morning everyone good morning staff hey  do me a favor and good morning witch I   will call this meeting to order  we will start with the Pledge of Allegiance iedge Al to the flag of the United  States of America and to the Republic for which   it stands na God indivisible liy and justice  for all this is thank you all very much Madame   clerk can you please call the first item okay  public agenda the public agenda allows for up   to five speakers to have five minutes each  to address the council no action will be   taken relative to items on the public agenda  other than referral to the city manager for   information as necessary speakers will please  stay their name and address for the record a   Time clock will display the speaker remaining  time to speak order and rules of decorum will   be observed we do not have any scheduled speakers  on public agenda this morning thank you very much   Madame clerk are there any individuals in the  audience who would like to address the city council I see none Madame  clerk please call the next item consent agenda items 1 through 2   council members are there items to be  pulled I'd like to pull item 4 a just for discussion I'd like to pull item 4 C for discussion and I don't believe anyone from   BCD is around is that correct city manager  mayor that's correct although the director is   on his way he's just running late I apologize  then I would like to also pull item number seven any additional items to be pulled I see  none I will move to approve consent agenda items   without items 4 a 4 C and S second Motion in  a second any further discussion I see none   all those in favor say I I I all those oppose  same sign motion passes 70 we will begin with   4 a thank you mayor um I'd just like to give Gary  a chance to just chat about this a little bit um   it's pretty exciting we can actually start making  some Revenue off of some of our processes down at   the uh sewage treatment plant here possibly so um  just to catch some of the other council members   up on this um this item uh could you just give a  little brief background on it sure uh mayor and   council members Gary Janson Public Works and  utilities and appreciate the opportunity to   to highlight this as you said uh a byproduct of  the digestion process with wastewater treatment   is creating methane right now that's just flared  off to the environment we have in the past looked   as many other organizations like ours have of  trying to find a way to capture that methane   for use uh in natural gas processes uh and we'  even considered the same when we started down   the path as this BNR project but there were  just too many other things to really look at   so it's a good opportunity this item before you  this morning is a agreement with CDM who's the   designer for BNR uh help develop procurement for  what will be a public private partnership we've   evaluated different options we could try to take  on capturing and sale of this methane ourselves   Capital costs are considerable upfront um there  are other communities have developed processes   which we're considering here cdm's been a part  of so they've got some expertise uh that there   are through this partnership uh there are  companies that'll come in provide all the   capital they'll provide the equipment they'll own  and maintain equipment and we do realize revenues   off the sale of that methane to companies like  one gas and others who can you utilize it for   other purposes so that's where we're starting  now with this uh is to develop that and I think   it's going to hopefully it works out well for us  secondary part of that too is through our fat oils   and grease program and the disposal of grease in  particular we think there may be an opportunity   as some communities have done and we've talked to  some vendors about the opportunity to basically   you sweeten that gas the ability to make even  more gas uh and maybe create uh additional   opportunities for restaurants in town uh to have  a more viable place for disposal of their greases   so that's the second part of this I think the the  capture of the gas is something that's more likely   to happen second part with the the grees is is  hopeful right now but Assi approval today we'll   get moving on this as quick as we can all right  just let us know what uh the city can do to help   I appreciate that thank you thanks any  further questions I see none anyone from   the public who would like to speak on this  item I see none I'll bring it back to the   bench I move to approve consent agenda item  4 a second motion and a second any further   discussion I see none all those in favor say I  I I all those oppose same sign motion passes 70 we will now move to consent agenda item  number 4 c will someone from Parks um   please come forward and talk about  uh this agreement I know that uh this also uh is part of the process that  helped with the NCAA March Madness   FanFest this past weekend and so I've got  a lot of questions regarding the process   as people have now seen uh that these  public assets like Oldtown square or   Navar Park are opportunities for people to  utilize I've had uh some schools ask about   um tailgating opportunities at public uh  parking lots so if there's someone that   can speak on the behalf of the process  itself it would be helpful for community now I've asked Isaac uh uh to come down who  manages that process for the parks department but   I can give a general overview of what the process  looks like for using uh Napa Park uh so we do   have an application process that's through special  events that Isaac manages uh when it's 250 people   unless there is a certain criteria for uh what's  required as far as with street closure and police   and fire support when it's over 250 it requires  different uh qualifications to be able to use that   space and it's all determined uh by the number of  people that are actually there for each of those   events uh typically when we have those we work  in conjunction with uh uh WPD to make sure that   we have the approval process that's go through  for what's required there and and determines the   number of people that are there that how we manage  that process but anyone that's interested in using   that space can actually fill out the application  that comes to that approval process uh we do have   two different pay structures one is a standard  for a business that does it and then a reduced   fee that we do for nonprofit organizations that  use the space as well what are those costs for the   applications and I don't have directly in front of  me uh but uh I believe the the entire day uh for   rental is $1,000 and then there's a 25% off for a  nonprofit organization that takes it down to $750   and I'll double check to make sure on that as  well thank you so my question then for this   Oldtown farm and Art Market I know it's very  popular um and I looked at this contract so   per use is $95 per use can you talk about um  obviously you just mentioned it's about $1,000   for a rental regarding these public assets  but uh this is a much more reduced fee can   you talk about the reasons why this specific  contract is $95 per use okay and I I don't   have the specifics on that I apologize Isaac has  been the one that's managing that process for me   now I can see if I can get him here to be able to  speak more specifically about what that cost is   so if you give me a moment I can actually get  him here so he can answer those questions for us I know that that contract is actually 95  per use but the total amount will be $3,515   for the full rental between the months of our  the dates of April 5th 2025 to December 20th   2025 without November 29th as a date that um  I guess will not be utilized and so I wanted   this for full transparency for people that wanted  to know how to utilize our public asset spaces um   I think oftentimes people assume all they have  to do is contact one of the council members and   that that is not true it there is a process  and it's a process that is handled by the   parks department and when there are great  opportunities like the farm and Art Market   which again draws a lot of people and we like  that um we just want to make sure that people   have a fair share of being able to utilize  spaces that are public but if we can just   get a clarification on the application fee and  then also the justification of why $95 per use thank you any further questions from the I'm  just wondering if the $95 is like per booth   for the farm andart market no it's per date so  there's an additional $95 we'll just let Isaac explain did good morning Isaac G Haskins Department of  Park and Recreation hi Isaac thank you for   handling the um application process can you  talk about um how people in the community who   are interested in utilizing a public space and  renting it out how that process actually works   and what are the fees uh specifically for  the farmers market or for community events   in general in general and then we can talk about  the specific item in just a second Farmers Market   it a bit differently they're licensed separately  than they are as a community event uh so community   events are defined as any sort of public event  occurring on private or public property in which   any and excuse me I'm sorry I'm recovering from  a cold um 250 or more people at any given time uh   five or more vendor selling that does not apply to  food trucks or nonprofits um alcohol consumption   on public streets or sidewalks or street closures  uh those applications should be if with a street   closure need to be submitted at least 45 days  in advance um without street closures they can   be submitted at less than up to 30 days in advance  uh once the application is received I will review   it reach out to the applicant collect any  outstanding or supporting documents that   are needed uh and then I will release it to the  uh community events committee which includes 10   other City officials and departments um approval  process typically takes anywhere from 3 to four   weeks sometimes longer depending on the type  of event or any of the aspects um as far as the   farmers market goes it's handled differently  uh farmers markets are not required to get a   community event permit uh Oldtown Association is  a bit unique in the way that the lease agreement   kind of covers the fact that they that that is  their Market license um uh normally a farmers   market application gets submitted to the licensing  department downstairs here on the first floor   uh and then that uh gets approved I want to say  by six City officials that I have to double check   that I don't handle those ones directly uh the  farmers market they pay uh $95 a day for the   plaza rental that also includes the uh use of Rock  Island and Mosley um normally the plaza would go   for 165 a day but just for the farmers market  we've given them a discount over the years we   did increase that by $10 a day this past year um  any other general questions thank you that was my   question the justification of why it was a reduced  cost um I wanted to just make sure that cost   recovery is being achieved in this very contract  um I would have to defer to Public Works on costs I'm not sorry I may have missed that last part is cost  recovery being achieved with $95 per day on the   this is with the F Market Farmers Market um I'm  not sure I'd have to take a look at that and   get back to you probably because uh I'm sure  based on where we've gotten to with our other   permits I'm sure we've got a justification  for that cost but I'd have to look and see   what the most recent ones were and and I  apologize I don't have that right here if   we can have that followup I would appreciate  it I think oftentimes we do things that um   Community doesn't understand why there's a  reduced cost for one specific group versus   another group and out of full transparency we  should be able to justify the reason why we   appreciate and I love that we have a um farm and  Art Market but we are providing a red reduce costs   and there's a reason why and if it is I just  want to make sure that cost recovery is being achieved any further questions um Isaac one  more question how much was the application fee   for business versus nonprofit uh so the fee  for community events does not differentiate   change between nonprofit or for-profit your the  actual application fees you're looking at a $25   application fee for a single day permit it's  $50 uh per day uh a two-day license two to   3day license runs $200 and then a license for four  or more days is $500 um street closure fees just   come with an administrative flat $25 fee on top  of that so your application fees in general are   not very much thank you for that and I appreciate  it and where the nonprofit fee goes in is for the   actual Runner of the facilities itself that  the 25% applies to thank you Reggie and thank   you Isaac again we want to allow the community  to understand the process so if they would like   to utilize a public parking lot or a public park  um that there is a process and again they don't   have to um just believe that we have the magic  wand for them but I've gotten those emails and   I then send them to the council member where that  um specific location is and then I also copy the   community service representative who then I hope  continues that