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Municipal News & Jobs

Municipal News & Jobs2018-08-05T16:28:50-05:00

Kansas Municipal News

City of Eudora has ‘considerable concerns’ with proposed quarry right next to existing Hamm Quarry

A permit to establish a new quarry in Eudora is on the Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Commission’s agenda for approval Wednesday, and Eudora’s city staff has “considerable concerns” based largely on anticipated growth south of the city. The applicant, Topeka-based Mid-States Materials, is seeking approval to break ground on a limestone quarry at 1174 East 2300 Road, just southeast of Eudora and right across the road from the existing Hamm Quarry. According to a summary of the application, Mid-States Materials wants to operate the quarry on a 242-acre parcel — with no more than 50 acres open for quarrying activity at any time — for 20 years.
Source: LJWorld

Saline County stops using grading method after poor results

After gathering feedback from community members and observing results of a road grading method, Saline County has decided to stop using a technique on county roads that has left its residents unsatisfied and with complaints. The county has been testing a three-pass method of road grading that has both pros and cons, said Road and Bridge Administrator Darren Fisher, but has decided to stop using that method. Fisher presented his department’s findings to the County Commission a week ago. He cited the method’s pros and cons and heard from commissioners who passed along community concerns.
Source: Salina Journal

Kansas school leaders urge lawmakers to fully fund special education services

It’s difficult for 6-year-old Crosby Orlando to stay in his first-grade classroom. Born with Down syndrome, he has been in therapy since he was four weeks old to work on behavioral and communication barriers. Orlando is mostly nonverbal and uses signs to communicate with classmates, though he gets restless and wants to run around. Once, he even escaped his Shawnee Mission school. His mother, Sara Jahnke, said she used to struggle with guilt about the amount of resources Orlando required as a child with extra needs in a classroom setting. Jahnke said she then realized how beneficial being in a classroom was for both him and his classmates.
Source: Atchison Globe Now

Derby Recreation Commission fills Director of Marketing position

The Derby Recreation Commission announced the hiring of Amanda Miller to fill the Director of Marketing position at the monthly DRC board meeting on Nov. 8. Miller previously worked at the Kansas Turnpike Authority in Wichita as a customer relations analyst. She had been with the KTA since 2014, first working as a communications specialist. Miller is a Derby resident and an Emporia State alum, graduating in 2014 with a bachelor’s in Communications and Public Relations. She officially starts with the DRC on Nov. 14.
Source: Derby Informer | News

Overland Park wants public input on what city projects to prioritize

The city of Overland Park is asking for public input on what projects to prioritize over the next few years. What are capital improvements? The 2024-28 Capital Improvements Program is the city’s five-year plan to forecast public improvements and facility needs in Overland Park. Park restroom and playground improvements, salt storage barns and major street reconstruction are examples of projects in the program. The program also provides data concerning need, costs, timing, funding sources, budget impacts and alternatives.
Source: Prairie Village Post

Heartland grants aid local groups

Two projects undertaken by organizations serving Allen County residents will soon be closer to reality thanks to funding from Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative’s Concern for Community grant program.  Fairview Chapel, a historical building managed by Osage Township and located at the Fairview Cemetery, received $2,500 for a new restroom. The restroom is among the final pieces of an ongoing renovation project at the chapel, which is used by families when a burial occurs at the cemetery. Meanwhile, Moran-Marmaton/Osage Fire Department received $2,500 to purchase new hoses and nozzles.
Source: The Iola Register

Haysville master police officer receives life-saving award

A Haysville master police officer (MPO) received a life-saving award Monday. Haysville Police Department Chief Jeff Whitfield presented MPO J.D. Willis with a life-saving award for his quick action at a scene earlier this year that saved a life. According to a post from the City of Haysville Kansas Facebook page, on Friday, May 20, Willis was working the night shift when he was dispatched to assist the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office with a car crash.
Source: KSN-TV

Manhattan to consider predevelopment agreement with MHA for a city-owned parking lot

The Manhattan City Commission will consider final development plans for a $40 million commercial and residential Aggieville project. The city commission meeting starts at 6 p.m. at City Hall on Tuesday. The meeting is a legislative meeting, meaning the commission will take action. Back 9 Development is behind the project — formerly called “Fuze,” now called “Midtown Development.” The concept consists of a proposed $40 million, five-story commercial and residential building to replace the parking lot on 12th and Laramie behind Kite’s Bar and Grill. In addition to the development agreement, the commission also will consider transferring the city-owned parking lot to Back 9 for the project.
Source: themercury.com

