2026-10-20 - City Council

00:10Get out of here quick.

00:13>> Good evening. Welcome to the October

00:1520th, 2026 meeting of the Topeka

00:17governing body.

00:19>> [snorts]

00:20>> I will now call this meeting to order.

00:22This evening, Council member Ortiz has

00:25the invocation. Please give her your

00:27attention and stand if you are able.

00:30>> Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

00:32I welcome to the podium Elder Shenae

00:34Calhoun.

00:36She was born and raised in Kansas City,

00:39Missouri and graduated from Florida

00:41State University

00:42spending 8 years in Florida. In 2013,

00:46she made her way to Topeka where she

00:48became a member of El Shaddai Ministries

00:50Community Church

00:52and began putting down roots in the

00:54community she now calls home.

00:57With more than 15 years of experience as

00:59a community organizer, Shenae has worked

01:02through Topeka JUMP to influence policy

01:05and funding decisions that make life

01:07more manageable for Topeka families.

01:10Today, she serves as an elder

01:12at El Shaddai Ministries and is the

01:14founder of Willow Consulting where she

01:16helps black women leaders overcome

01:19burnout and lead with purpose. I might I

01:22might need you to put some Mexican women

01:23in there, too.

01:25Outside of her

01:27work in ministry, Shenae Shenae is the

01:30proud wife of Mike Calhoun, former

01:33Highland Park High School basketball

01:35coach, and mother of three daughters

01:37ages six, 16, 18, and 23.

01:42Together, she and Mike serve in ministry

01:44at El Shaddai Ministries living out the

01:46church's mission

01:48to love God, love people, and serve

01:52and serve. El Shaddai Ministry is a

01:54founding member of Topeka JUMP doing

01:56justice with other Topeka faith

01:58communities.

01:59Between building a business, serving her

02:01community, marrying a native Topekan,

02:04and raising her family here, Shanae is

02:06happy to say

02:08she's not just passing through, she's

02:10here to stay. And we're glad you're here

02:12to stay. She's one of the finest young

02:14ladies that I know, and she also served

02:17on Tell me those boards that you served

02:19on.

02:20>> Oh, I was in the 2018 class of

02:23Leadership Greater Topeka.

02:24>> Mhm.

02:25>> And in um I think 2019 Top 20 Under 40.

02:30>> Mhm.

02:30>> And recently got to party with the YWCA

02:32as one of the Women of Excellence.

02:34>> So, that's awesome. And El Shaddai

02:37Ministries is in my district. Um it's

02:39right at 10th and Sherman. It's huge,

02:42you can't miss it. And if you want to be

02:44spiritually fed, go see them.

02:46>> Thank you.

02:47>> Thank you. I remember one year we were

02:48walking the neighborhood and

02:50accidentally knocked on your door.

02:52So.

02:54>> [gasps and laughter]

02:54>> Well, thank you very much, Councilwoman.

02:56Um would you all pray with me?

03:00God, we thank you for the gift of life,

03:03the privilege of community, and the

03:05opportunity to serve.

03:08An invocation is more than an opening

03:10prayer. It's an invitation to pause,

03:14seek wisdom,

03:16and remember the higher purpose behind

03:18the work.

03:19Before we make decisions for the people,

03:23may we remember the people who will live

03:26with those decisions.

03:28Lord, your word reminds us that you are

03:30a God of justice. Justice is not simply

03:33the absence of wrongdoing. It is the

03:36presence of equity, dignity, and

03:39opportunity for all.

03:41May we never become so accustomed to the

03:44way things are that we stop asking how

03:47things ought to be.

03:50May the measure of our leadership not be

03:52just what we accomplish, but who

03:55benefits, who is heard, and who is still

03:58waiting.

04:00God grant these public servants wisdom

04:02to make difficult decisions,

04:05courage to do what is right, and

04:07humility to listen to opposing views.

04:11Bless them. Bless their hearts. Um that

04:14they may remain compassionate and and

04:17minds open,

04:18>> [snorts]

04:18>> and to have the integrity to serve the

04:21public good above public interests.

04:24May their leadership leave this

04:26community more just, more whole,

04:30and more hopeful than we all have found

04:32it.

04:33I pray that those serving here tonight,

04:36all of us, that we have the audacity to

04:39actually dream bigger than what those

04:42before us have been able to do.

04:45May we leave this meeting not simply

04:48having conducted business, but having

04:50moved our community one step closer to

04:53be more healthy and more whole. Amen.

05:03>> I pledge allegiance to the flag

05:05>> to the flag

05:06>> of the United States of

05:07America and to the republic for which it

05:11stands, one nation under God,

05:14indivisible, with liberty and justice

05:17for all.

05:22>> Thank you, Shenae. Only you'll

05:23understand this, Shenae, real quick. The

05:25My grandfather went to Florida.

05:27My aunt, one of my aunts went to Florida

05:29State. So, we had that turmoil for a

05:31while in my household.

05:32>> Yes, household divided.

05:34Yeah.

05:34>> [laughter]

05:35>> No Gators in our household.

05:40>> [laughter]

05:43>> All right. Roll call, please.

05:46>> Mayor Duncan.

05:47>> Here.

05:47>> Councilmember Hiller.

05:49>> Here.

05:50>> Uh Valdivia-Aquila.

05:53Ortiz.

05:53>> Here.

05:54>> Banks.

05:55>> Here.

05:56>> Cal.

05:56>> Here.

05:57>> Miller.

05:58>> Here.

05:58>> Bradbury.

06:00>> Here.

06:01>> McGee.

06:02>> Here.

06:03>> And Hofer.

06:03>> Here.

06:04>> Okay. We have nine present with

06:08Councilmember [clears throat]

06:08Valdivia-Aquila

06:10absent.

06:18>> All right. Tanya Lane somewhere. And

06:21anyone else you want to bring up? Maybe

06:23nobody, but if there is anybody else

06:24there.

06:27Do you have a proclamation this evening?

06:29>> Um this is not the reason I'm doing

06:31this. Everyone gets to submit these and

06:33then we do them, but I will say I have a

06:34little bit of a connect Oh oh no, you

06:35have to come stand behind me and be seen

06:37and on camera and everything.

06:40Um but I have been a member of Rotary

06:42for a while now. I was uh two-time

06:44president of one club, which is no

06:46longer with us courtesy of COVID, but

06:48now I am a member of one of the the

06:49Rotary groups here in Topeka. So so I do

06:52appreciate all the work they do and and

06:54what we're about to discuss here this

06:56evening.

06:57Whereas Rotary International in 1985

07:00launched Polio Plus and spearheaded the

07:02Global Polio Eradication Initiative,

07:05which today includes the World Health

07:06Organization, US Centers for Disease

07:09Control and Prevention, UNICEF and the

07:11Gates Foundation to immunize the

07:13children of the world against polio. And

07:16whereas Rotary International is a global

07:18network consisting of over 1.2 million

07:20members in more than 4,500 clubs in 200

07:23countries and geographical areas.

07:26And whereas polio cases have dropped by

07:2899.9%

07:30since 1988 and the world stands on the

07:33threshold of eradicating the disease and

07:35to date Rotary International has

07:37contributed more than 2.9 billion

07:40dollars and countless volunteer hours to

07:42protecting nearly 3 billion children in

07:45122 countries.