conversation with the potential   applicant so thank you and I look forward to  the additional information about cost recovery   thanks to both of you any other questions add  in to that um it's easier you know you can just   go to community events on our website but I also  want to add in just my voice to the conversation   of cost recovery is important but Partnerships  with Community organizations that bring about   these opportunities like farm and Art Market or  some of the festivals that economic impact is a   little greater than a formal cost recovery  here for the city so while we may see some   cost recovery I think it's worth some of our  investments in these public assets that we as   the taxpayers own that we benefit the community  in that way and while there may not be a direct   cost recovery here all the businesses in the farm  and Art Market are actually benefiting from having   this in that space so it's not always going to be  a full cost recovery especially in Parks this is a   public amenity that we have and that we try to get  some revenues back but also it's more of a public   benefit to have some of these things I really  appreciate that conversation because over the   weekend we had a lot of uh different vendors for  the NCAA and they didn't understand that the city   of witcha provides these additional whether it's  security or Services um for the benefit of the   Greater Community so that there can be economic  impact in our community so um I highlighted this   really to make sure people understand not just  the process but also that the city of Witchita   is very much uh in hand inand with economic  development and economic impact thank you any   other questions I see none uh anyone from the  audience who would like to speak on this item   I see none I moveed to approve consent agenda  item 4 C second motion and a second any further   discussion I see done um all those in favor say  I I I all those oppose same sign motion passes   70 do we have mbcd perfect um consent agenda  item number seven is in regards to abatement   of dangerous and unsaved structures I've gotten  several questions over the last year regarding   um how someone complaints about complains about  a uh dangerous or new sense property and how they   can follow up with that process to boarding it up  and then to finally at the very worse situation   demolition of the property uh could could we  just explain that process for Community thank you good morning kayn nethercott with metropolitan  area building and construction Department um so   two parts to that question first with regards  to the assessments that you see in front of you   those are for structures that were removed um as  part of an emergency demolition process these are   typically those that are burned so badly that  we cannot secure them um and that they're an   immediate Hazard and a danger to the community  either for re-entry um if they've been illegally   inhabited or um a very collapse in danger of  falling into the street that kind of thing   so the assessments that you see in front of you  are typically for structures of that nature now   to answer your question when the public  complains about a house that is in um a   moderately or severely dilapidated State the  very first thing that we're going to do is   to open a housing case and try to resolve that  sort of if you will at the lowest level possible   which is INR inspector um and property owner and  that process we will work through that generally   it's successful not always so I think the public  sometimes thinks that we're going to go straight   from a complaint to a demolition because they  will they will literally ask us how can I get   this house torn down well that isn't exactly  how that works so um so it's going to result in   a case at that point they can track that through  mab CD's customer service portal it's assigned a   case number they can search by case or address  either one and then they can follow along with   the progress of that now if if the house the  housing case remains unresolved and again we're   going to try a multitude of things we're going to  try to work with that property owner and there's   some caveats to that if it's a problem that can  be resolved with a little bit of help we're going   to influx our code enforcement liaison resources  for that if possible if it's a manageable problem   that that will actually help um we can try  environmental Court also to try to just incent   that property owner a little more heavily to  do some repairs take care of it maybe even   sell it change ownership that's an effective  way sometimes to resolve problems as a very   last as you said a very last case scenario then we  will we will enter that property into the formal   condemnation process now typically and I do want  to make this clear formal condemnations are we we   do not generally ever pursue those with occupied  structures so that is that is not how that works   um now I'm going to back up and and add a little  another caveat to that sometimes the complaints   we get from Neighbors are on structures that are  occupied their owner occupied they fallen into   disrepair um it's obvious that the owner doesn't  have the physical Financial capacity to do what   they need to do that's where we can typically  use our code enforcement liaison services to   to great success it takes a little while and the  owner has to be willing to let us help them but   that's where we typically use that program the  most effectively so does that does that help   answer your question does thank you very much  um again I know that community members want   sometimes a structure to be completely demolished  immediately and there is a process and I know the   frustration um and and we get thosea email so  then we send them to the correct council member   where it belongs and their community service  rep who then I think contacts you oh yes they   do yes yes yes one thing I would encourage that  if if a property's condition changes we would   encourage that continued communication from the  community because we will go back and check at   at DIS at designated times for rechecks  right we have a process for reinspection but we would always welcome if that neighbor  sees a change in the condition of that property   that we may not be aware of so we can  always check again at a different time   throughout that process and we welcome that  communication okay thank you very much Ken   any further questions I see none appreciate  it anyone from the audience who would like to   speak on this item I see none I'll bring it  back to the bench I move to approve consent   agenda item s second motion and a second any  further discussion I see none all those in   favor say I all those oppose same sign motion  passes 70 Madame clerk please call the next item Board of bids and contracts dated March 24th 2025 good morning mayor city council Josh  Department of Finance uh the board of bids   and contracts convened yesterday on March  24th 2025 for the following items we have   for engineering the green witch vehicle to  infrastructure Kellogg to 29th Street North   for Wildcat Construction Company Incorporated  for $983,000 95 for purchasing we have Argon   gas for mat Tri gas Incorporated for an estimated  annual usage of 1,517 128 we're redirecting this   for purchasing we have the trash and recycling  containers and collection for Transit Police and   Library contract change order for Waste  Management of Kansas Incorporated for an   amended amount of $ 37,7 192 we have the trash  and recycling containers and collection for Park   and Facilities contract change order for  Waste Connections of Kansas Incorporated   for an amended amount of 8,378 n per year we have  the furnished compactor trucks and open dumpster   services for neighborhood and bulky  waste cleanup contract change order for   Waste Connections of Kansas Incorporated for an  amended amount of $2,935 eight per year we have   the network equipment for advanced learning  library for logic callus Incorporated for $361,500 th000 we have the canopy media streaming subscription  agreement renewal for canopy Incorporated for   45,000 for an estimated paper use program we  have the arcgis software maintenance renewal   for environmental systems research incorporated  doing business as ezri for $94,800 we have the   Lucidity asset management software renewal for  Central Square Technologies LLC in the amount   of 115,000 $473 128 we have uniforms contract  change order for industrial Uniform Company   LLC doing businesses logo Depot we have the  actual prices and itemized um clothing items   in the bid report if you wish to see those we're  requesting your authorization to accept the price   increase uh we have the witcha fire department  radios and equipment for Motorola Incorporated   for $273,400 this is how to become a vendor with  the city this is our purchasing calendar of small   resource partner events and items that the city  is hosting shout out to the contractor's form   with our Public Works and our Port colleagues at  the witto water treatment plant admin building on   tomorrow these are open public opportunities  out on the street today and I'd be happy to   try to answer any your questions and I recommend  your approval thank you Josh questions for Josh I   Josh uh slides five six and seven with the waste  management yes uh it's a change order was that   bit out originally and this is an price increase  yes great question so um the process that we did   was we bid these out in 2024 established contract  pricing what we will see is we'll see Department   requests for additions and modifications  that happened since the original bid um the   hesitation I have of unilaterally approving these  is because of the volume and and the number of   changes that occur that we're bringing these  back to you so you'll see some that are less   than 50,000 for instance but that's an estimated  usage where the specific price may be $200 a week   for an eight eight yard container um because  it encompasses the entire city organization   it's really difficult to pen down that this is  only going to be in 50,000 okay so the rate per   container is the same um more containers uh let  me so there's specific changes on each of these   contracts and each of them specifically were um  for five for Transit Police and Library we have   an amendment to change the advanced learning  library to add two an additional two yard trash   bin to group three there was a request for parks  and Facilities to add the Brooks landfill location   to group two so that would be $471 per year and  then the last item was the neighborhood and bulky   waste cleanup uh there was a 4% price increase  um the city added potential contracted rates of   tire and Mattress pickups and this was due to  in the course of the pickup events volunteers   would submit mattresses and tires so this would  accommodate that in the contract now okay sounds   good thank you thanks for the questions thank  you the only question I had was uh slide number   13 okay regarding the price increase for uniforms  yes what's specifically increased sure so in the   bid packet um there was there was a multitude of  items I I would be misleading if I said there was   specific One Singular items but there was seven  pages of different items and for instance you'll   have um instances of a uh item number H hcf canvas  Outback hat there was Zero price increase and then   you have an instance where there was um Port  Authority dry Zone grid Polo and the true Royal   color was a 5% increase from last year so I don't  want to mislead you and say every single price but   there was seven pages of changes that occurred  thank you any further questions for Josh I see   none this does not get public comments so I will  move to approve the board of bids and contract   second motion and a second any further discussion  I see none all those in favor say I I I all those   oppose same sign motion passes 70 Madame clerk  please call the next item petitions for public improvements good morning mayor City Council  Members Paul gunman Public Works and utilities   for the record this morning I have one revised  petition for your consideration the signatures   on the petition represent 100% of the Improvement  districts and the petition is valid per Kansas   statute RF Edition and RF second edition located  in District 2 on March 25th 2022 the city council   approved water improvements required for a  new residential development the developer has   submitted a revised petition with the revised  budget to reflect current market conditions   it is recommended the city council approve the  revised petition and budget adopt the amending   resolution and authorized NE necessary signatures  and these improvements will be special assessed   I will stand for questions thank you Paul any  questions for Paul I see none this also doesn't   get public comment I move to approve the petitions  for public improvements second motion and a second   any further discussion I see none all those in  favor say I I I all those oppose same sign motion   passes 70 Madam clerk please call the next item  council member appointments and comments we'll   start with council member appointments council  member Tuttle thank you I have quite a few and   I have sent these to the clerk uh for the  Animal