Latest news with #Kitchens
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Malafronte to be nominated as next director at Manchester airport
Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais this week will nominate Tom Malafronte to serve as the next airport director at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport. The nomination is expected to be made at Tuesday's meeting of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen, which begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall. Malafronte has been serving as deputy director of the airport since 2015, and as acting airport director since early April. Ted Kitchens announced in March that he would be leaving his post as director of aviation on April 4. Malafronte has been with MHT for 35 years, serving in seven different roles. In addition to deputy director, Malafronte has served as manager of airport operations and facilities, assistant director of air service development, marketing and public relations. Ruais said Malafronte started as a maintenance specialist doing everything from "inspecting aircrafts to operating snowplows for the runways," working his way up to deputy director. "He is a foundational guy who knows the airport from top to bottom," Ruais said. "That type of experience is hard to come by these days and is deeply valued. Tom is also a true aviation professional with broad knowledge of the industry. He has my full support as our new director. "I am confident he is the right person to the lead MHT at this time.' Kitchens guided the airport through the pandemic and helped draw new airlines to Manchester in recent years. 'I have accomplished the goals that I had when I arrived six years ago: the airport is financially stable; we have been able to attract new air service for the airport, as exemplified by the recent commitment made by JetBlue; and to build organizational resiliency that enabled us to not only survive the pandemic, but to come out of the period in a stronger situation,' Kitchens said in his resignation letter to city officials. Kitchens was the highest-paid city employee, earning nearly $250,000 in Fiscal Year 2023. That same year Malafronte was paid $158,993. Ruais praised what Kitchens accomplished for Manchester. Kitchens 'has attracted five airlines, constructed a 64,000-square-foot cargo warehouse used by Amazon that created 300 full-time jobs for Manchester residents, tripled the amount of federal funding for capital development projects, diversified airport revenue streams, and restructured 70% of its long-term debt,' the mayor said in a statement. 'His tenure will be most remembered for bringing JetBlue to the airport, along with its $48 million investment,' Ruais said. Kitchens said he plans to 'pursue new horizons and turn the airport over to new management to build upon the sound foundation that exists.' 'New leadership can bring a new vision and strategies that will continue the Airport on its current positive trajectory,' Kitchens wrote. In May the Department of Business and Economic Affairs honored Kitchens with its Collaborator of the Year award at its annual tourism summit. The award, presented by Commissioner Taylor Caswell, recognizes strong commitment and exceptional support to the state in advancing tourism and economic development. 'Ted provides a great example of how vision turns into reality,' Caswell said. 'Beyond attracting five airlines to the airport, he successfully led Manchester-Boston Regional Airport through a pandemic and poised it for further growth.'
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chamber of Commerce leads downtown Wichita Falls growth
WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — Downtown Wichita Falls Development is experiencing a significant shift of responsibilities. Board president Dusty Potter said the nonprofit is in the process of transferring many of its responsibilities to the Chamber of Commerce. Severe storms, tornados could threaten Texoma this weekend After many years of trying to boost the economy, Potter said the board now feels the chamber is better equipped to handle the economic development of businesses downtown going forward. He said they believe their focus should remain on community engagement and events. 'We're going to have some great new events coming. We're not ready to talk about it, but we are certainly not going away at the end of the day,' Potter said. 'What you're going to see that most people think of is downtown development, such as Saint Pat's Festival, Cajun Festival, and City Lights Festival. You're going to see more of that.' Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce CEO Ron Kitchens said the change is in their approach to finding businesses to occupy the buildings. They want to make sure the businesses are aligned with the community's vision. 'Really, it's that alignment where people's natural strengths are. We're a sales and development group. That's what we do every day. We work with small businesses, mom and pop businesses every day,' Kitchens said. 'The fact that it's geographically located downtown is almost irrelevant to what we do, because we're doing this work everywhere else in town. We're just now going to do the work downtown as well.' As far as the future of staffing within the Downtown Wichita Falls Development… 'I can't get into that right now because everything's in flux and in motion, and to be fair to our staff, I really shouldn't talk about it,' Kitchens said. Be sure to tune into our newscast on Friday, May 23, for a further in-depth analysis of the shifts and changes within Wichita Falls downtown development and the Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce, looking at what's to come and how the implementation happens. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Assembly passes bipartisan health care bills including letting pharmacists prescribe birth control