07:47And whereas Rotary International is

07:49working to raise an additional 50

07:50million dollars per year, which would be

07:52leveraged for maximum impact by an

07:54additional 100 million annually from the

07:56Gates Foundation. And these efforts

07:59provide much needed operational support,

08:01medical personnel, laboratory equipment,

08:03and educational materials for health

08:05workers and parents. And whereas there

08:07are 2,100 Rotary Club members in more

08:10than 39 clubs throughout Kansas District

08:125710 sponsoring service projects to

08:15address such critical issues as poverty,

08:17health, hunger, illiteracy, and the

08:20environment in their local communities

08:21and abroad. And whereas Topeka Rotarians

08:24have committed their time, talent, and

08:26treasure to continue support of

08:28PolioPlus until polio is finally

08:30eradicated from the earth. Now,

08:33therefore, I, Spencer L. Duncan, Mayor

08:35of the City of Topeka, Kansas, do hereby

08:37proclaim the day of October 24th, 2026

08:40as World Polio Day. So, thank you for

08:43being here to accept this for your work

08:45that you do to help keep Rotary going

08:47and all the efforts that they do at your

08:48club. So, thank you very much.

08:51One of you would like to say something.

08:52Or both of you can say something.

08:55>> This is a great honor for the Topeka

08:57Rotary Club, which I'm the current

08:59president of that club. And we

09:03we work very hard on polio and other

09:06initiatives as well. So, if anybody's

09:08ever interested in some Rotary, please

09:11come see us.

09:14>> You want to say?

09:15>> Sure. I'll just Hello, everybody. I'm

09:16Tonya Dorfbrunner with the Topeka South

09:18Rotary Club, where Mayor Duncan is a

09:19member. Um, and I'm the membership or

09:22the the foundation chair this year, but

09:24I'm here because our our board chair and

09:27vice chair are literally on their way to

09:29India today to go do polio vaccinations

09:31over the next 10 days. And

09:33our club is is really dedicated to this

09:35cause and and really proud to be a part

09:37of the the work that we all do here in

09:38Topeka. So, thank you to the city. Thank

09:40you to the mayor and the council. Thank

09:41you.

09:42>> Thank you very much.

09:43THANK YOU.

09:45>> [applause]

10:22>> ALL RIGHT. WITH THAT, WE MOVE ON TO

10:24PRESENTATIONS.

10:26City clerk.

10:27>> Presentation we have is the city of

10:29Topeka financial update.

10:31>> City manager.

10:35>> Thank you, Mayor members of the

10:37governing body. As discussed in July, we

10:39presented our financial report with not

10:41just our budget to actuals, but with our

10:436 + 6 projection, which highlighted our

10:466-month actuals, as well as our 6-month

10:48projections for the remaining 6 months

10:50of the year.

10:51This presentation will detail our 9 + 3

10:53report, which will include our budget to

10:55actuals through September 2026, as well

10:58as our remaining 3-month projections

11:00through the end of FY 2026.

11:02High level, in the general fund, we are

11:04on track to only need to use

11:06approximately $4 million of reserves

11:08instead of our budgeted $7 million of

11:10reserves to balance our FY 2026 budget.

11:14With that, I will now turn this over to

11:15Dalton Bittel, depart- deputy director

11:17of budget and finance, to lead us

11:18through this discussion. Dalton.

11:21>> Thank you, uh Mayor members of the

11:23governing body. Tonight, we just wanted

11:24to provide a uh quick update on the

11:27financials and give the

11:29uh 3-month projections for the remainder

11:31of the year.

11:33Um so, let's start off with our

11:35revenues. Um

11:37overall, revenues are um

11:40pretty close to to our our budgeted

11:42numbers. Um

11:44as you'll see, um sales tax that we've

11:47mentioned several times now is about

11:50$700,000 projected to be about $700,000

11:53under budget. Um

11:55uh

11:57through

11:58I guess we're at 7 months collections

12:00now um with a 2-month lag. So,

12:03um we are seeing a little bit of a

12:05uh decline there, but um

12:07overall, the rest of our revenues are

12:09are pretty

12:11um close to budget. Um I want to draw

12:13attention to the miscellaneous line

12:14item. I know that looks like a extremely

12:19um low number. That line item in the

12:21budget is where we um where our reserve

12:25number comes from. So, in the budget, we

12:27were using about 7 and 1/2 million

12:29dollars of reserves to make a balanced

12:32budget. Um

12:34with projections, uh we will not have to

12:37use that much currently.

12:39Um

12:39as Dr. Perez said, we're projected to

12:42use about $4 million

12:43instead of the 7 and 1/2 that was

12:45originally budgeted. So, that revenue

12:47line item is actually um a good number

12:50to be under budget on um in this case.

12:57Um next, let's talk about just the sales

12:59tax. Um again, through 7 months,

13:02uh our sales tax collections are

13:04trailing our 2025

13:06um numbers. Uh even with the 1.25%

13:10growth over the remaining months, we're

13:13still going to be about $600,000,

13:15$700,000 below budget. Um lower sales

13:19tax collections now

13:21uh reduce the base for future

13:22collections

13:24um projections and are creating a

13:26compounding effect that we will need to

13:28monitor closely.

13:30Um

13:31currently for next year we're at about

13:321.25%

13:34growth that right now we're just not

13:36seeing and so we will need to monitor

13:38that number pretty closely.

13:41Um in the general fund sales tax is

13:43about a third of our overall revenues.

13:45So it is a pretty large

13:48aspect for us.

13:51Um let's talk about expenses next. Um

13:54you'll see some some numbers that are

13:56under budget here. Uh again, that's due

13:59to the work that some of the departments

14:00are doing, many of the departments are

14:01doing.

14:02Um utilities is

14:05uh due to the work of facilities

14:06changing out for uh more efficient LED

14:10turning lights off.

14:11>> [laughter]

14:12>> Um

14:14and things of that nature. So uh we're

14:17seeing a good trend there where our

14:18utilities are under budget. Um next I

14:22want to draw your attention to the

14:24contractual services. Uh this is about

14:26almost $700,000 under budget.

14:29Um

14:31there this is due to

14:34um the miscellaneous non-departmental.

14:37Um

14:38we're just seeing some things that are

14:39coming in cheaper than we were

14:41expecting.

14:42Um and so that's also a good sign. Uh we

14:44have another couple of line items in PD

14:47um that they are also seeing. One is a

14:52contractual item with um Astra Mental

14:55Health um that

14:58they're looking to fill a position. In

15:00the meantime, the contractual

15:02obligations are not met so the funds are

15:03not expensed. Um so should they fill

15:06that position, we will have a higher

15:08expense than projected, but as of now

15:10that position is vacant.

15:12Um

15:13>> [clears throat]

15:14>> and then

15:15>> [snorts]

15:15>> another one to draw your attention to is

15:18motor vehicle supplies.

15:20Uh sorry, motor fuel. Motor fuel um just

15:23as it has for everyone else is higher

15:25than expected. Um, and so that is having

15:28a little bit of an impact. Um, as you

15:30can see, the other, uh,

15:33major expense categories that we're

15:35seeing reductions in are are helping us

15:37out with our motor fuel overage.

15:40So, overall,

15:41um,

15:42we're projected to be about $2.5 million

15:45under um, what we originally budget

15:48budgeted for in our expenses.

15:53So, just a quick look at our income

15:55statement, um, with our

15:57projected revenues, we're at about $126

16:00million. Projected expenses at about

16:02$130 million, 30.5 million. Um, so we

16:06have a a deficit of about $4 million um,

16:09that we will be using our reserves to to

16:13bridge that gap.

16:14Um, our projected fund balance at the

16:17end of the year will be a just under $29

16:20million, uh, which will be at about

16:2122.5%.

16:24Um,

16:26again, the budget assumes $7 million,

16:28uh, but we are only projected to use $4

16:30million in those reserves.

