City of Belle Plaine, Kansas

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Public Hearing Notice

CDBG CV3 Economic Development Application

The City of Belle Plaine, Kansas will hold a public hearing on Thursday May 20, 2021, at 7 pm in the City Council Chambers located at 401 N. Merchant, Belle Plaine, Kansas for the purpose of considering an application to be submitted to the Kansas Department of Commerce for Small Cities Community Development Block Grant funds under the CV Economic Development.

A specific project application to be discussed is Economic Development CV Grants for small businesses for $150,000 located in Belle Plaine City Limits in the amount of $150,000. The proposed project will consist of funds for working capital, inventory, wages, rent and other similar expenses.

The estimated project cost is $150,000 with the grant request for $150,000 of the project cost including administration. Other project proposals introduced at the hearing will be considered. Oral and written comments will be recorded and become a part of Belle Plaine’s CDBG Citizen Participation Plan.

Reasonable accommodations will be made available to persons with disabilities. Requests should be submitted to the Linda Stinnett, City Clerk, (620)488-3433 by May 13, 2021.

FAQ

A list of Frequently Asked Questions on Belle Plaine's water issues can be found on the Water Page by clicking here.

NITRATE WARNING CONTINUES

Bottled water available at City Hall for residents who are pregnant, nursing infants, have infants at home, or who have written orders from a health care provider.

The City of Belle Plaine continues under a nitrate warning, due to testing on April 5, 2021 which shows two of the three city water wells now test above the highest federal level for safety from nitrate concentrations.

Efforts to improve the system continue. Wilson & Co., engineers, are creating a model of the water system and a phased plan for the changes, which will include improvements to infrastructure, a new water tower, water well work, and a water treatment plant, if it is found to be necessary. An October 2020 inspection of the 107-year-old water tower showed that nearly $275,000 in maintenance is needed there.

Along with the reports and plan by the engineers, a grant writer is working on a Community Development Block Grant application. To qualify for the grant, the City must show that local efforts are put into the financing. The state mandates that the statewide average for utility rates must be met to qualify for the grant. In this case, the average for 5,000 gallons of water is $38.00 statewide; so Belle Plaine has raised water rates to meet that criteria. The rates are reflected on the March 31, 2021 billing.

The tower tank inspection report can be seen at the bottom of this page or by clicking here..

Three City Council seats up

for election in November 2021

Three Belle Plaine City Council seats will be open in the November 2021 election.

The seats which will be open are currently occupied by Phila Storts, Allen Hisken, and Bryan Nolan.

The deadline for filing is at noon on June 1, 2021. Potential candidates must file at the Sumner County Clerk’s office, 501 N. Washington, Room 101, Wellington, KS 67152.

City Hall reopened to the public

Belle Plaine City Hall has re-opened to the public, after remodeling has been completed on the lobby area.

The lobby previously was small and did not allow social distancing for customers who might enter the building when someone else was already inside. There were also no screens for the protection of employees.

A portion of the funds from the CARES Sparks Grant was used to reshape the cabinets that form the lobby, install new counter tops and “sneeze guard” screens, and replace flooring due to the new configuration of counters.

City Hall hours remain 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Ordinance creates legal process for special vehicles

The Belle Plaine City Council approved an ordinance during its Dec. 17 meeting which will legalize special vehicles for use on city streets, once the ordinance is published on Dec. 31..

The complete ordinance can be seen by clicking here.

Pet Waste Stations

installed

Pet Waste Stations have been installed at several locations in Belle Plaine. Residents who walk their pets can take advantage of the stations at the following locations:

*Morley Field

*Watson Park

*City Park

*Community Ctr

*High School in the 900 block of North Merchant

*RV Park

Police vehicles replaced

Belle Plaine Officer Will Narron poses in front of one of two new vehicles which were placed in service at the first of 2020. The new Chevrolet Tahoes will replace two 2015 vehicles that were starting to require extra maintenance to keep them on the road for the amount of miles and time required for patrols in Belle Plaine. The new vehicles are also larger and more comfortable for officer use. They sport new graphics and will be highly visible to the public.

Maintenance fleet gets update

The City Maintenance Department fleet has been updated with the purchase of two new pickups. Both trucks have the City logo, so they can be easily recognized when on local job sites.

Sign up to receive your utility bill electronically

Click here or use the form at the bottom of this page to sign up for the service which will deliver your utility bill via e-mail. The completed form can be e-mailed to cityofbp@bpks.org.

Your bill will be e-mailed on the last working day of each month and no other terms on the account change. The due date for payment remains the 15th of the month, with unpaid accounts subject to disconnection on the 26th of each month. Those who have signed up for automatic debit on the 15th will continue to have that service.

For additional information, contact Belle Plaine City Hall at (620) 488-3433.

Help is available for trash carts

Those who are physically unable to move their trash cart to the curb can have their carts picked up from a location at the front of the house.

If you are unable to move the large trash carts to the curb, due to physical limitations, contact City Hall at 488-3433. Waste Connections will pick up the cart in those cases from the front of the home.

The carts must be visible from the street and cannot be in the back yard for this service.

Eliminate the need to write one check a month

Pay your monthly bill

by bank draft on the 15th

Your Utility Bill can be paid by a bank draft on the 15^th of each month – at no additional charge to you.

All you need to do is fill out a City of Belle Plaine Debit Authorization form and attach a voided check or deposit slip. The form can be found by scrolling to the bottom of this page or by clicking here.

You will receive a copy of your bill each month so you can be prepared for the withdrawal.

They’d be lost without you

Keep pets tagged under City Code

All cats and dogs in Belle Plaine must be licensed and tagged under City Code. Licensing helps ensure public (and animal) health by requiring up-to-date rabies vaccinations. More importantly, if they are found running loose, Belle Plaine police have a better chance of finding the owner quickly.

Licensing is easy – bring the vaccination certificate from your veterinarian to City Hall and pay $10 (only $5 if they are spayed or neutered) for the tag.

City Code states that pets not tagged by March 1 will pay double fees. That is enforced.

Siren provides improved coverage

The City of Belle Plaine installed a new storm siren in 2018, bringing a critical update to safety during storm season.

The new siren was installed at 5th and Washington, in an area which allows better sound coverage for all areas of the community. The new siren is also more efficient in operations and dependability.

Sirens will be tested on the first Monday of each month at 11 a.m.

Community storm shelter

is at Middle School gym

The Middle School gym at 8th and Merchant will serve as the community storm shelter during severe weather. Enter at the entrance facing 8th Street.

Belle Plaine Police will no longer be opening the local churches which formerly served as shelters. The gymnasium is designed to withstand an F5 tornado and meets FEMA standards for such buildings.

Pets can be taken to the shelter, but they must be crated or caged.

City holiday closings in 2021

The complete schedule for 2021 for holiday observance by the City of Belle Plaine is:

New Year's Day - Friday, January 1

Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Monday, January 18

President's Day - Monday, Feb. 15

Memorial Day – Monday, May 24

Independence Day – Monday, July 5

Labor Day – Monday, September 6

Veteran’s Day – Thursday, Nov. 11

Thanksgiving Day and Friday after –

November 25 and 26

Christmas Eve & Christmas Day – Thursday, December 23 & Friday, December 24.

All City offices will be closed on these days.

Report street light outages

Is a street light out in your neighborhood in Belle Plaine?

Gather the number of the pole (It starts with either A or B and has 5 digits and is about 9 feet up on the pole), and the approximate address of the pole. It can be reported to City Hall at 488-3433 or online at https://ops.evergy.com/streetlight.