Everything. [Music] [Music] Good morning, Witchah, and good morning  to all of you. Welcome to City Hall.   We'll call this meeting to order. With us  this morning is Pastor Donna Golry of St.   Paul's United Methodist Church to provide  our invocation. Following that invocation,   we will have the pledge of allegiance and  we ask that you please stand for both. Uh please be with me in an attitude of  reverence. We begin this day lifting a   note of thanksgiving and praise to the one  who is almighty. We ask for wisdom's guidance   in the meeting. May actions that are taken  today affirm the beauty and strength of the   many people living in various communities  that make up the city of Witchah. May each   decision be mindful of its effect on those  most in need of the city's protection.   But today we are saddened by the outbreak of gun  violence yesterday between people who knew each   other. We know solving conflicts by harming  another only begets more harm. And we pray   for families and friends affected. And we know  that our city is better than this. Oh yes we do.   Our heart's desire is for a peaceable solution  to conflicts. Gun violence is not the answer.   But on this day, it is a special day because  it is the day after Labor Day. And almighty,   we lift up the honest labor and the diligent  work of the city's many dedicated employees,   especially those who work in behind the scenes and  are rarely thanked. They labor hard to make this a   great place to live, work, and play. We thank you  for their labor. And we thank you for all people   in this city who are laboring in all manner of  work. We are grateful for those who are here and   take their time and talents to govern and lead.  May they balance the many needs that come before   them today in the deliverance they taken they have  they take. And so we ask humbly so be it. Amen. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United  States of America and to the republic   for which it stands. One nation under God,  indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you very much, Pastor Gree. Madame  clerk, can you please call the first item?   Approve the minutes of the regular  meeting August 19th, 2025 and August 26,   2025. Are there any changes or edits to those  meeting minutes? I see none. I move to approve   the me meeting minutes for August 19th,  2025 and August 26, 2025. Second. Motion   and a second. Any further discussion? I see  none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes 70. Madame clerk,  please call the next item. Awards and proclamations. Today's  proclamations are Hunger Action   Month and St. Francis Ministries  Day, 80 years of healing and hope. May please ask the Kansas Food  Bank to come forward at this time. The proclamation reads, "The city  of Witchaw, Kansas, founded in 1870.   Whereas hunger remains an urgent issue  affecting over 71,000 individuals and   families within our community with one in seven  canons and one in five canon children in Cedric   County being food insecure. Whereas addressing  hunger and promoting food security is a vital   priority that requires collective efforts from all  sectors of society. By working collaboratively,   we can make significant strides in reducing food  insecurity and ensuring that our neighbors do not   go hungry. Whereas September has been designated  as hunger action month by Feeding America,   the nation's largest hunger relief organization  with over 200 network partners across the United   States. Whereas this month presents an opportune  time to raise awareness about the persistent   challenges faced by those experiencing hunger  and to encourage individuals, organizations,   and businesses alike to take action through  volunteerism, participation in community events,   monetary support, and beyond. Now therefore, be  it resolved that the Witchaw City Council does   hereby proclaim September 2025 as Hunger Action  Month in the city of Witchah and encourage all   citizens to support the Kansas Food Bank and its  700 partners providing enough food for over 15   million meals to our food insecure neighbors  in Witchah and across 85 Kansas counties. Thank you, mayor. Thank you, council. Um, a  number of you have been down to the food bank   and we appreciate your support over the years.  Of course, I'll be really brief, but uh, hunger   action month is really simple. We're just asking  the community to take action and it's very is you   could do that either by collecting food at your  home, dropping it off at the food bank, your local   pantry that you support, get your businesses or  corporations to do food drives, uh money matches,   or give of your treasures. Uh but also one of the  most important things is to give of your time.   volunteers are just as important to the Kansas  Food Bank and our pantry partners um all across   the state to make sure that folks have food on  their table. So, the one little thing that you   can do starts to make life better for our folks  and neighbors right here in Witchah. And we would   appreciate all of Witchaw um doing that for us  as we go about this month. Thank you. [Applause] Oh, I'm sorry. Thank you. May I please ask the St. Francis Ministries  and its partners to come forward at this time? Good morning. Good morning. Good morning.  The proclamation reads, "The city of Witchaw,   Kansas, founded in 1870. Whereas St. Francis  Ministries has served children and families in   Kansas for 80 years, offering unwavering support,  advocacy, and services that promote healing, hope,   and long-term well-being. Whereas founded in 1945  in Ellsworth, Kansas by Father Bob Mey Jr., St.   Francis Ministries began as a home for boys  and has grown into a multi-state nonprofit   dedicated to serving vulnerable children  and families through foster care, adoption,   mental health services, residential treatment,  and family preservation programs. Whereas over   the past eight decades, St. Francis Ministries  has remained rooted in its mission to provide   healing and hope to those who need it most.  guided by a belief in human dignity, compassion,   and the power of transformation. Whereas, in  celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2025, St.   Francis Ministries continues to be a vital part  of the Kansas community committed to innovation,   collaboration, and the care of children  and families across the state and beyond.   Now therefore, be it resolved that the Witchah  City Council does hereby proclaim September 3rd,   2025 as St. Francis Ministries  Day, 80 years of healing and hope. Thank you, mayor, and thank you, councel. Uh  on behalf of St. Francis Ministries. I want to   thank the city of Witchah for this proclamation  recognizing our 80 years of service. What began   in 1945 as a boy's home in Ellsworth has grown to  a ministry serving children and families across   Kansas and beyond. We are proud to serve. We are  proud to serve Kansas in the Witchaw community   and we are grateful for the partnerships that  make healing and hope possible. Thank you for   honoring our mission and standing with us as  we continue this important work. [Applause] Thank you. Thank you.   At this time, I would like to ask the city of  Witchah's purchasing division to come forward and also city manager Bob Leighton. Good morning. Good morning. The finance department has been awarded the  achievement of excellence in procurement award   from the national procurement institute. This  award demonstrates a commitment to procurement   excellence and it recognizes organizations that  embrace innovation, professionalism, productivity,   leadership and e procurement. It is reflective  of staff that works hard every day to provide   excellent services to our organization. This  is the 24th year that finance department has   earned this award. For 2025, there were  216 successful applicants, including 85   cities. Of the 216 2025 award recipients, only  three are awarded from the state of Kansas.   Please join me in congratulating the purchasing  division of the finance department. [Applause] Uh, thank you to the mayor and city council. Um,  I want to thank the city council, city manager,   and director of finance for their continued  support and commitment of our purpose. Thank   you to the departments and vendors who give us  a reason to support, facilitate, and advocate   for in our processes and outcomes. This morning is  kind of odd. Um, I'm talking to you today about an   award and not bid recommendations like you see  me for. Um, but with great pride and gratitude   accepting this award today. Procurement at its  core are stewards of process or as my colleagues   like to tell me, we're the fun police. That's  okay. Uh, on many projects presented to council   each week, purchasing staff are not in the crowd  or presentation, nor do we ask or want to be,   but most importantly participate in the project's  story. For every project, a story exists where   purchasing staff pushed back. We advocated for  a department. We advocated for a small vendor,   advocated for the taxpayer. Sometimes  all of these actions concurrently. You   um because as my predecessor would say, you and  I do not look good in orange. The purchasing   division strives to complete actions in a way  that is transparent, fair, and accountable.   This award highlights our profession, but most  importantly recognizes the actual people who   make this investment materialize. People who  embody this achievement of excellence award   for 24 years. People who completed in 2024  370.4 million in purchasing payments. 31,342   purchasing card transactions administered. 1,960  purchase orders issued. 522 contract actions,   340 solicitations published. Lastly, I have to  recognize the tireless efforts of my team who   work behind the scenes, often without fanfare,  to ensure that the services we rely on continue   to function smoothly and efficiently. All of the  numbers and ambitious improvements mean nothing   without the purchasing staff that facilitate  this work daily. Jason Brogden, Chris Hazes,   Tracy Jordan, Leanne Hendricks, Kyle Becktramm,  Shou Ramen, and those who couldn't join us today,   Valerie Fow, and Rachel Carroll. Thank you.  I see you. We see you. Thank you. [Applause] You don't want my book? No. Madame clerk, can you please call the next item?  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 state their name  and address for the record. A time clock will   display the speaker's remaining time to speak.  Order and rules of decorum will be observed. The   first speaker today is Celeste Reset. Community  Improvement District's oversight is missing. Good morning, Mayor Woo and City Council members.  City government should be about getting the job   done, not about partisan politics. And when we  work together, we end up with better solutions.   The bipartisan citizen-led group made  several suggestions for improvements   and ways to possibly save money. Let's keep  working together to make our city government   more transparent and accountable. Economic tools  should always have accountability audit trails and   performance measurements. When developer loans  are made for tax increment financing projects,   TIFFs, or community improvement districts, CIDs,  there should be clear-cut explanations about the   loan. That means list any temporary notes or debt  service transfers or debt. This was not done with   the Kenmar TIFF. When I first looked at Kenar  TIFF, I saw other revenue had fallen to zero.   Revenues had been budgeted for, but nothing came  in. When I asked city staff why, I was told, and I   quote, "Staff has been actively engaged in seeking  payments from the developer." I was also told,   and I quote, "All TIFF debt is issued as general  obligation debt, which means it is backed by the   city of Witchah and repaid from the debt service  fund." That wasn't correct. What I didn't know,   because there was no explanation in the city's  financial statement or on the city's website,   is that money had been transferred to pay off  temporary notes for Kenmar and off the books   TIFF loan had been created. There was no mention  of debt, no mention of a loan, and no audit trail   that 2 million was owed to the city. When I say  it is hard to get answers about city finances,   this Kinmar lawsuit is the prime example. I asked  questions but was given misleading answers. Now   the city is suing to collect $2 million from  the Kinmar developers. Community improvement   districts or CIDs is another economic development  tool lacking transparency. Some retailers have tax   known as signage and some do not. Most retailers  are collecting the CI, but a few are not. Deleno   Catalyst SID has a retailer who is supposed  to post CD signage and begin tax collection   on October 1st, 2022. This retailer is still not  collecting the tax and this is not fair. Central   and Oliver CD will be losing the largest area  retailer CVS drugstore. This will leave a small   mom and pop restaurant as the only retailer paying  the tax in the CI Central and Oliver. It is not   fair that a small restaurant should have to comply  with the CD requirements when other retailers   don't. Economic development has got to get its act  together with these incentive tools. Next year in   2026, several new businesses will be operating in  the multisport stadium CD, a hotel, restaurant,   and bars. With 13 million in CD bond debt and  a looming 75 million star bond debt liability   bearing down on us in 2027, economic development  staff has to be ready to ensure CID compliance.   With over 80 million of taxpayer money invested  in the Ball Stadium development, we need every   dollar of revenue generated to pay this debt off.  Procedures mean nothing if they are not followed.   When you revamp economic development policies this  month, please make sure this is the way things are   to happen and don't make exceptions. Establish  a standard process for reporting non-compliant   retailers to the state of Kansas Department of  Revenue. postc debt amortization schedules on   the city's website and show the annual repayment.  Taxpayers want to know if a project is paying for   itself and whether or not it is performing as  expected. Taxpayer questions may be annoying.   