wKREDA News

Governor Laura Kelly Announces Community Development Block Grant Recipients

Wednesday, August 12, 2020

TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly announced that three Kansas cities will receive Community Development Block Grants from the Department of Commerce to assist with commercial redevelopment efforts. Clay Center, Eudora and Lincoln each will receive $250,000 in CDBG funds for redevelopment projects, with each city providing matching funds of $88,000, $87,400 and $125,714, respectively. Read full article.

Governor Laura Kelly Celebrates Third KANSASWORKS Statewide Job Fair

Tuesday, August 11, 2020

TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly celebrated the success of this year’s third KANSASWORKS Statewide Virtual Job Fair, which involved 189 employers and 1,182 jobseekers. “COVID-19 has presented major challenges for workforce services in our state, but we must continue to do all we can to help people find employment opportunities,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “These virtual fairs are a great system to connect employers and jobseekers across the state so that we can get Kansas back to work, safely.” Read full article.

Restart Kansas: A Proven Demonstration Of Inclusion In Entrepreneurship

Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Race relations, police practices and the impact of COVID-19 are propelling a feeling of unrest, uncertainty and tension across the United States. The disproportionate impact of these three issues upon African-Americans has prompted a series of responses ranging from people of all backgrounds flooding the streets in protest to a barrage of social media posts, tweets and snaps written from a multitude of perspectives. Whether agreeing with the responses or denouncing them, the root of the inequities experienced by the African-American community should be addressed — including roots that have created inequities in economic development and entrepreneurship. Read full article.

Hoping for a bin-buster year

Wednesday, June 10, 2020

For Jon Oden, like his wheat fields, life has had many challenges. But like his fields, he keeps going – often with a calm demeanor and an optimistic attitude. Oden is a fifth-generation farmer, operating Sterling Heritage Farms in Sterling and Lyons. Like his forebears, he raises wheat, corn, soybeans and milo. He’s added and deleted other crops to and from the mix throughout the years, including alfalfa, sunflowers and cotton. Read full article.

FAA funds airport work

Tuesday, June 09, 2020

On June 9th at Hays Regional Airport, Hays Aircraft LLC general manager Chris Springer soldered a wire to repair an engine instrument on a customer’s Piper Cherokee 6. He was aware of the $2.2 million in upgrades the city of Hays has planned in the next year for the airport. The construction will have minimal affect on operations, according to city officials. Hays Aircraft, the fixed base operator that fuels and repairs aircraft and offers flight lessons, will see a difference when work begins on an asphalt overlay to rehabilitate Airport Fuel Road on the east side of the airport. Read full article.

NetWork Kansas Awards $250,000 in Grants from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas for COVID-19 Relief Measures

Saturday, June 06, 2020

TOPEKA, Kan. (June 6, 2020) — NetWork Kansas announced it has awarded $250,000 in grants from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas (BCBSKS). The grants have been given to nine colleges and small businesses in Kansas that are making personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers with low supply during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The funding is part of the BCBSKS Blue Health Initiatives Trailblazers grant that was given through NetWork Kansas. Trailblazers builds partnerships to blaze a trail to a healthier future by finding innovative solutions that improve social determinants of health, increase access to care, and streamline the coordination o...

66 Kansas cities and counties to receive Community Development Block Grants to support coronavirus response

Tuesday, June 02, 2020

Governor Laura Kelly announced the award of nearly $9 million in Community Development Block Grant Coronavirus Response Supplement (CDBG-CV) funds to 66 Kansas communities. “Kansans have faced unprecedented challenges during the past few months due to COVID-19,” Governor Kelly said. “Our communities need relief – and they need it now. I’m pleased to announce additional resources to help Kansans navigate through the recovery process. These grants will help our communities rebuild their economies and support Kansas families.” Read full article.

Meet Deputy Secretary of Commerce Patty Clark

Friday, May 29, 2020

Patty Clark, Deputy Secretary of the Kansas Department of Commerce, is a shining example of public service as a noble calling. Patty has been working for the people of Kansas for 23 years, including serving at different times as Ag Marketing Director, Community Development Director and even Deputy Secretary of Commerce once before, under the Sebelius Administration. Patty retired at the end of May, bringing her incredible career in public service to an end. But, before she went, she took the time to sit down with us and impart a little wisdom to Kansas’ present and future economic developers. Read full article.