16:33And with that, I will stand for any

16:35questions.

16:37Council Member Kell.

16:38>> So, since we're talking taxes and

16:40financial here,

16:42the there's been a lot of talk about,

16:44uh, temporary relieving the federal, uh,

16:47fuel and diesel tax.

16:49Gas and [clears throat] diesel, um,

16:51would that affect our budget in any way

16:53with with what we have going on, uh,

16:55with anything, uh, due to some of that

16:57money coming that comes to us?

16:59>> It could potentially. Um,

17:01our special highway is is funded with

17:04the gas tax. Um, so it could potentially

17:06affect that. Uh, that is a fund that we

17:09are watching and monitoring already. Um,

17:12and so we will continue to monitor that

17:14as the as the landscape changes.

17:17>> How How roughly monthly or quarterly?

17:20What are What are we getting that

17:21usually?

17:22>> Uh I believe that comes in monthly.

17:25>> Rough Rough estimate?

17:27>> Uh

17:30>> [clears throat]

17:30>> I'm not sure off top of my head.

17:32>> Okay.

17:32>> Um

17:34Let me I I can get that number for you.

17:36>> All right, thank you.

17:38Councilmember Bradbury.

17:41>> Yes, thank you. Um when you're talking

17:43about the sales taxes, what

17:46what categories are

17:48are short? Are they short just overall

17:51in general or are there specific ones

17:54that are coming in shorter than others?

17:57>> So, when we receive the information from

17:59the state of Kansas, um I don't believe

18:02that it is actually divided by category.

18:04We just get an overall number.

18:07Um and so

18:09uh we don't really know whether it's

18:11groceries, commodities, that sort of

18:13thing.

18:14Um we just get an overall number from

18:16the state.

18:18>> To that point though, um somewhere maybe

18:20in your inbox or though I'm sure he'd be

18:22happy to resend it, Councilmember McGee

18:24did follow do some follow up with

18:25Department of Revenue, and it's not

18:27perfect, but it does do a little bit of

18:29breakdown at least at the state level of

18:31somewhere of their collections have been

18:33coming from. Um so it's it's not Topeka

18:36specific, but it gives sort of a very

18:39lar- overview of kind of where the

18:41state's at in some of those collections.

18:42So, if you don't if you can't dig that

18:44out of your inbox, I'm sure he would be

18:45happy to send it to you again. I won't

18:47speak for him, but he's not in his head

18:48yes, so.

18:49>> [laughter]

18:50>> Yeah, I'd appreciate it.

18:52>> Yeah.

18:53>> Um and then

18:56with the lower

18:59with the projected uh lower revenue for

19:01the sales tax

19:04um

19:07how

19:10how is that how is that affecting the

19:12projections for '27 and what are some of

19:15the things you're going to be looking

19:16at?

19:19>> So, as mentioned, um

19:22if if our projections are based on a a

19:241.25% growth and we're not seeing that

19:26come to fruition now, we will need to

19:28monitor

19:30um the budget is set. However, the

19:33budget is a number and in the end our

19:36revenues have to cover our expenses.

19:38Um and so we will have to monitor it

19:40closely and um make sure that we have

19:43the revenue and the funds to cover our

19:45expenses.

19:48>> So, to add to Dalton, are we as we look

19:50then at I mean, let's say that even it's

19:53a awesome Christmas and we somehow get

19:55there and we can all hope or whatever

19:57the economy, but regardless,

19:59are we going to then start as we look at

20:01the '28 budget cuz we're using what? 3

20:04What what percent? 3%? 3 and 1/2%? What

20:07are we using as our baseline?

20:08>> Uh right now it's in a in an about 3%

20:10for '27.

20:11>> So, I mean, are we going to take a look

20:12at just adjusting that and see what that

20:14looks like if we used I don't know what

20:15number, 2 or 2 and 1/2% just to hedge

20:17our bet for the '28 budget?

20:19>> Yeah, we will need to reduce that. Um I

20:21would at this point in time I would

20:23recommend a flat sales tax projection.

20:25>> Yeah. Maybe just use whatever we end

20:27this year at and you see where that

20:28percentage is and use it. Okay.

20:30>> Yes, sir.

20:30>> Um my second question is

20:32So, there'll be

20:33assuming it all, knock on something at

20:35the end of the year, $3 million savings

20:38in our reserve fund. That means that how

20:41what we projected for next year's

20:42reserve fund balance is going to be

20:45readjusted. So, that percentage will

20:47change slightly, right? That magic 15%

20:49we all like to one Duncan here likes to

20:52complain. But, I mean,

20:53will we then be able to look at those

20:55funds again as we look at the '28 budget

20:57for carryover maybe as to how we could

21:00utilize those either throughout '27 if

21:02we hit a road bump or

21:04again, will we project maybe be able to

21:05use some of that for the '28 budget, if

21:07if it all ends up with 3 million {quote}

21:09extra dollars that we don't spend.

21:13>> Now,

21:14I was going to

21:16I don't want to speak for Dalton, but as

21:17we develop our 2028 proposed budget,

21:20we'll have to look at that as part of

21:22our existing fund balance. Again, just

21:24to remind everyone we are projecting a

21:26deficit of 13.3 million, so that will

21:28play into

21:30it's it's extra for this year as far as

21:33the savings that we

21:34potentially will realize, but again that

21:36will that will play into development of

21:38our FY28 budget. But but again, that

21:41might be part of what we use to help

21:42balance next year's budget as well.

21:44>> Okay, perfect.

21:48>> Any other questions or comments from the

21:49governing body on this issue?

21:51>> I

21:52I did. I wasn't quite finished and I was

21:54>> Oh, sorry. My apologies.

21:55>> That's okay. That's okay. I have just

21:58two other questions.

21:59On the contractual services, the savings

22:01on that, can you speak specifically

22:04where those savings are being realized?

22:07>> Uh yeah.

22:08Um so,

22:10high level

22:11and then I'll I'll send you a little bit

22:13more detail, but high level we're seeing

22:17about $365,000

22:19in our miscellaneous non-departmental

22:21and that comes

22:22through

22:23um

22:26uh

22:28It's more our funds our other funds that

22:31we're transferring like our IT

22:34fleet and facilities

22:37where their costs are coming in better

22:40or we're not purchasing items

22:43in order to help the budget.

22:46So, that's a big majority and then PD

22:48actually has two line items that are

22:50about $200,000

22:53$100,000 each um that are also um one of

22:57them is a medical services line item um

23:00that they kind of have to

23:03I don't want to speak for them, but I'm

23:04going to say they are

23:06predicting the worst when we set our

23:08budget that we will use medical services

23:11in hopes that we never need them.

23:13Um but we do have to budget for them. Um

23:15and so in this case

23:17uh it's working out in our favor that

23:19they are not needing them um despite

23:21having budgeted. Um but I can send you

23:24guys send council um a more detailed

23:27breakdown of of what those are.

23:30>> That would be great. I appreciate it.

23:32And then the final question that I have

23:33is on commodities.

23:35Um the savings that you're showing in

23:37commodities for the remaining three

23:39month three month projections,

23:41you're including in that I assume

23:45um

23:46the um

23:48things that the city would require if

23:51during the winter we had a

23:53a snowstorm, some of those salts and the

23:56treatment for the roads and that kind of

23:57thing.

23:58>> Yeah, so there is a budgeted amount

23:59already set for those items. Um if we

24:02were to have an extremely strong uh

24:04winter, uh

24:06potentially they could go over budget,

24:08um but there is a already budgeted

24:10amount for them.

24:12>> Okay.