I recognize that. But don't forget whose money it  is you are spending. Maybe you get these questions   because there is no clear-cut description of how  our money is being spent. And please don't hide   debt. put the amount of debt outstanding for every  CI and tiff in the financial statements and on the   city's website and post the addresses of retailers  like this in the CI. It feels like we're moving   in the right direction. I am truly encouraged  by the questions you all are asking of staff.   Please continue looking for ways to be more  transparent, ensure audit trails exist,   and hold developers accountable for the taxpayer  funds they were given, for the promises they made.   But I am encouraged, and I appreciate your efforts  in this transparency effort. Thank you. Thank you,   Celeste. Council member Ballard. Thank  you, Mayor. Thank you, Celeste. Um, Troy,   I don't know if this is a question for you or for  uh city manager. Can you talk a little bit about,   for example, one of the CIDs that's in my district  that may not be collecting um what that looks like   for the city? I've seen the city staff in there  personally trying to talk to them. Can you just   talk a little bit about where our responsibilities  start and if they do just talk a little bit about   that process, please? Yeah, thank you. Uh  Troy Anderson, assistant city manager. Um   There are a number of CIDs across the city. Excuse  me. Um, obviously one of the first things we're   concerned about is make making sure that CIDs that  uh involve the use of taxpayer dollars uh that   were focused on those CIDs first and foremost.  There are a number of CIDs, most of the CIDs,   there were no taxpayer dollars that were put into  these projects. Um, again having to understand   there were a couple of here that were mentioned,  the Deleno Catalyst site and the Central and   Oliver site. There were no taxpayer dollars that  were put into these CIDs. So therefore, while yes,   there should be concern over whether or not  retailers are collecting uh the appropriate   sales tax. But in essence, the collection  of that sales tax ultimately goes back to   pay the owner developer for their investment into  public infrastructure improvements or otherwise.   So there are a number of CIS specifically that the  third one was mentioned uh the ballpark right uh   absolutely we are very concerned with making sure  that the CADs perform when taxpayer dollars are   invested which is why we were um uh so focused  on restructuring the deal with the developer   and making sure that that develop velment. You  had heard uh the hotel, the retail, the multif   family residential making sure that that project  came up out of the ground because ultimately yes   taxpayer dollars sort of are at risk if these CIS  don't perform. But I would say 80 85 90% of all of   these CIS. The city did not put any taxpayer  dollars into these CIDs. So the performance   is really on the owner developer and a pay as you  go. We talked a little bit about this when we talk   about pay as you go. Now, with that being said,  we're doing a deep dive into all of the CADs. Um,   we are working on trying to provide not only a  narrative summary, but also, uh, you heard about   things like an amortization schedule. These are  all things we've already been working on. It just   takes time to put all this stuff together and make  sure that the information is true and accurate. We   want to make sure that information is true and  accurate before we share it. We don't want to um   put information out there that maybe hasn't fully  been vetted or analyzed. And uh so with that being   said, to answer your question without knowing  exactly which C you're referring to as kind of   a really high level overview, Troy, I believe  there's there's a property that we were brought   to our attention that they were not collecting C.  Can you talk about what our what actions we took   as a result? Yeah, in fact I have engaged that  retailer myself personally. Was about a year ago   um met with the general manager um general manager  u perhaps didn't know and understand uh the   requirement and so after sending the information  uh to that ind individual uh that information was   passed along to the regional manager. uh at this  point in time again short of notifying the state   as you heard from Mark Manning uh last week right  we don't have a lot of recourse specifically in   the collection of sales tax uh obviously yes we  can reach out to the state again that particularly   CID we we have no taxpayer dollars into the CI  that we are relying upon CI sales tax revenue to   come back to us to repay us for investment using  taxpayer dollars. So in essence in that C the only   one who is sort of really being hurt or adversely  impacted is going to be the owner developer. What is the status of putting this information  online? I know that we've been asking for this   um and like you mentioned it does take time but  I want to make sure that uh we do have a progress   report that it will be online at some point.  Do you know when? Yeah. So, I don't know about   putting a specific date on that. Again, we want  to make sure that as we're scrubbing the history,   there's a lot of history in there that I'll  admit personally I was not involved in. And so,   I want to make sure that we scrub that, make  sure that it's true and accurate to the best   of our knowledge and understanding. We want to  cross reference that with finance and making   sure that the information that we put out there is  true and accurate before we put it out there. Um,   and so we're working diligently through all  of that history. There's a lot of history.   There's um I didn't bring it up with me. There's  16 CIDs if my memory serves me correct. Um two of   recent that have yet to be activated. One there's  a third that has yet to be activated. One has   uh terminated. And so there's what about 13  14 there that we are currently diving into   to make sure that uh we can provide not only  a narrative around that make sure that we're   being transparent on whether or not there were  taxpayer dollars that were used um to to fund   public infrastructure improvements or otherwise  um whether there's any debt as you heard. Again,   we want to be comprehensive in putting this  information out there. We're working through   that as diligently as we can. I don't know if  I can necessarily put a date on it to to date,   but we are working diligently. Thank you,  Council Member Johnson. Thanks, Mayor. Um Troy,   um I think it was last week or a couple weeks  ago, there was something said about academy   sports. Did we ever get to the bottom of that?  Yes. And I'm going to turn over to my finance   director. I'm going to I hate to put him on the  spot, but I think he's going to be able to better   uh explain exactly what we have found. Um, but  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. Okay. Yes, sir. Council member Johnson, uh, I think  as I indicated last week, the city really has   absolutely nothing to do with the collection  of the sales tax in Kansas. Having said that,   uh, I did read in or I saw on channel 10, I  think that there were some assertions that   Academy may not have collected the SID correctly.  Um, last week I had not had a chance to look at   the material that they provided. I did since  then and I noticed that the news story had   a receipt which I assume is what uh these  allegations were based on. Again, it's the   state's prerogative to administer the sales tax.  Having said that, when I looked at the sales tax,   it would appear to me that Academy was collecting  exactly correctly, at least on June 25th of 2025.   Uh there may have been some confusion. The sales  tax indicated the state sales tax rate of 6.5%   which is correct and it also indicated a 1% sales  tax. I think maybe the confusion was that uh part   of the purchase was food and food purchases  are only taxed at the local rate as we talked   about over the last few months. So I think the 1%  reflected not a SID but rather the application of   the local Seduite County sales tax rate on the  portion of that receipt that was associated with   a food purchase. Uh so again uh the really the  way to show that is I believe the receipt showed   about seven or eight dollars worth of purchases  and the total tax on that receipt was 20 cents.   Well, you don't have to be that great at math  to know that 20 cents divided by seven or eight   dollars is not eight and a half%. So, in my  opinion, uh, they charge correctly at least   on June 25th. I can't talk about what  they may have done prior to June 25th,   but that receipt would indicate to me that what  they were charging was exactly correct. Thank you. Thank you, Madame Clerk. Can you  please call the next individual?   Yodon to prey list of funds  dispersal for the unhoused community. Good morning, Madame Mayor  and Council. My name is Yadon and I'm a resident of Witchaw. I am here  today to inquire about the city's funding   and programs for the unhoused community. My goal  is to better understand how taxpayer dollars are   being allocated and ensure that resources are  reaching those in need. Based on recent data,   Witchaw's unhoused population is estimated to  be approximately 1,200 to,500 individuals. This   includes families with children who are  experiencing temporary or chronic housing   instability. veterans, many of whom struggle  with unique challenges and related to service   and integration, and chronically homeless  individuals who have experienced long-term   or repeated episodes of homelessness, often  with complex health or mental health needs.   Over the last decade, the city of Witchaw  has historically allocated roughly four to   five million per year toward programs that serve  the unhoused. This includes emergency shelters,   transitional housing, outreach services, and  support to nonprofit partners, providing meals,   case management, and healthcare. I would like  to understand how these funds are currently   being spent and whether allocations have  shifted over the past 10 years. Specifically,   I am requesting an itemized breakdown of  all funds allocated for homeless services,   including the exact dollar amounts allocated to  each program, organization, or service category,   how city administered grants and partnerships are  funded, and any changes in allocations compared   to previous years. This will help residents  like myself understand how resources are being   used and ensure that funding is addressing the  most urgent needs of our unhoused community. I   appreciate the city's work to support vulnerable  populations and I respectfully request that the   city provide this detailed itemized information  either during this meeting or through a formal   records request. Transparency will help us  all work towards solutions that actually make   a difference in the lives of those without  housing. Thank you. Thank you, Yadon. Um,   I do have I have a followup to the city manager.  Can you just address some of the concerns uh   brought up? And in addition, I just want to make  sure that we're using the same information. Uh,   the United Way does a point in time count and this  year's point in time count was actually 736 people   identified as homeless and that is the number  that the city works off of. Is that correct?   Yes, it is, mayor. We represent, we know that  there are a number of unhoused individuals who   are not counted um any one time. Um and many  of those are our younger um population, those   who are um possibly um what it's termed as couch  surfing or living temporarily with others. Um,   and in order to probably get a more accurate  account, we pro we need to work with a school   district and who they identify as homeless and see  if there's duplication, but what's independent as   well. Um, we can get a breakdown of what uh  we have traditionally put into homelessness   services or services for unhoused residents. But  I will remind the council that we in addition to   what our speaker just referenced, council also  uh put uh some discretionary federal dollars into   the construction of Second Light. So there's about  $8 million that went into that facility. And then   the council came back and put another $5 million  into the operation of that facility for the first   two years. So, the council's investment in um our  homeless population has been significant and will   continue to be so into the future. So, Second  Life in particular has received $13 million so   far. Um and then what the speaker is asking  is an itemized version of all the different   services that have been provided to individuals  facing homelessness. Um, and I know on our sheet   it says that he has filed a KORA request. Um, so  I just want to make sure that he does get that   information and when that is available, it should  actually be available on the website as well. Uh,   there is a tab witchaw.gov/homeless, I believe,  um, has a lot of information from the homelessness   task force. So that information should also be  available to the rest of the community. Thank   you. Thank you, mayor. We'll do that. And by  the way, I forgot phase three of Second Light,   which the council has also committed significant  resources to. There'll be $10 million in   um uh public housing authority proceeds that will  be put into um non- congregate and um supportive   housing. So, in total, $23 million at the Second  Light campus. Thank you very much. Madame Clerk,   can you please call the next individual? Holly  Terrell, bike lanes on Topeka and Market Streets. Good morning, Maru and city council  members. My name is Holly Terrell and I   am the executive director of BikeWalk Witchaw  located at 325 North St. Francis. Recently,   I submitted a letter requesting the reinstatement  of bike lanes on Topeka and Market Streets.   Today I would like to share a personal story  about why this matters in our city and for our   individuals. This year I began commuting to work  by bicycle a couple of times a week. Not only   to improve my mental health, my physical  health, and reduce environmental impact,   but also to understand the daily realities that  people who rely on biking as their primary mode   of transportation face. Earlier this summer,  after a flat tire prevented me from driving,   I biked the three miles from work to home.  