Kansas Municipal News
Commission reviews rental registration, parking ordinances
Parsons city commissioners this week began reviewing language for ordinances that would require landlords to register rental properties with the city and restrict citizens from parking on front and side yards of residences. Registering rental properties could be the first step toward improving the condition of rental properties in Parsons. The parking issue is a way to remove unsightly vehicles from the yards in Parsons. The vehicles would have to be parked on an all-weather surface to stay on the front or side yards. These surfaces range from gravel to concrete. The discussion of the registration requirement may not apply to AirBNBs or VRBO homes, commissioners heard. Renters in these homes are there for the short term and owners go to lengths to bring customers in by providing amenities and clean living spaces.
Source: Parsons Sun
Another city-owned ‘ghost town’ neighborhood in south Wichita is about to get a facelift
Wichita resident Wenedra Bell grew up in a city-owned home on the south side near Hydraulic and I-135, and is now in the middle of an entire neighborhood of boarded-up homes. “We had block parties, the children were everywhere…it was nice. It was real homey,” Bell said, describing what the neighborhood used to be like. “It’s sad. It’s like a ghost town here. It’s not the same at all.” City Councilman Mike Hoheisel says the city owns nearly fifty homes in the neighborhood, and most of them have been abandoned and boarded up for about five years now. “It’s an understandable concern because you don’t want to see that in your neighborhood,” Hoheisel said. Hoheisel says the good news is that the city has approval from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, to renovate and sell the homes twelve at a time. He says that while there’s always a lot of red tape dealing with Washington, one of the big advantages he’s had to get the ball rolling versus a similar city-owned ghost town sitting stagnant near 21st and I-135 is that it’s easier to get environmental approval from HUD in his area. “Each of these homes also has to have an environmental report about that thick coming along with it for us to put it back on the market,” Hoheisel explained.
Source: KAKE – News
Topeka Police help out Special Olympics Kansas
The Topeka Police Department partnered with Special Olympics Kansas Tuesday for an annual fundraiser. The statewide event, TIP-A-COP, took place at Applebee’s. From 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. 10% of sales made went back to Special Olympics Kansas. It’s something that means a lot to both officers and the athletes. “Law enforcements involved, involvement with special Olympics, that’s why we’re here, and we’re really just here to support the athletes and help them out, let them know how important they are to us,” Topeka Police Department Sgt. Dan Wilson said. “It feels awesome that they’re showing that they care and that we mean a lot to them,” Special Olympics Kansas Athlete Rylee Robinson said. On top of the fundraiser, TPD raffled off four tickets to a Kansas City Royals baseball game.
Source: KSNT 27 News
Federal grant of $500,000 will help city address domestic violence
The two-year grant will pay for additional staffing and community resources. Police Chief Robert Spinks announced the grant at the city commission’s work session on Thursday. City Manager Debbie Lamb said the grant will be for $506,380. Spinks said he proposed a demonstration project that focuses on domestic violence, prevention, intervention and support services. The county attorney, city attorney, Safe House advocates and other agencies will be involved. Parsons has seen increased rates of domestic violence incidents in recent years. Spinks said the grant will fund a new full-time detective sergeant position to focus on domestic violence. It also pays for a full time victim advocate working with victims in district court. The office space for the project will be Suite 4 at the training annex at 21st and Corning. He said Safe House administrators thought having the domestic violence center away from the police department was important. The grant also provides training, pays for office equipment and utilities. Funding will also be available to provide a motel room or basic needs for children in certain instances.
Source: Parsons Sun
Visit Manhattan launches “Manhappiness” campaign to draw in visitors
Visit Manhattan on Friday launched its “Manhappiness” campaign to showcase the culture and experiences the city has to offer visitor. As part of the campaign, Visit Manhattan will highlight the diverse attractions, events and amenities that it believes make the region a top destination for leisure, business and family-friendly experiences. That includes the downtown area’s shops and restaurants, the scenery of the Flint Hills and more. “We are excited to unveil the ‘Manhappiness’ campaign and invite everyone to discover the joy of Manhattan,” said Marcia Rozell, director of Visit Manhattan, in a written statement. “With its rich cultural heritage, outdoor recreational opportunities and welcoming community, Manhattan offers something for everyone, whether you’re seeking adventure, relaxation or simply a memorable getaway.” The campaign will feature a variety of marketing initiatives, including digital and social media promotions, visual content, storytelling and partnerships with local hospitality businesses and attractions. Through these efforts, Visit Manhattan “aims to inspire travel enthusiasts, families, event planners and business travelers to experience the happiness of Manhattan firsthand,” according to a release.