24:13I figured there was. I just wanted to um

24:16just make sure. Thank you so much. I'm

24:18done with my questions. Thank you.

24:20>> Mhm.

24:22Any other questions or comments?

24:25Seeing none, thank you Dalton.

24:33We will now move on to the consent

24:35agenda.

24:36City clerk.

24:40>> All right, item A is minutes of the

24:41regular meeting of October 13th, 2026

24:44and there are no applications.

24:47>> All right. We have a motion to approve

24:48from council member Kell and the second

24:50from council member Miller. Clerk would

24:52take the vote, please.

25:03>> Okay, we have nine yes, the motion

25:05carries.

25:06>> All right. We get to move on to action

25:08items. Action item A, city clerk.

25:12>> A is discussion with possible action of

25:14a resolution introduced by city manager

25:16Dr. Robert Perez calling for a special

25:18election to be held on March 2, 2027 for

25:21the purpose of submitting to qualified

25:23electors of the city of Topeka

25:25proposition to authorize the city of

25:26Topeka, Kansas to levy an additional

25:29special purpose citywide retailer sales

25:31tax in the amount of 1/10% to fund the

25:34affordable housing trust fund and

25:36support evidence-based homeless

25:38initiatives inside city limits.

25:41>> All right. City Manager.

25:43>> Thank you, Mayor members of the

25:44governing body. In recent discussions,

25:46we have identified potential sales tax

25:48initiatives to address both our

25:50projected deficits and to fund community

25:52identified priorities.

25:54Based upon feedback from our October

25:5613th discussion, this evening we'll

25:58further discuss my recommendation of a

26:0010th of a cent special use tax for

26:01affordable housing and homeless services

26:04and the charter amendment for the city

26:06auditor to report directly to the

26:07governing body as part of a special

26:09election in March 2027.

26:12During our October 13th discussion, I

26:14also heard the governing body ask for

26:15more specific language within the ballot

26:17question for the affordable housing and

26:19homelessness measure. And I've discussed

26:21this with a number of you to craft

26:22something that will direct these funds

26:24to evidence-based homeless initiatives.

26:26I would recommend that similar to the

26:28affordable housing trust fund committee,

26:30a homeless services committee made up of

26:32community stakeholders and staff be

26:34created through a council ordinance to

26:36make recommendations that would come to

26:37the governing body for approval before

26:39any of these funds were activated.

26:42This presentation will also briefly

26:44discuss an August 2027 general election

26:46for a proposed half-cent general purpose

26:49sales tax to sustain our governmental

26:51operations and to potentially cash fund

26:54at least three fire stations identified

26:56in the fire station relocation plan.

26:59I would also recommend that we consider

27:00the renewal of the citywide half cent

27:02infrastructure sales tax in August 2027.

27:05I heard the consideration for slowing

27:07down the process to consider an August

27:092027 election instead of a March 2027

27:11election to allow for a citizen sales

27:13tax committee to convene to lead a

27:15community-driven sales tax development

27:17effort.

27:18I have shared with you that delaying the

27:20half cent general use sales tax until an

27:22August election would require us to to

27:25prepare two proposed budgets for FY

27:262028, but again allow us to get more

27:29community feedback in this effort.

27:32Given the state statutes and county

27:34election offices timelines, we have

27:35drafted these items including items 5A,

27:38B, and C

27:40for discussion with possible action for

27:42consideration of a March 2nd, 2027

27:44special election.

27:46Before we move to the discussion, I also

27:48need to note that yesterday afternoon we

27:49received a revised special election

27:51estimate of $155,000

27:54if we were the only entity on a um March

27:57special election.

27:59Waiting for a primary or general

28:00election, the cost will be split between

28:02the entities with items on that ballot.

28:05With that, Dalton Betel, deputy director

28:07of budget and finance, and I will lead

28:08you through this item.

28:10Here on this uh this first few slides is

28:12is kind of as we laid out and as I

28:14referenced in the last item, our 5-year

28:16financial forecast.

28:17The numbers that we actually just

28:19discussed in the 9+3 report actually

28:21build um the '28 through '31 forecast.

28:26Um as mentioned, '28 we're projected to

28:28have a operating deficit of $13.3

28:30million

28:32and '29 uh of a $17.4 um million

28:35deficit.

28:39So, the recommended sales tax and ballot

28:41questions, as I mentioned in the

28:42introduction, uh I would like for us to

28:45discuss and to consider for a March '27

28:47special election a new 1/10 of a cent

28:50special use citywide sales tax that

28:51would generate approximately $4 million

28:53annually to fund the affordable housing

28:55trust fund and homeless services.

28:58We're also looking at implementing an

29:00office of city auditor that would report

29:02directly to the city council which would

29:04require charter amendment. Um, I do also

29:06want to highlight that we have started

29:09uh to craft the

29:11uh position description for that with

29:13our human resources, legal, and uh

29:16finance departments.

29:18Uh I will point out that uh again, it's

29:20probably a discussion for another time,

29:21but uh we've uh budgeted $108,000 in FY

29:252028 budget for that as part of I'm

29:28sorry, 2027 budget

29:30uh which was an amendment that we did as

29:32part of the uh amendment process. Um, we

29:35are looking at for a city auditor, we're

29:37probably looking at um a salary of about

29:40$165,000. So, I just wanted to put that

29:42out for the record.

29:44And then, furthermore to be considered

29:46for the August 27th primary election, a

29:48new half cent citywide sales tax that

29:50would generate approximately $20 million

29:52annually to fund our existing city

29:54services and potentially uh three fire

29:57stations. As part of the 27 ballot, I

30:00would also ask for consideration to

30:02renew the existing half cent citywide

30:04infrastructure sales tax which sunsets

30:06in 2029. So, this would actually be the

30:08renewal.

30:10Uh as mentioned, uh we currently have a

30:12sales tax rate of 9.35%.

30:14If both initiatives were to be approved,

30:16we'll be at a sales tax rate of 9.95%.

30:21So, this was uh the proposed language um

30:24the revisions on the affordable housing

30:26and homelessness. I'm just going to read

30:28what we what we changed um based upon

30:31feedback.

30:32Uh again, uh half half of the at least

30:3550% of the revenue going towards the

30:37affordable housing trust fund, and then

30:39the remaining of it going to

30:40evidence-based homeless initiatives,

30:43including but not limited to programs,

30:45operating and construction costs,

30:47outreach, support, and transportation

30:49services, rental assistance, and

30:51affordable housing.

30:52A number of those items I'm hoping

30:54address some of the questions as far as

30:56whatever program we decide to move

30:59forward with. Uh

31:01whatever initiatives come forward that

31:02we may not be considering today. I know

31:04that there was discussion for built for

31:06zero, functional zero. Um I know that

31:09there was questions about

31:10transportation.

31:11Um there were things in here that And

31:13again, the outreach support and rental

31:15assistance uh and affordable housing

31:17were all tied to built for zero

31:19initiatives. So, again, not trying to

31:21tie us to any one program, but still

31:23trying to capture the spirit of of what

31:25we what we heard in in the last

31:27discussion.

31:29Um there was no change to the city

31:31auditor. Um again, this will just allow

31:34the city auditor to report directly to

31:36council.

31:37We didn't change anything on the

31:39language for the half-cent. Uh again, uh

31:42it's indicating here my recommendation

31:44to consider that for an August 2027

31:46ballot.

31:47And then same thing uh for the operating

31:50for basically trying to break it out,

31:52the $20 million.

31:54And then again, the renewal of the

31:56half-cent citywide infrastructure sales

31:58tax.