During that ride, a driver followed me for   several blocks down to Pika, honking  repeatedly, yelling profanities at me   and telling me to get off the road. I started to  feel a little nervous about making my left turn,   afraid that the car was going to hit me. That  same evening, while riding north on Market,   I again encountered aggressive driving.  Without a bike lane or space for protection,   a driver pulled up beside me, pushing me toward a  parked car and rev their engine as they sped by. I   ride about 9 or 10 miles hour, so not fast enough  to stay ahead of traffic. And in that moment,   I was really scared for my safety. These are  not isolated experiences. I have faced enough   frightening encounters since the bike lanes have  been removed that I ultimately stopped commuting   downtown by bike. For me, the risk no longer  felt worth it. But unlike me, many people in our   community do not have that choice. They depend  on a bicycle to get to work, to get to school,   and to get to essential services. Dedicated bike  lanes make a difference. They reduce conflicts   between drivers and people biking. Create  predictable traffic flows, and they give families,   older adults, and new riders the confidence that  they need to get where they're going safely.   They also encourage more people to choose active  transportation, which reduces congestion, supports   local business, and aligns with the city's goals  of health, sustainability, and economic vitality.   This is why restoring the bike lanes on Topeka  and Market isn't just about convenience or cost.   It's about safety, dignity, and making sure  that Witchah streets are welcome for everyone,   whether they walk, bike, drive, or ride transit.  I invite you to consider the bigger picture.   Safer streets aren't just for cyclists. They're  for everyone. Well-designed bike lanes can calm   traffic, reduce crashes, and make downtown a place  where people feel comfortable to live, work, and   play. Thank you for your time and your commitment  to building a safer, more connected Witchah. Thank you, Holly. Council member Hohisel.  Thank you, Mayor. Thank you, Holly,   for coming up. Um, always great to hear  such an advocate for the biking community.   Uh you have a couple of fans in the audience  too I think today um Gary could you come up   and just give like a brief um background on  some of the challenges we'll have regarding   bike lanes on top market and and what the  future might hold as far as that goes or Paul sorry caught you guys by surprise today. Good morning. Paul Gunman, public works  and utilities. Um, as you know, we had   um gone through the uh we were working on the  update to the master bicycle plan and started   in 2023. I think we wrapped it up in 2024, late  2024. Um, and at that same time, we were um also   um looking at implementing more downtown parking  as well. So, we were trying to balance some needs.   Um I had um while we were converting the streets  to two-way downtown, I had uh met with the bike   ped advisory board and and had presented to um  the possibility of removing those from market   in Topeka. As we went through that um conversion  um maybe on a temporary basis uh to kind of see   how traffic once the conversion was completed to  see how traffic balanced. Um we were also during   the plan 2024 plan I believe Broadway Street  um is the north south corridor that has been   identified for the u bicycle uh network and our  plan is to provide a more robust um on street um   uh lanes for that corridor. Um I don't know  that uh every street downtown needs north south   uh needs a bicycle lane but we can continue to  evaluate as the uh you know traffic patterns   shift around due to the downtown conversion. I  think traffic speeds have also slowed um with   that conversion with the the uh diagonal parking.  So we will continue to monitor but um right now   I think the bicycle plan the new updated plan  has uh um Broadway as the north south corridor.   Um there was I think a plan a study completed by  Nelson Nygard I think before the the uh downtown   conversion was completed and they did have within  that plan I believe they showed on street bike   lanes on Market Street. However, that looked good  on paper, but if once you start measuring it,   um I don't believe there's room for one  lane each direction, parking on both sides,   and an on street path. So, all of that we had to  take into consideration as we did the conversions.   Is there room on there for maybe just one lane  going one way and then on the other street,   maybe the lane going the other way? I don't know  that there is, but we can sure look at that. Okay.   So, it's ongoing process to see what the best and  we we wanted to see how traffic kind of diverted   from oneway streets to two two-way streets or now  that become two-way and how that traffic shifts   around as well. Okay. And in regards to the uh  Broadway corridor, are we looking at protected   bike lanes or open bike lanes? We would look  at protected bike lanes and we have submitted a   grant application for the safe streets for all.  Um we had submitted that I believe in June. So,   we hope to hear back on that later this year.  Okay. Thank you. Appreciate it. Vice Mayor   Johnston. Thank you, Mayor Holly. Thank you for  speaking. Very much appreciate it. As you know,   I'm also a cyclist. I've been buzzed and cussed  out and everything, too. So, uh there's just some   un uh unruly drivers out there that are not  very nice. So, but most drivers are nice. So,   I appreciate you speaking. Another issue we might  address is the sand in the bike lanes. because   when you're in a bike lane and and you and if  you are going pretty fast, the sand can really   cause you to go down. So, keeping the sand off  the bike lanes is important, too. So, thank you, Madame Clerk. Is there another individual?  No, ma'am. We have two openings. We have two   openings for anyone who would like  to address the council. I see none.   I'll bring it back. Madame clerk,  can you please call the next item?   Consent agenda items 1 through 15. Council  members, are there any items to be pulled? I see none. I move to approve the consent  agenda items 1 through 15. Second. Motion   and a second. Any further discussion? I see  none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes 70. Madame clerk, please call the  next item. Petitions for public improvements. Good morning again. Paul Gonzelman, public works  and utilities. For the record this morning,   I have a few petitions for your consideration.  Signatures on the petitions represent 100% of   the improvement districts and the petitions are  valid per Kansas statute. Tall Tall Grass Tall   Grass East commercial second edition located in  district 2. The project will provide water and   sewer improvements required for a new commercial  development. and Reber second and third editions,   also located in district 2. On January 7th,  2025 and March 20th, 2025, the city council   approved sewer improvements required for a  new residential development. The developer   had submitted a revised petition with an  increased budget for Reber second edition,   phase one, to reflect current market conditions  and to cover the cost of a private bid.   The developer has also removed the acquisition  fees from all sewer petitions. The budgets for   reverber third edition phase one and two remain  as previously approved. It is recommended the city   council approve the new and revised petitions and  budgets, adopt the new and amending resolutions,   and authorize the necessary signatures. And I  will stand for questions. Questions for staff?   I see none. I move to approve the petitions  for public improvements. Second. Motion and   a second. Any further discussion? I see  none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes. 70. Madame clerk, please call the  next item. Public hearing and request for amend   amended of letter of intent for industrial  revenue bonds market center apartments. Honorable mayor, members of council, Troy  Anderson, assistant city manager. Uh, this request   uh involves an amendment to a previously approved  resolution of intent. Uh more specifically,   back on October 15, 2024, uh city council  approved uh the use of industrial revenue bonds   uh for the purpose of purchasing, renovating, and  operating the former market center office building   uh into 114 affordable housing units. Uh Witchah  Opco LLC was awarded 4% low-income housing tax   credits. Uh and since then they have um worked  towards uh organizing capital investors and so   the purpose of this request is to update the  entity name from OPCO LLC to Market Center   Apartments LP. This is pretty common uh once  Litec credits are awarded and obtained and   uh investors are are again organized uh to  sort of assign and assume those those credits.   Uh subsequently with an increase in project costs  um they're requesting an increase to the amount of   the IRB from 30 million to 35 million. Again the  increase necessitate necessitates the request to   increase the IRB letter of intent uh to meet the  tax credit bond rules. Approval of the request   will ensure compliance under the tax credit rules  for projects financed with tax exempt bonds which   is required under the low-income housing tax  credit rules. The project will qualify for sales   tax exemption only on bond finance purchases.  Uh standard uh disclaimer on revenue bonds,   excuse me. Revenue bonds are a mechanism for  achieving a sales tax exemption and or property   tax abatement. In a revenue bond transaction, the  city's not lending any money, bears no risk. Owner   developers required to achieve all of its own  financing. No taxpayer dollars are at risk and   all costs are borne by the company requesting the  use of the bonds. financial considerations. Uh   market center agrees to pay all costs of issuing  the bonds and agrees to pay the city's annual   uh origination fee and then an entity associated  with the applicant will subsequently purchase the   bonds. It's recommended that the city council hold  a public hearing, close the public hearing and   then adopt the resolution amending the name and  the amount and authorize the necessary signatures.   With that being said, we do have a representative  from the uh uh applicant who's available with   us online. Uh and otherwise, I'll stand for  questions. Questions for staff? I just have   one. I wanted to know if this is getting a sales  tax exemption and a property tax abatement or just   sales tax exemption. Just the sales tax exemption.  And then my question is for the applicant uh who   is online. I wanted to know the rents uh average  rents or approximate rents for these units. Andrew, you may be muted. We may be experiencing technical difficulties. I  I can speak to um at least those rent controlled   units. There's a formula that's put out by HUD  based on uh the size of the family and the and   the income of the family and what percentage of  the area median income that household generates   or what the what the rent limitations are.  And so we'll be more than happy to get   that information and share that with you.  But just to try and answer your question,   I would appreciate uh just understanding what  the rents are. I know previously we talked about   um private development that is providing  workforce housing and those rents are   going at a certain rate. So I just wanted  to know what these would be since they're   getting government funding. Yeah, we'll  make sure and share that information.   Thank you. I see no further questions. We  will now open it up for public comment. I see none. I'll bring it back to the  bench. This resides in council member   Ballard's district. Thank you, mayor.  I'd like to take the recommended action,   close the public hearing, adopt a resolution of  attent, and authorize necessary signatures. Second   motion and a second. Any further discussion? I  see none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes 70. Madame clerk, please call the  next item. Park and recreation budget adjustment. Good morning, mayor and council. I want to give you a little bit of background on  this uh budget uh adjustment request. In 2025,   the revised budget was approved by the city  council on August 26th, 2025. Each year,   the budget is is established based on anticipated  activities. However, frequent rain events   throughout the summer cause both unexpected flood  damage and reduced water expenditures and the full   scope of which was not known uh during the budget  development process. Little analysis on this.   Several programs sustained significant uh flood  damage over the summer. Uh for brief neighborhood   park which is in district three, east Cessna  Park in district three. Uh Sleepy Hollow Park   in district 1, West Middle Park in district 5. Uh  engineered wood fibers surfacing at these sites   uh were washed away. Underlying foam base was  compromised. uh to meet safety requirements,   we have to go in and complete these changes to  make sure that it's safe for uh staff to uh make   sure it's operable for the community to actually  use. While the storm caused significant damage,   they also reduce irrigation needs across the uh  park system. As a result, the park maintenance   budget is projected to realize savings of $200,000  during fiscal year 2025. uh park and recreation   staff is transferring is requesting uh recommend  transferring $150,000 these savings to expedite   repairs and safe reopen of the playgrounds. The  financial and legal considerations uh the staff   recommend a budget adjustment of 150,000 within  the park and wreck operating budget which is in   the general fund. uh initiating a cash funded  project to facilitate facilitate the repair of   the flood damaged playgrounds and transferring  $150,000 to this project budget based on AR2.5   budget adjustments greater than $50,000 required  approval of the city council. Uh the recommended   action is that uh the city council approve the  budget adjustments, authorize the project budget   transfers, and authorize staff to take appropriate  action to implement the city council action. And   I'll stand for any questions. Thank you, Reggie.  