Service review board Pat Thompson   for the bicycle pedestrian board Monty Shaw for  the board of Park Commissioners Eddie festo for   the cultural funding committee Naomi Thompson  for the district Advisory Board ton win Camila   Burell James gr Stephanie mccartie Tracy Adams  Aon Miller John Baker Tim Timothy Johnson Faith   Martin Bruce gas Christopher brodric for  the diversity inclusion and civil rights   Advisory Board Carrie Rinker for the ethics  Advisory Board lucrea Taylor for the food and   farm Council Megan G Greenway for the historic  preservation board Steven Klein for the library   board Charles Schmidt for the metropolitan  area Planning Commission John McKay for the   police and fire Retirement Board Joseph Koy for  the transit Advisory Board Chris staner for the   airport Advisory Board Alicia Sanchez for the  Witchita citizen review board Brandy Willet   for the witto Employees Retirement Board Sean  seamster and for the witch TOS said sustainability   integration board tamy Ray and for the witch  Ed County Board of zoning and appeals John McKay and I will have mine the airport Advisory  Board Scott Styles and Brian rolloff from Cedric   County both of these I these individuals for the  ethics board Al Higden and for the sustainability   integration board Dylan th I move to approve the  board appointments second motion and a second any   further discussion I see none all those in favor  say I I all those oppose same sign motion passes   70 council member comments mayor I'd like to uh  compliment Public Works and the police department   all the vendors and staff for the event around  the arena um for March Madness I think it was   unbelievably good what a positive image I don't  think you see that at other cities um I think   it's guys did a really really good job so I just  walked around there and and just really enjoyed   it and people are enjoying themselves people  from out of town you could tell they're enjoying   themselves and made a good statement for the  city and I I sincerely thank you very much thank you it was good to see masterp and what youah picture I would just like to thank everybody for  coming to my district 6 coffee we had a   plentiful conversation mostly about animal control  and the drought so that was super fun um and then   I appreciate the people that joined me for the  Broadway Corridor cleanup so thank you parks   and public works for helping make that happen I'm  going to have to thank for our our breakfast too   so my my wife made breakfast in pan and there was  bacon I made bacon grapes cinnamon rolls it was   really good uh we had 86 people in our breakfast  so there's opening the pre-opening for the uh   Westlink library and it is absolutely gorgeous um  compliment uh librarian staff they did a very very   good job and people were very impressed with it so  good job to library staff and Jamie her leadership   um it's it's really nice encourage everyone to go  look at it I just have to say vice mayor where is   the food tray for the workshop today you had to  come to breakfast you're lost thank you uh to   council members Johnston and Ballard for hosting  breakfasts uh this past weekend and obviously with   the NCAA I wanted to just make public that  I will be writing a letter of support for a   rebid um for witchat to host the NCAA um first  and second rounds again so this will come from   the mayor's office and I look forward to writing  that letter of support I see no further comments   so we cannot adjourn because we have Workshop so  we will now turn it over to city manager Leighton   thank you mayor um today we have two items for  discussion the first one has to do with our   street maintenance program specifically about  dirt street uh that was an issue the council U   looked at in 2024 changed her policy somewhat and  we want to talk to you about the implementation of   that new policy and then also there were questions  about the supplemental concrete uh program and we   would like to get some direction uh on the 2025  2026 program so with that I'll turn it over to Gary uh thank you manager mayor and council  members Gary Janson Public Works utilities   I'll be very brief I was going to start this off  and and give a summary that the manager just did   so I don't need to repeat that um but with this  being all public works and utilities items on this   Workshop I suspect this will be one of the best  workshops you've had so we'll try to make sure   that's true uh Paul's going to start off and talk  about the dirt streets as the manager mentioned to   kind of uh resmar eyesee the policy and where  we're at and one specific item related to uh   how streets might be paved in the future future  than Aaron will talk about supplemental concrete Paving thank you Gary okay A little bit of a background uh wiah  has approximately 160 Lane miles of dirt streets   U many of these are in established neighborhoods  and the historical approach has been to pave   the streets following a valid petition um which  finances the improvements by special assessment in   2022 the city council during budget deliberations  resulted in a funding for dirt street Paving and   set two priorities for determining the order  in which streets are paved the first priority   was dirt streets near schools um streets within  one approximately one block of the schools would   be paved first and that was anticipated to take  approximately four years to complete and the first   streets that were paved were in 2023 and those  were around eely in Gardener schools and then the   second priority was dirt streets and disadvantaged  neighborhoods and that would be priority based on   areas within the highest percentage of  individuals living uh below the poverty line last year during budget uh deliberations  again this August 2024 the city council voted   four to three to reallocate money from the dirt  streets program with the exception of 4 million 289,000 would complete the streets in  the vicinity of schools by the end of 2026 savings would be re redirected to the  op3 program and this is reflected in the   adopted 2025 through 2034 CIP residents  could petition to add to be added to the   GE streets programmed year provided 80% of  the residents on the Block be in favor of Paving and each year the last couple years  since this program's been in place uh there's   bids been getting approximately $675,000  per Lane mile is what we've been getting   um and about one and a half Lane miles  are constructed each year where we are to   date uh program Year 20125 all streets  identified to be paved are within the   vicinity of schools and the city council  approved that program on December 10th 2024 in 2026 there are all but three  streets are within the vicinity of   schools and those streets that are not  are 22nd Street from Erie to shiaka   estimated cost to be $66,000 Park Street  from Bernett to Ay approximate cost $50,000   and Park Street from 26 Street to Bernett again  around $51,000 for that anticipated to pave that street going into these a little bit further  uh 22nd Street from Erie to shiaka there are   four resident owners along the that roadway  um 80% would require all four signatures uh   to move that forward for Paving if um  it was looked at 50% only two of the   signatures property unit would be required  to sign the the survey and send it back to us similarly to Parkplace Bernett  ay um again there are four resident   owners along that street again all four  would need to sign to move the project   forward or two out of the four would  need to sign if 50% were were required   and similarly with Parkplace 26  to Bernett same situation we have there the process that we would go through would  staff would send a letter to each property owner   of record prior to June 1st of each year with  responses due by uh back by July 15th this would   give staff time to um modify the uh budget going  into you know if money needed to be shifted from   the op3 program to the dirt streets program we can  modify that as we go through the budget uh season   the letter that would be sent out would include  a map um similar to what I had just shown and   the we would also include the dirt street Paving  survey and that could be submitted back to us by   either mail handd delivered or they can email that  back um the property owners along that block could   could identify a champion to circulate that survey  or they can send it back individually um as they wish once we get that back staff would verify  the percentage of the affirmative responses   and move the projects forward accordingly to  be paved or not and then the subsequent as I   mentioned before the subsequent op3 and dirt  street programs assuming even if one project   is moving forward presented City Council in  the quarter four of each year will reflect   reflect the responses and respective impact to the  budgets and I will turn it over to Aon to go over   that and then we will stand for questions  before moving into the next Workshop item just as a quick reminder the uh adopted CIP does  have the money that was formerly allocated for   dirt street Paving coming back into the op3  starting in 2027 we have modeled both ways   and just wanted to revisit that uh this slide  demonstrates that you know with that money   staying in op3 we're going to be able to maintain  a lot more of the existing pave streets uh we're   projecting about 545 additional Lane miles over  the course of the eight years that we have that   funding in the op3 um through 2034 and then we've  looked at the impact on asset value for the same   thing uh there I mean there's quite a bit of  difference you're ranging from you know 2026   I think you're looking at or sorry 2027 it's  around a 20% difference between the funding   levels in 2031 it's 30% potentially so we've  modeled the asset value both ways uh the black   line would be the one that was most recently  presented to you in December with the 20125   op3 the red line would be if that funding were  redirected back to dirt street Paving starting   in 20127 over the 5-year period we're looking  at about a $54 million difference in asset value   we're still gaining ground generally both ways  but a lot more of the funding stays in the op3 and with that we'll pause for any questions  on regarding dirt streets mayor if I could also   I want to just add there's really two issues that  we're bringing forth today one just to make sure   that you're comfortable with the 80% when we're  dealing with short sections like we are that's   basically 100% requirement for the petition so  we want to conf confirm that with the council   and then the second thing is we want to know if  you're comfortable with the notification process   the way we've outlined it um so those are the  two issues along with any others that you may have thank you for the presentation um I feel  comfortable with it as presented um I think   it's a win for our community es especially seeing  the impact on asset value um and I'm thankful that   you highlighted that as well so thank you for  the presentation and I feel comfortable with it   I I would I feel comfortable with  it but I would like to to lower it   to 75% uh so if one sometimes households  don't respond to anything and are against   everything that would hold up the other  pre residents uh getting their street   paved so I I I would like to have  staff prepared to to change it to 75% I am um I'm a okay with the notification  process I would actually like to see it drop   to 50% and my reasoning is as I was knocking  doors about potential really big polls in   one part of District one I had a homeowner and  two renters that did not care to engage at all   they didn't care the renters didn't care because  they could move one of the homeowners was leaving   and everyone else would have been impacted if  something like this were there so 50% would allow   two people especially on 22nd Street that Street's  a street that people have wanted to be paid for   decades now and now it's an opportunity and if one  of those people does not sign or two of them does   not sign or say they want it that street won't get  paid so I would like to see a drop to 50% further   I think the money should go back into dirt streets  we made a commitment I think we should keep it   we were making progress every street that we have  paved that's a dirt street I've heard nothing but   great things from those residents the impact on  the schools is has been great cuz no more of that   dust has been blowing and I think we should go  back and keep our commitment to Paving those dirt   roads like we said if there are people who don't  want their roads paav they can say that um because   I know one of my colleagues I can't remember who  said there was somebody who didn't want their Road   pave but I think we should keep our promise and  go back to funding paying for those dirt roads can   ask a followup question maybe for staff if we drop  the threshold from 80% to 75% or 50% will we be   able that's a policy decision right so we're not  making that decision today obviously but is that   something that we would be able to see with the  financial impact would be um I think that would   be a really would there be and and and then before  we could make that decision could that be reviewed   if if you went to 75% and you were successful then  if you go back one slide