Wichita City Council Meeting

Documenter name: Debbie Haslam

Agency: Wichita City Council Meetings/Workshops

Date: June 18, 2024

See more about this meeting at Documenters.org

NOTES

All Council members are in attendance

Call to Order 

Pastor Phillip Moore from Eden Fellowship Ministries was introduced as giving the opening prayer but he was not in attendance. A moment of silence was given instead.

 Approval of minutes – Mayor Wu moved to approve the minutes from the 6/11/24 meeting, this was seconded and approved.

Proclamations:

                  Amateur Radio Week – There was no one present to represent them, so Vince Hancock stood in their place as he felt that he was able to represent them.

June 19-25 was declared Amateur Radio Week. Residents were encouraged to learn more about the importance of amateur radios and join them to celebrate Amateur Field Day.

Hancock spoke on behalf of the Amateur Radio group. He said that they were good people, volunteers and should be recognized.

Council Member Hoheisel said that he was disappointed that Hancock did not respond using radio speak. Next time he would like to hear it in radio speak.

Public Agenda

a.      Scott Ledy was to speak on hazing in the Fire Department, but he was not present.

b.      Twila Puritty was to speak on the City Budget. She was not in attendance.

c.      William Whittaker was set to address homeless issues, but he was not present.

d.      Cheryl Golub had planned on speaking about Park Elementary, but she canceled on 6/14/24.

Consent Agenda Items 1 through 22

Mayor Wu asked if there was any concern or discussion on these agenda items. Council member Glasscock requested that item 18 be pulled. Note that this item involved a request in the City to Vacate a Portion of a Platted Setback; Generally Located One-Block South of West Maple Street and Within One-Quarter Mile West of South 151st Street West (355 South Wind Rows Lake Drive). (District IV)

All items except number 18 were approved.

Glasscock said that he had received 10 emails in opposition of this item (18) and asked to table the request. The motion was passed and approved.

Council Business

Board of bids and Contracts

Josh Lauber, Department of Finance shared several Engineering, construction and purchasing bids and their expenses, including bids from Mies Construction, Innovative Road Composites, Conspec, Inc., Buckley Roofing and many others.

No questions were raised and therefore it was recommended to approve. Motion passed 7-0.

Petitions for Public Improvements – None 

Unfinished Council Business

Charter Ordinance and Resolution Naming City Website as Official Newspaper

Sharon Dickgrafe – City Law Department mentioned that this was reviewed initially on April 2, 2024.  

District Advisory Board (DAB) presentations were made in the month of May. DAB 1 and DAB 6 opposed the proposal. They felt it caused problems with transparency, and were concerned that not all people have access to internet services.

DAB 2, 3, 4, and 5 were generally in favor of the proposal.

KSA 64-101 provides that first class cities are required to designate, by resolution, a newspaper as the official city newspaper for publication of ordinances, resolutions, and city notices. The history of this issue is that in 2019 the city contracted with The Wichita Eagle as the “Official Newspaper”. Approximately $120,000 is spent each year on legal publications.  This contract is up for rebid on August 24.

If approved, the decision would not go into effect for 61 days .This allows citizens a period of 60 days to initiate a petition of protest.  Notices will be maintained online for at least five years.

Tyler Schiffelbein, Communications Manager, then came up to speak as to the website. He said that the website was never actually down. Certain applications through the website were down, but not the website.

He also said that direct access to legal notices can be reached from the homepage.

When asked about who has access to files, Schiffelbein said that only the City Clerk, Deputy City Clerk, and relevant department staff would have access.

Print copies are available on request.

The city is looking at a broader marketing campaign to encourage sign-up for notifications.

It was then recommended that the city council approve the proposed request to make the city website the “official newspaper”

Tuttle asked if we could have a secondary news site without the requirement of publishing 50 times a year. Dickgrafe responded that, yes, we can, as long as they are not the dedicated newspaper.

Johnson asked a couple of questions about where the record would be kept and would it be at the library.

Dickgrafe responded by saying, no, not at this time. It would be too risky to have a secondary location for storage.

Hoheisel requested that Dickgrafe go more in depth on the secondary requirements.

Dickgrafe began by explaining that by law the city has to have a designated “official newspaper”. The attorney general has stated that a newspaper must circulate among all areas of the community. It must be generally available to all citizens in the community. There are no number requirements involved as far as distribution is concerned.

