By KATHY HAGEMAN
Dickinson County public information coordinator
City leaders from across Dickinson County joined county commissioners Thursday, Aug. 25 at Legacy Kansas to share information about what has happened since the last meeting, which was held in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. Twenty-nine people attended.
Attendees also heard comments from the Dickinson County Economic Development Corp. and the Community Foundation of Dickinson County about projects in the works.
County Commission Chairman Lynn Peterson gave the greeting and closing, noting that residents of the various cities and the county have reasons to be grateful for the many services provided and thanked the leaders for giving back to their respective communities.
County update
Dickinson County Administrator Brad Homman gave an overview of county activity since 2019, including the completion of the jail and courthouse renovation (except for the elevator, which is currently being renovated); spoke about the county clerk/election office getting through a busy primary election and recount and how the commission had approved the purchase of a new $106,000 ballot counting machine; talked about a resolution approved by county commissioners on Aug. 25 to increase the pay range for paramedics and EMTs to attract necessary staff; a plan to use ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) monies in conjunction with Community Foundation funds to build early childhood centers at Herington and Solomon schools; the 2023 budget and other topics.
The 911 advisory board has restarted after several years of inactivity and is working on future plans to migrate to a new 800 MHz radio system, which will allow better communication for police, fire and other emergency communications.
“All the counties around us have done that. We’re the donut hole in the middle that’s still on an older system,” Homman said, explaining that makes it difficult to communicate with the other counties.
Homman told city leaders they likely will be hearing about the project from their emergency personnel. The system will be pricey and the county already has met with North Central Regional Planning Commission representatives seeking grant funds.
As for the new 68-bed jail, Homman said it has been open for a little more than a year and is taking in contract prisoners from Saline and Morris counties, which helps offset some of the county’s expense.
“It takes the same number of corrections officers to run it whether you’ve got three people or 48,” Homman said.
Jail population has stayed at approximately 50 or so inmates, with about half of those from Dickinson County.
City updates
Carlton City Council member Gina Rader said Agri Trails Coop has built a new elevator in the city, significantly increasing the coop’s grain storage capability in town. She also said a new three-bay fire department building is in the works and they are getting quotes to remodel and update the city building and shared other information.
Woodbine Mayor MarySue Roller said the city received money from the Community Foundation to tuckpoint and repair the concrete walls of the gymnasium so the building can be used for events. Recently, the City of Woodbine got its own city building. Previously, the city had a filing cabinet that moved with each successive city clerk to that person’s home.
“We went through a lot of struggling and maneuvering and we got a building,” Roller said, noting how much it means for a small city to have its own city hall.
Mayor Eric Gares from Herington said the city has rebuilt its water treatment system and is now supplying water not only to Herington, but also to Woodbine and Hope; phase 1 of its sewer treatment facility is finished; the city will start updating its comprehensive plan; they have been working on a Lake Master Plan to develop Herington City Lake and Reservoir; and he announced that Casey’s General Store will return to Herington and the city will annex the location at the corner of U.S. 56 and 77.
Mayor Larry Ryff of Hope said Agri Trails Coop had opened a chemical building on the northwest corner of town that was helping keep people employed in Hope. The facility also is a warehouse used to ship and receive chemicals from other branches. The city is also demolishing and flipping houses to get more housing. A challenge is getting revenue to pay for the water and sewer.
Chapman Mayor Howard Battishill said the city has been working on building gutters and lagoons and is in the process of paying for them. They also are working on sewer lines; the city has seen a number of personnel changes and the annual Chapman Labor Day festival will be a busy time.
Solomon Mayor Hunter McMillen said the Solomon school district is building a new school and the city is working with them on a water line issue. Improvements at the library have included spending $11,000 on new handicapped railings; a new electric door, ramp and handrails at the senior center; paying a third of the cost to fix the back lot of city hall; chip sealing three-fourths of the city’s streets at a cost of $41,000; desludging the city lagoons; retrofitting a fire truck to fill containers used in grass fires; and in the future, the city plans water projects to install digital water meters and eliminate lead pipes.