The bill passed 87-10 with only Republican lawmakers voting against. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner) The Wisconsin State Assembly, in a departure from prior floor debates this session, passed several widely bipartisan bills related to health care, including one to exempt direct primary care services from insurance laws and another to allow pharmacist to prescribe birth control. AB 43 would allow pharmacists to prescribe certain birth control, including the pill and contraceptive patches, to patients 18 and older as a way of making it easier to access. Currently, Wisconsin patients have to make an appointment with a doctor or advanced practice nurse and answer a mandatory list of questions regarding their health before a doctor could prescribe birth control. Once a physician determines it safe, patients can take a prescription to a pharmacy to be filled. Under the bill, pharmacists would have to give patients a self-assessment questionnaire and do blood pressure screening. If there are any 'red flags,' then a pharmacist would need to refer patients to see a physician. Rep. Joel Kitchens (R-Sturgeon Bay) said during a press conference ahead of the session that the process included in the bill is 'much more rigorous' than when women get birth control online. He said it would also help women with family planning, noting that about half of pregnancies in Wisconsin are unplanned each year. 'These women are unlikely to finish school, and it will severely affect their potential earnings throughout their lives…' Kitchens said. 'Birth control is 99.9% effective when it's used according to directions and regularly. The lack of access is the biggest reason that it sometimes fails. Women will leave home for a couple of days and forget about it, or they can't make an appointment with their doctor, and this bill is going to help with all of that.' This is the fourth time the Assembly has passed a similar bill. Last session, it passed a Senate committee but it never came for a floor vote. Kitchens said he thinks there is a 'good chance the Senate will pass it this time.' Rep. Jessie Rodriguez (R-Oak Creek) said in a statement that the policy 'will increase access to contraceptives, particularly for women who live in rural areas, where many Wisconsinites live closer to their pharmacy than they do to their doctor's office,' and urged her Senate colleagues to take up the bill. 'This is a good bill that will make for greater access to contraception. I have voted for this proposal four sessions in a row. I urge the Senate to follow our lead,' Rodriguez said. The bill passed 87-10 with only Republican lawmakers voting against. SB 4 would exempt direct primary care, which is a health care model where patients pay a monthly or annual fee to a physician or practice for access to primary care services, from insurance laws. Advocates have said that clarifying that insurance law doesn't apply to direct primary care doctors would encourage more providers to opt in to this model. Bill author Rep. Cindi Duchow (R-Town of Delafield) said at a press conference that direct primary care 'is not insurance.' 'It's a private contract you have with the doctor, then you have insurance for something catastrophic — if you need to have surgery or you have a heart attack, you have insurance to cover that — but this is just for your everyday needs, and it's more one-on-one, and you have more personal experiences with the doctors,' Duchow said. Rep. Robyn Vining (D-Wauwatosa) expressed concerns about the bill, noting that it is missing nondiscrimination language and that she would be voting against it. '[This] is getting us nowhere helpful,' Vining said. The nondiscrimination language, Vining referenced, was in relation to prohibiting discrimination on the basis of 'gender identity.' Conservative organizations had lobbied against the bill last session due to the inclusion of that language and it never received a vote in the Senate. Vining expressed concerns that Evers might veto the bill without the nondiscrimination language. Rep. Lisa Subeck (D-Madison) said she had similar concerns but would be voting for it. 'I think it is a good bill, and it does something that is important, but I do it knowing that I wish the bill could be stronger,' Subeck said. The Assembly concurred in SB 4 in a voice vote. The Senate passed the bill in March, and it will now head to Evers' desk. Lawmakers also concurred in SB 14, a bill to require written informed consent from a patient when a hospital performs a pelvic examination for educational purposes on a patient while the patient is under general anesthesia or otherwise unconscious. The bill was advocated for by Sarah Wright, a teacher who was subjected to a nonconsensual pelvic exam while she was undergoing abdominal surgery in Madison in 2009. Subeck said it is a 'horrifying' story that Wright has shared every legislative session. '[Wright] was unconscious. There was no medical need for a pelvic exam and medical students were brought in to do public exams in order to learn the procedure because it's easy as to learn on an unconscious individual,' Subeck said. 'This is tantamount to sexual assault. This is not giving consent. This is assuming consent from somebody who is unconscious.' Subeck noted in a statement that lawmakers have been working on the legislation for over a decade. 'It has taken far too long, but we are finally honoring her bravery by putting an end to this disturbing and unethical practice,' Subeck said in a statement. 'Patients entrust medical professionals with their care at their most vulnerable moments. That trust must never be violated. Performing a medically unnecessary and invasive exam without consent is not only a breach of ethics — it is a violation that can feel indistinguishable from sexual assault.' Rep. Joy Goeben (R-Hobart) noted that one study found that over 80% of medical students at major training hospitals reported performing pelvic exams on anaesthetized patients, but only 17% said that the patients were informed, while nearly half reported that the patients were rarely or never explicitly told so. 'I am really thankful for the bipartisan support,' Goeben said. Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer (D-Racine) said in a statement ahead of the session that the bills were a sign that lawmakers could work across partisan lines, but said they could do more. 'It is possible to come together to pass good, bipartisan bills that will move our state forward — but we know that there is so much work left to be done,' Neubauer said. 