32:00So, this evening, if we want to move

32:02anything forward, we would need uh

32:04council consideration uh to approve to

32:06call for the election,

32:08and then we would basically move the

32:10ballot language forward um for special

32:12election in 20 March of 2027.

32:16Uh again, for an August timeline, this

32:18is the timeline that that we're looking

32:19at. Uh if you wish to consider anything

32:22um to push it to August.

32:25Uh with that, I'll stand for any

32:26questions you may have.

32:28>> All right. So, a few things just to

32:31make sure we're all on the same page.

32:32So,

32:34couple points, and makes total sense why

32:36the city manager talked about the

32:37auditor and the sales tax now during one

32:39presentation. But our item A is the

32:41first discussion that will be focused

32:42just on the

32:44movement forward or not for a March

32:46ballot initiative on the

32:4810th of a cent sales tax for the housing

32:50and homelessness piece.

32:52I believe this governing body was pretty

32:53clear as the city manager said that

32:55anything else at this point besides the

32:57auditor piece, which we'll talk about

32:58later,

32:59is not something we're interested in

33:00putting in a March ballot, but you are

33:01obviously all always able to make any

33:03sort of amendments you want to through

33:05this process if you want to do if if we

33:06move anything forward in March. But just

33:08want to be clear that we're we're first

33:09going to focus on the 10th of a cent for

33:11housing and homelessness. We'll move to

33:12the others as we go through it. So with

33:14that though, before we open up to the

33:16governing body, um we have several

33:18individuals signed up to speak on this

33:20item. So we will go to public comment

33:21first. First up, I have Joseph

33:23Ledbetter.

33:29>> Thank governing body and staff and

33:31audience.

33:32Uh

33:34I'm going to totally opposed to a

33:35special election for this. That's

33:37155,000 minimum.

33:40Uh you can do it in August if that's

33:42what you please to do.

33:44Um

33:46I'm opposed to anything more than 5

33:48years. Uh

33:49even if I were to vote for it. I want to

33:51see if this thing's actually working and

33:54not just hope and pray it's going to

33:56work and then see bad results

33:59if that happens.

34:01Uh

34:02I personally would like to see no more

34:03than 35% spent on the homeless part, and

34:08I'd like to see a minimum of 65% spent

34:10on the uh

34:12uh the housing uh initiatives. That

34:15would be for affordable housing.

34:17Um

34:20I would also say that

34:23when when you do something for uh

34:26uh a homeless initiative, you need to

34:28make sure that uh people don't have

34:30outstanding warrants for their arrest

34:32cuz I don't want our government to be

34:33part of

34:35uh

34:35keeping fugitives from uh their dates

34:38with court.

34:39And when I did research on the homeless

34:42for not only this body or this

34:44organization, but also did further

34:46research for the chamber about

34:48homelessness in Topeka and other parts

34:51of the country, we found that uh

34:54there's about 65% to 70% of the people

34:57who were homeless

34:59had outstanding warrants for their

35:00arrest and some of them were very

35:02serious, very serious offenses.

35:05And

35:06you know, it it occurred to me and the

35:09people I reported to that uh especially

35:11with the chamber that uh these are not

35:13the kind of people you wanted walking

35:15around in parks and bike trails and

35:18uh near schools and uh near downtown or

35:21the mall. Uh

35:23it it would just

35:25unacceptable

35:26that that at that

35:29point would not be addressed first.

35:32And so uh

35:33that would probably take care of

35:36a number of the homeless issues that uh

35:38we may see. I'm not saying they all have

35:40warrants.

35:41But this was after talking to uh

35:44uh

35:44first responders, firemen that had to go

35:47into these camps and uh

35:49uh provide aid to people. They said they

35:51would never

35:53ones I talked to said they would never

35:54go in those camps without police

35:57protection.

35:58That means fully armed police.

36:01And so if they have that kind of

36:03concern, I'm very much more concerned

36:05for our kids and uh

36:07elderly that may be on a walking trail

36:09or in a park.

36:10Uh

36:11I just don't want us to be a magnet for

36:13that. And I realize you want to keep

36:15this to just

36:17Shawnee County, but uh these people all

36:19have iPhones, uh government phones, are

36:21communicating with each other, sometimes

36:23all over the country.

36:25Uh

36:26and I don't know how you're going to get

36:27their uh documentation that they live

36:30here

36:31uh when you're providing services

36:33if they don't want to present it or they

36:35claim they don't have it.

36:38So, these are things I'd like you to

36:39consider.

36:40I'm not saying I'm for or against this,

36:42but those are the percentages I offer as

36:45I think much more palatable. And I do

36:48have concerns about the outstanding

36:50warrants uh

36:51that many of these people with

36:53statistics I read and the interviews I

36:55did with first responders said, "Yes,

36:58that is a real statistic and it needs to

37:00be a concern."

37:02Thank you.

37:03>> Thank you.

37:05Next up, I have Steve Henry.

37:14>> Good evening.

37:15My name's Steve Henry. I'm a member of

37:17Susanna Wesley United Methodist Church

37:20and I'm here tonight representing Topeka

37:22Jump.

37:23Jump is stands for Justice Unity Mission

37:26Project, a diverse network of 35 or so

37:30area churches.

37:32We're here, we hope, for the final time

37:35on this issue

37:37to urge you all to move forward with

37:39placing the 1/10 of a penny sales tax on

37:42the March 2nd

37:442027 ballot.

37:46Please let Topekans vote for more

37:48funding for the affordable housing trust

37:51fund and research-based homeless

37:54services.

37:56Nearly a year has passed since this

37:58sales tax initiative was first proposed.

38:02Topekans have already had enough

38:04opportunity to give input on this matter

38:08through the affordable housing trust

38:10fund review committee

38:11that made the recommendation and through

38:14the city's own polling.

38:16Topeka Jump is eager to help with voter

38:19education and organizing our community

38:22to support this effort.

38:24Please do not let considerations on half

38:27cent tail sales tax negatively impact

38:31the initiative for homeless or our

38:33neighbors struggling to find safe

38:35housing they can afford.

38:37We understand that the vote on the half

38:39cent sales tax may need to be

38:42postponed,

38:43but please move forward

38:46with the affordable housing and homeless

38:47funding vote in March of 2027.

38:51We need affordable housing now.

38:54We need proven homeless solutions now.

38:58And we believe that if given the

39:00opportunity to peakins will vote to

39:03support funding for those two solutions

39:05so that our community

39:07uh that our community desperately needs.

39:10Thank you for your time.

39:12>> Thank you.

39:14>> [clears throat]

39:15>> Next up, we have Mr. Henry McClure.

39:23>> Good evening, your honor.

39:25A uh commentary from the free market.

39:29You're broke.

39:31You don't have $155,000.

39:35You can't afford

39:37to hold the election. We don't have the

39:38money.

39:40It's just like paying

39:42a consultant $554,000

39:47to lose 18 million in the hotel. There's

39:50really no difference. Now, you can't

39:52come down here

39:53or you shouldn't and not have a

39:55solution.

39:57So,

39:58I don't think this has a snowball's

40:00chance

40:03of passing. There's just no way.

40:06And on top of that, from the free market

40:08standpoint, the low-end real estate

40:11people,

40:13they don't want the government involved

40:16in the real estate

40:17or or anybody that the high-end people

40:20don't want the government

40:23involved in the real estate business.

40:26Your um resume

40:28starts with the hotel.

40:31And also it it goes over to the AT&T

40:34building, which actually I redid my

40:37homework, I looked at my numbers,

40:39and you're giving the guy that owns the

40:41AT&T building a 30% return on sales tax

40:45money.