that'll show you um no   just one yeah just the one next one that one yeah  that's basically that's assuming that you could   get three out of four signatures then we're back  down to the red line okay so it's it's we can't   tell you unless we know who's actually going to  participate sure just want to make sure thank   you can can I ask a question about this slide  what's the big split that we see in 29 because   that's where it still that's where it seems to  go in opposite directions there yeah and I'm   sorry I've noted that the the little note there is  incorrect that should actually be 27 through 2031   and $20 million but the the split is where we've  got we have money allocated in the in the CIP uh   in the adopted CIP to dirt street Paving through  2026 2027 is where it moves back to op3 in the   CIP so that's where the different the two lines  start to diverge at that point yeah it just in   20 9 it looks like there it just goes in opposite  directions there so I was just curious why there's   such a big split starting in 2029 oh for the  red line yeah yeah I I don't know specifically   the model's quirky because you know when we have  zero remaining service life in the model we're   basically saying we have zero value there left in  that street and it's a hard cut off in the model   so you can have big laws of streets that are just  barely above one year and then transition below   the next year that can make differences like that  it'll also depend on when you get the benefit of   the improvements that are made because starting  in 27 all of that money is projected to go back   to O uh P3 not to dirt roads where now you've  got that significant amount going to the schools   the dirt roads around the schools so my guess is  what's happening is the invest investment you're   making in 27 then starts to show on the value  of 28 and that's where it tails off the other direction yeah uh my thoughts on it I  I agree with council member Johnson for   the most part I do appreciate council  member vice mayor John stun um talking   about at least 75% that makes sense I also  um understand that it's tough to have that   you know we saw this with the survey we see  this all the time I'm not going to lie I'm   succeptible to this as well I get the snail  mail and you know either my wife reads it or   it goes into the shredder one or the other  so um I do think that's a little tougher to   get that higher rate even though people might  want it so uh just my own personal opinions there I see no further comments I'll add my  comments I I am in favor of what staff has already   presented so uh the confirmation seems appropriate  and also the notification process I would I would   just add just for the record as we talk about  building trust in government people who've wanted   their streets paved for years or for decades  finally had a program to do it and now we're   changing it and those same individuals while they  may not be the loudest now look at us like we're   breaking our word we're Paving their roads and  that's how at least one resident district one Fields city manager does that give you enough Direction mayor I believe it does when we  bring this program back to you then you can   formally vote um we'll go um we'll go ahead  and ask we'll send the information out ask   for uh the petitions to be submitted and then  when you approve the 26 program you can deter   whether it's an 80% threshold or some  other variation on that but right now   we'll um we can't do it formally  so we'll keep the program as it exists moving on to supplemental concrete Paving  last year the city council approved a new project   in the adopted CIP that allocated $2 million per  year uh to the repair of poor conditioned concrete   streets uh this was in recognition of the fact  that about 20% of our Network 20 to 25% of our   network is concrete a large percentage of those  concrete streets are in poor condition but because   they're so very costly to repair on the order  of five times or more than asphalt streets uh   we just weren't really gaining a lot of ground on  them through the regular program so so the adopted   CIP includes this $2 million project to to try to  um gain a greater ground on those uh as presented   in the 2025 op3 and approved by city council  we recommended uh a portioning that $2 million   B based on the proportion of concrete streets  in each district as shown here that did kind of   spread the the impact across the city districts uh  two and five have very low percentages of concrete   compared to the others so there's not a whole lot  going on in those districts but there is some work   via this approach uh when we presented the op3  in December uh we were asked to take a look at   an alternative worst first approach Citywide  so this approach goes into each district with   the amount of money with the amount of money  proportional to the amount of concrete Street   in that district and then from there we're we're  working them worse first within the district uh   we did look at uh an alternative approach for  2025 that would have been worst first Citywide   uh this is what that would have looked like it  was heavily concentrated in districts one one and   District 4 uh after our discussion in December  we went back the op3 does not handle concrete   streets very well unfortunately so we have to  approach those kind of outside the traditional   op3 but we did go through and we did uh kind  of a five-year mon man sorry manual model of   what that would look like both ways uh and these  are the results here uh probably the big biggest   difference is just the the concentration of work  in particular districts there's not a whole lot   of variation you know between districts 1  3 four and six in terms of the lowest PCI   in each district but for the purposes of this  we did go straight worse first by the number the worst first Citywide approach was is  it was interesting that uh it tended to   uh bring up the lowest overall PCI to 45 uh  but again the the tradeoff was we weren't   doing you know as much work in districts  three and in District Six in particular that's really all I have on that I hope it's  helpful somewhat but it is helpful um I did   have one comment from looking at the projections  in the by District versus Citywide the actual Lane   miles preserved is actually a little bit just a  tiny bit higher than the Citywide so from 19.68   versus 19. 59 so despite the fact that the  lowest remaining starting CPI is still at 43   in this districtwide you are preserving more  Lane miles with the by District right right and   the reason for that is some of the when we do it  uh proportional by District we have some streets   that aren't in as bad a condition that were that  were treating that way so the the dollar amount   invested is a little bit less are you able to  uh share which areas in all the six districts um   maybe some of the major intersections that will be  preserved uh yeah we could yeah I think we could   dig that out of the the model that we ran yeah  these would be uh primarily if not exclusively   residential streets that would be helpful um I  know that each of the six council members uh will   get some sort of preservation in their District  now and if we could see a before and after I think   people can see the difference between uh investing  in their specific District in a specific Street   and how that Improvement um was conducted by the  city sure I'd just like to say I'm still in favor   of Citywide and it's not because district one  gets all of those streets I said that before I   knew that U Bob can attest to that just like I  said with the dirt roads because district one   didn't benefit as much I think the Citywide  approach is better taking care of worst first   in general not just in in each district and the  starting C PCI seems to be higher if we did that   but I think it makes a bigger impact if we do that  saying I've always said we're only as strong as   our weakest link and if our weak link is in there  just go ahead and fix that and take the Citywide   approach and then we would start targeting all  of those things just my piece I can agree with that if we stay with this approach um we will  bring it back to you every year because I think   what you'll see is the gap start to widen  and at some point the council may want to   more seriously look at the worst first Citywide  to be able to make an impact on some of those   streets that continue to deteriorate that are  problematic right now as the mayor pointed out   it's not that significant a difference you know  it's a two points on the PCI but I do think that   spread will continue to grow and the good news is  either approach is a vast improvement from the 39   where you're starting so um it it was good  that Council initiated this Con the special   program for concrete streets and I think to that  point we don't have to wait we can just do it now that's all we have Mar on  that thank you thank you Paul and Aaron now we have the water King so uh I've got some information to to  provide an update on our drop response what   we're doing for uh water supply planning in the  future this will look familiar to nearly all of   you we've been to five of the six six District  advisory boards in the last month or more I've   been to District 2 Breakfast other public  meetings talking about the drought making   sure everybody knows where we're still at uh  so I'm going to hit through some of this fairly   quick uh because you've seen this before uh if  you've got questions I can certainly come back to   but I want to get to a point within this and talk  about an update on our new water treatment plant   and where we're heading with other planning  efforts so I always like to remind everybody   we've got two water sources with cheni Reservoir  and The Equis beds uh cheny is the source of our   our current issue with our Dr response plan being  uh certainly well below normal I'll talk about   that more in just a moment you can kind of see  relative uh to where those are to the new water   treatment plant we typically will utilize uh  55 to 60% from surface water Supply with the   balance from groundwater there's some limitations  on our current water treatment plant uh through   the treatment process that creates that situation  you've heard us talk about the flexibility and the   value added with our new plant that it can treat  more groundwater and I'll come back to that in   just a moment always want to mention Elder it  continues to come up I hear about it on almost   a weekly basis uh about why we don't use Elder of  water long story short we've done some um studies   over the course of time while there is some  water available water rights available from   Elder Reservoir at the point in time when we would  need water from eler during a regional drought so   impacting cheny also the water is not going to  be there what we would need we would drain the   reservoir in a very short period of time it's not  viable The Watershed that feeds Elder Reservoir is   much smaller than cheny so it also takes longer  to fill back up so I just wanted to mention that   again I get that asset on a regular basis uh even  if we could find what seemed like a reasonable   cost to bring a pipeline pumping and everything  else the water's just not there you know a lot   about our Uh current water treatment plant uh  just Tuesday night the council approved moving   forward uh with a project to be able to bring this  uh plant back on on online on emergency basis I   appreciate that action we're moving forward with  that project as soon as we can you all know we're   a regional water supp uh provider to one in6  canons get water from the city of wiah uh that   includes 150,000 residential and Commercial  customers in wit and 11 wholesale customers   which is eight neighboring cities and three Rural  Water districts the reason why I've highlighted   Derby and Valley Center is from a conservation  standpoint there is some help on the way uh as far   as additional water availability Derby has fairly  considerable untapped water rights uh they're   looking at building a treatment facility in the  next two to three years to be able to treat that   water they think what I've heard from them so far  is they think that they can help with high demand   months uh so you know our drought response plan is  really focused on outdoor discretionary watering   during the summer months that's the point in time  when they would be able to provide additional   water which will help us the most and really  help go a long ways toward drought resiliency   Valley Center is also building a water treatment  plant they expect to have online sooner uh while   Valley Center does not use as much water is Derby  anything helps they've also got their own water   rights that they have not utilized so that brings  value to us all in that's more water that we can   use that has is not being used right now Gary can  I ask a question about the water rights yeah where   are they pulling their water from uh both of them  are in the vicinity of of where they're at I know   Valley Center is right there very close to their  water treatment plant is going to be at they have   existing native water rights there Derby has what  they call the El Paso water rights also within   Derby proper uh that they have had the