Questions for staff, beginning with council member   Gasco. Thank you, Mayor Reggie. I noticed that  there's 50,000 that's not being allocated. So,   have we found another allocation for those savings  or are we just keeping them in the budget for   future use? uh we're keeping it in the budget  for that. What we did was we do the projections   through the end of the year to see what those  savings are and that's where we anticipated was   the $200,000. So we're requesting 150 of those  be over for that project. Okay. Thank you. Um   just walking around especially along around our  park system. Another thing that was also affected   by the storms I think everybody knows would  be tree canopy um and just mounted trees. So,   if there is the opportunity to allocate the  additional 50,000 toward that, um, that would   be something that I would be interested in, but I  trust your expertise in that role. So, thank you,   Council Member Hohisel. Thank you, Mayor. Uh,  thank you, Reggie, for all your work on this and   everything else. Um, a number of these parks are  in my district. Do we have any date as to when,   uh, they may open back up? Sure. So, uh,  as soon as we get the authorization from   council to move forward, we're going to reach  out to the contractors to get the project,   uh, started as soon as possible. So, we're  anticipating initi initiating those within   the next couple weeks, and we're probably about  a month out before we can have those things,   uh, completed, uh, contingent upon the weather.  Okay. Thank you. I see no further questions for   staff. Thank you, Reggie. We'll open it up for  public comment. I see none. I'll bring it back   to the bench. Uh, this affects council  members Johnson, Johnston, and Hoheisle. All right. I will move that city  council approve the budget adjustment,   authorize the project budget and  transfer, and authorize staff to   take appropriate actions to implement the  city council action. Second. Motion and   a second. Any further discussion? I see  none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes. 70. Madame clerk, please  call the next item. Kansas Department of   Health and Environment Planning Grant Agreement. Good morning, mayor and council members. Gary  Jansen, public works and utilities. Uh the   item before you this morning is a request for a  KDH planning grant to um support or continue to   sustainability planning efforts in collaboration  with the sustainability integration board. Um I   actually have uh Dr. Russell Fox here with me this  morning who's the vice chair of the sustainability   integration board and I'm going to let him speak  here in a couple of slides. So, we give you some   background uh on this grant and our goals for uh  how best to utilize the resources from this grant   if the council chooses to approve this today. Uh  the emissions reduction and mitigation program   or ERAMP is a KDH grant that funds planning  efforts to reduce air pollution. uh while that   is a primary focus of our efforts moving forward  and our discussions with KDHE that has evolved   uh to allow us to uh look at even more efforts  related to sustainability and particular to our   community resilience plan which I'll talk about  more in just a moment uh so we could be able to   expand these resources to utilize that to move the  plan forward. KDH was originally uh was awarded   federal funding in 2023 and created the Kansas  priority action plan. We had several projects   included in that plan at the time, including um  solar panels, EV chargers, some improvements to   the Red Bud Trail, tree planting, and building  energy efficiency upgrades. At the time,   no funding was awarded to Witchaw, but there's  there is still funding available with the pro   within the program. $1 million was designated for  subawwards to up to five Kansas cities, including   Witchaw. So, we have been told that $200,000 or  more is available to Witchto if we choose to move   forward with acceptance of the grant. So, talking  about uh the sustainability integration board and   and a guiding document that began in the fall  of 2023, there's a public draft released in in   the fall of 2024. This is really where we want to  focus these resources to continue developing that   plan. at the time uh and that was brought before  all six district advisory boards. I'll talk about   that timeline more in just a moment. It was known  as the climate action plan. Uh we have made some   changes to that draft plan since then based on  feedback we received including from a survey   uh which I'll show you some results from the  survey soon and how this um effort and this   grant could help us again evaluate the true needs  of the community and the desires moving forward.   Community feedback resulted in a new draft what  we now call the community resilience plan in   March of 2025. Based on initial feedback, staff  would utilize this grant to further develop the   plan as follows. We heard a lot about the need  for costbenefit analysis of future efforts,   future sustainability efforts so that we can have  discussions with the council and the public on the   best way to invest future funds. greater public  data sharing is desired. Uh as we move forward,   and there is not a a timeline on this at this  point, but as we continue to move this effort   forward, we want to continue to gain uh public  input. I would suspect we'll have continued   um discussions with district advisory boards if  and when we move forward and focus on addressing   local challenges, including drought, heat,  and loss of tree canopy amongst other items.   The sustainability integration board voted to  support acceptance of this grant award by the   city council. The community resiliency plan as it  moves forward will highlight past sustainability   efforts and provide a vision for the future  based on public input. This is similar to   planning efforts by other advisory boards and  this grant will provide planning resources for   enhancing energy efficiency, reducing pollution  and improving air quality amongst other things.   Ultimately, we would hope for this  plan to provide a set of measurable   recommended goals related to environmental  sustainability and resilience. At this time,   I'm going to invite Dr. Russell Fox, vice  chair of the sustainability integration board,   to come forward. He's going to talk about  the SIB, um specifically this uh effort,   this overall plan, and what this grant could  do to help in that regard. Thanks, Gary. Hello, council. It's a pleasure to be able  to speak briefly with you today. My name is   Russell Arban Fox. Uh I am uh the vice chair  of the sustainability integration board. Uh I   uh live at 605 Northwest Link on the west side  of Witchaw. Uh lived here since 2006 uh when   I got a job at Friends University. and I have  uh been pleased to have been able to vi invite   uh a few of you uh to come out to friends and  speak to students of mine in the past and I   deeply appreciate that. Um in 2011 I started a  class at Friends University called simplicity   and sustainability and uh this has been a longtime  passion of mine. Um and uh being an academic I I   hope you will forgive me if I slip uh just very  very briefly uh into discussion mode. Um when I   talk about sustainability with my students uh a  lot of my students uh are musicians uh they're   there on music scholarships. They're part of  uh the concert choir or singing Quakers. And   so sometimes I will talk about how in certain  compositions it is important to sustain a   note. Sustainability is not a action that is  taken. It's not a task that is accomplished.   It is a mode. It is a mode by which we think  about how we interact with our overall goals,   how we interact with our overall environments.  conservation, innovation, development, movement,   those are all modes. Sustainability is such a mode  and resiliency is such a mode in our environments,   both natural and built. Uh we look at changing  variables. We look at data that's around us.   We think in terms of what are our goals, what  are uh the elements of our lives we want to   be able to preserve, what are the things about  our natural and built environments that really   benefit people's lives and what are ways in  which we can interact with it so as to be   able to sustain certain things so as to be able  to make them more resilient. It's that sort of   concern which is not necessarily an ideological  concern but is really a concern that is grounded   in an appreciation of how we think about our lives  together. That motivated me to begin this class uh   to start introducing these ideas to my students.  Uh, I want to particularly express my appreciation   uh to Councilwoman Becky Tuttle, who's come out to  friends on a couple of occasions and talked about   food deserts and and and talked about uh ebikes  and and and talked about other things that pertain   to this broad constellation of concepts. And it  is a broad constellation. There is a reason why   the sustainability integration board is called  an integration board. There's a reason why we   have somebody like me on the board because I'm  on the board because the Witchaw Bicycle and   Pedestrian Advisory Board wants me to be there as  a spokesperson for that board. There's a reason   why we've got people from the mayor's youth  council, from the stormwater advisory board,   from the transit advisory board, from the parks  commission board. We have all of these different   representatives on the board because if we're  going to talk about sustainability, we have   to talk about ways in which we can see this mode  of life, these choices that would be involved in   promoting this mode of life impacting all sorts  of different elements of our lives together as   witchons. Uh it has been wonderful to serve on the  board. It has been wonderful to be part of using   our resources to be able to direct small targeted  projects in the same way that the city in the past   has approved small targeted projects like rebates  to people who, you know, want to get rid of   uh their gas powered uh lawnmowers and get  electric powered lawnmowers who want to get rid   of inefficient washing machines and get more water  conserving washing machines. That is an excellent   bit of targeted work. And and we've tried to do  the same sort of thing, being able to use some   of the resources that the city has given the SIB  to approve the purchase of air quality monitors,   uh to set up micro grants that neighborhood  groups, churches, uh other uh organizations could   uh appeal to the board for in order to afford  rain barrels or any number of smallcale things.   But this grant obviously is not smallcale.  This grant is the sort of thing that would   enable the SIB to do as it was originally  designed to do. And here I'm I'm quoting from   uh the original ordinance for the creation of  the board. um to collaborate with residents,   schools, businesses, and others to advance  environmental goals, which include economic   opportunities and energy use practices that  optimize financial health and environmental   benefits. Climate resiliency planning, waste and  material management practices, community outreach   initiatives, affordability and resiliency in  all services vital to our quality of life.   That last one is really key because again,  if you want to be able to sustain something,   you can't just tell a student, okay, hold that  note like forever. No, there's there's training,   there's vocal exercises, there's work that goes  into developing that. We want to be able to help   the city to be able to have a clear understanding  through costbenefit analyses and through meetings   with stakeholders. We want them to be able to  understand the real work, the real choices,   the real options that are in front of us as  we try to think really more broadly about   resiliency and sustainability within the city.  And that is why the sustainability board has   uh strongly advocated that we pursue this grant  and uh that I hope that the city council will   decide accordingly today. I'll hand it back to you  to get into the details of the grant. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Fox. Uh very well said. I I want  to talk about the development timeline for the   community resilience plan. Um it's not our focus  today, but again, this grant does a lot to help us   further develop that plan because that's really  um a guiding principle for the sustainability   integration board and helps us move forward and  in all of our efforts. Some of the things we've   talked about today with bike and pedestrian, uh  I'm going to show you the results of the survey,   the community survey. It talks a lot about  drought, especially when it was taken. uh all   of those efforts. What this uh grant would help  us do probably through the use of a consultant,   also maybe we can allocate funds for some  smaller projects like Dr. Fox talked about,   but it's really going to help us decide where best  to invest our resources in the future if we choose   to do so. So, back in uh late 2023, staff and  sustainability integration board worked at WSU's   community engagement institute to help the SIB  develop a draft resiliency plan. Uh this included   a retreat for the SIB to set priorities. Uh you  do have a copy of the draft plan with your packet   today. I'm not going to spend a lot of time on any  of that. Uh but if you want to take a look at that   and have questions in the future, we'd certainly  be happy to address them. In March, in the spring   of 2024, two more plan development sessions were  held by the Civ facilitated by Witchaw State. In   the fall of 2024, the first draft was released  to the public along with the opening of a public   survey, which I'll talk about in just a moment.  In late last year, city staff presented the draft   plan to all the district advisory boards and  the public survey closed at the end of the year.   In the spring of 2025, based on initial public  feedback, a new draft of the resiliency plan was   released for for per further public engagement,  which is the plan that you see today. So,   uh, I'm going to run through this fairly quick.  Um, happy to come back to any of it, but want to   look at the survey results. Again, keep in mind  this is the fall of 2024 because you'll see a lot   of focus on drought. Questions were designed uh  to obtain community input on the draft plan and   better inform staff and the sustainability  integration board on community opinion. Uh   survey respondents totaled 329 which is I think is  similar to uh the number of respondents we've seen   on other surveys throughout the community with  further inperson engagement at each DAB and it   sustainability integration board meetings.  