Housing has been the biggest change in the city over the last five years, McMillen said, with total new housing projects coming in at $1,855,000. Eleven new homes have been built, 12 homes were flipped, and eight houses and five trailers have been demolished. Of the houses flipped, they are sold within 20 days.
New housing also is the big news in Abilene, with new homes going up in Golden Belt Heights - the former Highlands subdivision, said Abilene City Manager Ron Marsh. The city created a Rural Housing Incentive District and has been working with a developer/consultant. They also hope to find a way to build multi-family housing on the west side of the subdivision.
“After about 15 years of sitting stagnant, we’ve got nine houses under construction out there,” Marsh said, explaining the area does not have special assessments which eliminates that extra burden.
Other big news for Abilene involves a $2.5 million project to rebuild the 14th Street corridor from Buckeye to Vine streets, installing curb, guttering and sidewalks on both sides of the road and a center turn lane. The city received a $1 million grant from the Kansas Department of Transportation to help with the project. The city and county plan to work together to extend the 14th Street corridor out to Van Buren Street, connecting Golden Belt Heights west out to Fair Road.
Also, two electric vehicle charging stations will be built in Abilene, one at West’s Country Mart and the other at 24/7 Travel Store.
Housing, investing in the county
Dickinson County Economic Development Corp. Executive Director Kent Campbell told city representatives his office is there to help and commented that many people are discovering Dickinson County.
Housing is one of the biggest issues facing the county. Of the thousands of people who work here, a significant number are unable to live here because of the housing shortage. For many, it’s not just a matter of finding a rental, but getting a roof over their heads without an extended hotel stay. Many local businesses have a number of employees who are living outside the county in Junction City, Salina or other areas because they cannot find housing here.
That brings up talk about the economic development term, leakage. “How much can we handle? When we talk about the number of people that work here who are taking their paycheck and going to another county, that’s where we need to be concerned,” Campbell said.
Golden Belt Heights in Abilene, along with Logan Pointe in Herington and the housing division in Woodbine, have available lots, but communities also have areas where houses can be demolished and the lots used for infill.
Elizabeth Weese, executive director of the Community Foundation of Dickinson County, said the agency is “not your grandfather’s community foundation any more. We’re trying to invest as many of our assets back into our communities as we can.”
A new initiative, “Invest Dickinson County,” involves taking $500,000 of the foundation’s operational monies and investing it back into the county through gap loans and loan guarantees. Through that program, the foundation could finance building a house.
“We’ll cover the cost. You sell the house afterwards, give us back two to three percent and then keep flipping to infill,” she said.
The program already has seen some success as the community foundation keeps a portion of bulk assets and uses it for impact investing.
Another big program involves bringing people back to the community through a scholarship loan program, available to graduates who have been out of school at least three years who want to move back to the county to work or open a business. If all the criteria is met, CFDC will pay $10,000 of the person’s student loan.
Among those attending were:
City of Abilene - Mayor Dee Marshall, Commissioners Trevor Witt and Brandon Rein, and City Manager Ron Marsh
City of Carlton - Council member Gina Rader and Mayor Darren Rader
City of Chapman - Mayor Howard Battishill
City of Herington - Mayor Eric Gares, Commissioners Debi Urbanek, Vance Donahue, Robin Bell and City Manager Branden Dross
City of Hope – Mayor Larry Ryff
City of Solomon – Mayor Hunter McMillen, Council members Shawn Kirby, Billy Hemmy and Colten Kohman.
City of Woodbine - Mayor MarySue Roller and Council member Courtney Dixon
Dickinson County – Commissioners Craig Chamberlin, Ron Roller and Lynn Peterson, County Administrator Brad Homman, Asst. County Administrator/Budget Director Janelle Dockendorf and County Clerk Jeanne Livingston.