Hello there, reader! Alexis here to catch you up on all you need to know heading into this Thursday in Johnson County.
Forecast: ? High of 87. Low of 72. It will be a beautiful spring today with mostly clear and sunny skies into the evening. Wind gusts up to 30 mph are expected later tonight.
Diversions
- Shawnee’s first Moonlight Market of the year is today from 4-8 p.m. The event will take place around one of the city’s five Parade of Hearts installations and will feature local vendors, a beer garden, food trucks and more. Learn more.
- Musician Jacob Collier will perform tonight at The Truman and country singer Robert Earl Keen will perform at Uptown Theater. Both shows begin at 8 p.m. Get tickets.
- It’s more day baseball as the Royals go for a series win against the Chicago White Sox at Kauffman Stadium. First pitch is set for 1:10 p.m. Tickets start at $9.
Public Agenda
- Prairie Village’s Ad-Hoc Civic Center Committee holds another public meeting today from 4-6 p.m. in city council chambers at City Hall, 7700 Mission Road. Check out the agenda.
- The Overland Park Infrastructure Advisory Group will meet tonight at 6 p.m. at the Matt Ross Community Center. Get the details.
- Mission’s Climate Action Task Force will meet virtually today from noon to 1 p.m. Join the zoom meeting here.
- The Johnson County Board of County Commissioners will hold their weekly meeting today at 9:30 a.m. in Olathe. View the agenda.
Noteworthy
- Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly this week signed a bill into law funding K-12 schools. The measure puts $6 billion towards public schools but also contains a controversial provision allowing students to transfer to any school district in the state regardless of where they live. Some advocacy groups had also urged Kelly to veto the bill because they say it falls short of funding special education services at needed levels. [Kansas Reflector]
- Kansas is set to become the first state to allow older foster children to pick their foster parents. The SOUL Family program would allow foster children 16 and older to choose up to two adults to serve as their legal, permanent guardians, and the program does not cut ties with the children’s biological parents. Any bills on the topic would likely not come up until the 2023 legislative session. [KCUR]
- Rental assistance is available for eligible households through the Kansas Emergency Rental Assistance program. The program provides up to 18 months of assistance with rent, utility, and internet bills to households that have experienced financial hardships during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more.
