Accident reported at I-70 at I-435
Month: July 2022
Rain continues this morning and through Thursday
Rain showers will continue this morning, according to the National Weather Service.
Rain and thunderstorms may continue until around 1 p.m. today, then more rain is possible tonight through Thursday, the weather service said.
There is a chance of high wind gusts with the storms this afternoon. Winds could reach 60 mph in a storm, and there is a chance of a brief spin-up, according to the weather service.
A flash flood watch will be in effect for some areas of the region tonight through Tuesday morning, the weather service said.
Today, there is a 60 percent chance of showers and possibly a thunderstorm before 10 a.m., then a chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., the weather service said. The high will be near 80 with an east wind of 7 to 10 mph, gusting as high as 18 mph. Between a quarter and half-inch of rain is possible.
Tonight, there is a 60 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 10 p.m., then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m., then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1 a.m., according to the weather service. The low will be around 68 with an east northeast wind of 6 to 10 mph, gusting to 20 mph. Between a tenth and quarter-inch of rain is possible.
Tuesday, there is a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 87. The heat index will be as high as 95. An east wind of 6 mph will become west in the afternoon.
Tuesday night, there is a 60 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 1 a.m., according to the weather service. The low will be around 71 with a north wind of 6 mph becoming calm in the evening. Less than a tenth of an inch of rain is possible.
Wednesday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1 p.m., with a high near 87 and a light north wind, the weather service said. Less than a tenth of an inch of rain is in the forecasts.
Wednesday night, there is a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a low of 69, according to the weather service. Between a tenth and quarter-inch of rain is possible.
Thursday, there is a 50 percent chance of showers before 1 p.m., with a high near 84, the weather service said.
Thursday night, it will be mostly cloudy, with a low of 64, according to the weather service.
Friday, it will be partly sunny, with a high near 82, the weather service said.
Friday night, it will be partly cloudy, with a low of 63, according to the weather service.
Saturday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 84, the weather service said.
Saturday night, there is a 30 percent chance of rain, with a low of 66, according to the weather service.
Sunday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers, with a high near 88, the weather service said.
Unified Government looks to change
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Opinion column
by Murrel Bland
The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, is marking its 25th anniversary by having consultants explain how it can do a better job of governing about 165,000 persons.
I am not opposed to the Unified Government trying to do a better job. However, it is important to respect history in charting the course for the future.
Ashley Hand, the UG’s director of strategic communications, writing in a recent UG newsletter, said the present top-to-bottom study effort has never been done since the city and county governments were unified. That may be the case. However, it is important to examine what happened during the years before consolidation.
In the late 1970s, a volunteer Chamber of Commerce committee of professionals, including an accountant and senior private sector management personnel, did a very extensive study of city government. The committee’s conclusion was that the city could save a considerable amount of money if it had a central personnel director and a central finance director. Both those positions were instituted; considerable savings were realized
In 1981, a 15-member volunteer committee spent a year studying local government here and elsewhere. (I was a member of that committee.) The conclusion was that the city here could save considerable money with a professional city administrator. That came about after an election in 1982.
Consolidation of city and county government came about in 1997 after a volunteer committee studied the situation extensively. There had been various attempts at consolidation dating back to 1937. However, the community approved it in an election in 1997.
Presently groups of paid consultants, the Meriweather Group, Management Partners and the Robert Bobb Group, are making suggestions about how the Unified Government can do a better job. That could cost the UG as much as $118,000. I had considerable problems getting that cost information and finally did receive it with the help of Ashley Hand. Maybe one of the consultants will make a recommendation on how to improve open records requests.
Previous successful efficiency studies have originated and were driven by very responsible and committed volunteers. That is not the case with the present study. A strong volunteer base would have helped assure the study would have been successful. Besides, it would have saved the UG a considerable amount of money.
Murrel Bland is a former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Business West.