Category: Business

Kansas attorney general comments on merger of Sprint – T-Mobile

A Sprint – T-Mobile merger was approved by a New York court Feb. 11, and Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said it was “welcome news for Kansas.”

Schmidt said in a statement that competition should increase in the state and that quality coverage should expand in many rural areas in Kansas.

In addition, he expected the merger to expedite the development of 5G technology in Kansas, while protecting and expanding Kansas jobs, according to the statement.

“We intend to hold the merged company to its promises of investment in its Kansas network and of maintaining substantial employment at what will become the combined company’s ‘second headquarters’ in Overland Park,” Schmidt noted in his statement.

On July 26, Schmidt joined Kansas with the U.S. Department of Justice and four other states in a filing in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia formally approving the merger subject to certain conditions designed to main competition and enhance technology deployment.

The company also provided assurances it would remain a major employer in Kansas with its second headquarters in Overland Park. The attorney general’s office handled this matter for Kansas because it enforces both federal and state antitrust laws, according to Schmidt’s news release.

After that approval, a group of other states led by New York filed a lawsuit in federal district court in New York arguing the merger violated antitrust law and seeking to block it. Today’s judicial ruling rejected New York’s arguments, clearing the path for the merger to proceed.

NFM donates 630 mattresses to Wyandotte County nonprofits

About 630 donated mattresses were delivered to Mt. Carmel Redevelopment Corp., 1130 Troup, Kansas City, Kansas, on Tuesday for distribution to nonprofit organizations in Wyandotte County. The mattresses were donated by Nebraska Furniture Mart and Ashley Furniture. (Photo from Nebrask Furniture Mart)

Nebraska Furniture Mart and Ashley Furniture donated 630 mattresses to Wyandotte County charities this week.

An NFM spokesman said they worked through the United Way of Wyandotte County, which found organizations to receive the mattresses.

Andy Shefsky, community and public relations manager for Nebraska Furniture Mart, said that Ashley Furniture, one of the manufacturers, provided the mattresses, requesting NFM to donate them.

The value of the 630 mattresses was estimated to be at least $250,000. Of the total, 450 were queen size while 180 were double or full size.

“Through volunteer programs, corporate philanthropy and conservation efforts that benefit the regions we call home, NFM employees are making a difference and improving lifestyles every single day,” Shefsky said in a statement.

Organizations that received mattresses included: A Step Above; Avenue of Life; Catholic Charities; Cornerstones of Care – Pathways; Cross-Lines Community Outreach; Economic Opportunity Foundation; Eeroma Resources; Friends of Yates; Healthy Families – Unified Government; Hillcrest Transitional Housing; Targeted Case Manager (TCM); Kansas City Kansas Community College; Life Unlimited; Mattie Rhodes Center; Metro Lutheran Ministries; MOCSA – Metropolitan Organization to Combat Sexual Assault; Mosaic; Mount Carmel Redevelopment Corp.; ResCare Residential Services; Salvation Army Harbor Light Village; Team Cosgrove; Vaughn Trent Community Services; and YouthBuild KCK.

Ground broken for Turner Diagonal project

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly spoke at a groundbreaking ceremony Friday morning, Jan. 31, for a new interchange at I-70 and the Turner Diagonal. Others on the podium were, left to right, Kansas Department of Transportation Secretary Julie Lorenz, U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, U.S. Department of Transportation representative Sean Poole, Mayor David Alvey and Brent Miles of NorthPoint Development. (Photo by Murrel Bland)

by Murrel Bland

Brent Miles used a baseball analogy to sum up the development that has been and will be done along the Turner Diagonal.

The Amazon fulfillment warehouse was a homerun; the new interchange is a grand slam.

Miles, the chief marketing officer for NorthPoint Development, spoke at groundbreaking ceremonies on a chilly Friday morning, Jan. 31, just north of the Kansas Department of Transportation building on I-70 near the Turner Diagonal in Kansas City, Kansas.

NorthPoint developed the land where an Amazon warehouse is. The rugged landscape, often described as ideal for goats, was NorthPoint’s first venture along the Diagonal. Miles admitted that when Amazon first approached NorthPoint about buying the property, it refused to sell. But after reconsidering, NorthPoint sold to investors who built the Amazon warehouse.

But Amazon was only the beginning. NorthPoint and Miles could envision more warehouses during the next several years. However, before these warehouses could become a reality, the access to I-70 had to be improved. That would cost an estimated $30 million.

The key to that financing would be obtaining money from the U.S. Department of Transportation for $13.8 million. That was announced by U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao late last year. Other funds will come from the Kansas Department of Transportation, the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, and NorthPoint. Construction on the road project is expected to be completed late this year.

The federal money is being awarded through a BUILD grant — that stands for “Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development.” A modern divergent diamond interchange will replace the existing outmoded infrastructure.

Speaking at the groundbreaking were Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, Kansas City, Kansas, Mayor David Alvey, Kansas Secretary of Transportation Julie Lorenz, U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, Sean Poole representing the U.S. Department of Transportation, and Miles.

NorthPoint plans to build the Turner Commerce Center in seven phases. It is estimated to cost $155 million and create about 2,000 new jobs. It is estimated that 65,000 vehicles pass by the site daily. It is a two-day drive for about 85 percent of the population of the United States.

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