Week ending February 2, 2019
Federal Opportunity Zone Informational Session
The Chamber and EDC, in partnership with the City of Lawrence and the Bioscience & Technology Business Center (BTBC), will host an informational session on Federal Opportunity Zones for the community on Tuesday, February 12, 2019, from 3:30 – 5:30 p.m., at the BTBC facility, located at 2029 Becker Drive. Attached is a map of 2018 designated opportunity zones. Registration is required for this event; however, the event is full, and information will be distributed and made available after the event. The organizing group is exploring adding another opportunity zone informational session and more information will be provided in the near future.
EMS Agreement Discussion Update:
Emergency Medical Services (EMS) agreement discussions amongst Douglas County and City of Lawrence staff continue. The staff members are meeting every other week. To date, combined budget data has been gathered and reviewed, and comparison EMS communities identified. Also, based on feedback from the County Commission concerned with the aggressive original timeline, the reference about a March completion target in the project charter document was removed. The final charter document indicates that the two entities will work together regularly and expeditiously with a goal of bringing forward recommended changes to the agreement.
Draft Comprehensive Plan 2040 Update
Attached is an update to the Draft Comprehensive Plan.
December 2018 Monthly Building Permit Reports
The Building Safety Division issued 181 building permits in December, with total construction for the month valued at $16,166,931. Total permit fees assessed for the month were $91,667, and total review fees assessed were $11,740. Permits were issued for 8 new residential projects, including three (3) multi-family dwellings, four (4) single-family dwellings and one (1) duplex. Staff Report Monthly Report Year-to-Date Report
Downtown Lawrence Master Plan Workshops Announced
The City of Lawrence is excited to announce the initiation of a planning process to develop a Downtown Master Plan. The Downtown Master Plan will serve as the City’s official guide for land use and development in the Downtown area over the next 15-20 years. It will act as a “road map,” detailing a long-term vision and policy agenda for important issues such as land use, development, beautification, parking, pedestrian mobility, and circulation. Ultimately, the plan will seek to answer, “What will our Downtown look like in the future?” and, “How do we get there?” The city is working with consulting firm Houseal Lavigne Associates on developing the Downtown Master Plan.
As part of the planning process, the City will host three workshops. The Downtown and Adjacent Neighborhoods Workshop is for people who live in close proximity to Downtown Lawrence, the Community-Wide Workshop is for anyone who lives/works anywhere in the City, and the Downtown Business Workshop is designed to gather feedback from business owners, developers, and members of the Downtown business community. Please note that all three workshops are open to any Lawrence community member who wants to attend to ensure everyone has an opportunity to provide input. See the attached news release for more information, as well as workshop times and locations.
Municipal Services and Operations Design and Construction Standards – 2019 Update
Municipal Services and Operations staff have performed modifications and updates to the City's Construction Material Specifications, Design Standards, and Standard Details. These materials and a document outlining substantial changes may be found on the department’s Technical Resources Page.
Leadership Exploration and Development (LEAD) Graduation Ceremony
In alignment with the strategic plan, the City began to develop a training program specifically for non-supervisory personnel. The Leadership Exploration and Development (LEAD) program is a 10-session training program designed for non-supervisory personnel looking to expand their capacity in their current position or have a desire to be considered for supervisory positions as they become available.
The program began in April of 2018 and on January 31, the City’s inaugural LEAD class graduated! There were 16 graduates that spanned across every City department. We are excited to have the first class graduates and look forward to continuing the program in the future. Below is the list of graduates.
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Beau Ferguson, Parks & Recreation |
Josh Edwards, Municipal Services & Operations |
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Bobbie Walthall, City Manager’s Office |
Larry Rowland, Municipal Services & Operations |
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Bradly Karr, Planning & Development Services |
Lisa Humerickhouse, City Manager’s Office |
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Brandon Thorngate, Municipal Services & Operations |
Lori Ridenour, Finance |
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Clint Miller, Municipal Services & Operations |
Malcomb Stapel, Fire Medical |
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Craig Lutz, Municipal Services & Operations |
Rachel Palmer-Reeb, Fire Medical |
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Jessica Halton, Information Technology |
Rebecca Coffman, City Attorney’s Office |
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Jessica Diaz, Police |
Thomas Terry, Municipal Services & Operations |
Gender Diversity in Employee Recruitments
Attached is an update to Commissioner Soden’s inquiry about gender diversity among the Municipal Services & Operations management team.