Responses mentioned water and air quality,   public transportation or walkability, solar  or wind wind, energy, and benefits or concerns   related to cost. Responses were not all in favor.  Some expressed concerns about uh making sure where   our efforts were going and were not going, which  I'll talk about more also here in a moment. Uh we   heard about clean energy, recycling, conservation,  and energy efficiency, reducing the emissions of   harmful gases. Uh there was concerns about making  sure that we were not increasing regulations,   adding costs, especially in light of rising taxes,  which we are very cognizant to. There's a lot of   different viewpoints, research, and opinions  on the matter that we are trying to keep to the   forefront, too. That's part of the reason for the  request for this grant to make sure that we can   take in all of those viewpoints and opinions  and create um a working plan going forward.   So, hitting on some of the survey results,  uh, first thing we looked at was present- day   environmental concerns. Um, those doing the survey  were asked to select their top three. Droughts,   you can see, was overwhelmingly a concern. This  was done in the fall of 2024. Uh, climate change,   heat, outdoor air quality, increased energy  burden, access to parks or green space, water   quality, and others were some of the u topics  that came to the forefront. So then looking at   uh the question about future climate risks  and impacts. Drought was still a concern. Heat   uh less predictable weather. The two in the middle  that you see were about the same. I think kind of   go together. Loss of tree canopy canopy and  the urban heat island effect. We certainly   would like to focus uh in that area going forward.  Looking at the most effective tree planting plan   and how we can help um respond to the urban  heat island effect. Air quality again is the   focus of this throughout. So many of the things  that we look at will relate to air quality. We   uh had uh folks say that they were concerned  about more frequent heavy rainfall and flooding.   uh as you know we were talking about drought and  flooding at the same time in the recent months   and then there were other considerations too. So  Witchaw state u helped us compile the information   from the survey. Uh one of the questions was what  sustainability topics and services would you like   the city of Witchaw to provide information about?  The most common responses were water conservation.   Um we have a lot moving forward with water  conservation as you know but even this effort   will help us fully understand what's the most  effective approach going forward again where we   can best invest our resources transit uh public  transportation was talked about a lot rebates as   related especially to water conservation and air  quality. The last question I wanted to hit on was   what actions or projects do you think the city of  Witchaw would pursue to increase resilience and   sustainability? Uh they pulled out some of the  the the key words here again. Uh tree planting,   tree canopy was was uh mentioned often. Water  and transportation, public transportation,   sustainability, um a lot of the same things  that you've seen uh throughout the course of   our discussion. So ultimately, this community  resiliency plan we talked about being a guiding   document for the sustainability integration  board. And based on our past discussions and   and what we've heard from the community, I  wanted to just hit on real quick about what   this plan is and what it isn't because our ability  to utilize this grant uh for additional resources   will help us move forward in this regard. So,  so the community resilience plan as a guiding   document for the sustainability integration  board. We've talked about numerous times. It is   a source of information on current and past city  projects related to sustainability and resilience.   all the things that we've talked about. Dr. Fox  mentioned a lot of those, too. It's a continuation   of previous planning efforts related to building,  energy, transportation, parks, water, and more.   Helping us bring that all together as one guiding  document. Uh you heard Reggie talk about it   earlier. We've got multiple departments working on  sustainability efforts. This plan ultimately would   help us be on the same page moving forward and to  make uh proper recommendations to the pu uh to the   city council with public engagement. What this is  not uh this effort moving forward is developing   additional regulations or laws. It is not putting  restrictions on choices related to vehicles,   homes or other personal property. And it is not  a commitment to fund new projects outside of what   is in the current city budget or CIP. and also  without city council approval. So, point being,   nothing we're moving forward with commits any uh  the council or any of us to additional funding,   but will help guide us if and when the funding  is available and where we want to make those   investments. Key changes from the first draft,  this is the last thing I'm going to hit on with   the plan in particular, um is we've highlighted  some updates. We talked before about the original   focus being on air quality. So that section was  added had not been in the original plan because   we do want to keep uh a close eye on air quality  efforts throughout the community. There's greater   emphasis on showing how this effort connects  to past city plans and projects which I already   talked about. Uh a few uh real specific items  that we looked at was there was some concern   about communitywide mitigation goal. We removed  that. Uh that was at one time in this plan because   that's really hard to measure. There's so many uh  uh forces at play there uh and it's hard to tell   if you're really meeting those goals. We did  retain the community tree canopy goal as a as   a certainly as a focus. Heard from a lot of you  over time. We've heard from the community about   the value of tree planting. We want to make sure  we're being as effective and efficient as possible   going forward on that. And we do want to keep in  the government operations goal because we do want   to lead the way. uh we have large organization,  large operation just like we've talked about   um with our water conservation efforts. We also  want to continue to look at energy savings,   everything that we can do from an organizational  perspective in this regards. So our future   planning activities, this grant will support staff  in identifying and evaluating community priorities   related to sustainability initiatives. So kind  of wrap this together just to summarize again   the activities related to this grant will include  costbenefit analys analysis of proposed projects   and policies if we get to that point of specific  projects but it'll help us be in alignment with   each other working across departments. Stakeholder  engagement meetings we expect to continue and   looking specifically at software uh that includes  a public dash for dashboard for community input   and review. That is very critical moving forward  that we continue to get public input on this plan.   The final CRP will be brought to the city council  for approval if and when we get to that point. But   there would be public engagement throughout. There  would be discussions with the council. Again,   I would expect this to come back in front  of these discussions to continue to be in   front of the district advisory boards. Total  funding award for this grant is expected to   be $200,000 over two years. There is no match  requirement for the subreward. So, there is no   um matching funds required from the city of  Witchaw. With that, staff recommends city   council approve the e-ramp subawward agreement  authorize staff to reallocate funds between   projects. And what that means is as we move  forward, uh, we expect to look at consultant   resources to help us with this. There may be  some small projects that we could award funds   through the SIV for. We just want the ability  to have some flexibility with that $200,000. Uh,   and authorize the necessary signatures. And I'd be  happy to stand for any questions. Thank you, Gary,   and thank you, Dr. Fox. Council member Hohheisel.  Thank you, Mayor. Uh, thank you, Dr. Fox. Um,   I agree with you 100%. and it's more state of mind  that we have to be in regarding um reuse and just   smart investments moving forward. Uh Gary, a  couple quick questions. Um one, is this the   same pot of money that we applied for two years  ago or is this a a new grant? This is effectively   money that's still available from that original  pot. There was some allocation of funds, but   there was still money available. So it was a sub  allocation to the state and I think their desire   was to start with some of the larger communities.  I think Lawrence may have applied for this funding   and possibly Topeka but they have reserved this  funding and said it is available for Witchto if   we so desire. So did we have a proposal that we  sent out that was rejected or not? We did uh and   I'm sorry I may have hit on that too fast. Uh we  had we had had a proposal that we would review   with the council prior to going forward. We looked  at uh um some solar opportunities, some electric   vehicle charging opportunities, improvements to  the red bud path uh and a few other efforts. Um   it was very competitive. It was nationwide. There  were many many applications um across the country   and we were unsuccessful with that. So were we  applying directly to the federal government then   or was that the states? It was effectively through  the state but for federal funds. Is that the same   process as this time around? This one is not.  This is directly with the state. Okay. Uh yeah,   last question. Um kind of what all is eligible in  particular. We do have the um the up the ongoing   improvements at the sewage treatment plant. And  one of the things we are looking at is trapping   the gas that we're flaring off currently and  putting that back into the pipeline and uh reusing   that. you know, making the sewage treatment plant  actually a um a source of income for the city. Is   any of that the planning of that eligible for this  grant as well? It could be. Um we've identified   funding source for that uh for what it's worth so  far, but I think one of the things that this plan   can do and one of our goals with this effort is to  look at the return on investment for what you're   talking about compared to other initiatives. We'd  like to to kind of be able to look at where the   priority should be uh and make sure across all  these things that we've talked about today and   that Dr. Fox talked about and again we've talked  about bike ped earlier. Uh what we'd like to   do is kind of be able to wrap our arms around  all of that collectively and decide where our   investments best fit if that makes sense. So  I don't know that right now that this funding   will go directly to one area. We don't want  to commit too much there. I think what we'd   like to do is really have a better understanding  of of holistically where can we best invest for   sustainability. I can appreciate that we've got  a lot of good momentum going water reuse upgrades   uh the tree canopy. So I appreciate the board's um  work so far and uh the department's work as well   as setting us up for the future. Thank you.  Council member Johnson. Thanks Mayor. Thanks   Gary. Thanks Dr. Fox. Um, I too am supportive of  the SIB and the work that has been going on and   will be supportive of this. But I just wanted  to say, Dr. Fox, I'm a little disappointed.   You represent the Friends University, the  Fighting Falcons, the 2024 KCAC champs with   a dominant win this last Saturday over Bethany.  And there was no football reference. How much time   were you going to give me to talk? No football  reference. How could I mention football without   talking about wrestling? Without talking about  girls practice? Football's the most important. Thank you, Dr. Fox. A couple of questions  for you, um, Gary. Number one, the $200,000,   will this be for any staff or is this simply  for carrying on the plan so that there's more   public engagement and more uh goals that we can  achieve. Our our hope is to utilize this probably   first and foremost for consultant resources.  I think we could use an outside resource and   probably someone with some more expertise and and  time availability. Obviously, we'll have staff   leading this effort in collaboration with the  SIB. Uh but there's some outside resources that   are available that could help us develop uh the  community engagement tools that we need. You know,   we talked about a dashboard that would allow  the public to stay involved throughout. I   think that's where most of our resources will  go to. Uh Dr. Fox mentioned something that we   may look at if there's depending on where  that ends up, there could be some small   uh funding amounts available for for projects  through the SIB. Uh I think they've done a good   job so far of allocating some small resources that  were tied to other outside opportunities that we   could really capitalize on available funding. So  I think it's not for our staff time. It'd be more   for outside resources and looking for other grant  opportunities. I would uh challenge the staff to   try to see how consultant fees could be the lowest  amount so that money could actually be used for   actual projects and the dashboard which I think  it goes back to transparency with community. They   want to see what is being done with grant dollars.  So I really would appreciate the dashboard itself.   Um and then you mentioned multiple times water.  So I'm going to give you the opportunity to share   with the community um the meetings that are coming  forward in the next week regarding the water plan.   