The 2020 U.S. Census Has Been Extended

Friday, May 01, 2020

The collection process for the 2020 U.S. Census was originally scheduled from March 12, 2020, to July 31, 2020. Due to the Covid-19 crisis, the U.S. Census Bureau has extended the deadline to October 31, 2020. This is good news because it gives our communities more time to encourage residents to participate. Still - we need the help of Kansas economic developers, leaders, business owners and residents to ensure that every person in our state is accounted for during the Census. The data obtained during the Census will impact the amount of federal funding each city, county and our stat...

$5 million of HIRE Fund loans have been awarded to Kansas hospitality businesses

Friday, April 24, 2020

Within 48 hours of Governor Laura Kelly announcing the establishment of the Hospitality Industry Relief Emergency (HIRE) Fund, all $5 million allocated for the loan program have been awarded. “The hospitality industry in Kansas was one of the first to be hit financially by the COVID-19 crisis,” Governor Kelly said. “Department of Commerce Secretary David Toland and the teams at Commerce and NetWork Kansas moved swiftly to stand up the HIRE Fund program and process applications in a short period to help us quickly get these critical dollars into the hands of hospitality businesses across the state.” Read full article.

Gift card sales a boom for Main Street

Thursday, April 16, 2020

Salon Ten 0 Seven owner Dereama Allenbaugh doesn’t know who the many people are who bought gift cards earlier this month during an online sales blitz for downtown Hays merchants. Organized and hosted by the Downtown Hays Development Corp., the marketing event generated $43,000 in gift card sales in three-and-a-half days, including for Salon Ten 0 Seven, 1007 Main. “I thank them, whoever they were, that has faith in the downtown businesses, and were willing to support us, in a trying time,” Allenbaugh said Thursday morning, her front doors locked, the lights off, and a skeleton crew of two in face mask...

Kansas rancher writes books on regenerative farming methods

Thursday, April 16, 2020

For Dale Strickler, farming comes naturally, as does teaching. Having grown up tending cattle and driving a tractor on his family’s fields in Colony, Kansas, Strickler understands the prairie. He attended Kansas State University and received his bachelor and master’s degrees in agriculture and agronomy and lives in Belleville. Strickler taught college classes and worked as an agronomist, all the while yearning to help farmers. He said the idea for his first book, “The Drought Resilient Farm,” came in 2012 when he looked out and saw a contrast between two farms near his home. Read full article.

Many Kansas farmers opt to rent

Monday, April 13, 2020

In the U.S., owning property is often thought to be a better option than renting, but with agricultural land, that might not be so. For most farmers, unless you inherit farmland, renting or going into debt are the only options. Brice Custer, of Hays, fits into this category. As Custer did not grow up on a farm, he had to acquire or rent his land in Graham and Trego counties. Read full article.

Network Kansas discusses rapid loan deployments in response to COVID-19

Wednesday, April 08, 2020

Steve Radley and Erik Pedersen, president and vice president of Network Kansas, discuss rapid deployments of credit in response to the new coronavirus with Kansas City Fed Senior Community Development Advisor Dell Gines. They share how they leveraged the Network Kansas statewide entrepreneurship ecosystem, and their partner network to provide emergency capital to 340 entrepreneurs across the state in a span of three days. This interview was taped April 6, 2020. Read full article.

Alcohol for the Greater Good

Tuesday, April 07, 2020

With 36 unique breweries across our state, Kansas is no stranger to beer. In any regular year, we would be taking this time to celebrate the different flavors, styles and varieties of beer created in the sunflower state. However, in light of this year’s new challenges, we want to spotlight a new way Kansas breweries have been helping improve lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has been an unprecedented crisis across the world, and Kansas has not been an exception. Thankfully, there have been many small businesses stepping up to provide new services for people in need. For Kansas breweries, this means han...