rights to  for some time so basically Within each Community   those water rights are already there I'm going to  talk more about the uh witw Waterworks in here in   just a moment uh you've Pro you've seen this  picture numerous times we've talked about uh   the chy pool condition what's driving this where  we're at uh with our current drought restrictions   as of last week the water level is still 7 and  half feet below normal pool that's held pretty   steady since November but we would expect through  those months to not see near the evaporation we   do as the temperatures start warming up little bit  of snow helps it didn't amount to a lot luckily we   had the record rains in November that brought the  elevation up a foot right now we're expecting we   are projecting uh stage two watering restrictions  to remain in place through all of 2025 our goal   right now is to hold off stage three as long as we  can we do not see stage three yet in 2025 however   that depend that's that is uh counting on some  level of normal precipitation so we're going to   keep it very clear close eye on it make sure we  keep everyone up to date uh we need to have some   spring rains it would help us keep moving forward  here uh I want to mention real quick about uh chy   Reservoir itself not unlike elero I hear a lot  about why don't you dredge cheny uh we have been   very proactive and with the support of the city  council and funding provided by the council over   many many years we have had Watershed protection  programs in place that has limited the amount of   sedimentation into the reservoir the last study  that the Kansas water office did showed that it   might be somewhere around five to 5 to 10 7% of  the capacity uh has been lost from sediment which   is pretty unheard of uh especially for a reservoir  this size and this water shed so dredging is a   lose lose situation it's expensive you got to  find a place to take the material the return   on investment is never there you know we did some  quick cost estimates we got to an extremely high   price and we only gained an additional month  and a half of water so it's not a viable it's   not even something we're going to evaluate going  forward the one silver lining in the trout as we   are currently making repairs to the dam the bottom  right picture you can see is some of the repairs   that are going on right now kind of got off to a  slow start because the cold weather would not go   away uh even with where the lake level's at With  the Wind uh it did you get water up there it was   freezing and causing problems so the work couldn't  be done but they're moving forward now so um that   is funding that was approved by the city councel  and CIP we had the plans ready to go the permit   ready to go uh in case this situation came up we  do have a separation clause in the contract in   case we get Big Spring rains and this Lake starts  to fill back up we will not lower the reservoir at   this point we would plan to come back at a later  time and finish the work but starting at the   bottom and moving up so we're catching the most  critical part now and we're buying ourselves time   as they start to move up the bank I wanted to show  this real quickly uh we worked closely with with   the Kansas water office and the governor's office  back in uh the fall of last year to make sure that   the governor's drought declaration map was updated  because late last year it did not look like this   there were no emergency counties designated we are  in a unique situation I think all of you know last   fall as we started heading towards uh considering  stage two we found out a lot of the public kind   of sight unseen doesn't see cheny doesn't even  realiz what ch's there for um and and make making   everybody aware of of that's where our problem  lies same deals with Kansas water office when they   started talking to them they came and looked at  what they do is evaluate inflow into the reservoir   uh the inflow over the last year or more into  Chini Reservoir is lowest it's been in almost 60   years which goes back to all the way when it was  built so that tells you the condition that we're   in even with a 600,000 acre Bas and we're just not  getting rain in the right spots this is important   I believe as we move forward uh sorry I'll stand  up for one more quick minute to potentially have   discussions with state and federal leg legislators  about funding support I don't know what that looks   like we've started that discussion it's hard to  know what might be out there uh at some point   in time as we move forward we're going have to  keep a really close eye on our revenues uh based   on not selling as much water as we projected  but we'll come back to that later I think it's   just good to have this in place now this is the  four stages of our drought response plan I know   it's quite a bit of information uh kind of all  packed into one our drought response plan was   codified by the city council uh in 2013 coming  off the heels of the last major drought that we   had uh and it was set up to focus on I mentioned  before outdoor irrigation discretionary outdoor   irrigation our goal with this plan certainly  in stage two is to cut that watering amount and   half which I think we showed we could do for a  couple months last year stage one calls for uh   voluntary water conservation measures each  of these stages is triggered by a 12-month   running average of the conservation pool at  cheni So based on that 70 to 89% when we got   below 89% for a 12-month running average stage  one was activated in January of 2023 uh we did   a lot through the media um and through our comm's  team and public Outreach letting folks know here's   where we're at here's where we're headed it's time  to consider voluntary conservation a big part of   that was our internal conservation plan which can  be found on our website I'll show that in just a   moment we did a lot uh across the organization  with an organization our size there's plenty of   opportunities to save water so we have an internal  conservation team that includes a representative   of each department that still continues to meet  on a regular basis you know you can look at a   golf did a lot with uh changing their mowing  patterns watering grass Types on golf courses   Parks certainly did all of our facilities we  backed off to once a week watering at that   point in time we've started looking to more  drop tolerant Landscaping we're just not even   moving forward with any land new Landscaping  since last fall uh a lot we've done a lot of   really good things because we had heard from the  public we will conserve as soon as you do and so   we wanted to make sure everybody knew we are and  here's some examples of things that you can do   and so I think that's gone well we also have  our uh rebate program still in place continues   to be in place uh to help us do anything that  we can to provoide more water efficient devices   uh through these times stage two uh again based  on the 12-month average once we got below that   69% was activated on August 5th of last year that  moves to mandatory water restrictions restricting   outdoor water uses to one day per week we have not  come out of stage two since then I heard some from   some people over the winter who thought because it  wasn't hot out and no longer applied we started in   stage two on August 5th and we remain in stage  two and we will until some point in time that   we come out of it uh I so this restriction also  says that you cannot water between 10: a.m. and   8:00 pm I'll talk about how we go about that in  just a moment there is a fine a penalty and fine   schedule with this first violation is a written  warning second is a $50 administrative fee and   we only do that if we can verify that we see uh a  spike in in the water use that would correlate to   irrigating yard and then subsequent violations are  $100 per violation we have so far this year issued   some written violations for water use outside  of the assigned day for any one quadrant stage   three I mentioned I know you've heard a lot of  talk about this we got to do everything we can   to stay away from stage three because stage  three eliminates all outdoor watering at that   point in time we're going to start having a could  have start having a very significant impact on   businesses uh especially landscape companies  and nurseries so we want to do all we can to   stay away from that and we are doing some things  that I'll I'll talk to you about here soon that I   think are going to help stage four goes way beyond  that uh this plan was put together to help us uh   stretch our public water supply over a period of  eight years through a drought Bowl style drought   I think it's working I think it's doing its job so  far uh we're going to get some rain at some point   in time but until we do we've got a the chorus a  quick question Gary um the exemptions for stage   two and stage three are they similar I know we  give a give exemptions for like outdoor watering   of food Gardens um so are they are they consistent  exemptions in stage two and stage three they are   the same for both of those are the same yes and  and I appreciate you mentioning I always try to   keep that in mind that we do allow hand watering  of outdoor food Gardens because not everybody   realizes that and I think that's important  to them that they try to be able to keep that   going thank you quadrant map you've seen this uh  this has helped us more than anything for people   to understand when they can water uh four days  a week Northwest is Monday Northeast is Tuesday   Southwest is Wednesday Southeast is Thursday no  watering Friday Saturday or Sunday and again no   watering between 10: a.m. and 8:00 pm and over  as direct customers of ours are split at Kellogg   so they're within uh Northeast and Southeast uh  so this applies to everybody everybody that gets   water from witto residential commercial customers  this applies to wholesale all of our wholesale   customers this applies to these water restrictions  apply to every customer that we have and so um you   know we started out with this we wanted this  to be about education and collaboration and   we still do it's hard to have the resources to  really go after enforcement but we've got our   construction inspectors our housing inspectors um  while they're out if they see something they will   report that you know there's a online um app  for reporting if the public sees it and then   we'll follow up and and last year I don't have the  numbers with me we did end up administering some   fines last year but again we're hoping for based  on what we saw with a reduction in usage I think   it worked well without having to go to that  point of finding more people for enforcement so Outreach and uh communication has been very  critical and I talked about the education and   collaboration part uh We've wanted to provide  as much information as we can uh you've heard   at other workshops we've had Kate extension  services here sedc County extension services   has been a a great resource for us they talk about  proper watering uh and Lawn Care you've heard me   talk about this before and others nobody's yard  needs to be watered seven days a week in fact   it's not good for the yard it's detrimental  to the root system and so if people that were   doing that that continue to do that if you go into  drought restrictions it can cause even more issues   for them so we were trying to encourage people  before we even got to this point to kind of change   their ways there really needs to be a change of  culture I think going forward we uh on the left   side of this there's a lot of information about  irrigation education our I mentioned our internal   conservation plan it's got information about our  rebate program we thought it was important to have   this dashboard for cheni up here so everybody  understands just where we're at that that cheni   Reservoir is still low there's resources on the  right side um our restrictions do not apply to   those with a well but they are required to have a  well sign we do provide a printable well sign for   those who need them I do get asked that question  again but as a the way that the strap response   plan was crafted it does not apply to those with  well water so we've got a lot of really great   information here we continue to promote this uh  and make sure everybody understands what resources   are out there uh you know one of the things we  dealt with especially as the onset of stage two   was HOA covenants right so uh HOA covenants do not  take president over local ordinance so we spent   a lot of time with Outreach to HOA management  whoever sees a lot of the HOAs in witto specific   HOA um U spefic specific HOAs and their boards  I'm going to go to HOA management next Friday   with staff and talk to them they're going to  have case state extension services there to   remind everybody where we're at so we had a lot of  communication uh since last August about what can   and can be done what should be done with HOAs but  the fact of the matter is they all have to comply   the same way so we've had some good conversations  with them I've got a meeting Thursday night uh   with an a2a to talk about this some more Gary can  I just make a comment real quick I just want to   applaud you um I had my breakfast