Source: themercury.com
Municipal Bond Trends for April 9, 2024
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.
Municipal Bond Trends for April 8, 2024
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.
At 8 million square feet, solar project would be same size as 4,000 homes
In all of Grant Township — one of several names for this place north of North Lawrence — there are 169 homes spread across its approximately 11,000 acres, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Simple enough. As the crow said, not very many. But soon, the counting around here may get more complicated. Plans have been filed for a utility-scale solar “farm” that would put 237,300 solar panels on about 600 acres of farm fields. That is nearly 8 million square feet of solar panels.
Source: LJWorld
Higher for Longer After All? Investors See Fed Rates Falling More Slowly.
Investors were betting big on Federal Reserve rate cuts at the start of 2024, wagering that central bankers would lower interest rates to around 4 percent by the end of the year. But after months of stubborn inflation and strong economic growth, the outlook is starting to look much less dramatic. Market pricing now suggests that rates will end the year in the neighborhood of 4.75 percent. That would mean Fed officials had cut rates two or three times from their current 5.3 percent.
Source: NYT > Business
Five finalists for city manager say Topeka must address these key issues
Before the meet and greet, the city council, mayor and a panel of community stakeholders, appointed by the mayor, interviewed each candidate. The panelists included Danielle Twemlow, Laura Burton, Keith Warta, Kerry Pancoast and Susan Duffy. City council member David Banks said he was pleased with the turnout at Monday’s event. “It’s just nice to see everybody here,” Banks said.
Source: CJonline
Kansas solar development sparks emotional debate in Great Bend
There was a collective sigh of relief from members of the Barton County Planning Commission following a lengthy morning meeting March 14. They had just approved the final draft of new zoning regulations and a revised zoning map governing the development of large-scale and commercial solar energy conversion systems, rules that were OK’d Friday by the Barton County Commission during a special meeting. These actions capped an arduous 10 months of meetings, hearings and heartfelt testimony as county residents came to grips with the idea of having a solar installation in their backyards.
Source: Kansas Reflector
North Newton to discuss marijuana ordinance
The City of North Newton will consider changing first-time possession of marijuana from a criminal misdemeanor charge to an infraction. North Newton Police Chief Jim Bethards is submitting the proposal to the North Newton City Council. He said the change would save his department time and save the city money. “One distinction we want people to understand is it’s not decriminalization like Wichita or Lawrence has done,” he said. “It’s just a first-offense thing that moves the process a little quicker.”
Source: Harvey County Now
Olathe land had belonged to one family since Civil War. Soon it will be a city park
Land that has been in the hands of Olathe’s Hoff family since the Civil War is set to become the city’s latest neighborhood park. Construction starts on Pioneer Park later this year, with the goal of being done by next summer. The 16.7-acre piece of land where the park will sit is immediately north of College Boulevard and slightly west of Woodland Road and the Stone Pillar Winery. Marcie Hoff and her husband Tom Hoff had decided to will the land to the city back in 2005, but they later resolved to give it earlier.
Source: Joco 913 News
‘Step into a simpler time’
Two committed Crawford County residents are making progress on bringing back the days of a nostalgic old-fashioned general shop to the west side of Girard’s historic downtown square, complete with antiques, homemade ice cream, and candies. Jim and Kathi Cooper, of Farlington Lake, have worked endlessly since August in building the store, which has an anticipated completion date of August 2024. It all started when Kathi Cooper found herself in the Girard Public Library, researching the history of the town square.
Source: Morning Sun
Overland Park to remove thousands more infected ash trees — Here’s where
Overland Park is taking steps to remove more dying and dead ash trees that line city streets. The Overland Park City Council Community Development Committee on Wednesday unanimously recommended for approval a bid tabulation for a second formal round of ash tree removal. This slate of removals, anticipated to cost just shy of $865,000, will be funded entirely from federal COVID-19 relief funds. Emerald ash borers, a type of insect that is not native to the U.S., have wreaked havoc on ash trees. A type of beetle, female ash borers lay eggs in ash trees and those offspring feed on the trees, damaging and oftentimes killing them. At one point, Overland Park had more than 10,000 ash trees in its street canopy, roughly a quarter of all trees in the city. Laura Peterson, one of the city’s foresters, told the committee on Wednesday that the pest was first detected in Overland Park in 2014. Since then, it’s all but wiped out the ash tree population in the city. Over the years, the city had removed infected ash trees, mostly one by one. But last year, Overland Park embarked on its first widespread removal effort, targeting dead or dying trees in 12 neighborhoods.