'Just last week, Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee cut proposals by [Evers] that would have lowered costs for working families and cut taxes for the majority of Wisconsinites. Removing these critical proposals from consideration and preventing future discussion is ridiculous, and on top of this, the GOP has refused to have public hearings, let alone votes, on popular and bipartisan legislation that would move our state forward.' Ahead of the floor session, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) told reporters that work on the budget is on hold until legislative leaders meet in person with Evers. Republican lawmakers are seeking a tax cut in the budget. 'Our preferred option [is] to be able to get an agreed upon tax cut so that we know we have X dollars to invest in schools and health care and all the other things that are important,' Vos said. 'It's pretty hard for us to move forward… I think we're kind of on pause until we hear back from Gov. Evers.' 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Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Yahoo
Northwest Arkansas law enforcement agencies warn residents of multiple scams
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — The Washington County Sheriff's Office, Madison County Sheriff's Office and Gentry Police Department warn residents of multiple scams. The Washington County Sheriff's Office says it has received reports of a scammer who contacts a relative of a detainee in the Washington County Detention Center and tells them they are Deputy Kitchens with the WCSO. The scammer says the jail is overcrowded and for a monetary fee, the family member can get the detainee out of jail and given an ankle monitor. The scammer spoofs the caller ID to make it appear that the call is from the sheriff's office. The Washington County Sheriff's Office and the Madison County Sheriff's Office both say they have received reports of a scammer who calls and tells residents they are a deputy with one of the sheriff's offices, and tells the resident they missed jury duty and now there's a warrant for their arrest. The scammer tries to get the resident to pay their 'bond' over the phone. The Madison County Sheriff's Office says it will not use scare tactics to entice people to do something. It says if you are in doubt, take notes on the conversation and contact your local law enforcement agency at their known business phone number and not the one given by the caller to verify the validity of the call. The Gravett Police Department says it has received reports of a scam involving door hangers left at residents' homes. If the resident calls the number, they are prompted to give their Social Security number and other identifying information. The police department says not to give your information to unknown entities and to report anything suspicious. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alabama Senate bill would require cities to disclose discretionary accounts
Sen. Wes Kitchens, R-Arab (right) speaks with Jess Skaggs, chief of staff to Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth (left) and Sen. Keith Kelley, R-Anniston (center) on the floor of the Alabama Senate on April 8, 2025 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. He filed legislation to require municipalities to publish information about discretionary accounts. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) The Senate County and Municipal Government Committee approved a bill Tuesday that requires municipalities to disclose information about discretionary spending accounts that the jurisdiction created. SB 306, sponsored by Sen. Wes Kitchens, R-Arab, would require municipalities with discretionary accounts to publish both the balance and spending activity each month. 'What this does, it is really to have transparency in government,' Kitchens said to the committee. 'Different agencies, different elected officials who have discretionary accounts, it is to make it more accessible to people. Similar to what we go through with the campaign finance report, it would be publicized.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The bill would require government agencies, boards, commissions and departments to make that information available online through their website; with the Association of County Commissions of Alabama or with the Alabama League of Municipalities. Judges, district attorneys and clerks may also make that information public with the Administrative Office of the Courts. Kaleb Beck, legislative counsel for the Alabama League of Municipalities, spoke against the legislation during a public hearing. 'The League's first area of opposition is the resource burden this will place on our cities,' Beck said. 'For example, our smaller municipalities might lack the technical expertise or staff to, every month, format and upload these types of documents.' He said that municipal clerks that oversee less populated areas of the state already perform different functions, and the legislation will place them with another responsibility. 'If residents want this information published, this can be pushed for at the local level,' Beck said. 'We can trust that our municipal officials will be receptive to their constituents' wants and needs, and if not, they can be held accountable at the polls like every other elected official in the state.' After the public hearing, Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison, D-Birmingham, said she would propose an amendment to the legislation to make it easier for the smaller jurisdictions to comply with the provisions with the bill. 'I understand the issue with the smaller municipalities, it may be an issue for them,' she said. 'If they didn't have the abilities to publicize it, some small towns may not have a website, but that it would be posted at city hall, a county courthouse, or whatever.' Kitchens said he is open to continue discussing the elements contained in his bill. 'This seems like an incredibly low bar for me to reach,' said Sen. Chris Elliott, R-Josephine, the chair of the committee. 'I am very supportive of your legislation.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