a couple weeks  ago and you did a presentation and we had several   HOA presidents there um and they've reached out  and we're getting things planned and then we do   have one on Thursday as you mentioned so I know  it's taking a lot of your time and usually you   know it's weekends and evenings so thank you for  doing that the other thing and and if it's in here   in the future I missed I'm sorry but um we went to  Wabba and the witchi area Builders Association and   even have been trying to be proactive and talking  with them about future buildings and developments   that they're building to see if you know they can  even get kind of ahead of it and plant um Native   Native plantings and and things that would utilize  less water if you will so just wanted to take an   opportunity to thank you and your team for really  being proactive in this situation so thank you   thank you and I appreciate your support because  you've been a lot of these meetings with me the   Wabba conversation's coming up so so all reinforce  what you talked about everybody's familiar with   the aquifer storage and Recovery project that  is still a very very vital part of our drop   response plan uh because of ASR the aquifer  is 92% full it's probably pretty remarkable   considering the drought that we're in because the  little Arc river is not always running to a point   that we can capture water and and treat it and  recharge the groundwater but that's been a result   of some really tremendous long-term planning and  investment by the city uh we've got some funding   from Bo we are currently utilizing to build two  new recharge basins recharge basins are more   effective to find the hard to- reach spots within  an aquer to keep it full and keep it healthy so   this is going to bring even more value to it so  that's part of our our overall planning so I want   to talk about a new water treatment plant you've  heard some of this recently but I'm going to hit   through real quick on where we're at schedule  what's coming next so that we know when we   get to the point of realizing the benefit of this  plant uh as you know the state-ofthe-art facility   will eventually enable flexibility and water  supply choices during the drought it is feasible   at some point in time if water is not available  from chy we could treat 100% groundw through   this plant which we do not have the flexibility  to do now that would not be done on a regular   basis there's a lot of reasons why it makes  sense for us to still balance our water use   but it is going to provide a lot of flexibility  that's why we need to keep pushing forward get   this plant operational have it start providing  water to the system so we can add that to our   toolbox for things we can do to respond to the  drought um so I want to talk about where we're   we are projected to take ownership in April  um the performance and acceptance testing is   happening now and and we're gaining on it getting  closer uh the which our water Partners is required   to to provide spec water meaning they meet  everything required by regulations and they're   gaining on that we would expect certainly within  the next 30 days hopefully sooner that we will   take ownership of this plan there will be some  time period after that the kdhe uh will have to   provide the operational permit so that we can  actually run this plant the way it's intended   and then have the opportunity to put water into  the system we probably won't be ready quite at   that point but that's one of the next steps  so continuation of testing and water disposal   necessary for our staff to fully operate the plant  and to ensure Regulatory Compliance and consistent   production of safe water before delivering to  system will be necessary so as you know uh with   the testing right now the test water is going  into the floodway I know all of you have heard   about that we hear about that often we've got some  information on our website we about frequently   asked questions it is a necessary part of making  sure that this plant can provide safe cleaning   uh drinking water to 500,000 people that we don't  that we limit our risk when we bring this online   uh it's not really different than than anything  else we do with a lot of our facilities it's   visible obviously that that water's going to the  floodway we're getting ready to change that here   uh soon and I'll talk about that in just a minute  uh I'll tell you what is happening with that water   that's going to the floodway some of it is  uh helping to recharge the aquafer Northwest   Witchita but the rest of that water makes its  way all the way down the floodway and back into   the big Ark River doesn't necessarily allow us to  utilize that as a water source but it is making   its way Downstream where others will be able to  utilize that for the same same reason that we are   um here soon we're going to be Shifting the test  water to the new pipeline uh which I talked about   on Tuesday night last Tuesday night when we  talked about the warranties that it's one of   the last things we've got to do once we get  the final repairs on that pipeline done the   disinfection done we're going to switch uh that  test water going to that pipeline uh which will   which is where it's going to be eventually when it  gets to H to go to the system we are developing a   plan for creating a fill station near husum  station we had talked about this in the past   didn't have the opportunities we wanted to early  on to capture some of this test water and be able   to reuse it but we are going to be able to do  that now uh this fil station will we've talked   to Botanica they will use as much water as they  can take uh in fact they're going to the point of   purchasing additional tanks figuring out how water  truck can get water to them which would be a big   deal through the Sun summer months for Botanica  uh we're going to offer this water to contractors   to be able to utilize also uh we're waiting on  one part here is our timing mostly once we get   this pipeline ready we get it clean hopefully we  have that fill station uh running in the next 30   to 45 days then we'll be able to capture that  test water that will'll be going through that   pipe any that we don't capture will end up in the  ark River end up at the same place our goal is to   have the new plant solely providing water to the  distribution system by this fall uh so that we   can optimize Staffing and cost I can't give you a  pinpoint a date right now I wish I could as which   saww water Partners is moving through to finish  the performance and acceptance testing showing   that they can they can make spec water our staff  is there but we don't have hands on operations   we can't and we shouldn't once they prove out the  plant then we take over then we set it the screens   then we then we then we operate the plant pl we  take over maintenance we need time to be able   to be comfortable with that to make sure we can  safely operate the plant uh there's one more part   of this uh that we just can't seem to win on but  the drought is impacting what's happening right   now with being able to bring this new plant online  we had hoped for quite some time uh that we would   run both plants at the same time so lessen our  risk have current plant putting water into the   system start bringing water into the system from  the new plant because of the lower demands during   the drought restrictions that's not enough water  to operate both plants long and short of it we're   continuing to look at scenarios to develop a way  to start to bring that new plant online as quick   as we can um but it I think it very well could be  90 to 120 days um that's why we especially want to   be able to capture that test water as much as we  can we're going to push we need to get all of our   staff up to that new plant we're still struggling  to get get some people hired so it would be good   if we can take the old plan offline bring the  new plan online that is our absolute Focus   we're doing everything we can and I want to one  last Quick comment on that we've got some staff   doing some pretty extraordinary things uh through  a highly complex and challenging project under Don   Henry's leadership and Mike Jacobs uh we have  made some modifications that our current plant   that we have been able to treat more groundwater  than we've been able to do in the past it's not   sustainable for very long uh but for right now we  are pulling more water from the Eis beds taking   that stress off of cheny while we're continuing  this testing we will get to a point here when this   plant becomes ours that we will lower the volume  of water going through for testing as much as we   can uh and also rely on groundwater there so we're  we're pulling out all the stops doing everything   we can our staff's done a tremendous job  especially still being short of staff at times but   we're going to get there so keep you updated on  how that's going really excited about being able   to use that uh test water this is a lot of stuff  I'll just tell you real quick what's in green is   our wastewater treatment facilities blue is our  new water treatment plant the purple at the bottom   is what we're doing for reuse already with Spirit  we have an agreement with Spirit from our plant   two facility we provide almost a million gallons  a day of of affluent treated affluent reused to   Spirit uh for their cooling purposes production  processes in lie of them using ptable water   um we are undertaking a reuse pH reuse feasibility  study uh we have selected a consultant that will   be coming to the council sometime in May really  excited to move forward and our focus is going   to be really aggressive and robust towards direct  portable reuse and I'll talk about what that is   in just a moment you see the upper right of  this map there's 30 million gallons a day of   treated effluent going to our rivers and streams  that we believe we can capture and create a an   additional water supply for ourselves long term  big project it's going to take some time there's   cost associated with it um there's um we have  to develop regulations with the state but I   think we'll get there last Quick comment on this  right in the middle is the Water Center Herman   Hill Park uh that facility treats the contaminated  groundwater from Gilbert Mosley in the nick areas   million gallons a day we updated our permit to  allow Landscaping contractors to also utilize that   water so starting April 1 uh we have been in touch  with Landscaping contractors and nurseries if they   have the Avail if they have the ability typically  buy water trucks if they can go get that water for   free at no cost to be able to help supplement what  they're doing for their businesses uh to be able   to assist with moving forward uh with with the  types of landscaping work that they're doing so   that's good too so here soon we're going to have  two of those water sources for some period of time   talk about direct pable reuse and then I promis  I don't have too many slides left I thank you for   bearing with me there's a lot of information  on here but I I like showing people kind of   what this looks like if you start at the upper  left it would be one of our wastewater treatment   plants could be plant two or three everything  you see in the middle is an advanced treatment   process so that that waste water is already  treated to drinking water standards but it's   got to go through even more advanced treatment  of that and then that water would go directly to   the distribution system our average daily demand  outside of the drought is 50 million gallons a day   you'll recall we've got 30 million gallons a day  coming out of our facilities you can imagine what   we could do long term if we could create a  water supply that's half of our Demand on a   regular basis that's why we are uh so excited  to try to look to this option and stay really   focused on Direct portable it could provide a  sustainable and resilient water supply truly   for Generations uh I've highlighted funding and  state regulations there there are two big part of   it one other thing I so we're start working with  kdhe right away there are no state regulations   for the state of Kansas for direct pable reuse  we've talked to them they're on board with this   they want to see this move forward I think we can  make it happen funding's going to be a big part   of this there is federal funding available we've  heard from the Bureau of Reclamation already about   funding opportunities so we're going to stay in  close contact with them Community engagement is   a really really big deal too uh making sure  the community understands what it is that   we're looking at what we're doing I've been making  this same Spiel already at public meeting meetings   have had good feedback uh the consultant we hired  actually has a subc consultant that does PR work   specifically related to reuse so we're excited to  have them in here soon and start talking about how   we approach this with the public to council member  tuttles Point some of the other things that we are   looking at we've had previous discussions with  Waba we're going to be continuing those I think   we have a meeting next week uh with a smaller  group to talk about um we're not unlike a lot   of of other big cities you'd be hard pressed to  go