the last most complete year of data available. The results, reported in January, show that 84.5% of acres in [...]

10 Monday, April 10

Abilene home to World’s Largest Belt Buckle

info2023-04-10T16:21:36-05:00April 10th, 2023|

Whether on a cross-state road trip or just looking for a unique stop in central Kansas, the small town of Abilene has a new roadside activity to make your list. Last December, Abilene unveiled its latest addition to artwork to honor its cowboy history. Its latest piece is now known as the World’s Largest Belt Buckle. “It’s just something that makes people smile,” said Julie Roller Weeks, director of the Abilene Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. “It’s been so fun to see people’s reactions.” The World’s Largest Belt Buckle was designed by an Abilene local artist Jason Lahr with Fuller’s Creek Metal [...]

10 Monday, April 10

Kansas could have new state park featuring clear lake, miles of trails

info2023-04-10T16:19:29-05:00April 10th, 2023|

Rural southeast Kansas could soon be home to a new state park if lawmakers approve a gift of former industrial land that has been redeveloped into a lake and trail hub. The proposed Lehigh Portland State Park would be on the site of a former cement plant and quarry near Iola, known locally as Elks Lake. The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks currently maintains 28 state parks, and the agency supports Lehigh Portland becoming the 29th. The property’s nearly 360 acres contain a 138-acre lake, 300-foot-long cave, woodlands, native prairie and more than 2.5 miles of wide gravel trails and [...]

10 Monday, April 10

CCMFOA Clerk of the Year is Jami Downing (Stafford)

info2023-04-10T13:49:39-05:00April 10th, 2023|

Jami Downing, City Clerk, City of Stafford, Kansas, was selected as the recipient of the 2023 Mildred Vance City Clerk/Finance Officer of the Year for the State of Kansas. In October, Downing will again be recognized for this award at the League of Kansas Municipalities (LKM) Annual Conference in Wichita, Kansas.

10 Monday, April 10

Past resolution would allow farm animals at Newton schools

info2023-04-10T10:10:00-05:00April 10th, 2023|

According to a city memo to be discussed at the April 10 Newton City Commission meeting, the Newton School District would be able to host an agricultural-based program, similar to the one at Walton Rural Life Center, within the City of Newton. The memo follows Board Member Luke Edwards asking the city if it would be able to change its animal ordinances in the future, in case the district would want to start a program with livestock at one of its schools located in the city. Source: Harvey County Now

10 Monday, April 10

Harvey County planning commission leaning toward an outright ban

info2023-04-10T12:13:21-05:00April 10th, 2023|

The Harvey County Planning Commission began the process of documenting reasons why wind turbines were not a good fit for the county at its meeting Tuesday. After planning commissioners and Planning and Zoning Director Karen Rothe disclosed what research they had done since the Board of Harvey County Commissioners adopted a six-month moratorium on renewable energy projects, Vice Chairwoman Lynne Vigil listed four distinct reasons for banning wind turbines: groundwater; airports and weather radar; setback distances; and search and rescue flights by emergency crews. Source: Harvey County Now