Sure. So uh we have tomorrow morning we actually  have a meeting with our wholesale customers. Uh   I think mayor and city council members I  you all extended that invite if you want   to join us. Um so that meeting is to discuss  details of our plan moving forward. Our new   um watering schedule is what we like to talk  about for long-term conservation efforts. So   you know we've been in touch with our wholesale  customers, 11 wholesale customers throughout   about leading up to our new plan being  in place on September 15th. Tomorrow will   be the opportunity to discuss details. I'll  make a presentation to everybody and we can   answer questions about that. uh specific  requirements of the wholesale customers,   not unlike what was done through our drought  response plan efforts. Next Monday night,   um I think 6 o'clock if I remember right, uh we'll  have a town hall meeting here. Uh so that we can   uh also have the same discussion with the public  about what these new watering schedule looks like,   what our long-term conservation efforts look  like. that will allow watering three days a week,   what some of the specifics are, the variances that  will be allowed uh so that we can try to get back   to normal and where we're at on our drought  response plan uh moving forward. Thank you,   Gary. I see no further questions for staff.  I will now open it up for public comment. Madame Mayor, members of the city council, manager  Leighton, what a pleasure and privilege it is   to speak to you this morning. My name is Harold  Schletoag. I live at 351 North Fern Street, 67203   here in Witchdaw. I chair the board of directors  of ICT Trees. ICT Trees is a 501c3 nonprofit   corporation. Our purpose is to educate the public  and policy makers of the value and benefits   of the urban forest, plant trees, and assist  residential and other property owners to plant   and maintain trees. I'm here today to express  our organization's support for the proposed grant   agreement between the Kansas Department of Health  and Environment and the City of Witchah. The grant   will assist the city in further development of its  community resilience plan. There is no requirement   for matching funds from the city of Witchdaw.  The grant funds planning activities without the   need for additional funding from the city. But  I want to spend the rest of my time addressing   the role of trees and why they're an important  part of resiliency. Energy costs are increasing   at a rapid pace as our climate grows warmer.  Witchaw in is experiencing increased average   annual temperatures, increased average summer  temperatures, increasing numbers of extreme heat   events in both frequency and intensity, increasing  summer nighttime temperatures which inhibit   cooling down from high daytime temperatures,  and a length thinning of the freezefree system.   Witchita is trending hotter and this trend is  expected to continue through midentury. We have   been blessed this year with a milder and wetter  summer. But this is an outright or not a pattern   setter. The pattern in place of trending hotter  is there in the data since at least the early   1970s. As temperature increases, so do utility  bills. But trees are an important part of the   solution for lowering energy bills and reducing  the demand for energy. This is why much of the   funding for our free tree distribution events has  come from ever. Targeted tree planting combats   trending hotter in several ways. The most obvious  way is that trees provide shade. Shade reduces the   surface temperatures by preventing direct sunlight  from reaching absorbing and emitting surfaces like   roads, sidewalks, and buildings. These surfaces,  when exposed to the direct light of the sun, heat   up to extremely high temperatures and then radiate  heat back into the air. Researchers have found   trees dramatically lower surface temperatures  of streets and sidewalks by as much as 20 to 45   degrees. That's the surface. Less obviously, trees  are a source of natural air conditioning called   evapot transanspiration. Evapot transanspiration  is an example of the sweating effect. If you work   or place or play outside, you sweat. As a sweat  dries, the moisture is absorbed into the air and   creates a cooling effect on your skin. Trees do  something similar. Evapot transanspiration is   the process by which trees absorb water through  their re roots and then release it as water vapor   through tiny pores in their leaves. As water  changes from a liquid to a gas, it absorbs   heat energy from the surrounding air, creating  a cooling effect. In neighborhoods with a dense   tree canopy, this can lower the temperature by 8  to 12 degrees. When planted in the right places,   trees significantly lower the cost of heating  and cooling buildings and homes. In this,   trees deliver a double whammy. lower utility bills  for consumers and less need for energy from power   plants. In addition to the role in cooling,  trees improve urban air quality by filtering   out pollutants. Trees filter carbon from the  air, release it as oxygen. In conclusion, trees   are an important part of any strategy addressing  energy efficiency, pollution, and air quality.   I urge you to approve the grant agreement between  KDHE and the city of Witchdell. Thank you, Errol. We'll continue with public comment. I see none. I'll bring it back to the bench. Thank  you, Earl, for speaking and thank you again to Dr.   Fox and the sustainability integration board. I  know that there are a couple of vacancies right   now on that board. So, I'm just going to make  mention that anyone in the community um is free   to submit their applications on any of the boards  that are available by the city and uh one of the   council members can appoint you. With that, I  just want to say thank you again to the board, uh,   to Gary and his team and making the changes. I was  very appreciative of the slide that spoke about   what this is and what this is not. Um, and again,  $200,000 with no match requirement by the city   of Witchah. With that, um, I will move to approve  the grant agreement, authorize staff to reallocate   funds between projects as necessary, and authorize  necessary necessary signatures. Second motion and   a second. Any further discussion? I see  none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes 70. Madame clerk,   please call the next item. Funding for  2026 water and sewer rain improvements. Paul Gunsman, public works and utilities. For  the record, uh the item before you is funding   for 2026 water and sewer main improvements. The  adopted 2026 through 2035 capital improvement   program includes annual funding for the  following water and sewer infrastructure   improvements. arterial water manes, water  distri distribution mains replacement,   water deadend mains elimination and water  manes for future development. The arterial   water manes program will allow for main  replacement or relocation necessary to   construct arterial street projects which will  provide more reliable service to customers.   Specific locations and scope of work will be  developed as design advances for arterial street   improvements. And some locations on the list are  37th Street North from hydraulic to Hillside,   Second Street from Maine to St. Francis,  and the 29th and Broadway intersection.   The water distribution mains replacement program  decreases the number of unexpected water mane   breaks, brings underside ma unders sized mains to  current standards, and improves fire protection.   This program replaces water lines that have  failed or have been determined to be in critical   condition after multiple breaks and are beyond the  means of city crews to repair. The water dead end   mains elimination project will be used to fund  improvements that are needed to combat pressure   and water quality issues and those that will  enhance system performance and rei reliability   and the water manes for future development  projects will primarily serve new development   with water infrastructure as needed when the  city grows. Proposed projects are requested   by developers and evaluated by staff to make sure  the proposed improvements are in the best interest   of the utility and the city of Witchaw. This count  will be run on a first come first serve basis. And   proposed locations for 2026 are 14 151st Street  and Kellogg Ridge and Hoover north of 45th Street   North and Meridian south of 55th Street south.  The map before you shows some of the locations   I had highlighted on previous slides and the red  is the uh water manes for future development and   the pink area um it's hard to tell here. The pink  are some of the uh locations for um CIP projects. The adopted 2026 through 2035 capital improvement  program for 2026 includes water man arterial water   manes at $3 million, water distribution mains  replacement $6,650,000 water dead end mains   elimination for $560,000 and water mains  for future development $2.7 million. The   collection of main acquisition fees in the amount  of 0032 cents per square foot will reimburse the   utility 50% of the main cost as smaller mains are  extended. Sir collection mains replacement at $6.2   million. In total, staff recommends initiating  the funding for each at this time for the total of   $19.1 million and the projects will be funded from  future revenue bonds or sewer utility and water   utility cash reserves. If revenue bonds are  issued, an additional 8% will be added for   financing and administrative costs. With that,  it is recommended that city council approve the   projects, adopt the resolutions and notices of  intent, and authorize the necessary signatures.   I'm going to stand for questions. Thank you,  Paul. Questions for staff, beginning with Vice   Mayor John Stunn. Thank you, Mayor. I just want to  compliment uh compliment public works. Uh you had   a water mane break on West Douglas and uh there's  a barber shop there, Browniey's barber shop and   Ronnie Brown's right there and he watched the  whole thing for a couple days and he said they all   seven or eight guys were there and they all were  working all the time and they got it done quick,   got it done fast and they were very efficient. So  he was really impressed with uh uh city the staff   of uh public works. So just want to pass that  along and uh compliment you very much. Thank you.   Thank you very much. I see no further questions  from the bench. We'll open it up for public   comment. I see no one from the public. Bring it  back to the bench. I move that the city council   approve the projects, adopt the resolutions,  and authorize the necessary signatures. Second.   Motion and a second. Any further discussion? I  see none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes 70. Madame clerk, please call the  next item. Home program 2024, Housing Development   Loan Program, Menite Housing Rehabilitation  Services Incorporated, funding allocation. Good morning, mayor and council members.  My name is Carmen Hoffine and I'm the real   property section manager for  the department of housing and   community services and I'm presenting the  housing development loan program which is   within our home program single family  home development presentation today. For a little bit of background, home investment  partnership program funds are a federal grant   with local allocations set by council. Home is  used to create affordable housing for low to   moderate income households. Current city uses for  home housing development loan program which I'll   refer to as HDLP. Some gap financing toward rental  development and down payment assistance via our   home ad program. Community housing development  organizations, also I'll refer to as a CHOTO,   must receive at least 15% of um of  funding that's set aside annually. On May 2nd, 2023, the city council  approved the 2023 2024 annual action   plan allocations for entitlement  funds. Allocations included $923,16 in home investment partnership program home  funding for the HDLP. The HDLP is designed to   provide subsidies for affordable housing projects.  This supports development of real estate that is   idle or underutilized, provides needed housing for  underserved populations. Funding is available for   nonprofit or for-profit organizations. The loan  structure is dependent upon the type of project to   be financed. Funding must be used within approved  city areas such as redevelopment incentives area,   neighborhood revitalization area, and local  investment areas. Funding requests are accepted   through an open application process. For analysis,  home funds have been essential for the continued   development of affordable housing in Witchah.  Lower predominant values in existing neighborhoods   make it difficult to fully recover costs of  acquisition and construction from the sales   price. Home funds help to offset acquisition,  development, site improvement expenses, sales   expenses, and developer fees. Current program  requirements for single family home ownership   include homes constructed with home funding  provided through HDLP must be sold to income   eligible owner occupant home buyers. Home buyers  also receive home funded down payment assistant   loans which is through our home ad program.  Menanite Housing Rehabilitation Services Inc.   requested $270,000 for construction of three  single family homes. $90,000 requested per home   aligns with program parameters. Proposed addresses  are 3501, 3505, and 3510 North Sedwick Street.   Menanite Housing is a Choto, and this allocation  fulfills the city's required 15% Choto set aside.   The proposed project is consistent with  the city's comprehensive housing policy,   affordability, availability, and neighborhood  stability. This project aligns with the   department goal to increase the supply of  affordable housing to residents earning   80% or less of AMI. In 2025, 80% of  AMI for a family of four is $75,50. So, next I do have representatives  from Menanite. So, I'm going to ask   them to present the next 10 slides. So,  I will introduce you to Angie Mendoza. Hello, my name is Angie Mendoza. I am the CEO for  Menanite Housing. Uh Menanite Housing, um this is   our staff. Uh Corey Banister is our director of  construction. He's been with Menanite Housing   for a really long time. He is a general contractor  and oversees this program. We also have a program   administrator that is new that is working will  be working with the city in conjunction with   this program as we build. Um we also have a  construction assistant and our controller is   also on this slide. Midnight housing began in 1975  as a volunteer effort to repair homes of elderly   individuals. Um the city of Witchaw was gracious  enough to provide funding for a van and tools.   