[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6595751,"mediaKeyId","3025923-2b97d27ab3ca3072e0a9c3929e7440f7","parentId",3025923,"title","County emergency management demonstrates AlertSense mass-notification system; commission directs staff to pursue city rollout","audioSeconds",1569,"startMs",31500,"endMs",1601430,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3025923-2b97d27ab3ca3072e0a9c3929e7440f7&start=31&end=1601","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3025923-2b97d27ab3ca3072e0a9c3929e7440f7/thumbnail_31500.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6595751/Kansas/County-emergency-management-demonstrates-AlertSense-mass-notification-system-commission-directs-staff-to-pursue-city-rollout","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6595751-738e96b250f581c02f35054ac5d55af7/orig.mp4?Expires=1775197239&Signature=hPJbyQGusRwaTOBHtGCobs5VpoSFE39dyPx7h2nJvNrFbimYkW8dVQ9YCvtbBeCArPGiMz4yd~uYh6vFNZZ1MAmILZ47j8I1hGt48d2ry9k4P5MSAGRyJoptm0A39S7RvlZV8vJFiNEG56Ky5KqBDxW~TN2TLfaujLjE7YI2Drl~~AvvbOMqNKPRnVqemE8F~yhALTg-rhMZ-cM7-XxSrVVWnhYBmse6vkzwWneoVV8wJ8RQt79A5mre6K4A43W9Yoav0Xo~WKVub1p~MAmMm8cO56LxexdBDxlLJNfEH5xHGZgLrxr995BMFAzEw3W3w1idsYQioejC0NvxL2M8vQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Leavenworth, KS","date","2025-04-16T21:45:26.96Z","article","At a Leavenworth City Commission study session, Leavenworth County Emergency Management demonstrated AlertSense (marketed as Connexus after acquisition) and commissioners indicated consensus to have city staff pursue implementation and training.

County emergency management said the system, commonly described as a modern reverse-9-1-1 product, can send a single message simultaneously to landlines, mobile phones (text/voice) and email and can target specific areas by drawing polygons, circles or freehand shapes on a map. Chuck Magaha, identified in the later agenda as the county emergency manager and introduced during the presentation, said the county has used the system since 2019 for boil orders, missing-children searches and evacuations and described a recent grass fire that forced the evacuation of about 25 homes.

The system’s features demonstrated to the commission included: an administrative console that can be delegated to city staff; simultaneous delivery by call/text/email; templates and scheduled sends; recipient-grouping for internal rosters (volunteers, staff, emergency responders); delivery and open/answer reporting; and a “donut” mapping option that can exclude an interior area (useful, presenters said, to avoid notifying law enforcement inside an active scene). Presenters said sign-up is opt-in for residents and provided a QR code and public sign-up flyer for outreach.

Magaha said administrators can see aggregated delivery results (how many messages were delivered or failed) but noted the system will not necessarily reveal reasons for failure beyond a failure flag. During the demo staff showed a mapped area that the vendor’s data indicated would reach roughly 4,263 potential contacts in that polygon through the system’s combined channels. A county presenter said internal reports can show whether an individual opened a message.

City staff and presenters discussed common practical points. The system relies on a county 9-1-1 data file that the vendor obtained and uses for voice overrides; administrators can add public directories, internal rosters, or keep messages internal. Presenters recommended the city primarily use the tool for city news and events and let the county continue to push emergency-weather alerts to avoid “crying wolf” and duplicative messages. The system is free to sign up for residents; the county representative said the county’s rollout materials and sign-up resources are already available.

Commissioners asked how many Leavenworth residents were signed up; county staff said they did not have a definitive citywide total on hand during the presentation but cited a sample figure of 1,477 sign-ups for one selected area. Presenters also said the county had used the system successfully to notify volunteers and spotters during weather events and training.

After the demonstration commissioners and staff discussed administrator training and who would be given rights to send city messages. Scott (city staff) and county presenters said they would train designated city staff. The presentation concluded with staff noting the system can be set up with the county as the parent account and the city as a child organization, giving local staff control of city messaging. Scott reported there was consensus for staff to pursue implementation and schedule training with county staff and the vendor.

The commission did not take a formal vote during the study session; the transcript records a staff direction to follow up with training and account setup pending city-staff decisions.

Alerts and public outreach materials mentioned during the presentation include Connexus (vendor branding after acquisition), AlertSense (product name in county materials), Fort Leavenworth (included in county 9-1-1 data), and local EOC contact information to appear on messages so recipients can verify authenticity.

