CITY MANAGER’S REPORT

Week ending September 2, 2011

City committed to open and transparent government

The City Clerk’s Office recently created a webpage with information regarding open records requests. The page includes information about the process to request records and a link to a records request form. eGov Coordinator Eric Gruber and Management Intern Kelly Unger both contributed to the project. An entry regarding open records was also added to the city’s Frequently Asked Questions website feature.

On August 20, 2011, the city hosted a League of Kansas Municipalities training session regarding the Kansas Open Records Act and the Kansas Open Meetings Act. City Clerk Jonathan Douglass and Deputy City Clerk Diane Trybom, along with about 25 attorneys and city officials from other communities attended the training.  

Parks and Recreation activities update

Parks and Recreation employees have been hard at work recently on projects ranging from softball tournament hosting to storm cleanup. A few project updates follow:

• Downtown and Depot maintenance - During the week of the annual Downtown Sidewalk Sale parks maintenance crews prepared for the expected visitors by paying special attention to downtown trees, flowers, and litter control, as well as working on the grounds of the Union Pacific Depot and Lawrence Visitor’s Center in North Lawrence (see attached photos).
• Eagle Bend #10 - Over the past year and a half the department has been working to correct drainage issues and install zoysia grass on this hole. The end result of this work has dramatically improved the appearance and playability of the hole (see attached photo)
• Sports complexes host tournament- The Parks and Recreation Department reports that they have received numerous positive complexes about the conditions at the Clinton Lake Softball Complex and the Youth Sports Complex, which recently hosted the Girls Softball World Series event (see attached photo).
• Martin Park cleanup efforts – Efforts to improve Martin Park, located north of the intersection of Peterson Rd and Folks Rd (see park webpage for map), are underway with installation of signs, placement of rock borders around the parking lot, and establishment of nature trails in the park (see attached photos).
• Mud fort historical workshop - The Parks and Recreation Department and Local Historian Katie Armitage teamed up for the 13th time to provide a historical workshop for children and their parents, featuring the building of a model of the mud forts used to protect early Lawrence residents and a walking tour of historic places in Lawrence. Please see attached report for more information and photos.
• Pooch Plunge – The 2011 Pooch Plunge was held on August 22 at the Outdoor Aquatic Center. This event takes place at the close of the outdoor pool each year. The Stormwater Division took advantage of the event to educate pet owners on the importance of picking up after pets to water quality (see attached report for more information and photos). The event also received some national attention on the Today Show “Animal Tracks” photo blog.
• Storm cleanup – Following last week’s severe thunderstorms, the Parks and Recreation Department’s Forestry Division has been responding to many calls regarding damaged trees in the public right-of-way and on city property (see attached photos of some of the damage). The division prioritizes these calls according to safety and tree health concerns.

August building permits

The Building Safety Division issued 259 building permits in August, with total construction for the month valued at $9,216,404 (up from $4,615,227 in 2010). Total permit fees assessed for the month were $60,949 (up from $37,532 in 2010). Staff issued 14 permits for new residential construction in August, all single-family dwellings.  Permits were issued for nine new residential projects in August last year, also all for single-family dwellings. Please see the attached memo, building permits report, and summary report for more details.

Fire Medial strategic planning

In September, the Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical department will undertake a strategic planning process facilitated by the Center for Public Safety Excellence. The process involves input from both citizens/community leaders and internal stakeholders. The citizen/community leader portion of the process, scheduled for Wednesday, September 14, involves determining external stakeholder priorities of service delivery and expectations, as well as receiving input on positive and correctional issues. The internal stakeholders portion involves a three-day work session, scheduled for September 27-29, will focus on reviewing input from citizens/community leaders, revising or updating the department’s Mission Statement, revising or updating the department’s Value Statements, establishing core services and support programs, conducting S.W.O.T. Analysis, identifying Critical Issues and Service Gaps, revising or updating the department’s Vision Statement, and developing goals, objectives, and critical tasks. The strategic planning process will conclude with a published three-to-five year Strategic Plan for the department.

KDOT bridge work necessitates Fire Medical Department deployments 

As outlined in this order from the Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical Department, personnel are stationed north of the river during evening peak traffic times. Additionally, special deployments on KU football game days are planned. The KDOT project to repair and re-surface the Kansas River Bridge will continue into October.