Mayor Wu asked about the additional documents that are involved in most ordinances and whether they need to be published as well.

Dickgrafe said that all that is published is the ordinance itself, not all the details.

Public Comment

Vince Hancock – Delano

He mentioned Voodoo economics from the 1980’s and used this to create a theory of “DoDo economics”  He spoke of businesses needing to change quickly to what is happening around them. He said that another way to kill the media business in Kansas is to get caught lying. He mentioned that the Wichita Eagle said that “all DAB meetings in May had to be canceled” due to the city's cyber security incident.  He said that this is not true. He shared that he attended DAB meetings in May. He said that our current paper is not doing its due diligence.

Suzie Cunningham – District 6.

She spoke of information that she stated to be false from the city.  Kansas Press Association (KPA) service relies on data from its membership. She stated that from January to March of this year, the city website only had 181 unique visitors. (This is later clarified as referring to unique visits to the legal notices page). She was concerned about the city stating that the Wichita Eagle is antiquated and unreliable. She said that this speech attempts to defame The Eagle.

Glasscock questioned the unique number of visitors to the website; he felt this was not accurate. Schiffelbein said it was probably more in the thousands.

Doug Ballard – District 6.

He began by asking, why does the city choose to work on this when they have so many issues going on?  He wondered if the Council believed that the Eagle was not doing a good job.  He asked what they hoped to gain. He said it looked bad from a political point of view. He said that the city can’t do it for nothing. They will be giving it to staff to do.

Mayor Wu asked Dickgrafe to show the process currently.

Dickgrafe said that an ordinance is presented to the City council, then it must be read twice. Following this, it is put in the newspaper, then verified as correct.

Mayor Wu asked Jamie Buster (City Clerk) about her double checking, and whether anything was found to be incorrect.

Buster said they have always posted on the city website as well. She double checks to make sure it is accurate. Sometimes it is not legible.

Glasscock spoke up and said that the city website had over 157,000 visits in May.

Schiffelbein spoke up and said that Cunningham was referring to the legal notifications page views only.

Ballard said that legal notices are not for community engagement; they are about publishing an independent record for future use and the website does not meet that, therefore she will be voting no.

Tuttle – Thanked everyone. She has said all along that she is “Not willing to sacrifice transparency for cost savings.” She is not comfortable with the website being the only official newspaper. She suggested an amendment to the resolution itself. She moved to amend section 2 of the resolution and insert the following sentence “In addition a secondary print source shall be utilized to supplement the city’s website”.

Glasscock said that he echoed Council member Tuttle and would be happy to second her motion.

The amended motion passed 6 -1.

Glasscock moved that the city council approve the request for the city website to become the “official newspaper”.

Tuttle pointed out that this issue is complicated. She is ready to come to a resolution and feels this is the best compromise that we can have. The City’s website will be the official newspaper, but another news outlet would be a supplement.

Hoheisel said that the whole debate has been centered around the Eagle. Conversation should be about the policy here instead of bringing about the other discussions. He appreciates the changes and believes that it helps with transparency. He said that this is a little too quick and feels that there is no need to move at this time.

Voted – 5-2 motion passes.  

New Council Business

Amendment to 2024 Exempt Salary Ordinance

Jonathan Jones – Senior Human Resources Specialist

On April 23, 2024, the Department of Labor announced the rule to increase the minimum exempt salary for all employees in exempt level positions to $43,888. According to this ruling, this must go into effect by July 2024. Current city employees that are in this category are already at this salary  level or above.

Hoheisel asked if this would affect just salary employees, or would hourly rate employees be involved?

Jones responded that it would only be for salary employees.

It was moved to approve and passes 7-0

The Drought Response Plan

Gary Janzen, Director of Public Works and Utilities

The Drought Response Plan is currently in Stage 1, with the city looking to move to Stage 2 if we do not get the rain needed. The plan involves proposed code changes and emphasizes voluntary conservation, particularly focusing on the Cheney Lake area for water sources. The plan, originally from 2013, uses lake levels at Cheney to determine the stage of response, with a current usage mix of 50% from the Equus Beds aquifer and 50% from Cheney Lake.