In 1990, we began development of rental properties  under the LITEC program. We also have some HUD 202   and 811 projects. In 2012, we became a member of  Neighborworks America. Neighborworks funds us. Um   they help us network with other organizations like  ours across the the nation and provide valuable   training for our staff. They also do an annual  organizational evaluation and basically make us a   stronger organization by requirements that we have  to achieve. We are um guided by a community-based   board of directors. Uh Minites Housing's mission  is um for people who cannot obtain home repair,   decent housing or home ownership in any  other way. Our goals include to repair homes   of lowincome seniors and people with the with  disabilities to make their homes safe and secure.   We rehabilitate homes and improve neighborhoods.  We make home home ownership a reality to those   with low to moderate incomes. We develop and  build more affordable housing options for   citizens within the community community. And  we demonstrate God's love for all people. Um,   our home repair program utilizes funds from the  Federal Home Loan Bank to complete repairs. Our   home ownership program constructs new homes with  funding from the city of Witchaw and the HDLP   program. Our property development is primarily um  funded by LITC applications. Currently we manage   over 1,300 units that are LITC and HUD 202 and 811  properties. Our proposal is for three homes. This   is part of a larger proposal. We have a project  that is a LITC project that was funded in um 2015   2010 sorry. Um, it had 10 parcels that were not  built on during part of that development. It is   a low-income housing tax credit property that has  just been able to convert to home ownership. Those   residents are now able to purchase their homes.  The the proposal that we have before you is to   help build out the rest of that neighborhood.  Um, the these houses specifically here, this   is a slab on grade home. This is already built.  um on two different homes in the neighborhood   already. So, this will fit with the design of the  neighborhood. It will um help finish that out. So,   there are no more vacant lots there. This is  1311 square ft. It's three bedrooms, two bath,   slab on grade. There's no basement. It does have  a twocar attached garage. And we do everything is   Energy Star efficient. The sales price of  this home is $131,000. How we can do that   um is really based on the subsidy. The total  cost of the home, you can see, is $220,000 to   build. The subsidy allows us to sell this house  for $131,000 so that the buyer can actually   afford the mortgage payment. Currently, we have  1,200 individuals that are on our waiting list.   We do marketing as needed, which is currently  paused. Um we do try to reach um individuals in   um minority communities by reaching out to things  that would be specific to those neighborhoods,   those applicants. Um the applicants submit primary  application online. They um work with anybody that   has credit issues works with a consumer credit  counseling service. Um and we assist potential   home buyers with loan qualification proc  processes with the local lender. They the   applicant will obtain per permanent loan financing  from a local lender. We anticipate anticipate that   their month monthly payment would be between 775  and 850 with a 6.5% interest rate. The majority   of our homeowners from the most recent house  sales that have been at 60% AMI or below. We do   anticipate homeowners in the 60% AMI ranges for  the three houses that we have in this proposal. Thank you, Angie. To continue the analysis, staff  and the developer presented the proposal to the   affordable housing review board on July 28th  of 2025. The affordable housing review board   voted 2 to1 to recommend the proposal  to council. Financial considerations,   there is no impact to the general fund.  Funding comes from 2024 home entitlement   funds. $270,000 would be provided in  the form of a zerointerest forgivable   development subsidy loan to assist in  building three homes for low to moderate   income homeowners. Total broad project costs from  all funding sources is estimated at $662,295. For legal considerations, the law department  has reviewed and approved the funding agreement   as to form. Recommendations and actions.  It is recommended that the city council   approved the home investment partnerships  program funding allocation of $270,000 and   authorize the necessary signatures. And I stand  for questions. Thank you, Carmen and Angie. We'll   begin with Council Member Hoheisle. Thank you,  Mayor. Uh Angie, I do have just one question. Go ahead. Um, digging into the just the the p  the cost of even building homes right now. Um,   you see that gap there between what it takes  to build a home and what it takes to keep it   affordable. Are you guys pivoting more towards  home rehabilitation or we actually do multiple   programs? Home rehabilitation is really funded  through Federal Home Loan Bank. It has very   significant different parameters for that. Our  staff does not like to rehab houses just because   there's so many unforeseen items when you start  to dig into the walls. In order for us to maintain   affordability, we have had the most success with  building from the ground up. Okay. Thank you. I   appreciate that. Welcome. I have a couple of  follow-ups to Angie. Okay. Thank you very much   for everything you do and your team at Menanite  Housing. Um several of us had the opportunity   last week to visit Habitat for Humanity. Um  and they also provide very similar services.   Can you talk about how you guys collaborate and  um because the end goal is to provide affordable   housing and home repair opportunities for  individuals in our community. I'm happy to   speak to that. Um we actually have really forged  a very recent relationship with them in the home   repair program. As I mentioned, our program  administrator is new. Habitat has graciously   spent an enormous amount of time with us just kind  of helping us understand the program better. Um,   I'm fairly new to the organization. I'm in my  third year here. So, that's a newbie considering   staff before me has been here for 20 plus years.  So, they have been really gracious to help us,   you know, just kind of navigate what Federal  Home Loan Bank requires. Um, right now they have   very specific parameters for their grants. Ours  are different. They have people that have been   waiting to use their grants that don't qualify.  They're able to refer them to us and we're able   to service them. Um, so most of the collaboration  with them is on the um home repair side. We had a   house that was actually the last house that was  built in our last grant. We had four homes that   we did. We had a hard time finding a buyer because  of the location of the home. Habitat had somebody   that was pre-qualified that they offered  to give that person to us to help get them   moved into that. It didn't end up working out, but  there's a lot of collaboration with the them just   in general because we do work in the same space  and we're really just trying to lean into that um   relationship and figure out how to work with them  more often and on a bigger scale. and Angie. Um,   back to kind of the question that council member  Hohheisel asked, that gap, have you seen, um,   right now the cost of building this house would be  220,000? Do you know what it was previously when   you guys were um building out that subdivision?  And have those costs continue to increase?   Can you speak to that so that the community  understands that there's an even greater gap now?   So it it's been 15 years since we built in this  neighborhood. So I'm could not speak to the   cost of that and I don't think it would be very  relevant to us now. The the houses that we were   building even just in our last grant application  the four homes we were building a much small or a   smaller home that had an unfinished basement those  costs were around 200,000. Um, the costs of these   homes are higher because we had specials that were  part of the option contract that we're trying to   pay off. This is a more desirable neighborhood.  We think that the um homes will sell easier,   which was kind of the reason that we went this  route. It's been difficult for us to find um lots   that are available to build on. This one was kind  of built in for us. We knew that there were 10   that were available that the developer was trying  to sell and this was a great opportunity for us to   finish out this neighborhood. So, the costs have  gone they've come down since CO, but um they're   still they're still in line with what we saw in  the last grant period. Thank you again. Um really   appreciate what you and Habitat for Humanity do  for our community when it comes to affordable   housing. So, thank you very much for providing  those opportunities. With that, I see no further   questions from the bench. We'll now open it up  for public comment. I see none. I'll bring it   back to the bench. Council member Johnson. Thanks,  Mayor. Due to a personal conflict of interest,   I have to abstain from this item. Thank you. This  resides in Council Member Ballard's district. Thank you, Mayor. I would like  to take the recommended action   approve approve the home investment  partnership program funding allocation   of 270,000 and authorize the necessary  signatures. Second motion and a second.   Any further discussion? I see none.  Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes 60 with one abstension.  Madame clerk, please call the next item. Con 2025-88 conditional use requests in the  city for an accessory apartment on property   zoned single family residential generally  located on the south side of North Richmond   Avenue within 915 ft north of West 21st  Street at 2377 North Richmond Avenue. Good morning. Scott Wadel from the planning  department here to present this item. So   for this case, the applicant is requesting a  conditional use, as you heard, to allow for an   accessory apartment at the site. Case is being  heard today because the district advisory board   and the planning commission recommendations for  approval are slightly different. In terms of the   subject site, as you can see here, it's located at  2377 North Richmond Avenue, generally to the north   and west of the intersection of 21st and Amidan.  The property itself is just over half an acre in   size. that consists of one ownership parcel, is  developed with a single family house and a shed,   and is currently zoned SF5 single family. The  applicant has indicated that they would like to   construct an an accessory apartment on the site  in addition to a garage and a shop building. Uh,   this zoning case is just concerned with the  accessory apartment. In terms of context,   the subject site is surrounded by properties zoned  SF5 and developed with single family residences.   A staff report for this item contains information  on the supplementary use conditions that apply to   accessory apartments. In terms of review, on  July 24th, the planning commission held the   public hearing for this item and recommended  approval with conditions, and that vote was 14   to zero. One member of the public spoke at that  hearing. They wanted to know if the accessory   apartment could be used as a short-term rental. On  August 11th, the district advisory board reviewed   the request and recommended approval with an  additional condition that the accessory apartment   must have a gabled roof. No member of the public  spoke on this item at that hearing. No protests   were received against the application. Therefore,  the conditional use can be approved by a simple   majority vote in four of seven. In terms of the  recommended action is recommended the city council   adopt the findings of the planning commission  and approve the requested conditional use with   the MAPC conditions. Authorize the necessary  signatures and instruct the city clerk to   publish a resolution after approval. Again, that  would require just a simple majority or four of   seven votes. Alternatives include the following.  You can override the planning commission, adopt   alternative findings, and approve the conditional  use with the additional condition as recommended   by the DAB. That would require five of seven  votes. You can override the planning commission,   adopt alternative findings, and deny the requested  conditional use. That also would require five of   seven votes. Or as always, you can return the  case to the MAPC for additional consideration.   Just a simple majority, four of seven. And  just a quick note about city council policies   at public hearing for planning items occurs at  the planning commission meetings. So with that,   I'll take you through some of the images. So  here's the aerial showing the site. Here's a   zoning map again surrounded by SF5. Here's the  map from the comprehensive plan showing it's   recommended for residential use. Here's the site  uh schematic or graphic that was uh submitted as   part of the application by the applicant. Here's  the protest and the notification map. Again,   no protests were submitted. And here are  photos from the site and the surrounding area. And with that, I'll stand for any questions.   I just have a couple of questions because I'm  very interested in this um because I do like   seeing that there's an accessory unit request and  I read the applicants comments which said this is   a dwelling for my in-laws to be moving in with  us and so I I like seeing that there's family   um considerations. I wanted to know if the  gabled roof um what the owner has said,   will this increase the cost? Is this an added  burden? Does anyone know? I'm not aware of any   comments that have been received from the  applicant regarding that recommendation. Um so yes, I'm sorry I don't have any information  to provide on that. I I can just um talk about   most times when um zoning cases similar to  this come before the dab, they always make   the recommendation because in the past there has  been some designs that don't fit the neighborhood.   