Ending: City staff will work with county emergency management and vendor representatives to set administrative access, arrange training for designated city employees, and return to the commission with any implementation details or materials needed for a public sign-up campaign.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Leavenworth City Commission Study Session April 15, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","At a Leavenworth City Commission study session, Leavenworth County Emergency Management demonstrated AlertSense (now Connexus) and commissioners indicated consensus to have staff pursue the service for city messaging and emergency notification.","taxTitle","Leavenworth City, Leavenworth County, Kansas","taxId",53903,"location","Kansas","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6595748,"Commission hears LCDC update, debates withdrawing from county EDC and moving economic development in-house",6262,1674790,7936810,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3025923-2b97d27ab3ca3072e0a9c3929e7440f7&start=1674&end=7936","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3025923-2b97d27ab3ca3072e0a9c3929e7440f7/thumbnail_1674790.jpg","/articles/6595748/Kansas/Commission-hears-LCDC-update-debates-withdrawing-from-county-EDC-and-moving-economic-development-in-house","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6595748-5a6d440f27c386c1f62cee32ee8634cb/orig.mp4?Expires=1775197239&Signature=IN6tMfIkbaMMeYG52~Z3VHvhvicsCUnnTFKtfVDWv8opJg1iZqrbEz1u9FNUoBVwPGBCLmwZOV5BJ1HPAQMb0rG35OT4adUYl1QLHkAYZ7GSdwkbxF5L-d6eYv52o4N6T1hpQr54GgVD6XecINpffoyzqCAWmR1IQK5hSVshg7NkjbrC~oYZrUUxhKlgpXYoMujpvk7oCjf87dO-OgePHXa~uWgAXQPdZ9oC4t3ms1mw-tEUjJYAXTZX1LzadrlXNTs8C6cVs1CHTtmjvopvZvxDTafMmzID1YiAHLg~d-B7yUiQdHEWr3T6oYx7yMwRwDnUhgizBHoGYH~oYlQhEg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At a Leavenworth City Commission study session, Lisa Hack, executive director of the Leavenworth County Development Corporation (LCDC), updated the commission on LCDC marketing and lead-generation work for county industrial sites and business parks. The presentation prompted an extended commission discussion about LCDC and Port Authority funding, Chamber and Main Street capacity, and whether the city should withdraw from LCDC and instead house economic-development functions internally.

Hack told commissioners LCDC markets the Leavenworth Business and Technology Park and the Gary Carlson Business Center, responds to requests for information (RFIs) from site selectors and state partners, and pursues business-attraction and retention activities. She said LCDC markets through digital and print materials, networking in the Kansas City region and nationally, Team Kansas familiarization events and partnerships with the Kansas Department of Commerce and the Kansas City Area Development Council. Hack said LCDC logged 15 projects related to the Business and Technology Park in 2024 and reported 13 leads in 2025 to date. She noted the park remains vacant and highlighted two recurring constraints raised by prospective projects: electric-power delivery (Evergy does not build speculative capacity) and community acceptance/housing near the park.

Hack said the Business and Technology Park offers abundant water and a gas line that can support temporary generation, which can be an advantage for some prospective data-center projects. She also said LCDC and the county are pursuing a wider strategy that includes workforce development and marketing the county’s talent pool—noting the local veteran population and Fort Leavenworth as assets.

City staff framed the county organizations’ distinct roles for the commission: LCDC as the county economic-development corporation that prepares RFIs and marketing proposals; the Port Authority as the legal entity that can own and hold land for future industrial development; the chamber as the chief community connector and fundraiser; Main Street as the downtown revitalization organization; and nonprofit partners such as Girl Leavenworth County as gap-financing sources for small businesses. Staff noted recent funding reductions to county economic-development efforts and said LCDC and the Port Authority have insufficient steady funding to maintain current levels of service indefinitely.

During the discussion one commissioner proposed withdrawing Leavenworth City’s funding from LCDC in 2026 and using those funds instead to create an in-house economic-development position (and potentially a grant-writing role) that could focus specifically on the city’s needs. The commissioner said the city could reallocate existing budget items (examples mentioned in the discussion included a portion of Main Street funding and transient guest tax allocations) to cover salary and operating costs. That commissioner also urged establishing clearer metrics for measuring partners’ performance and recommended creating a business-licensing or tracking program so the city could better see outcomes and have a current list of operating businesses.

Scott (city staff) and Penny (city economic development staff) said they regularly interact with LCDC on RFIs and marketing but acknowledged the county entities’ funding limitations. Staff recommended the commission treat any change carefully because county-led organizations currently perform marketing and maintain relationships with regional site selectors. They told the commission the city can choose its economic-development model and that options range from continuing the current partnership to reduced funding with specific deliverables to full in-house service.

Other matters raised during the session: Chamber governance and finances. Staff said the chamber has overspent its budget and used reserves; there has been a mid-2023 decision that restricted some financial transparency with ex officio members, and staff expressed concern that the chamber’s financial fragility could harm local-business support if not addressed. Staff also described Main Street’s recent stabilization—new leadership, a strategic plan, a building-inventory tracker and renewed committee activity—and noted Main Street had applied for a $50,000 downtown master-plan grant.

Staff closed the discussion by offering to prepare options and costs for the commission: maintain funding as-is with clarified deliverables; reduce funding tied to measurable metrics; or withdraw funds and bring economic-development functions in-house, including an outline of likely staff roles, salary ranges and budget impacts. Commissioners asked for metrics to judge partner performance and requested staff return with options during the budget process. No formal vote was taken during the study session.

Ending: Staff will prepare and present options for the commission during upcoming budget discussions, including cost estimates, recommended performance metrics for external partners, and a proposed job description or scope for any in-house economic-development position.","Leavenworth County Development Corporation executive director Lisa Hack briefed the commission on business-attraction activity, available sites and barriers to large projects. Commissioners pressed for clearer metrics, raised concerns about county partner funding and Chamber/Main Street finances, and asked staff to return with options—including a ","actionData","errors"]

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County emergency management demonstrates AlertSense mass-notification system; commission directs staff to pursue city rollout

Commission hears LCDC update, debates withdrawing from county EDC and moving economic development in-house