into new development and not see Fescue sad   everywhere right I have encouraged developers I've  challenged them to start looking at more drought   resilient developments doing something different  anything different um I think there's some   interest I hope there is because they're seeing  the challenges of this prolonged drought we've   encouraged them to move move away from fesc as a  default and maybe even consider allowing people   to change out their yards again we point to all  those resources about effective Landscaping zeros   escaping drought tolerant Landscaping we're going  to review our ordinance requirements also most of   our zoning code requirements don't say the type  of landscaping you have to use but they probably   should start really encouraging more drought  tolerant material in the future bottom right   picture a lot of the new developments include  a built-in water source uh I think we need to   start looking at reuse opportunities within those  developments my my brother lives in Jacksonville   Florida in a very large plan development every  single irrigation system in that development   is required by law to be on reuse so they take  the water from their own system and use that for   irrigation I think there's exciting opportunities  we're going to keep wob engaged and see where we   can get to we have looked at what others are doing  Oklahoma City after going through a drought for   some time and they actually had some system issues  LED them to every other day water if you're on the   even side of the street water on the even days odd  side is odd days they have kept this in place for   some time I believe this is something that we  maybe want to consider long term um even if we   came out of the Stout tomorrow I'm not sure that  we should ever go back to allowing watering seven   days a week so we're going to be really thinking  about those things and coming back to you for more   discussion wrap this up stage two restrictions  remain in place expected well into 2025 those ASR   improvements I talk about will be done in 2025  we continue to enhance our ability to keep the   aqua for full uh we're shooting for sole use as  our only treatment facility wi Water Works by the   end of this year I think we can still make that  we I mentioned the ReUse RFP consultant that'll   be coming in may continue discussions with Waba  and then lastly I mentioned we want to develop   rides conservation recommend recommendations going  forward thank you that was a lot of information   I'm happy to answer any questions I have a couple  questions um I appreciate you making the comment   about Fescue I know that's been qu or topic that  the city has had um I don't know many years ago   I know specifically when the airport was being  redone they talked about not using Fescue and   then we planted Fescue but um I know I've asked  you this before but I would be curious it makes me   nervous that well users are kind of able to just  use Whatever Whenever um so I would be curious   my concern is that a bunch of people are going  to go dig Wells and so I would be curious over   the last 12 to 18 months if we've seen a spike  at all in well being dug and I'm not sure on   the latter question but I can check into that but  I'll I and this is not I don't want you to think   I know anything about this because it's going  to sound relatively smart but I'm just going to   repeat what I heard others say but I'll tell you  real quick how this works so the local aquafer   the water below us here is hydraul hydraulically  connected to the Eis beds wellfield right however   the local aquafer naturally recharges from the  big Ark River so it just stay it just stays up   right it just even during drought conditions we  don't see a lot of issues there are some folks   in West Witchita who have started to see their  Wells going dry because overall it's dropping   our belief is based on our modeling that domestic  Wells have very little impact on the Eis speds to   that point if we were in non- drought conditions  we'd be better off with a lot more Wells domestic   Wells we could take a lot of the stress off of  cheny so there's kind of this delicate balance   but overall we don't believe that Wells we still  encourage those with Wells I tell people all the   time I've got a well I water one day a week and  it's fine my yard looks fine we still encourage   everybody to do the same uh it is a source of  consternation amongst neighbors we've heard   that it actually creates more work for us to try  to verify who's got a well and who doesn't long   term there is no harm with more Wells but I can  get back to you and let you know if we've seen   more permits yeah I would just be curious I know  that's not a a cheap thing to do to dig a well but   I would just be curious um what that looks like  and I know this is super wishful thinking but what   is it going to take for us to get out of stage  two so never not having been here before I'll   tell you how the plan is set up the way this plan  was crafted was it we would come out of stage two   the way we went into it and we'd have to see the  12month running average get back up to the higher   number the plan does allow flexibility to look  at other conditions because that's a long period   of time I will if we stayed with that and cheny  filled up next week it could feasibly be three   or four months before we would lift restrictions  so I think that's a discussion I'd have to have   with the manager and and you all to understand  when we get to that point what makes sense as of   right now we're going to come out of it the same  way we went into it with the 12mon running average   okay I know I've um mentioned this to Bob before  but I'm concerned about um I mean obviously we   need to be responsible but I'm concerned about not  planting trees um and so I'd like to at some point   continue that conversation to see what we can  do and maybe there's an opportunity with reusing   some of the water maybe there's an opportunity  with that but we all know the best time to plant   a tree is 20 years ago and we have quite a few  that we need to plant so um would just like to   continue to keep that um part of the conversation  and I appreciate that and I think this test water   availability probably does change that potentially  change that conversation going forward thank you Gary I have a couple questions um you say  90 to 120 days before we get the the new plant   fully online is that is that correct my hope is  so we we have the ability there's several thing   there's multiple things here going on and I've  bored you with enough already so I won't go into   any other complexities on where we hoped we would  go and some things didn't work out we do have the   ability to put water directly into the system from  which saw Waterworks on site without going through   H it's a it's a smaller amount that's going to  be our first Focus I think we can start I hope I   shouldn't say I think my hope my goal is 90 to 120  days to be put some level of water into the system   correct we have a lot of things that really are  driving us to get this plant we're going to take   ownership of the plant soon regardless it is in  our best interest to get this plant figured out   to make sure we can run it but we but we have to  be very very care careful we have to be diligent   that we don't create a risk of bringing this  plant online too soon and create any water   quality issues that's the last thing we want to do  yeah okay I appreciate that um it'd be nice to be   able to pull even more water out of the aquifer  to avoid going to stage three I think right and   that's what I had mentioned that staff found  some Innovative things on our current plant for   short-term solution that we are we I think we're  treating more groundwater at our current plant now   than I've ever seen us treat which is good um as  we move forward with uh our continued operations   learning understanding the plant certainly use  as much groundwater as we can there too yeah I I   appreciate that appreciate the innovativeness your  department has has consistently been Innovative   and I do appreciate that very much well thank you  um I do want to make a statement about trees too   uh I do agree with council member Ballard we do  need to plant trees and the best time to plant   them was 20 years ago um would it be possible  to take that statement off of our website not to   plant trees Maybe if you plant trees and you handw  waterer them they don't need that much water to   get a tree established if if I could interrupt  this point and take that we've had a lot of   discussion about this and we are putting uh Gary  and I talked about it as recently as uh yesterday   we're putting a a a proposal together for the  landscapers If U you read some of the comments   from the meeting of the landscapers one of the  biggest problems is that people tend to overwater   plant material and trees in fact when they have to  replace trees it's many times because the property   owners didn't water appropriately it's a kind it's  a nuanced message that it's hard for people to   understand you the difference between their lawn  and the trees and the amount of water it takes   but we think in partnership with landscapers and  using the water that comes from Herman Hill and   now with the new line that we may be able to come  up with a compromise that allows for trees to be   planted and the landscapers to take responsibility  for the initial watering if they use our water or   well water but that's we need to sit down with  the landscapers and go back and forth to see if   we can't find a sweet spot in there where we could  at least see some trees planted but not allow the   property owners to water but instead allow those  who understand what it takes to keep trees alive   to be responsible for that during some growth  period yeah I appreciate that maybe push back   a little bit I'm kind of a do- it-yourself guy  because I like to save money um so I like to   plant them myself and then water myself and you  are correct usually when it's Dy and you dig   it back up there's a pool of water down there um  especially on the east side where it's more clay   the water just sits there yeah um I would like to  have maybe some plan where people can buy a tree   and water it themselves it's an ideal time to  do it because they now if they water the lawn   it's not watering the tree also so I think I  think it's a good time to plant even a better   time to plant trees I I I do understand that and I  guess we could probably have a polite debate for a   long time on this one I'm really concerned with  staring phase three or stage three in the face   at some point forward and that if we the more we  send mixed messages the harder it is for people   to understand what it is that will keep us out  of going to stage three and I again we we can   you know ultimately the council will decide which  direction we go but I I we take this pretty really   seriously in terms of people understanding the  severity of the drought and um that we're just   trying to find some middle ground that will  allow us to move forward in a way that is   actually similar to what they're doing in Arizona  I learned from some managers just recently about   what they've done and they have requirements that  landscapers will are required to not just plant   the tree but maintain provide the water for one to  three years um in order for um to recognize their   water uh issues and conservation uh concerns  I I'd just like to Echo that um I've been at   several of the meetings with Wabba and with other  conversations about this and and I love trees I I   agree I'd love to see more planting but every  time we've had meetings the conversation comes   up and it seems like a really slippery slope of  exemptions and then you know what's a tree is it   also the bushes that I just planted and and so  I I have seen firsthand from being involved in   these meetings that it's probably better to be  um as Vigilant as we can and offer as few as of   exemptions as as we can just because of of the  really critical nature of this issue I I I agree   with that but I think we need to plant some trees  um I think homeowners need to be able to plant   some trees so I think City needs to be able to  plant trees now City can get water trucks and   go water them I I grant you that but John Doe that  lives on Brown Thrush Lane that uh you know would   like to plant a tree he's got to one run I guess  gets buckets of water from the plant to be able to   water it that's that's not really reasonable  for them to do it um but they could hand was   it fill a bucket up out of their hose and hand  waterer it um I just think that would be an option   we maybe should think about I I just would offer  real quick Our concern has been the the number   of requests we get for exemptions and how and our  lack of ability to enforce those we I had somebody   request uh two weeks ago if they could put new sod  down if they had somebody water it from a truck   with a well we talked about it they gave me an  assurance that that's what they would do because   that's what we're talking about uh two days later  they were out there running their irrigation   system all day long watering in that same sod  which is obviously not a truck from a well   that's my concern we've heard