Week ending March 2, 2019
Lawrence Douglas County Fire Medical Chief Search
Attached is information regarding involvement in the Lawrence Douglas County Fire Medical Chief search.
Statements of Substantial Interest
Every public official should verify there is a current statement of substantial interest on file in the office where candidacy was declared.
If any change occurred in the substantial interests of a commissioner in the preceding calendar year, a new Statement of Substantial Interests Form must be filed between April 15th and April 30th with the Douglas County Clerk’s Office (K.S.A. 75-4302a).
More information is available by contacting the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission at (785) 296-4219 or visiting https://ethics.kansas.gov/ where you can find links to the blank SSI form, instructions and applicable Kansas statutes.
Updated 2020 Budget Calendar
The 2020 budget calendar has been updated to reflect a June 18 City Manager’s Recommended budget presentation. Additionally, staff have added another priority-based budgeting presentation to give the Commission and public time with the tool.
Moody’s Investment Ratings
The City of Lawrence was notified by Moody’s Investors Services that the bonds to be issued on March 5, 2019 have an Aa1 rating, and the temporary notes to be issued on the same day have rating of MIG 1. According to Moody’s rating scale, the City’s rating of Aa “are judged to be of high quality and are subject to very low credit risk”. The 1 represents that the City’s debt ranks in the higher end of its Aa rating category. According to the press release, Moody’s rated our next bond issue as Aa1 in part due to the “city’s healthy and stable operating reserves, and slightly above median but manageable debt and pension burdens”. Moody’s does not use their conventional rating scale for temporary notes. Instead, they use the Moody’s Investment Grade (MIG) scale with either a 1, 2, or 3 qualifier with a 1 being reserved for the most credit worthy bond issuers. According to Moody’s, a MIG 1 designation “denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by established cash flows, highly reliable liquidity support, or demonstrated broad-based access to the market for refinancing”. See attached press release for more information.
State Joint Legislative Transportation Vision Task Force Report
The State Joint Legislative Transportation Vision Task Force was established to outline recommendations for the future of transportation funding in Kansas. Staff provided testimony in November 2018. The Taskforce released their report and implementation is underway. For more information read the attached memo summarizing the process, link to the report and next steps.
Staff provides comments on the K-10 Highway Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) Purpose and Needs Statement draft
On January 25, 2019 the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) sent letters to participating agencies to provide a 30 day opportunity to comment on a draft copy of the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) Purpose and Needs Statement draft for the effort toward expanding lanes on the west leg of the South Lawrence Trafficway. The Lawrence Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) staff, in coordination with City of Lawrence staff, marked up the draft and provided comments back to KDOT. Attached is the marked up draft statement and the MPO/city response.
Downtown Master Plan Community Outreach Update
During the week of February 2, 2019, Houseal Lavigne Associates completed a portion of the planned community input on the initial phase of the Downtown Master Plan per the approved scope of services adopted by the City Commission on August 21, 2019. That week was cut short, however, due to a winter storm and a few of the planned meetings were canceled. Summaries of the meetings held that week are posted to the project website. Additionally, the consultant will soon present a revised community outreach plan to the city commission to solicit the commission’s input as this effort moves forward.
HUD updates to low- moderate Income data for Lawrence MSA
On February 14, 2019 HUD released the new Low- and Moderate-Income Summary Data Updates which correspond to CDBG-Eligible census tracts and block groups in Lawrence. This update is done every five years. There were some substantial changes for Lawrence in this new data set, which is based on the American Community Survey 2011-2015 5-year estimates. All updated data must be used starting April 1, 2019 until the next expected update in 2023. Any previous project or allocation that is under contract or memorandum of understanding and has obligated funds prior to that date will still be a viable CDBG project.
Some changes of note for Lawrence census tract and block groups include seven neighborhoods (Breezedale, North Lawrence, Old West Lawrence, Park Hill, Stoneback Ridge, Sunflower and Woods on 19th) that have moved out of low- moderate income status, and one neighborhood (Centennial) that has moved into low- moderate status. With the changes, Lawrence now has 19 CDBG-eligible low- moderate income neighborhoods. In addition, the City of Lawrence as a whole is no longer considered low- moderate as the city has moved from 52.95% low- moderate to 49.43% low- moderate.
Staff has communicated the changes with current CDBG applicants who are impacted by the changes and has additionally shared the information with the Lawrence Association of Neighborhoods at their February 20, 2019 meeting. The changes may affect the amount that the city receives for the formula grant programs such as CDBG and HOME, but it does not impact the city’s access to the grants
Opportunity Zones Update
On February 12, The Chamber and City hosted a forum on Opportunity Zones—a new tool for community development established in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The event was well attended by multiple stakeholders and the City is discussing opportunities for similar forums and conversations.
The presentation and additional information can be accessed at: https://lawrencechamber.com/video-opportunity-zone-forum/
Bipartisan Coalition of Senators Secures $3 Million Grant Match for Southwest Chief
In a major effort to support the Southwest Chief Amtrak route which serves Lawrence, a coalition of US Senators from Kansas, New Mexico, and Colorado have successfully secured $3 million in funding to augment other significant federal funding, totaling more than $26 million to improve this important rail line. This comes at a great time for Lawrence, having just celebrated the rededication of the Santa Fe Station facility which serves Amtrak in Lawrence. Mayor Larsen is sending Senator Moran and Senator Roberts letters thanking them and their staff for their efforts on behalf of the City of Lawrence.
Sidewalk Hazard Mitigation Program
Attached (updated 03/04/19) is an update regarding the Sidewalk Hazard Mitigation Program.
Future Agenda Items
Attached (updated 03/05/19), please find a summary of future agenda items.
Future Work Session Items
Attached, please find a summary of future work session items.