40:46So, let's go back to the idea of project

40:49Otis. What is project Otis? It's the

40:53liquor by the drink. I I did some

40:55research on the liquor by the drink, and

40:58that thing didn't Actually, it wasn't a

41:00slam dunk

41:02back in the '70s.

41:05And what happened was late night before

41:08and you've seen it probably, you've been

41:10on the floor, want to go home, the

41:12session's over, they didn't know where

41:15to distribute the money for the liquor

41:17by the drink tax. So, they gave a third

41:20to parks and rec,

41:22where a lot of the drinking's probably

41:24done, and then a third to the city

41:27budget,

41:28in the coffers. You can't afford to give

41:31that up. And then a third for Carrie

41:33Higgins and her

41:34her effective um

41:37you know, her her her do-gooder stuff.

41:42In the letter I wrote, you said you said

41:44uh

41:45it seemed like you'd be open to some

41:47work in the legislature, but that's

41:49going to need to be changed at the state

41:51level.

41:53Because right now, but parks and recs

41:55don't have any business getting the

41:57liquor by the drink I mean, look, that

42:00was done in the final hour in the '70s,

42:04and they just didn't know where to put

42:05the money.

42:07But and I I enjoyed how you want to

42:09support the parks. That was good

42:13politics. But here's the thing.

42:16What's Where's the economy of scale of

42:19the county

42:20um holding

42:22or uh

42:25working you know, they transferred it

42:26over there? How Did we ever look at the

42:29report of how Was it a good thing to do

42:32it?

42:34Was it a Was it the right thing to do?

42:37Did we save money? Did it Was it

42:39effective?

42:41But you could take the sales tax money

42:44and and this is where you ought to be

42:45increasing the sales tax money because

42:47I'm telling you what,

42:49if you want to You if you want to booze

42:51it and be a boozer, you're going to pay

42:53the extra tax.

42:57So, tax the booze,

43:00get more money at the state level,

43:02and then help this project through

43:06Carrie Higgins.

43:08If they want to help, you know, God

43:10bless them. But how much money have they

43:13raised? Are Are they willing to go out?

43:16But the government shouldn't be doing

43:18it. The community ought to be doing it

43:21through uh sweat equity.

43:23Thanks.

43:25>> Thank you.

43:27All right. Now we will turn our

43:28attention to the city council. Council

43:30member Kell.

43:34>> All right. Um

43:36just cuz of what I was reading online

43:38earlier today, this is a vote to put it

43:41on the ballot for the citizens to vote

43:43on. A lot of people were confused about

43:45that. That We're not voting tonight to

43:47have the sales tax. We're putting this

43:49on the ballot for the public to vote on.

43:52Uh when would this take effect if it

43:54were to pass on on the mar- if it was on

43:56the March ballot, when would it take

43:57effect?

43:58>> July 1, uh 2027 would be the first

44:01collection.

44:02>> So, estimated $2 million in the first

44:04year that year cuz it's half a year.

44:06>> Half a year, yes, sir.

44:08>> Um

44:13I I'm I'm in agreement on the aspect of,

44:15you know, we keep on slashing the budget

44:17and then we're going to spend 155,000.

44:20That's That's where it bothers me um a

44:22little bit.

44:24I know when it comes to the primary time

44:25frame it'll that'll be divided up a

44:27little bit more. We'll still have a

44:28cost.

44:29Um

44:33My biggest thing is I think

44:35between now and then we need to look at

44:36a lot of our our programs also to tune

44:39those in cuz if you got like a rental

44:41assistance program,

44:43that's almost and we've talked about it

44:44a little bit in the past, that's almost

44:46a last ditch effort for somebody that's

44:48on that door of homelessness

44:51and we need to catch them before then

44:54and and help them before then so we're

44:56not

44:57creating that revolving door of oh, now

44:59they're homeless, we'll help them rather

45:01than

45:02okay, there's an issue, there's

45:04problems. So, I think we need to look at

45:05all of our programs also to refine those

45:08so when we when it comes to it, if this

45:09does pass on the ballot,

45:12that we already have these programs

45:13ready to go so we we're using the

45:15programs like like written in there

45:17rental assistance and making sure we're

45:19helping the people that need rental

45:20assistance and not waiting till they're

45:24right there at the verge of homelessness

45:25or in homelessness now to help out with

45:27the rent because

45:28once they're evicted,

45:30we really can't give them rental

45:31assistance cuz they're evicted. So, I

45:33think we need to really look at our

45:34programs, tighten up our language and

45:37how we're going to help people and make

45:38it realistic for people to to be helped

45:40in those situations and not wait till

45:42the last second to try to help them when

45:45by our own rules at that point we can't

45:46help them. So,

45:48uh I'm I'm a proponent for this in

45:50August. I know a lot of other people

45:52aren't, but I just think 155,000 can be

45:58used elsewhere for the time being and

46:01what we have the projects already going

46:02for the the uh

46:04affordable housing trust fund and we can

46:06see how those work out during that time

46:07frame and tweak that as we need to also.

46:11Thank you.

46:13>> [clears throat]

46:13>> Councilmember Bradberry.

46:16>> Yes, thank you.

46:18Um

46:21So

46:23I want to speak to the cost of the

46:27election and I share the concern

46:30of the cost. I I understand that.

46:34I also want to say that we spend that

46:37much and more

46:39being reactive

46:42to this situation.

46:45It costs that much if not more to clear

46:47encamp- encampments.

46:50It costs

46:51more for first responder

46:54uh

46:56all all the all the first responders.

46:59Um we have to make contact that way.

47:02It costs a whole lot more just overall

47:05impact on the community.

47:08Um

47:10this is a

47:11a policy

47:12>> [clears throat]

47:12>> question.

47:14Um prevention

47:16costs less than a crisis response.

47:20And that's what we're currently doing.

47:21We are we are responding in a crisis.

47:25Um we're reactive.

47:27And prevention

47:30costs less in the long run.

47:33Um

47:34there

47:35there would have to be strategic

47:37planning with identified

47:39outcomes and I would expect that

47:43um

47:45>> [snorts]

47:46>> we receive reports on the progress of

47:50those. This is not something

47:52that I think that we're

47:55that I would support at all if that

47:57wasn't the case, if we weren't doing

47:59some sort of evidence-based something,

48:02research-based,

48:04um and had some identified goals and

48:06outcomes, and some metrics, so that we

48:09can determine if what we're doing is

48:12being effective.

48:16Um

48:20a vote

48:21to move this

48:23is putting

48:25that power with the community to decide

48:28whether or not this is something that

48:30they want us to

48:32Um and that's exactly where it should

48:35be.

48:36It should be with the community to be

48:38able to decide if this is something that

48:40they want to support or not.

48:44Um

48:47Again, for me, this is a policy

48:48decision.

48:51And

48:52as a governing body, as a community, we

48:54can either make a decision to be

48:55proactive, um

48:59and and work on prevention,

49:02or we can do nothing, and it's still a

49:04policy decision.

49:07Thank you, Mayor.

49:09>> Council Member Banks.

49:12>> Thank you, Mayor.

49:13Uh

49:14couple of questions, City Manager.

49:16Uh this $155,000

49:19that people are talking about, is that a

49:21a [laughter] set amount uh to get in it

49:24an agenda on the ballot?

49:26>> That is an estimate, Councilman. Um so,

49:28as I understand, the county elections

49:30office uh would have to submit RFPs to

49:33to get this together.

