June 2022 Newsletter
Center on Rural Innovation Begins Developing Our Digital Economy
Last Fall, Liberal was selected by the Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) to participate in its Rural Innovation Initiative. CORI was founded in 2017 with the mission of "Advancing inclusive rural prosperity through digital economy ecosystems that support scalable entrepreneurship and tech job creation." This work originally consisted of helping the Economic Development Administration prepare communities for the Build to Scale Grant Program. This work identified patterns in these rural communities and led to the formation of the Rural Innovation Initiative. "Through the Rural Innovation Initiative, we provide intensive technical assistance and support to rural communities as they build digital economy ecosystem strategies, an economic development model that works to educate and train local residents in digital skills, employ them in digital jobs, and empower them to launch the startups that will drive their local economy.
Since launching in 2019, we’ve helped our communities raise more than $17 million in federal funding and matching dollars through the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s highly competitive Build to Scale Venture Challenge Grant."
Liberal joins three communities from across the nation in the summer cohort, which kicked off on May 24. The first eight weeks are focused on the local assessment.
Step 1: Assess
We conduct a local digital economy ecosystem assessment
Our team identifies current assets, opportunities, gaps, and challenges that community leaders must factor as they begin building their local digital economy strategy. The assessment includes community-wide asset mapping, a quantitative diagnostic report, qualitative analysis, and interviews with community stakeholders and partners. At the end of the assessment, we compile our findings into a single report, and share our findings with you about your community.
Our core team, comprised of the Seward County Development Corporation, Seward County Community College, and a City Commissioner are excited about the opportunities this can bring our community and region. Right now, we're busy gathering data and coordinating with local industries and individuals who are working in the digital economy already.
To learn more about this work and the effect it's had in another community, watch the video below of a Missouri town that participated in the Rural Innovation Initiative a few years ago.
Two Seward County Businesses Receive More than $1 Million through the Broadband Acceleration Grant
Governor Laura Kelly announced the recipients of the year two Broadband Acceleration Grant on May 20. Two of the eleven recipients are local companies whose projects will bring cutting-edge technology and fiber-to-the-premises to more than 1,200 new structures in Liberal and rural Seward County.
Despite both of these companies winning year one Broadband Acceleration Grants, the Office of Broadband Development determined that their projects were more important than the twenty-six other projects submitted this year. In total, 37 projects applied and $5 million of grant funds were awarded. More than 20% of those funds were directed to Seward County.
The Epic Touch build will pass 1,000 structures ranging between 8th Street and 15th Street, and Kansas Avenue to Western Avenue. Fiber will also be delivered to the Baker Arts Center and the western side of Kansas Avenue through the core commercial district downtown.
The IdeaTek build will pass more than 225 structures in rural Seward County, targeting the businesses and residents between Arkalon Ethanol and Heifer Source.
These are exciting awards for our residents and for our companies. The success of these applications is due to the quality of the companies and the local support from the Seward County Board of County Commissioners, the City of Liberal Commissioners, and many local organizations and residents.
Story Chasers
Join the Movement of Ideas!
Story Chasers is a statewide digital storytelling program to capture micro-stories of twenty-first century Kansas and showcases fresh perspectives and interpretations of our state’s culture in the here and now.
HOW IT WORKS:
The process is simple: Snap a photo, write a caption, post on Instagram, tag @humanitieskansas, use #StoryChasersHK, and HK will repost the story. Followers are encouraged to engage with the new content and ideas. Participation is free and entries must highlight a Kansas story. No photos of children under 18 without written permission from a parent or guardian.
Questions? Contact Leslie VonHolten, Director of Grants and Outreach, at lvh@humanitieskansas.org or call 785-357-0359.
Two Local Businesses Expand Through the EMPOWER Fund
The local NetWork Kansas E-Community Board approved two more recipients of the EMPOWER Loan Fund during its May meeting. These businesses have been working with the Seward County Development Corporation throughout the previous weeks to prepare these, and we're excited to see how this funding can support their growing businesses.