so many requests  for exemptions uh that I can tell by the request   that's made to council member tuttles point I  don't think there's I trust you to water your   tree with your hose I'm just a little bit worried  of the proliferation of that and that could get   out of hand quick question Gary if someone let's  say were to do it uh buy purchase a tree water the   tree and water it correctly would that trigger our  response where they would go above their average   winter consumption is that enough to trigger it or  they have to be watering incorrectly it's hard to   say what their other usage is so average winter  consumption is December through March um it's   set at at least six 6,000 gallons tier 2 kicks in  at 6600 gallons I to you need all that but uh it   just varies on where they happen to be we've seen  people go into the higher tiers in the past that   didn't water outside at all it's not likely I'm  not the landscape expert here but to Vice mayor's   scenario it's probably not likely you're going  to go into separate tier if you're watering a   tree by hand if you're doing it correctly um I  would just say um Bob I agree with councilman   Ballard um I'm interested in your suggestion of  how we can make it work um and regarding language   uh which I think is the vice mayor's question  on the page I don't know how many people are   actually visiting our website to get advice on  it but even if there is a link out of these are   drought resistant um plants that you're able to  purchase giving people the tools like we're no   human nature people are going to do things so at  least equip them with the knowledge of right now   it just says don't plan anything maybe put uh  consult a guardian expert and here are the list   of yeah here are the list of drought resistant um  plants that can be planted that might be helpful   where people still feel that they can you know  if gardening the sort of thing but they're doing   it responsibly and they're doing it in a a way  that the city is encourages so we actually have   just in the last probably was late last week we  did soften that language on the website and it   does provide a link to some information on safe  wood tow water about drought to landscaping and   it also talks about discussing with experts  so still very cautionary uh because to the   manager's point of mixed messages I've been in  so many meetings and if we waiver a half an inch   in One Direction it gets taken a long way out of  context typically uh but but I get it you know we   there was a landscape company a nursery last year  that sent out a flyer says we'll help you through   the drought here's the types of materials that's  the what we're trying to encourage folks to do to   help up Step Up help themselves help us and help  the community understand what those things look like all right I got maybe two and then I'll get  to my points about trees as well so um first with   the wells when we dig new wells is there well  testing um considering just how many spots we   have around the county where the water may be  compromised uh it's not testing per se we've   got information on historic information where we  think there might be but that's up to the company   who's drilling the well to verify the the quality  of the water there okay so they have some idea   where these spots might be yes correct okay um the  Eis the EOS bed um if that drains down to zero how   long does that usually take to recharge to get  back up in the night it really depends on uh   weather conditions it depends on how well the big  Ark river is Flowing uh but it's you know not out   of question if current conditions persist and if  we don't see spring rains there's probably going   to be more and more people in West witow that are  struggling to get water in their well most likely   but you know our hope is if we can get water  Upstream that's what helps us too even if it's   not raining here if we get water upstream and the  little Arc we can capture it with ASR and the Big   Arc it helps to recharge the aquafer um so if we  go at a like let's say a 5050 blend um about how   long would it take to for that aquafer to to fall  below to where we're not comfortable with that   anymore you talking about the Aquis beds yes the  Aquis beds I'm sorry there are uh so many factors   involved in that I wish I could give you an answer  I've got staff that does some some very complex   projections based on that but it also considers  what the weather's doing whether we're getting   normal precipitation or not what our average use  has been our consumption or demand is down because   of the drought because of that helps but there's  it's kind of hard to predict uh the equa speds is   in good shape we have water rights per well but  overall we we have not used we've got 40,000 acre   feet of native water rights within the Equis speds  over the last 10 years we've averaged using 25,000   so I we've got some capacity if you will to still  be able to take water from there without having   any issues related to our water rights about  what's the blend um that we're thinking when   uh the new water treatment facility is online it  not that you want to hear the same answer but it   depends uh it's going to depend on where we're at  within the drought if uh once we have the new plan   online if Chen's still in a bad spot we're going  to try to focus more on groundwater uh certainly   there's a lot of reasons why 50/50 blend makes a  lot of sense for uh different processes through   the plant to stay around that area but right  now I think we've got about 60% groundw going   through our current plant which is more than  we've done in the past that might shift either   way it's just really going to depend um if we  start getting anytime Chen's up we prefer to   use more surface water um when conditions are  well it makes sense uh to try to keep the equ   Equis beds as healthy as we can for a variety of  other reasons so we usually hover around at 50/50   but through this time that we're testing out the  plant we're running it with our people we're going   to run it through different scenarios in different  conditions to make sure we understand where we can   optimize the operations and that's really where  we'll make that decision okay Gary if I could   also we're not the only ones that draw out of the  Equis beds and I do think we have to remember that   we have partners that have water rights there  and are very concerned about how much water we   pull out of that uh out of the Equis beds and so  the groundwater Management District Works Gary   uh working with them to make sure that everybody  is balancing the amount of water that's pulled out   okay I appreciate that um on to trees I agree with  the other council members so far um I am curious   are rain barrels part of a rebate program they are  okay um I think that might be good to to promote   that with the nurseries and if people come out to  buy trees maybe they can get the rain barrels to   where they can bring it up to the Water Center and  get it refilled just in that way that's um just   people understand that process would work a lot  better than watering from you know specifically   their their garden hose on a lot of these trees  but as of right now just so you know because of   some requirements of the permit for some safety  reasons operational aspects we're only allowing   contractors to utilize this test water however to  your point that's something we are thinking about   about how that might work best because we've had  that question asked yeah they just there a lot of   people have rain barrels with nothing in them  needless to say so right yeah just throw it in   the back of the pickup truck and have one or two  people to help you unload it when you're done I   think that would that would help as far as just  because we need to we just need to stay on the   tree thing I mean we had this momentum going and  unfortunately the drought hit but whatever we can   do to keep this going because there's a lot of  spots around the city we saw with the NASA heat   map that we do need to have mature trees coming up  the line especially in the upcoming decade or two   so um I just agree with the sentiment so far as to  trying to work that around the best we can I just   wanted to add to the policy discussion that you  were talking about well first great presentation   lots of good information um as you continue  to talk with um HOAs and like Wabba I respect   having the conversation or maybe the sentiment  on their end of the word strongly encourage but   I think given that we are in stage two councils  in the past have made some some tough decisions   to keep us u in a good space we all know water  is imperative no development means anything if   we don't have water so if there's a transitional  period this year of strongly encourage I think we   need to get to a point where we require drought  resistant planting whether it's grasses or plants   people might be upset about that but ultimately if  we don't have water and we get into stage three or   stage four like all that stuff's going to die  anyway so I I know there may be some hesitancy   on some of the HOAs and and developers but I  think our job is to make sure we can stretch   water as far as possible so if we could I think  we should get to a point maybe that's a policy   discussion here where we just require drought  resistant plantings of yards and completely   move away from Fescue I appreciate that and I  would say along with the direct pable reuse and   the reason why we're we're trying to push so hard  on that right now was the best time ever to have   this discussion uh I think back in 2013 you've  heard me say this and others that drought was   wiped out by two massive rain events we we didn't  have a drought response plan at the time but cheny   filled up two rain events within about a 10day  period I suspect probably two weeks later most of   us forgot there was a drought so we need to keep  it to the Forefront I could not agree more and I   think there's some things we need to consider now  now we've been hearing a lot uh I have from uh   property owners and HOA and they like their stuff  dying what can they put in that would be we've   referred them to landscape artists uh Architects  um we've had our folks provide some information   we've got our resources on the website so I think  hopefully the culture is changing a little bit in   that direction but we need to stay on it I just  want to add Gary one of the things that I learned   in the water reuse task force that I think was the  most concerning to me is in the United States 32   billion with a B gallons of municipal waste water  produced every day and less than 10% of that is   actually reused so I'm just really excited for  Witchita to be the first city in the state to   have direct reuse I don't want us to stop I want  us to keep the momentum a council member H Eiser   on a task force and we've heard there's only one  city in the nation that does direct re reuse right   now and and I'm sure hopeful that we'll be the  first in Kansas and maybe one of the top 10 in   the nation so thank you for all your efforts and  to your team for all that they do it's really   appreciated and completely necessary not just for  residents but also for business and industry and   when we were in Washington DC a few weeks ago for  the national league of cities conference anded   Hill visits both Senators Marshall and Maran  mentioned water reuse so thanks for all you're   doing thank you for that and I appreciate both  of you being part of that and I want to hit on   one point real quick that you made that I like  to try to keep to the Forefront too this isn't   just so people could keep watering their grass  this is about the future of our city and the   ability for us to grow uh to help with economic  development if we can't provide water that's a big   deal for businesses who want to come to witto  too so it's all of the above so thank you for that I see no further comments thank you Gary  thank you City manager mayor that's all we have   we will now conclude Workshop um however there  is our special session so I will read as follow   I move that the city council recess into executive  session for 40 minutes to receive information on   three actions pursuant to KSA 75439 B2 for legal  consultation with the city attorney which would   be deemed privileged in the attorney client  relationship due to pending litig ation and   legal advice the executive session is required to  protect attorney client privilege and the public   interest in addition can I do it consecutively  I'd like to take that motion vote first second   so I move to approve that we have a second all  those in favor say I I I all those oppos same   sign motion passes 70 I will read the second  motion I move that the city Council recess into   executive session for 20 minutes with property  management staff pursuant to KSA 75- 4319 B2 for   the preliminary discussions of the acquisition of  real property the executive session is required   to protect the city's financial interest and  bargaining position second motion and a second all   those in favor say I I I all those oppose say sign  motion passes 70 so this will be a total of 1 hour   and right now it is almost 11: we'll take a short  tiny break and we'll begin at 11 o'clock thank you