County staff update: Point Project, water task force, nursing pipeline and housing barriers

A county staff member provided an update on recent regional and local economic-development work, including the Point Project (an athletic facility planned to include multiple basketball courts and a wrestling room), a state cost-share to upgrade Maple Street Bridge, and the start of a county pitch book to respond to Kansas Department of Commerce requests for information on utilities, zoning and workforce capacity. Staff reported on a regional water task force meeting in Dodge City where participants discussed voluntary buyouts of water rights in the northwest part of the county and the need to balance water conservation policies with crop-production economics. The task force planned at least one more meeting to develop recommendations for the Kansas legislative session. A nursing task force meeting was scheduled for the following day; staff said Barton (referenced in meeting as the entity operating the local nursing program at Pratt Community College) is seeking more locally trained nurses to reduce reliance on contract nursing. The staff report stated the state currently spends about $40,000,000 a year on contract nurses for Larned State Hospital, and the task force will consider barriers such as academic preparation in math and reading that limit enrollment in nursing programs. On housing, staff reported that Kansas Housing Resources Corporation middle-income housing grants are open and that developers have cited high skilled-labor costs and low-volume builds in Pratt as barriers to new construction. Commissioners were told a developer would attend a future meeting to discuss local development barriers. Staff also said a consultant on the Sawyer/Sharon project resigned and the project is paused pending further direction from higher authorities.