Irma's Taxes, located at 221 N Kansas Ave, serves the community by preparing income taxes for both individuals and businesses as well as managing the day-to-day financials for many small businesses in town. The funds will be used to remodel the downtown building that houses the business.
Sabor a Mexico, located at 719 S Kansas Ave, is a Mexican restaurant that opened four months ago and has already established a great reputation for the quality of the food and the cleanliness of the interior. The funds will purchase new restaurant equipment necessary to meet the growing demands of the customers.
Liberal is fortunate to be part of this PILOT Program. To date, $45,000 dollars have been loaned to support business expansions, and more local business owners are in the application process. Below is information regarding the program and Network Kansas' vision for it.
Why NetWork Kansas Created the EMPOWER Fund Pilot Program:
- NetWork Kansas created the Empower Fund to further the mission of increasing access to funding specifically among minority entrepreneurs.
- NetWork Kansas created the Empower Fund based on feedback from several E-Community teams upon noticing that their portfolios had an underrepresentation of minorities due to their inability to qualify for matching funds. After debuting a no-match fund in Sedgwick County where seven of the 10 applicants were minority-owned firms, NetWork Kansas began working on the logistics for the Empower Fund.
- The Empower Fund is a pilot project operating in Wichita, Topeka, Dodge City, Liberal and Wyandotte County in Kansas to date. Certified partners submit applications on behalf of potential borrowers in the pilot communities and borrowers agree to receive technical assistance to strengthen their business management practices.
- This pilot program is funded by NetWork Kansas and the Kansas Health Foundation and is supported by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas. New partners for these efforts include Fidelity Bank and INTRUST Bank, both of which have headquarters in Wichita.
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Outreach Events Summary
Good Morning Stakeholders,
As you might remember, KDOT provided an update on the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) enacted as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) in March. KDOT estimates the following additional funds will be received directly through formulas for the next five years:
- Highway Funding - $89 million annually
- Bridge Funding - $45 million annually
- Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure - $8 million annually
- Rural Transit - $3.7 million annually
Because of the IKE program, KDOT is in a good position to take advantage of additional dollars provided by BIL. We have a well-established development and construction pipeline, adequate state funding to meet federal matching requirements, and offer communities more flexibility with state funds.
I’m pleased to say that more than 400 Kansans participated in the four meetings held in April and shared their thoughts on how investments can be made to:
- Save lives by making roads safer.
- Reduce transportation costs to move people and goods.
Strengthen communities by innovating our infrastructure.Partnership improves significantly.
Partnerships are vital to maintaining and advancing the transportation system. More than 60% of meeting attendees who responded to poll questions said partnership with KDOT is better under the IKE program, and 38% indicated partnership was about the same. I’m proud of KDOT improvement and look forward to continued collaboration. Here are some key takeaways from each of the investment areas.
Highway Funding
- Local road conditions are about the same (40%) or worse (45%) than the State Highway System.
- Cost Share, Economic Development, Local Construction and High-Risk Rural Road programs are highly valued.
- When asked to make tradeoffs, participants said it’s more important to complete safety and modernization projects than expansion projects with additional funds.
One of KDOT’s newest IKE programs designed to address rural safety concerns is the state-funded Clear Zone Program focused on widening shoulders and improving the “clear zone” – where a vehicle can recover if it leaves the roadway.
Bridge Funding
- Nearly 60% of participants indicated that lack of funds for the local match portion of existing KDOT Bridge Programs is the top barrier to participation and use.
KDOT is exploring ways to help address the local match challenge. KDOT is also developing a local bridge analysis tool. It will launch in testing mode this summer and will help partners:
- Identify routes where improvements would have the most value, and
- Assist in matching local needs to state and federal funding sources.
As much as we look forward to sharing this tool, I am even more pleased that 54% of participants are interested in helping KDOT test this tool.Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
An area of new investment is electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, and participants were eager to discuss this topic. Nearly 60% of respondents indicated some or strong interest in deploying this infrastructure, and nearly 70% indicated the estimated $120,000 local match for each charging station would be a barrier.