The plan includes four stages of progressive measures:

• Stage 1: Initiated in January 2023.
• Stage 2: Limits outdoor watering to one day a week, including businesses, with necessary enforcement and exemptions for specific sectors like food production and nurseries.
• Stage 3: Bans all outdoor watering and reduces time on city fountains.
• Stage 4: Increases warnings and fines, mandates a 15% reduction in water usage, with hospitals and dialysis centers exempt.

The city aims to raise awareness about the water situation at Cheney Lake, noting recent local rains but insufficient rainfall at Cheney. A new plan will be online by April 1, 2025, with efforts documented on savewichitawater.com. Code revisions are proposed to empower the City Manager for specific actions, with no associated costs.

Discussion points included:

• The importance of conservation and communication with the community and organizations.
• A need for a consistent public message, using water bills and press conferences for awareness.
• Encouraging voluntary conservation to delay moving to Stage 2.
• Questions about gray water use, backflow device inspections, and penalties for misuse of water.

The city is also focusing on improving internal conservation efforts, with projects like the Northwest water treatment plant. Exemptions and penalties for water usage were discussed, with no current appointments for the team handling these efforts.

Public comments emphasized the seriousness of the drought situation, historical water usage trends, and the importance of maintaining the current plan without delay. The recommendation was made to share images of Cheney Lake to highlight the severity of the situation.

The council vote on staff recommendations passed with a 4-3 motion.

Janitorial Services at Various City Facilities

This request is for approval of staff recommendation of vendors for janitorial services. The city contracts to five vendors. The total proposed cost of services is $1,213,652. The city currently offers one year contracts and renewal options of one year at time for up to 4 years.

After a few questions were addressed from council members, the motion was passed 7-0.

Design-Build Contract Approval –Alford, Angelou, and Rockwell Libraries expansion renovation (Districts I and IV)

Gary Janzen, Director of Public Works and Utilities

In October 2023 the city council approved for the expansions and renovations as part of the libraries master plan. In December of 2023, the city approved a bonding resolution for $3,979,914, with an additional $2 million of city-wide contributions.  The largest portion of funds are designated to the Rockwell expansion. Hutton Corporation was selected to be the contracting firm for all projects. All projects are projected to be complete by March 2025.

Tuttle spoke of her gratitude for the $90,000 to art. She is also sad to see the fireplace go at Rockwell but happy to see the expansion.

Johnson is excited to see this happen. Each project will be great for their communities.

Johnston asked about shared cost savings Janzen said that it is possible but these are relatively small in scope. They held to build at the cost they communicated.

Mayor Wu wanted to state that this is a big investment for the city. The city has been intentional in these decisions. The city has six library branches and the Advanced Library. We do care about the importance of these facilities. She wants these projects to be a reminder that the city does make investments into these communities. She also said that the community should be mindful of the investment that is nearly $4 million.

Johnson moved, seconded by Glasscock. Passes 7-0

Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Public service and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Homeless Prevention Allocation Recommendations

Sally Stang-Director of Housing and Community Services

Stang said that the recommendation was a continuation of the plan approved last month. The city receives an annual allocation for CDBG from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The consolidated planning is divided into three phases and started in July 2023 and goes through November 2024.  Phase one is for data collection and interviews.  Staff has proposed a general Request for Proposal (RFP). For ESG funding, winter shelter operations were prioritized.

Organizations could apply from April 12-May 3 and applications were reviewed by the Grants Review Committee (GRC). The GRC consists of a very widely diverse group of people across the city.  Findings were presented on May 22, 2024 at the public hearing.

Stang invited members from the GRC to speak. A gentleman from the audience spoke on the difficulty of making the decisions and the time commitment for being a member of the GRC. He hopes to provide a dent into our homeless issue as well.

Slang also introduced Matt Lowe, Community Impact Manager from the United Way of the Plains who said he recruited individuals from several charitable organizations to help with the decision making process.

Hoheisel addressed the difficulty of choosing who to fund. Hoheisel asked about the funding that would go to the Winter Shelter. Stang responded that the Winter Shelter funding would be $157,000. Hoheisel then asked about follow-up to those organizations that were not selected. Stang said that denied organizations were offered to follow-up by email.

Ballard asked for clarification about The Salvation Army and Center of Hope and why they did not apply, but this is unknown at this time. She also asked about the opportunities for new organizations. Stang stated that they look at previous funding and the background of repeated organizations. Ballard also mentioned how she was nervous to see the domestic violence piece lose some of their funding.

