info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Governor Kelly signs train setback bill

info2024-05-01T13:59:22-05:00May 1st, 2024|

The train safety bill originally pushed by State Senator Carolyn McGinn was signed by Governor Laura Kelly. House Bill 2501 requires trains in Kansas to park 250 feet back from the railroad crossing, unless the Department of Transportation requires a different distance at a location. “I am glad that we were able to pass the set backs for trains,” McGinn said in an email. “The 250-foot setback will help drivers have the opportunity to see approaching trains.” Source: Harvey County Now

Olathe puts finishing touches on ‘significant’ trail project’s latest phase

info2024-05-01T13:58:45-05:00May 1st, 2024|

Olathe recently put the finishing touches on the much-anticipated second phase of its Cedar Creek Trail. Last week, city leaders officially celebrated the completion of this phase of the trail with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. This most recent round of work on the Cedar Creek Trail fully connects the nearly 260-acre Lake Olathe Park on the city’s western side to Cedar Lake Park in southern Olathe. Source: Johnson County Post

Why Wichita’s Century II is salvaged but not quite saved

info2024-05-01T13:57:15-05:00May 1st, 2024|

Even as workers finished replacing the distinctive blue roof of Century II, the flying saucer of a convention center that landed in downtown Wichita in 1969, the fate of the landmark and the area surrounding it remains strangely murky. After a master plan that pushed to replace it, a grassroots campaign to save it, and political and legal fights that amounted to a battle for the future of Wichita – and the past’s place in it – five long years of discussion haven’t brought much clarity. For now, Century II has avoided the fate of its predecessor, the Forum. But its [...]

Duplexes a possible way to make home ownership more in reach in Wichita

info2024-05-01T13:56:33-05:00May 1st, 2024|

The Moores are among hundreds of homebuyers turning to duplexes in lieu of pricier, single-family homes. Although statistics don’t distinguish between duplexes built for lease and those for sale, permits for “two-family” housing have tripled for Wichita area in the last six years —from 250 in 2018 to 754 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Professor Stan Longhofer, director of Wichita State University’s Center for Real Estate, said the reason for this growth is simple: buyers want to save money and developers want to profit from their investments at a time when construction costs have increased 47% since the pandemic. Wess [...]

How High Wall Street Thinks the Fed Will Keep Interest Rates

info2024-05-01T11:53:49-05:00May 1st, 2024|

At the start of 2024, investors expected the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates substantially this year as inflation cooled. But price increases have been surprisingly stubborn, and that is forcing a rethink on Wall Street. Investors and economists are questioning when and how much Fed policymakers will manage to cut rates — and some are increasingly dubious that Fed officials will manage to lower them at all this year. Inflation was coming down steadily in 2023, but that progress has stalled out in 2024. The Fed’s preferred inflation index climbed 2.8 percent in March from a year earlier, after stripping out volatile [...]

City hopes new initiative will help solve affordable housing problem in Wichita

info2024-05-01T11:52:42-05:00May 1st, 2024|

Shanna Ramey has lived in a city-owned rental home for nearly two decades. It's where she raised her three kids and created a lifetime of memories, so it was devastating when she heard the news that the city of Wichita was selling all of the 300-plus homes it owns, including hers. "It was a lot of ups and downs. It was a lot of tears, because I thought I was gonna have to start all over," said Ramey. "It was hard. Horrible. Because I didn't know what to start." The city is giving all current renters the first right to buy the house they live in, which is something [...]

Newton Open Streets aims to bring community together

info2024-05-01T11:51:19-05:00May 1st, 2024|

Newton Open Streets shut down several roads between East 5th and East 6th, the intersection of Broadway and Oak and more. The City approved the request to close down roads from the Harvey County Health Department in order to hold a new community open streets event. "I think it just shows, like, what kind of community that we are, and I think it's good for the kids to get out and do something. Like, we're a small town, so sometimes there's not a lot to do. So, it's really cool that we're doing that this year," said Jordan Enriquez, a Newton resident. The goal [...]

Emergency response teams conduct water rescues in Fort Scott

info2024-05-01T11:50:34-05:00May 1st, 2024|

Water rescues kept emergency personnel from several agencies busy - earlier today. As of earlier this evening - city officials confirmed to us a total of five people had to be rescued throughout today. Officials say two of those five live in what is known as the "Belltown" neighborhood - which is just south of Highway 54 and north of Humbolt Street - near 215th Street. Fort Scott Fire Chief Dave Bruner says his department had some help from neighboring water rescue groups. "Once we were working on those, we actually called two other departments, Vernon County Water Rescue and the Pittsburg Fire Department to [...]

Newly renovated fire station in Shawnee will re-open Saturday. What’s changed?

info2024-05-01T11:49:42-05:00May 1st, 2024|

A once-outdated fire station in Shawnee will re-open as a state-of-the-art facility for firefighters in the area. Located at 6805 Hedge Lane Terrace, Fire Station 73 will host a grand opening from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday for people to check out the building’s upgrades. The renovations are part of a roughly $26 million project to upgrade the station, as well as the John B. Glaser Fire Station Headquarters, set to open later this year, at 6501 Quivira Road. “When you look at fire services around the country, these will be considered cutting-edge fire stations,” said Fire Chief Rick Potter. [...]

Kansas attorney general concludes Junction City Commission broke open meeting law

info2024-05-01T11:47:22-05:00May 1st, 2024|

An investigation by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach revealed the Junction City Commission violated the Kansas Open Meetings Act by convening a closed-door meeting to discuss an economic development project that included a livestock slaughter facility on the outskirts of the city. Public opposition to the once-confidential project, which could have forced sale of farmland for construction of roads and a traffic exit from Interstate 70, appears to have derailed the meatpacking project that was to have been built by Foote Cattle Co. During debate on the proposal, landowner Michelle Munson filed a two-part complaint in July 2023 with the attorney general containing [...]

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