And so this is just a recommendation that they  literally add almost every single time just to   make sure that it's compliant with the um other  um houses and such in the neighborhood. So it's   more of just um a cosmetic thing to make  sure that um we fit the neighborhood. Do   you know if the homeowner has said will this  be a burden or not? I am not sure. I haven't   heard um any feedback in the past because it is  a recommendation. Great. Thank you. Thank you,   Scott. I see no further questions and this resides  in council member Ballard's district. Thank you,   mayor. I move to override the MAPC and approve  the requested conditional use as recommended by   the DAB with the following additional condition.  The accessory apartment must have a gabled roof.   In support of this motion, I offer the following  findings. The additional condition will help   ensure that the accessory apartment will be in  keeping with the character of the neighborhood   and will reduce the possibility of detrimental  effects to the nearby properties. Second motion   and a second. Any further discussion? I see  none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes. 70. Madame clerk, please call the  next item. Zone 2025-25. Zone request zone change   request in the city from multif family residential  district to limited commercial district for   vehicle repair limited generally located on the  east side of South Hillside Avenue within one half   mile south of East Pane Avenue. Hello again, Scott  Wadel from the planning department. So, as you   heard for this one, the applicant is requesting  approval of a zone change from MF29 to uh to   from multifamily to LC limited commercial items  being heard today because the DAB and planning   commission recommendations are different. In terms  of the request, the applicant has indicated that   they are requesting the zone change in in order to  be able to use the site for additional parking for   an automotive repair business on the property  to the south. In terms of the property itself,   the subject site is located on the east side of  Hillside Avenue, approximately half a mile south   of Pawne Avenue. A subject site is approximately  0.17 acres in size, consists of one ownership   parcel, and is currently vacant. In terms of  context, property to the north and east is   zoned MF29 and is in use as open space. Property  to the south is owned by the applicant and zoned   LC and is not developed. So, here's the zoning  map. Property to the west across South Hillside   is zoned PUD plan unit development which permits  event centers in the city and is undeveloped.   In terms of the staff report, the staff report  provides information about development standards,   parking, signage, screening, and landscaping.  In terms of review on June 26th, the planning   commission held a public hearing but ultimately  ended up deferring it because the applicant   was unable to attend. Uh likewise, that also  happened on July 10th. On July 24th, the planning   commission held the public hearing and recommended  approval of the zone change request. That vote was   14 to zero. In support of the motion, the  planning commissioners indicated that the   property is buffered from residential properties  to the north by a creek. The property is directly   adjacent directly adjacent to the south of the  subject site is zoned commercially. The proposed   use would be consistent with the character of  the area and removal of the zoning restrictions   would not have significant detrimental effects on  nearby properties. The applicant was in attendance   and provided comments at the meeting. No members  of the public spoke other than the applicant. On   July 2nd, the district advisory board reviewed  the request and recommended denial of the zone   change request. That vote was seven to zero with  two abstensions. The applicant was not present   at that meeting. During the that meeting, the  DAB members expressed support for the site to   be you in use as open space, concerns about  removing the zoning restrictions and possible   detrimental effects to the nearby creek, and also  concerns about detrimental effects to surrounding   properties if the property adds additional  commercial space that would later become vacant.   No protests were received against the application.  Therefore, the zone change can be approved   by a simple majority or four of seven votes.  Recommendation. It's recommended that the city   council adopt the findings of the MAPC, approve  the requested zone change, authorize the necessary   signatures, and instruct the city clerk to publish  the ordinance and resolution after approval. Would   require four of seven votes. Alternatives  include the following. You can override the   planning commission, adopt alternative findings,  and deny the requested zone change. that would   require five of seven votes or as always you  can return the case to the MAPC for further   consideration which would require four of seven  votes and again city council policy the public   hearing takes place at the planning commission  meeting so with that I'll take you through some   of the images here's the aerial here's zoning map  which was described earlier here's a map from the   comprehensive plan recommending residential  uses here's the notification and protest   map again no protests were received here are  photos of the site and the surrounding area. And with that, I'll stand for any questions.  Questions for Scott, beginning with Council   Member Glascock. Thank you, Mayor. I only have  one question. We can go back to the zoning map. Yes. So, all they're wanting to do with this  parcel of land is zone it limited commercial to   go to the red to extend basically the red further  down. That's correct. Yes, sir. Okay. Thank you.   I do have another question. So, this property  belongs to the city or to this individual? No,   it uh my understanding is that it belongs to  the applicant because I heard you say that   the DAB wanted this to remain open space. But  again, this does not belong to the city though.   That is correct. So my other question then  on this property is if I remember correctly,   if you'd go back to what's surrounding,  this is across the street from the former   Joy Land. Is that correct? Uh yes, that's  correct. So that property right there, it technically is the triangle is technically  residential. Is that correct? Right now it is   currently zoned MF29. a multifamily residential.  So that one property could be a home if someone   wanted to build it as a home. That is correct.  You could. However, that's likely not going to   be the case. How much in property taxes is  that currently um being levied? Um I do not   have that information with me. And if this  becomes a commercial property, will then the   property taxes on that increase? That would be my  assumption. Yes. So right now, say for instance,   I don't know how much it's being levied, but I'd  like to know how much is currently being levied   versus how much if you make improvements onto this  current property that also again does not belong   to the city of Witchah, how much in property  taxes that would then uh levy. I I do believe,   if I if I may, that the amount of property taxes  that would be generated would largely depend on   the type and the value of the improvements. So at  this point uh the own the owner has only indicated   or the applicant has indicated uh their intent is  to use it for additional parking. So my assumption   is that that would be a flat lot which generally  they do not have very high improvement values when   it comes to property taxes. That's that's all  I can offer in terms of insights on on values. Thank you. I see no further questions for staff  and this does not get public comment and this   resides in council member Hohheisel's district.  Thank you, mayor. Um I uh yeah, this one's always   tricky whenever you have such a swing between DAB  and MAPC. Um so I actually plan to send this back   to DAB for additional information. Uh, I want  them to actually hear the the proposal from the   um the property owner and to let DAB  know exactly what they are planning. So,   my hope is that they actually show up this time  because that can be pretty detrimental towards   um open discussion and transparency as far  as a project goes. So, um I move to return   the case to DAB to allow for additional review  and consideration at their October 1st meeting.   This would return the case to the city council  on October 14th. In support of this motion,   I offer the following. This will provide another  opportunity for the applicant to attend a DAB   meeting so they can explain their request and  answer questions. Second motion and a second.   Any further discussion? I see none. Madame  clerk, could please please open the roll. Motion passes 70. Madame clerk, please call the  next item. Selection of appeal panel to hear   appeal of additional conditions to drinking  establishment license. Mayor and council,   the item before you request that you select three  members to serve on an appeal panel for the appeal   of a lency for the city. Um we recommend that um  district 2 represent um as this is in district   two and then two other council members as well.  Those would be council members four and five. Is   that correct numerically? I believe so because  council member Hohisel recently served. That's   right. That's right. Very good. Um, with that,  Council Member Tuttle, Council Member Glascock,   and Vice Mayor Johnston. Are you guys okay  with serving? Sure. Very nice. Okay. I will   move that the council approve Council Member  Tuttle, Council Member Glascock, and Vice Mayor   Johnston to preside over the administrative  appeal of the license amendment. Second.   Motion and a second. Any further discussion? I  see none. Madame clerk, please open the roll. Motion passes 70. Madame clerk, please call  the next item. Council member appointments   and com. Oh, I apologize. Approve  that pursuant to section 2.04090,   04090. Council member Tuttles's travel expenses as  estimated on the travel authorization and expense   form to serve as a member of city health's  policy advisory committee in Washington DC   October 15 through 16, 2025 for the purpose of  representing the city of Witchaw consistent with   AR 3.1 be approved upon return from travel. Actual  expenses shall be reported to the controllers's   office. Council member Tuttle. Thank you. I just  wanted to provide a few highlights regarding this.   I think many of us have met with city health when  we go to the National League of Cities conference,   but their goal or their mission is that  every person in every city deserves to   live the healthiest life possible and they're  putting together a policy advisory committee to   review their current um application processes and  also then what initiatives to work on. right now   it's access to healthy food and tobacco policies  and affordable housing and all the things. So,   I'm excited to go and to not only help develop  this nationwide policy initiative, but then also   bring back lessons learned to our city. Um,  and there will be no cost to the city. Um,   city health is paying for all of my expenses for  the journey. Thank you. Since that is the case,   I don't think uh I think it's worded differently.  Then if no city dollars are being used,   it actually should be a a gift limit exceeding  motion. Is that correct, Jennifer? That's correct.   If no dollars are used, I haven't looked at that  one. So, will the motion have to be different? It does because it requires a  listing of estimated U gift. Shall we? We could bring it back in  a week if that's all right. Okay,   perfect. I'm not going to Perfect. We'll bring it  back next week with the amount of gift exceeding   um information. Okay, we will now move to the  next travel item. Can you please read that,   city clerk? Approve that pursuant to section  2049 council member Johnson's travel expenses   as estimated on the travel authorization and  expense form to attend city to city in Detroit,   Michigan, October 8th through 10th, 2025  for the purpose of representing the city   of Witchah consistent with AR3.1 be approved.  Upon return from travel, actual expenses shall   be reported to the controllers's office. I  move to approve that travel. Second motion   and a second. Any further discussion? I see  none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes. 70. Madame clerk,   please call the next item. Council  member appointments and comments. We'll start with appointments.  Council member Glasco. Thank you,   Mayor. I'd like to appoint Nino Lawson to  the parks board of commissioners. Council   member Johnson. Thanks, Mayor.  Due to a family emergency of my   uh appointee to the city manager selection  committee, I would like to now appoint Aaron   Bastion to fill that position. [Music] I  move to approve the appointments. Second.   Motion on a second. Any further discussion? I  see none. Madame clerk, please open the role. Motion passes 70. Madam uh sorry, council members,  any comments? Council member Tunnel. Thank you.   Um yesterday was the first day of September.  2025 is flying by. Um 2020 September of 2025 is   National Library Card Signup Month. Um so if you  haven't gotten your new handy dandy library card,   they're beautiful. Has the Witchaw flag using  books. Um we're trying to get the word out and   get as many people to sign up to get their library  card as possible. This year's theme is one card,   endless possibilities. Um Jamie, Childart,  other representatives in the early learning   um profession I have met several times to see  what we can do just to try and make sure that   not only our kiddos have access to library  cards but also our adults. So if you haven't   had a chance to get your new library card, please  sign up. Thank you. I see no further comments.   We have an executive session. So, I move that  the city council recess into executive session   for 15 minutes to receive information on two  civil actions pursuant to KSA 75-4319B2 for   legal consultation with the city attorney which  would be deemed privilege in the attorney client   relationship pending litigation and legal  advice. The executive session is required   to protect attorney client privilege and the  public interest. The executive session will   begin 5 minutes from now. So, so that we have a  tiny break 11:20. So, we will return at 11:35. Second motion and a second. Any further  discussion? I see none. Madam clerk,   please open the role. Motion passes 70. Thank you.