I encourage you to stay engaged with Charge Up Kansas to share your thoughts and stay informed.Rural Transit
The ability for Kansans to access opportunities to succeed and thrive without driving a vehicle is a very real need – in urban and rural areas. Here’s what we learned:
- While a majority of 30% believe incentivizing regional coordination of existing transit providers would be most helpful, supporting existing transit providers (27%) and adding new services were (23%) were also viewed as helpful.
- KDOT needs to do more to educate and inform Kansans on the availability, importance, and goals of rural transit. Nearly 70% indicated limited or no familiarity with transit services.
I encourage rural communities to explore transit needs and opportunities. Contact Rene Hart (rene.hart@ks.gov) to learn more or discuss your ideas for improving transit in Kansas.
-----
If you would like to view a recording of the virtual event (held on April 27,2022) online, please go to visit YouTube. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to participate in the polling questions.
-----
Next Steps
KDOT is using input from these meetings to further analyze investment scenarios, refine existing programs and develop new transportation set-aside programs which can be funded through BIL. Stay tuned for an announcement about how we will utilize these dollars and more outreach opportunities related to the bipartisan infrastructure law (BIL). If you have BIL questions, please email bil@ks.gov.
As I often say, there’s never been a better time to be in transportation. The length of this update alone proves we have so much opportunity. We ask for your partnership to deliver great improvements for Kansans.Julie L. Lorenz
Secretary of Transportation
Director of Kansas Turnpike Authority
High Plains Public Radio recently featured a story on the challenges facing communities in Western Kansas as SkyWest reduces its services to Liberal, Dodge City, Hays, and Salina. Read the story HERE.
What we're doing this month!
The majority of our work at the development corporation consists of supporting local entrepreneurs and businesses as they start or expand their operations. Through our partners, we can provide the expertise and the funding that these ventures need in order to be successful. These same partners and networks also connect us to resources outside of Seward County. This month will bring new opportunities for learning and networking that can help the businesses and communities here at home.
- June 1: Western Kansas E-Community Regional Retreat
- June 3: Development Corporation Monthly Board Meeting
- June 8-9: WKREDA Quarterly Conference in Great Bend
- June 17: Friday at the Fountain!
- June 21: Childcare License Workshop
City of Liberal Economic Development News
Cindy Wallace: City of Liberal Economic Development Director
Interested in Owning a Franchise?
In many towns you will see many of these same businesses such as McDonald’s, Taco Johns, Burger King, 7-Eleven, Jimmy John’s, Meineke Care Center, UPS Stores, Great Clips, Ace Hardware, Jiffy Lube, Lawn Doctors. Great Clips, Planet Fitness or a Holiday Inn. What do they all have in common? They are franchises. So, what exactly is a Franchise. A franchise (or franchising) is a method of distributing products or services involving a franchisor, who establishes the brands trademark or trade name and a business system, and a franchisee, who pays a royalty and often an initial fee for the rights to do business under the franchisor’s name and system.
The most common franchised industry categories include service-related fields such as home repair and remodeling, carpet cleaning, and maintenance and cleaning services. Business support franchises include package shipping, accounting, printing, advertising services or personnel services. Most common franchised industries include restaurant or fast food, hair salons, automotive repairs and services, health aid, children services, clothing stores and computer and home repair.
Every franchise has certain standards that a franchisee has to follow. Many include an investment or franchise fee from $10,000 to $350,000 +. There are also initial investment ranges and royalty fees that help pay for advertising, updates, etc.
Benefits of being a Franchisee include:
Name recognition – People are familiar with this business and they know what types of products and services it already provides.
Advertising – National advertising is done by franchisor and they have advertising guidance in place. Most franchisees do their own local advertising.
Training & Support – The franchisee has access to franchisors operations manual, computer systems and other items to help you successfully manage your franchise. Many has hands on training ahead of opening up your business.
So, if you wonder why some businesses are not available in your community, maybe it is because they need a franchisor or franchisee to open one up. If you wish to learn more about owning your own franchise and want further information contact me, Cindy Wallace, at the City of Liberal Economic Development office, 620-626-2256. I am looking into some training programs on this topic and will be working with the Small Business Development Center to assist. Further information will be forthcoming.
