Month: April 2016

New project part of wind energy boom in Kansas

by Jim McLean, KHI News Service

Kansas is in the midst of another wind energy boom.

At a Friday news conference called to announce that construction had begun on a massive wind farm in southwest Kansas, Gov. Sam Brownback said the project was among 10 in various stages of development across the state.

“This year, we should have north of $3 billion of new wind investment announced in the state of Kansas,” Brownback said.

Already, he said, when the existing wind generation facilities in the state are working at or near maximum capacity, they’re capable of generating up to one-third of the power distributed to a large group of states by the Southwest Power Pool.

The $613 million Cimarron Bend Wind Project will consist of 200 turbines scattered over about 60 square miles near Minneola in Clark County. It is being built by Enel Green Power North America, an arm of the Enel Group, a renewable energy company based in Rome, Italy.

Brownback said the project will further the state’s efforts to become “a dominant player” in the renewable energy industry.

Cimarron Bend is EGPNA’s fourth Kansas wind farm and its largest worldwide. It will have a generating capacity of 400 megawatts, which already is committed under long-term power purchase agreements to the tech giant Google and the Kansas City, Kan., Board of Public Utilities.

The 200 megawatts purchased by BPU will make it among the greenest utilities in the nation.

“With this 200 megawatts, we are now at 45 percent roughly of our generation mix coming from renewable energy,” said Don Gray, general manager of the Kansas City, Kan.-based utility.

In addition to wind, BPU’s renewable portfolio includes hydropower from the Bowersock Mills and Power Co. in Lawrence and electricity generated from landfill gases, Gray said.

There was a time when energy produced from renewable sources wasn’t competitively priced with coal and natural gas. But that is no longer the case, Gray said.

“One of the reasons we were aggressive in obtaining 200 megawatts is because of the price,” he said. “It’s going to be one of the lowest-cost energy resources that we have in our generation mix. It’s a 20-year contract that creates stability for us in our pricing.”

For several years, some Kansas legislators fought to repeal a state law that set renewable energy targets for the state. But Brownback said a compromise reached last year that leveled the competitive playing field among renewable generators and traditional energy companies helped clear the way for the wind energy projects now in development.

The nonprofit KHI News Service is an editorially independent initiative of the Kansas Health Institute and a partner in the Heartland Health Monitor reporting collaboration. All stories and photos may be republished at no cost with proper attribution and a link back to KHI.org when a story is reposted online.

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U.S. attorney to step down

Barry Grissom
Barry Grissom

Barry Grissom announced today that he will step down as U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas effective April 15.

“Serving the American people and the citizens of Kansas is the best job in world,” Grissom said. “It has been an honor and a privilege to work with the attorneys and staff of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Kansas.”

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch thanked Grissom for his service:

“Since taking office in 2010, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom has rendered exemplary service to the Department of Justice, the citizens of Kansas, and the American people,” Lynch said. “Throughout his tenure, Barry worked tirelessly to build new partnerships with state and local law enforcement; to strengthen relationships between police officers and the communities they serve; and to uphold the nation’s civil rights laws. From establishing an innovative working group on human trafficking to lending his sound advice as a member of the Attorney General’s Advisory Council, Barry has served with energy, with commitment, and with steadfast devotion to our highest ideals. Ultimately, Barry has helped to make his beloved state of Kansas – and the entire United States – a safer and more just place. I thank him for his outstanding contributions, and I wish him the very best in his next endeavor.”

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Beall will serve as acting U.S. Attorney.

Grissom was nominated by President Barack Obama in April 2010 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in August 2010. He served as a member of the U.S. Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, which provides advice and counsel to the U.S. Attorney General. He served on the Justice Department’s subcommittees focusing on civil rights, community issues, Native American issues, health care fraud, local government coordination and veterans’ rights.

As U.S. Attorney Grissom led an office of approximately 50 Assistant U.S. Attorneys and 50 support staff working in three offices located in Wichita, Topeka and Kansas City, Kan.

During his tenure, Grissom made civil rights enforcement and community outreach top priorities. Among other accomplishments, Grissom:

• Founded the Kansas Civil Rights Symposium, bringing law enforcement officers and civil rights advocates together from across Kansas together annually for a day-long conference.
• Promoted efforts to build better relationships between law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve.
• Founded the District’s first Human Trafficking Working Group. The group’s mission was to coordinate the work of local, state and federal law enforcement, as well as nonprofit agencies and victim service providers, to fight human trafficking.
• Established the District’s first criminal prosecutor position assigned to carry out the Justice Department’s Smart on Crime Initiative. Objectives included reducing penalties for low-level, non-violent drug offenders, as well as pursuing new and innovative ways to promote public safety.
• Directed the District’s Project Safe Neighborhood program, targeting for federal prosecution felons who unlawfully possessed firearms.
• Oversaw the District’s Project Safe Childhood program, targeting child sex offenders for long federal prison sentences.

Major cases during Grissom’s tenure included a federal racketeering case targeting gang members in Dodge City, the conviction and 20-year sentencing of a man who attempted to explode a bomb at an airport in Wichita, the prosecution and conviction of business owners who knowingly employed undocumented workers, and the prosecution of physicians and other health care providers who diverted prescription medications.

Government consolidation recognized as key to development success

by Murrel Bland

The consolidation of city and county government has been recognized as a major reason for a surge in development in Wyandotte County, particularly in the Village West area.

That was the conclusion of panel members who commented at the annual meeting of the Kansas City, Kan., Area Chamber of Commerce Wednesday, April 6, at the Reardon Convention Center. More than 600 persons attended.

The panelists were CiCi Rojas, president of the Central Exchange; Joe Reardon, president of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce; Gabriel Stricker, a vice president with Google Fiber; and Mayor Mark Holland. The panel moderator was Kevin Collison, a consulting commentator with KCUR-FM.

Mayor Holland said the consolidation of governments will mark its 20th anniversary in 2017. That will also mark the payoff of sales tax bonds that helped finance construction of Village West. That will mean an additional $12 million annually to the Unified Government’s treasury. The mayor said that before the development in Village West, the area at 110th Street and State Avenue had a restaurant and liquor store. Now the area generates more than $12 million annually in property tax and supports 9,000 employees.

Rojas, a native of the Argentine community, said that Wyandotte County is a place that always has welcomed immigrants and provided them opportunities. The mission statement of the Central Exchange is to provide “the venue and voice for women seeking to reach their full personal and professional potential.”

Rojas said she is pleased that other parts of the community, including Argentine, are benefitting from renewed development. Argentine recently has seen the building of two new grocery stores and affordable housing.

The panel agreed that potential developers look for stability in local government before they invest in a community. The Unified Government has provided that stability.

Mayor Holland said that plans are moving ahead to develop a YMCA community center and a grocery store downtown. He admitted, however, that the task has been challenging.

Stricker said that more than 1,000 U.S. cities had applied to be the first municipality to have Google Fiber. Kansas City, Kan., was chosen as the first city in 2010. Since then Google Fiber has expanded to other areas in the metropolitan area and other cities including Austin, Atlanta and Salt Lake City. Stricker said Google received excellent cooperation from public and private leaders in Wyandotte County.

Reardon said it has been most important for the public and private sectors to be cooperative and collaborative. He cited the efforts of Google Fiber to bring a gigabit Internet service to the residential community and also places such as the KU Medical Center and public schools. He also noted the 4,000 new jobs that Cerner has brought to Village West.

Stricker said Google is now offering its service to small businesses.

Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is the executive director of Business West.