News – Page 10 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Derby may get sports complex

info2018-09-13T11:12:41-05:00September 13th, 2018|

If changes are authorized within the Derby STAR bond district, they could result in a new multifaceted sports complex. The topic was set to be received by the Derby City Council at its Sept. 11 meeting as a first reading. As proposed, the facility would include indoor and outdoor sport areas, outdoor sand courts and game areas. It also could have a restaurant. It has a tentative name of Derby’s Sports Zone. Officials say it would provide a resource for training, team practice, games and events. It would deal with a variety of sports, such as badminton, paddleball, sand volleyball and [...]

Chanute utilities director ‘unicorn’ remembered by friends, co-workers

info2018-09-05T07:49:29-05:00September 5th, 2018|

Friends and co-workers reacted Tuesday to the death of Chanute Utilities Director Larry Gates. Gates passed away early Friday after a brief illness. Chanute City Manager Jeff Cantrell recalled Gates as rock-solid, confident in his work, compassionate and someone who would give the shirt off his back. “The loss is a shock to our organization,” Cantrell said. Although he did not give details, he said officials knew about 30 days ago that Gates had serious health issues. Cantrell said even while undergoing treatment, Gates kept involved with city services through texts and emails. “Larry was my boss, my mentor,” retired utilities [...]

Derby: Rules exist for outbuildings

info2018-08-31T09:48:19-05:00August 31st, 2018|

A new business, Graceland Portable Buildings, is selling outbuildings at 2230 N. Nelson Drive, including some large models. The Derby Informer asked City Engineer Dan Squires about what local residents need to know when looking at the structures. Generally, such buildings are allowed, but they do have to meet zoning requirements, Squires said. “Any accessory structure has to be permitted and meet the setback requirements for the zoning district and the individual lot,” he said. Also, there are a lot of coverage requirements. In the single-family residential district, the lot coverage is limited to 30 percent. Thus, on a 10,000-square-foot lot [...]

Derby City Council looks at refurbishing pools

info2018-08-31T09:46:15-05:00August 31st, 2018|

After 15 years of use, the pools at the city’s water park, Rock River Rapids, are in need of a total facelift, say city officials. At issue are all the layers of paint that have been put on the pool surfaces over the years. That’s 12 layers to be precise. While they have served their purpose, they also can potentially hide concrete damage such as cracks, said Steve White, director of parks, who submitted a refurbishment proposal to the City Council for its consideration at its Aug. 28 meeting. The city has received five bids to thoroughly sandblast the pools, clean [...]

Town hall meeting discusses wind generation project in Neosho County

info2018-08-31T09:42:22-05:00August 31st, 2018|

As many as 80 people attended a town hall meeting Tuesday evening, some to learn about and some to oppose a planned wind generation project in southeast Neosho County. The Neosho County Commission held the meeting at the Galesburg Community Center with representatives of Apex Clean Energy to discuss the project to place 100 to 130 wind turbines in a 100-square-mile area roughly between Anderson and Platt roads and between 140th and 50th roads. “We’re here tonight because we want to hear from you,” Commissioner Jennifer Orr told the gathering, “not because we’ve made a decision.” Chris Ollson of Environmental Health [...]

Neosho County hears about wind generation project

info2018-08-27T06:39:59-05:00August 27th, 2018|

A county engineer who worked with a previous wind generation project gave information to Neosho County Commissioners at Friday’s meeting. Coffey County engineer Wayne Blackbourn gave a presentation about a wind generation project there in 2015. The developer, EDPR, constructed 95 turbines to generate 200 megawatts of power, and Blackbourn said the project impacted 60 miles of roads. A town hall meeting is scheduled for 6:30 pm Tuesday about a plan by Apex Clean Energy to construct a 300-megawatt wind farm in southeast Neosho County. The meeting location has been changed to the Galesburg Community Center. Blackbourn discussed agreements the county [...]

Derby Historical Society Museum finally free of window, roof leaks

info2018-08-09T07:24:13-05:00August 9th, 2018|

It’s been a lot of work, but the advances made by the city’s only museum are making its president smile. “I’ve seen a lot of progress this year,” said John Rhodes, president of the executive board of directors of the Derby Historical Society Museum. Much of that progress is simply protecting the exhibits from the elements in the decades-old building at 208 N. Westview. Recently, a windows replacement project was completed and a new roof added, cutting out leaks. “We had real problems, but the contents are finally safe,” Rhodes said. “We’re getting the building in good shape.” The museum, which [...]

Dog situation in Chanute affects mail delivery to neighborhood

info2018-08-03T07:12:59-05:00August 3rd, 2018|

A Chanute family, asked to relocate its mailbox to the curb because of a dangerous dog, has questioned why the city has not picked up the dog. “Why isn’t it the person with the dog that is being dealt with?” homeowner Connie Vance said. Vance’s daughter, Marsha Stipp, said the post office requested residents of Vance’s neighborhood place curbside mailboxes. Stipp said she is concerned about her parents, who are in their upper 60s and her father is in poor health, going for the mail when the weather is icy. “I just don’t understand,” Stipp said, adding that many of the [...]

Could an area transit service be in Derby’s future?

info2018-07-19T06:51:16-05:00July 19th, 2018|

If Derby were to get a public transportation connection to Wichita, a possibility would be a 14-seat passenger van running on an hourly basis. That was one of the alternatives proposed by experts undertaking a transportation study concerning connections of area cities with Wichita. They appeared at a transit study town hall meeting July 11 at City Hall as part of the Connecting Communities project. Along with Derby, they studied Andover, Haysville and Maize to evaluate the demand and support for transit service in a study sponsored by Wichita Transit and funded by the Wichita Area Metropolitan Planning Organization. Planners say [...]

Chanute plans energy audit for buildings

info2018-07-11T11:20:30-05:00July 11th, 2018|

Chanute commissioners voted Monday evening to seek an energy audit for municipal buildings. Energy Solutions Professionals from Overland Park was the only one that responded of three companies city officials asked to provide a request for proposals for an investment-grade energy audit. ESP presented a preliminary audit at the April 23 meeting. Utilities Director Larry Gates said it may be difficult for the Memorial Building to have enough energy savings to pay for the needed improvements in efficiency. But he also said the building’s boiler, installed in 1984, is near the end of its useful life. (Read more: The Chanute Tribune [...]