Food Policy Council and Common Ground Annual Reports
The Food Policy Council’s Annual Report provides a summary of its activities in 2018, largely focused on launching implementation of the Food System Plan adopted by the City of Lawrence Commission and Douglas County Commission in summer 2017. Key highlights include launching a statewide conversation about food systems economic development, collaborating with Lawrence Transit for a Public Service Announcement pilot project to promote Double Up Food Bucks and the summer meals program, collaboration with Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department for food waste efforts, and receipt of two grants from the Kansas Alliance for Wellness.
Common Ground, the City’s award-winning community garden program, concluded its seventh season in 2018. In April, Aimee Polson, founder and manager of the Garden Incubator at John Taylor Park, was awarded the Community Health Champion prize from the Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department for her garden leadership. The year brought to a close a grant project funded by the National Association of Conservation Districts. The grant provided funding for creation of a Garden Management Guide. Sustainability staff, who manage the program, used the outcome of a program evaluation to initiate strategic planning with community stakeholders, including current program participants, and other City staff. Plans for 2019 include creating an internal interdepartmental staff team, strengthening community partnerships, and launching a community conversation about future garden sites in 2020 and beyond. Any commissioners interested in a garden tour during the 2019 season should reach out to Sustainability staff to coordinate.
Inquiry about City-owned park property for affordable housing
The City has been approached by a local developer with interest in potential development of some City-owned property that is part of Brook Creek Park in eastern Lawrence. Attached are maps showing the parcels, which are part of Brook Creek Park, generally located north of East 12th Street and east of Brook Street, northwest of Oak Hill Cemetery. Based on research conducted, these parcels have significant history of being open space, dating back for at least 100 years. The sites are heavily wooded with sensitive lands and there is also some flood plain in the area. Staff explained to the developer the sensitivity about these properties and relayed the staff position that staff would not recommend these properties be available for sale or development given the issues noted. However, interest in affordable housing development was highly encouraging. If the City were to sell park property, there are specific public notice requirements regarding the sale of park land and staff would recommend an open process. Staff wanted to relay this inquiry to the City Commission in case there was interest by the Commission in looking at this property for affordable housing.
Tobacco 21 Update
In October 2018, the City Commission held a study session over Tobacco 21 laws, which are laws that raise the minimum age for which tobacco products may be sold. A representative from the Health Department provided a presentation addressing tobacco use and its effects.
At the meeting, City staff advised the City Commission of pending litigation in Topeka related to its Tobacco 21 ordinance, in DWAGFYS Manufacturing, Inc. v. City of Topeka. State law allows the sale of tobacco products to anyone 18 and older, while the Topeka ordinance prohibits the sale of tobacco to anyone under the age of 21. Topeka’s ordinance has been challenged by local businesses that claim such local law violates the Constitutional home rule power because it is conflicts with state law. There was some discussion among Commissioners regarding the Topeka litigation, with Commissioners expressing interest in monitoring the case for now and continuing the Tobacco 21 discussion at some time in the future.
The Topeka litigation is currently pending before the Kansas Supreme Court, though as of late January 2019 the matter had not yet been scheduled for oral argument before the court. The soonest the case can be heard is April 2019, though the appellate clerk’s office advises that the date may be pushed out further, depending on scheduling needs of the court. Please note that once oral arguments are held, it generally takes some time—at least several months—for the court to issue its opinion. Also, as of late January 2019, there is no pending state legislation addressing this topic.
Sales Tax Collections Update
As was reported on the City Manager’s Report from the December 18, 2018 City Commission meeting agenda, Finance Department staff has been following up on several sales tax issues brought to the attention of the City by the Kansas Department of Revenue. On May 1, 2018, the Kansas Department of Revenue noted that Utility Billing has not been collecting or remitting the Transportation Development District (TDD) sales tax on water sales from 18 accounts that fell in the TDD special tax districts. In the process of reviewing the sales tax situation, Finance staff discovered that sales tax was being collected and remitted incorrectly on poly carts and yard waste carts for solid waste services. All identified sales tax issues have been resolved going forward, and the appropriate sales tax will be collected and remitted. Since this report was made, staff has confirmed that there are 18 active accounts that have taxable services subject to the TDD sales tax. Of the three utility accounts noted associated with the 9th & New Hampshire TDD, only two are subject to the TDD sales tax. Due to the switch in billing systems, data prior to September 2013 was not readily accessible. Also, according to Kansas Department of Revenue’s Publication 1220, all refunds for sales tax must be filed within three years from the date the tax was due.
Future Agenda Items
Attached, please find a summary of future agenda items.
Future Work Session Items
Attached, please find a summary of future work session items.