49:35Um but that that's a pretty solid

49:36estimate. That's uh about $40,000 more

49:40than what they had quoted us uh for a

49:42mail-in ballot uh earlier this year. Um

49:45but I believe that the

49:47the in-person election was somewhere

49:49around 185, if I'm not mistaken. So, uh

49:53the 155, I think, is a pretty solid

49:55number at this point.

49:56>> Okay.

49:57Well, I think that

49:59you know,

50:00just about everybody on everything does

50:03research. I think this initiative going

50:05on the ballot for us is an attempt to

50:10find out for sure.

50:12Uh there are people waiting to hear

50:15whether we can do this or not, whether

50:17the

50:18uh the the community is going to vote

50:21for an increase or not. We don't know

50:23that. We have, right now,

50:26uh many of us up here have been talking

50:29to people that said, "No, we don't want

50:32any tax increase." But, you know, there

50:34are some that's saying that's saying to

50:37us that

50:39it's worth looking into.

50:41I think that as a governing body, we

50:43have a responsibility of at least

50:48having the having the the the the vote.

50:51I think that if we don't do that, we

50:53serve the public public an injustice.

50:55So, you know, I'm going to support

50:58uh

50:59putting it on the ballot.

51:01And then, we'll know for sure where to

51:03go after that.

51:05Thank you, Mayor.

51:06>> Thank you. Council Member Hiller.

51:09>> Well, I would go ahead and put the

51:10motion in place. I think everybody knows

51:13that that I my preference would be

51:15total private sector.

51:17People have worked really hard on this.

51:19There is a commitment that uh very

51:21strong leadership and commitment in the

51:23community that

51:25>> [clears throat]

51:25>> that this um that a citizen-led choice

51:28to have this small sales tax assessed

51:32could be the way to go.

51:34There is enough money in here to

51:37really get going on both our affordable

51:39housing initiatives as well as homeless

51:42prevention and addressing homeless

51:45issues.

51:46Language is broad enough to cover

51:48anything from housing to the services

51:50both prevention and supportive through

51:53both.

51:54Uh I appreciate that city manager

51:57mentioned the structure.

51:59That structure makes sense to me.

52:02Probably for the best um in the best

52:04interest of everybody, we should uh make

52:07sure we clarify how that structure will

52:09be within the next 60 days so that it's

52:12all very clear when the ballot

52:14initiative goes out assuming it would

52:16move forward.

52:18Um appreciate Councilwoman Bradberry's

52:21points. We are reacting. People are

52:24poised go ahead and address this head-on

52:28and um and optimize the situation not

52:31just for folks who are homeless but for

52:35the desperate need for affordable

52:37housing.

52:38Um so with that um

52:42I'm happy to answer other questions or

52:46certainly support letting this go out

52:49for the vote of the people.

52:50>> So so I want to clarify your motion is

52:52to move forward the proposed question to

52:55a March mail-in ballot.

52:57>> Yes, sir.

52:57>> Okay. So I want to make sure we all know

52:59what has been

53:00uh

53:01the the

53:03what you've motioned and there is a

53:04second on that from Councilmember Miller

53:07uh who is now also up to speak.

53:08Councilmember Miller.

53:12>> Thank you, Mayor. Um

53:13Councilwoman Hiller, I'm happy to second

53:16that motion. Um I think this is the

53:17right thing to do. The people have asked

53:19about this for a long time and it was

53:21that's it's up to us to put that forth

53:23for people. Um

53:25I'm glad that Councilwoman Raquel made

53:27the clarification thus everybody

53:29understands this is not us voting on it

53:31today. This is to allow the public to do

53:32so which is also the very right thing to

53:35do like you just said uh but also a very

53:37right clarification for people.

53:40Um I like the thought of having a

53:42committee

53:43for this.

53:45Um,

53:46you know, folks say what is one more

53:47meeting? Well, some things are need to

53:50be met on. So, there are some

53:52um, movements and some organizations

53:55that have to have important

53:56[clears throat] meetings and I think

53:57this is one that I think we would have

53:59some very qualified people take part in.

54:01So, um, I look forward to this and um,

54:03I'm happy to to uh, second that motion.

54:05Thank you.

54:07>> Council Member Kell.

54:11>> [clears throat]

54:11>> I just want to say that

54:13the words of Councilwoman Bradberry have

54:16have changed my mind.

54:18Uh,

54:18the aspect of of prevent you know, I if

54:22we wait till August that you know, that

54:24could be one camp clean up that the cost

54:26between then and then that you know,

54:28we're we're spending. So, I I I believe

54:30that Councilwoman Bradberry I always try

54:32to come in into everything with an open

54:33mind

54:34and listen to everyone and she

54:36definitely changed my mind on that and

54:39uh,

54:39maybe you think that that the sooner the

54:41better. So, thank you.

54:45>> Deputy Mayor Hofer.

54:49>> Okay, I still have some issues with this

54:52and probably going to support taking it

54:54to the vote.

54:56the citizens but I will we be recovering

55:00our

55:01uh, administrative costs to handle

55:05um, the program because it costs money,

55:08city employees time,

55:10supplies, everything

55:12to handle the affordable housing trust

55:14fund and if we set up a homeless task

55:17force, I want to make sure that we are

55:20recovering our cost

55:23out of that sales tax.

55:26I don't want it to just be

55:28something else we're going to do and

55:32not take care of our employees. So,

55:35that's one of my questions.

55:37>> Deputy Mayor, I think that's something

55:38that we'll have to consider. Um, a

55:40Again, I don't know exactly how much

55:42additional work this will put on

55:44our team.

55:45Um

55:46but I mean it's definitely something we

55:47can consider.

55:49I know a lot of Carrie's team is grant

55:50funded. Um but that that is definitely

55:53something that we can look at as as far

55:55as supporting the program.

55:57>> Okay.

55:58Um

55:59I was looking for something in here.

56:03It was we were saying something about

56:05having a um

56:09a task force to overlook something.

56:12>> It it would be for the homelessness

56:15suffers, yeah. So I would see it

56:17similarly structured to the way we have

56:18our affordable housing trust fund review

56:21committee that's designated by

56:23ordinance. Um I heard Councilmember

56:26Hiller

56:27talk about us clarifying that over the

56:28next 60 days so we put that structure in

56:30place.

56:31Um in the event that it's passed this

56:33evening and approved by the voters in

56:35March. So that way we can put that

56:37together, have time to study it, and

56:39again almost mirror what we do for the

56:41affordable housing trust fund to do

56:43something similar for the housing

56:46committee.

56:47>> Okay.

56:48>> I'm sorry, homeless committee.

56:49Apologies.

56:50>> We would try and have that in place say

56:52around the first of the year to run

56:56from then on or

56:58just

57:00a short term?

57:01>> So

57:02again, I think every year that funding

57:04comes in will be a new opportunity to

57:08you know, invest in something that we're

57:09already doing or invest in something

57:11new.

57:12The first year we may not have if if the

57:15committee wanted to look at it, we may

57:16not have a proposal for tiny home

57:18communities.

57:19I don't know.

57:21Again, I would rest those future

57:24decisions with the committee and as

57:26mentioned similar to the way the

57:27affordable housing trust fund committee

57:29is run, those recommendations ultimately

57:31come to the city council for approval.

57:35>> Okay.

57:36>> Thank you.

57:39>> Councilmember Kell.

57:41>> I would like to make a friendly

57:42amendment on this

57:44that we include cleanup on this

57:47ballot initiative also because I don't

57:49want to be where we leave something like

57:51that off and then it comes down later on

57:53where we can't do cleanup. That's got to

57:55come out of the general fund. So, if

57:57we're doing

57:58cleanup to where I have to tear down the

57:59house because it's it's been occupied

58:02by homeless and been been uninhabitable

58:05after that

58:06that any cleanup destruction would have

58:09to be

58:11>> [clears throat]

58:11>> through that also.