Renewing the Angel Investor Tax Credit

Friday, April 03, 2020

It's been a busy Legislative Session so far at the Department of Commerce. In addition to updating the Legislature and providing annual reports on our state’s incentive programs, our agency has some key priorities for legislation that will be taken up in the current Legislative Session. This includes the renewal of the Kansas Angel Investor Tax Credit Program. In today’s blog, I’d like to share more about the program and discuss the enhancements made by the legislation (HB 2689) that is currently being worked in the Legislature. Read full article.

Rural Entrepreneurs Are Finding Success Away From Big Cities

Friday, April 03, 2020

The economies of rural America are struggling. As a result, the percentage of startups that are in rural communities fell from 20% in the 1980s to around 12% currently, according to The Kauffman Foundation. But there’s a quiet and enterprising movement gathering steam among rural leaders to encourage local entrepreneurship and attract residents who’ll start businesses. It’s working. “Lots of cool things are going on in rural America,” says Mary Ann Kristiansen, founder of the Hannah Grimes Marketplace and the Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship in Keene, N.H. Among those “cool things” is the way older adults have been embracing entrepreneurshi...

The State Library of Kansas Announces the 2019 Kansas Notable Books

Friday, April 03, 2020

Topeka, KS – State Librarian Eric Norris announced the 14th annual selection of Kansas Notable Books. The fifteen books feature quality titles with wide public appeal, either written by a Kansan or about a Kansas-related topic. “I am proud to present the 2019 Kansas Notable Book list. Choosing only 15 books is no easy task,” said Eric Norris, State Librarian. “The selection committee began with a pool of nearly 100 submitted titles and worked diligently to identify the year’s best works by Kansas authors and illustrators, as well as those works that highlight our history and heritage. Kansans are encouraged to visi...

University of Kansas medical students to graduate early and volunteer for program providing aid to Kansans during pandemic

Friday, April 03, 2020

More than fifty senior students from the University of Kansas School of Medicine have asked to graduate early to participate in the Kansas Pandemic Volunteer Health Care Workforce, a program that will deploy them throughout Kansas as part of the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This program will allow them to serve in areas of critical need in the state of Kansas immediately, prior to their residencies, which begin July 1 at various locations throughout the country. Students from all three of the medical school's campuses, in Kansas City, Salina and Wichita, have volunteered. Read full article.

Department of Commerce launches COVID jobs website

Wednesday, April 01, 2020

The Kansas Department of Commerce today launched a new jobs website, connecting job seekers with Kansas businesses hiring to fill urgent needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 jobs site, kansasworks.com/coronavirus, allows employers from essential industries to quickly and easily post critical positions that need to be filled to support activities related to helping individuals and businesses during the COVID-19 crisis. The site, which is available at no cost to employers or job seekers, will be updated continuously as businesses add new jobs to the system. Read full article.

Tractor and feed stores remain open during coronavirus closings

Thursday, March 26, 2020

GREENSBURG — Like humans, animals must eat to survive. And, to get the food to both animals and humans, farmers need to plant and harvest. Unlike many other industries in Kansas, the coronavirus is not closing down tractor or animal feed stores. These businesses remain essential. “We are here because there’s a need for cattle, chicken, and other animals that need food to get it,” said Mark Brown, the manager of the Tractor Supply Co. in Hays. “The only change is in our hours.” Read full article.

Celebrating school parade style

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

MCPHERSON — Teachers at Lincoln Elementary were missing their students. The school, like the rest of the McPherson school district and schools across Kansas, will not reopen as Gov. Laura Kelly shuttered the buildings for the year in response to COVID-19. Those teachers at Lincoln hatched a plan — have a drive-by parade. A caravan of cars would drive by with windows open, so teachers could wave to those on the sidewalks. Read full article.

First Dental Good News: Bucklin Troop 216 receives grant for veterans memorial

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

BUCKLIN — A grant of $3,000 was awarded by the Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas to Bucklin Boy Scouts Troop 216 recently. According to the Bucklin Boy Scouts, the money will be used for the development of a Veterans Memorial Park that is to be constructed on the north area of Main Street in Bucklin. Read full article.