Paving Dodge City’s Future 2023 Street Sales Tax passes

On Nov. 8, voters passed a citywide halfa- percent sales tax for street repair/maintenance and property tax relief. Sixty percent of voters were in favor of the proposal. The new sales tax is estimated to bring $3.5 million in revenue annually. “The people decided they didn’t like the roads in the shape they are in and that they needed this tax to fund streets and roads,” City Commissioner and sales tax supporter Joseph Nuci said Nov. 9. Commissioner Rick Sowers said he also supported the measure and sees the need for street repair in Dodge City but had some reservations about it because, “there is no sunset clause. It goes into perpetuity. I would have preferred it had a sunset clause where it would have to be put back before the people after a designated period of time.”
Source: Dodge City Daily Globe

Fed officials see grounds for soon slowing rate-hike pace

The Federal Reserve looked closer to moderating aggressive interest-rate increases after welcome news on inflation, with three officials backing a downshift even as they stressed that policy needs to stay tight. “While I believe it may soon be appropriate to slow the pace of rate increases so we can better assess how financial and economic conditions are evolving, I also believe a slower pace should not be taken to represent easier policy,” Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan told a conference hosted by her bank in Houston on Thursday. Data released earlier on Thursday showed consumer prices cooling by more than expected in October, with the consumer price index rising 7.7% from a year earlier versus 8.2% the month before.
Source: The Bond Buyer

Wichita is getting ready for winter street operations

The City of Wichita is getting ready for winter operations to clear the major streets during snow and ice storms. Mayor Brandon Whipple said during his weekly news briefing that the city is above minimum staffing with 156 drivers, but the city is looking for people with commercial driver’s licenses who would be interested in helping with the snow response efforts. He said the city has eight brine trucks for pre-treatment of the streets, 60 plow trucks, and three dispatch locations. The mayor said the city has 6,000 tons of salt and sand mix that is ready for use, but there is also a supply of 17,500 tons of salt that can be used to create an additional supply of 35,000 tons of salt and sand mix.    He said the city prepares for winter by stocking up on salt and sand, training employees and providing regular maintenance for the plow trucks.
Source: 101.3 KFDI

Overland Park Police could soon start carrying anti-opioid overdose Narcan spray

Overland Park police officers may soon begin carrying Narcan, a life-saving medicine meant to counteract the effects of an opioid overdose. On Wednesday, the Overland Park City Council’s Public Safety Committee voted to recommend approval of an agreement with the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners that would allow Overland Park police officers to carry Narcan. With the agreement, the department would partner with the Johnson County EMS division to establish a protocol for officers to obtain, carry and administer Narcan nasal spray.
Source: Prairie Village Post

Voters reject USD 329 Wabaunsee bond proposal that would close Maple Hill Elementary

Residents in USD 329 Wabaunsee rejected the district’s $17.9 million bond proposal in Tuesday’s election. With all 13 precincts reporting, the final vote tally indicated a close race with only 67 votes separating the decision. Ultimately, 944 of the 1,821 total votes counted had “No” marked for advancing the district bond issue. First-year USD 329 Superintendent Troy Pitsch sent a letter to district families Wednesday morning informing them that the bond issue failed, and that emotions are “likely mixed” among those who supported the proposal and those who didn’t. In the letter, he wrote in part that the district is a “family of families” united in the common cause of educating students.
Source: themercury.com

Roeland Park looks to move public public works department to KCK

The city of Roeland Park has agreed to look at potentially acquiring property for a new public works site in neighboring Wyandotte County, as the proposed redevelopment of The Rocks site — where the city’s public works department is currently housed — moves forward. The prospective new public works site is at 1800 Merriam Lane, in Kansas City, Kan., across Interstate 35, about a five-minute drive from Roeland Park City Hall. At its meeting Nov.1, the city council agreed to move forward on a proposed land purchase agreement for the new public works site at a cost of $1.7 million, according to city documents.
Source: Prairie Village Post

Cowley County hires new emergency manager

Oct. 24 was the first day on the job for new Cowley County Emergency Management Director Candi Baross, and she said she’s been on the go since then getting to know the people and the area she will serve. Baross, 41, is originally from Jackson, Miss. She grew up knowing whatever she did in her life, she always wanted to serve the public. A 21-year career on active duty in the U.S. Army focused on preparedness training for different units. Preparedness training “is really important to me,” Baross said. Training groups to collaborate with other entities makes for successful missions, she said.
Source: Cowley CourierTraveler

Public Input Being Sought on Wildfire Prevention and Response

Governor Kelly is calling on residents to share their thoughts on how to better prevent, respond to, and recover from wildfires. The Governor’s Wildfire Task Force (established in July) is seeking public input as it takes a comprehensive look at mitigating wildfire threats, reviews how local and state officials respond to these emergencies and considers how to better support communities impacted by wildfires.
Source: 101.3 KFDI

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