Source: Johnson County Post
‘Act of listening’: Retiring Wichita officer has spent years answering life-or-death calls
One evening early in Dan Oblinger’s career with the Wichita Police Department, he responded to a call he was unprepared for — a woman dangling over the guardrail on the top floor of the Bank of America parking garage downtown, intent on ending her life. She felt alone, without hope. He didn’t know what to do. He tried to tell her how she should feel and what she should do. That didn’t help. “That lasted probably 15 minutes, which doesn’t sound like a long time … but in that situation it feels like a lifetime,” the 42-year-old said, reflecting back on a career that was greatly influenced by the events of that night. “Then I shut up and started listening to her. She had some stuff to say so once I stopped trying to convince her — and I couldn’t say anything, because I didn’t know what to say — she actually started talking. Then I figured out you just have to ask some questions.”
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Wichita is poised to settle a lawsuit challenging police gang list. Here’s what it means
The city of Wichita is poised to settle a lawsuit brought by Kansas Appleseed and the ACLU of Kansas that contended the Wichita Police Department’s gang list is unconstitutional. Last fall, a federal judge granted class-action status to the 5,245 people on the gang list. If City Council members approve the settlement Tuesday, Wichita will pay $550,000 in legal fees and costs. The mediated agreement would not require Wichita to destroy its gang list as plaintiffs initially called for. Instead, a judge would appoint a special master to oversee its ongoing use by the police department for three years at an additional cost of $75,000 to the city. “This mediated agreement narrows and clarifies the criteria the Wichita Police Department can use to place a person on the gang list/database, with increased oversight on the gang list/database process to review when and how someone can be listed,” the agenda report states. City documents do not elaborate on how the process for placing someone on the gang list would change.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
How long would it take to run every street in Wichita? Local runner now knows after being first
The most challenging part about running every square inch of Wichita? Loose dogs. Jason Niblack was chased by dozens of them, cornered multiple times, even had a driver cut in between him and a pack of aggressive dogs. He eventually started carrying pepper spray but never had to use it. The 48-year-old software engineering manager at NetApp also had a couple of interesting encounters with police en route to running Wichita’s 3,886 streets over 596 runs. He finished the feat Easter morning after a few years of what he called obsessive running once he found out about how to track running on every street in the city. It led him to see many hidden gems in the city he spent his whole life in, but also showed him stark lifestyle differences among people who live just blocks away from one another. Niblack, who started running in his 30s after realizing how unhealthy he was during a boot camp put on by a coworker, is the only person known to have run every inch of Wichita.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Goessel City Council works on flooding issue
The Goessel city council met on March 25 and discussed the flood control project. Mayor Evan Esau talked about concrete and debris that need to be removed from the creek that runs through town. Some trees also need to be removed, as well as a dam on private property. It was noted that some property owners in that area have already removed the trees on their property pointed out by Darin Neufeld of EBH Engineering. He had walked through the creek area with members of the council to show them specifically what needed to be removed for the water to flow through town to avoid flooding. The council noted that it is the responsibility of homeowners to clean out their culverts. Turning their attention to another matter, the council spent some time discussing equipment. The tractor that had been repaired does not work; it still has the same problem. The city will pay for the parts that had been billed, but will not pay for the labor yet. The city’s road grader does not work either, and parts are no longer available to fix it since it is old. The council has looked into purchasing another road grader but made no decision. In the meantime, they accepted a contract to hire the road work at 10 hours a month for $125 per hour.
Source: Hillsboro Free Press
New sculpture honoring Leawood’s 75-year history coming soon
Now that the Leawood City Council has given final funding approvals, a massive sculpture celebrating the city’s 75th anniversary — and compared in importance by one councilmember to a piece by Michelangelo — can begin its journey from New Orleans to the corner of Mission Road and Lee Boulevard. The 844-mile-trip between New Orleans and Leawood will have to be made four times with the sculpture broken down into movable pieces. But that is only the latest chapter. “Reaching,” a 28-foot tall, 15,000-pound work by William Nemitoff, has already been on an epic journey that began in 2021 and has included debates over the site, a proposed parking lot, supply chain issues and unexpected installation expenses. “I have to think of Michelangelo doing the Sistine Chapel. I’m sure that didn’t start and finish the way everybody envisioned it,” said Councilmember Debra Filla as the city council prepared to approve installation spending Monday night. “I do think it is going to be one spectacular thing. I’m going to put it on my nightly prayer list — installed by July 1, installed by July 1.”
Source: Johnson County Post