Johnston shared that he was disappointed that Center of Hope didn’t apply because of the great work that they do.  He was also disappointed that Dear Neighbor of Ministries did not receive the grant. He shared about a patient at the Guadalupe Clinic that needed shelter and the experience she had.

Mayor Wu said that 50% of the funding was going towards domestic violence Wu asked for more information regarding the youth awards. Stang said that 3 or the 4 organizations have received funding in the past five years. Wu asked about collaboration within these groups and to see that everyone is working together. Stang stated that collaboration is required in some of these instances. Wu then asked for anyone in the audience from these groups to come up and share what they do.

Two individuals from Colvin Recreation Center spoke about the before and after school programs that are associated with USD 259. This gives students a place that offers supervision and safety and provides a positive environment. They also work with IEPs for students so that before and after school is consistent with the school day.

The programs support the educational workload and keeping them engaged is important. This teaches how to control themselves in a better manner.

Prime Fit Youth Foundation co-founder Kim Wilson came to speak. Prime Fit Youth Foundation has been a non-profit for five years. It served 120 students in six schools to begin with and grew to 28 schools and over 700 kids. The program is built on mentors, mostly male,  and relationship building. Academic support is also provided. They also offer on-call de escalation.

Johnston said that he wanted to address the great work that is happening at Colvin.

It was then opened to public comment.

Amanda Myers - Executive Director of the Wichita Family Crisis Center.

There are only two emergency shelters in the Wichita area. The center has been in existence for 115 years. She is grateful for the funding but this is 35% less than what they have received in the past. She did not want to say that the decision was wrong, but wanted people to know that consequences will come from this.

Jason Wess - Executive Director of Stepstone and Dear Neighbor Ministries

The minimum award amount was $50,000 which is more than the minimum in the past. Stepstone is a transitional housing program.

Tuttle thanked Sally Stang and her team for the work with this grant process.

Glasscock thought the grant committee was one of the best committees he worked with and thanked those who served. He also encouraged others to consider serving.

Motion, seconded and approved 7-0

Council Business Submitted by City Authorities

Planning Agenda

 Housing Agenda

 Public Housing Section 18 Disposition Application for Group 3B

Sally Stang-Director of Housing and Community Services

61 single family homes in various areas of Wichita in different levels of condition. They would like to sell these properties at fair market value. In doing this, they will provide Tenant Protection Vouchers for existing residents as well as relocation counseling. Relocation costs will be paid by the project. There are some environmental issues that were found including elevated radon levels in one unit and 500 year floodplain. A significant number of homes are in northeast Wichita.

All other requirements for the application have been met. Estimated value of the 61 homes is $3,158,500. HUD will not permit the earnings from these homes to be used for Affordable Homeownership. They must be used for a public housing property or a Section 8 assisted property.

Hoheisel asked about whether selling these houses will affect the areas and their eligibility for Affordable Housing funds. Stang said that the Affordable Housing funds are very specific to pilot areas one and two, so these will not apply.  

Motion to approve, seconded and passed unanimously.

Council Agenda

Approval for travel for Mayor Wu to Attend the Farmborough International Air Show in London , England, July 19-26, 2024.

Motion to approve, seconded and passed 6-0 and one abstain.

Council Member Appointment and Comments

Glasscock and Mayor Wu stated several Board Appointments and they were passed unanimously.

Johnson mentioned that our Park and Recreations did a great job for the Juneteenth celebration.

Mayor Wu shared the actual numbers of the use of the city website for the months of January - May, as well as the usage numbers of the Legal Notices page for the same months.

Meeting adjourned at 12:34 pm

Summary

Summarize the 3 most important outcomes or takeaways from your notes....

• The City Council voted to designate the City website as the city’s “official newspaper” with an amendment that indicates a secondary newspaper to be used as well.
• Wichita prepares for potential drought regulations due to the low levels at Cheney Reservoir.
• The Grants Review Committee presented their designations for grant funding for the coming year.

Follow-Up Questions

What are you left wondering? Ask up to 3 of your own follow-up questions...

• If the “official newspaper” designation is to save funding for the city, then would a secondary newspaper designation end up costing the city as well?
• Would an education campaign be a wise investment for the city when it comes to water conservation? Putting funds towards educating residents on ways that they can voluntarily conserve water could be a good way to avoid moving to Stage two or Stage three.

If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at documenters@citybureau.org with "Correction Request" in the subject line.