58:16>> I don't know.

58:17I guess that's up to the council. I

58:18guess that's up to the maker of the

58:19motion. I would say the question also

58:20does say but not limited to for that

58:23exact purpose to try to make not make it

58:25such a

58:26large, you know, list of things that

58:28gets to a little too but uh

58:30>> I know in the past some of our things

58:31have gotten too too narrow and I just

58:34want to make sure we're not being too

58:35narrow with the scope.

58:38>> I'd like to see the text again. My

58:40inclination is not to do that for

58:42exactly what you said. The more specific

58:44and the more words you start to get then

58:46the more it you limited

58:50made

58:51driven assumptions that if it isn't

58:53named it it's not included.

58:55So, I think the shorter the list

58:59leaves the interpretation more broad

59:01long term. One of the things we don't

59:04know for instance is there may be some

59:05big federal grants that would cover some

59:07element. That's a big thing for us right

59:09now.

59:10If we can get that, we'll knock that

59:11part out and use those funds for other

59:13things. But I I think let's see.

59:18Evidence-based homeless initiatives

59:20including but not limited to programs,

59:23operating and construction costs,

59:25outreach support, transportation

59:28services, rental assistance, and

59:30affordable housing.

59:33>> Legal, would you say that if there were

59:35cleanups needed that that would be

59:37included in the breadth of that

59:38language?

59:39>> I think so because [clears throat] it's

59:40not limited to just those specific

59:42items.

59:43>> And I would see that under operating

59:45>> Yeah, I would say that's what Council

59:46Member has mentioned. I I just want to

59:47make sure we're cuz a lot of that in the

59:49past come out of the general fund and I

59:50just want to make sure that someone

59:52doesn't sit there and say, "Well, that's

59:53general That's a general fund issue, not

59:55a homeless initiative issue." So, I'm

59:58just trying to make sure we're covering

59:59our bases with stuff like that. So,

1:00:01>> Council Member, I think that's a that's

1:00:02a good

1:00:04term to use, operating, cuz that would

1:00:05also address the Deputy Mayor's question

1:00:08of any operating costs that we would

1:00:10incur as well. So,

1:00:12for sure.

1:00:13>> [snorts]

1:00:14>> Council Member Ortiz.

1:00:18>> Thank you. I I don't have a problem with

1:00:20putting this on the ballot for the

1:00:22people to vote on.

1:00:24The problem I have is paying the money.

1:00:26That's the problem I have.

1:00:28I don't care what anybody says about

1:00:30cleanups and all this other stuff that

1:00:32we spend. We I'm going to vote no. I'm

1:00:35not going to support this cuz I I

1:00:37believe that money could be used for

1:00:39something else. I was out to the

1:00:41election office and they stopped me and

1:00:42they said that they had quoted us wrong.

1:00:45Did they come back and that they were

1:00:47sending you a a new amount? Did they

1:00:50ever or it could have even been Brenda

1:00:52cuz I said, "Is it the

1:00:53Is it the mayor or I mean is it Is it

1:00:56the mayor or is it the

1:00:57um

1:01:00the city manager? Is it

1:01:02Brenda or who?" I don't know who it was,

1:01:04but I was out there at 4:00 yesterday

1:01:06and they said that they quoted us wrong

1:01:08and it's going to be more than what they

1:01:10had first quoted us.

1:01:15I think we're rushing this.

1:01:18Um and I think we're going to have to

1:01:19come back. Well, we can't come back if

1:01:21if that goes on the ballot. It has

1:01:23[clears throat] We have to use it

1:01:25specifically for what it says.

1:01:27Transportation services is too broad.

1:01:29What does that mean? To get across town?

1:01:31To get them to work? To do what? What

1:01:32does that mean?

1:01:34Um but that's I'm one person and I'm

1:01:37going to stand by that.

1:01:42>> So, um what would you the I guess the

1:01:46elections office said I've been

1:01:48discussing this with our city's hearings

1:01:49office.

1:01:51Um

1:01:52and part of the detail is uh

1:01:56after talking to vendors, the original

1:01:57cost estimates for a special election

1:01:59were a bit low. Um he's now estimating

1:02:01that the cost for a special election

1:02:02special election in March and presumably

1:02:04in August is 155,000. They cannot give

1:02:07an exact amount so they run their RFP

1:02:10for the mail ballot prep insert I and B

1:02:13barcode piece.

1:02:14>> Yeah, cuz they said they really under

1:02:16gave us something that was under us.

1:02:18>> The original number was 118. The new

1:02:19number was 155.

1:02:25>> Thank you.

1:02:25>> it.

1:02:30>> Any other questions or comments? I've

1:02:32got a few. So, you know, what's

1:02:33complicated this whole discussion

1:02:35whether it's this sales tax or the other

1:02:37is the legislature did none of us a

1:02:38favor 2 years ago when they limited the

1:02:41number of times that even if we're

1:02:42willing to pay for it that a

1:02:43municipality could send any sort of

1:02:45question out to its public. It's used to

1:02:47be you could kind of do it whenever you

1:02:48felt it was necessary and so on issues

1:02:50like this, on issues like bonds, they

1:02:53it's it's been limiting and it's been

1:02:55discouraging for municipalities to have

1:02:56to work through that new calendar. And

1:02:58now you can only do them in March,

1:03:00August, and and November. So, we are

1:03:02been limited to that time frame. I think

1:03:04it was a positive that we all recognized

1:03:06we were not ready to try to define any

1:03:08other sort of sales tax initiative that

1:03:10should go on the ballot by March.

1:03:12City manager's been clear in the rest of

1:03:14us that we want to go have that

1:03:15conversation with the community first

1:03:17part of next year and make some

1:03:18decisions from there so that it's very

1:03:20targeted.

1:03:22What I like about this one is it is

1:03:24targeted. This question is written well.

1:03:26We have two very important programs that

1:03:28are already structurally in place. The

1:03:31Affordable Housing Trust Fund is a

1:03:33structured program that we have in our

1:03:34ordinance that we have a group of people

1:03:36who are administering it. It has rules

1:03:39and so there's assurances that when

1:03:41those dollars go into that program, it's

1:03:42going to be spent the way that it's

1:03:44supposed to and there is oversight not

1:03:46just from that group but from staff but

1:03:47then eventually from this council.

1:03:50We are already spending a significant

1:03:51amount of our general fund dollars on

1:03:54homelessness problem. I mean we just are

1:03:56and it's not just clean up, it's all

1:03:57those other services and the problem's

1:04:00not going away. It's not something we

1:04:02can just ignore and so this is a way to

1:04:04take some of those funds that are

1:04:06putting pressure on the general fund and

1:04:08everyone's point, give the public an

1:04:09option to say we can continue to pay for

1:04:11those of the general fund if that's if

1:04:13that's the decision you want us to make

1:04:14or here's an option for 1/10 of a cent

1:04:17that would help relieve that pressure

1:04:19off of the general fund and allow us to

1:04:20expand some of those services to really

1:04:23dig down into the structure that we have

1:04:25to deal with the problem. And so because

1:04:27this one is so targeted, for the same

1:04:30reasons I didn't like the other ones yet

1:04:32and they weren't ready for prime time,

1:04:34I'm much more comfortable with this one

1:04:36going forward because it does have a

1:04:38very clear and important purpose. I've

1:04:40been very clear that housing has got to

1:04:42be a number one priority for us. I mean

1:04:44it it's connected to many of the things

1:04:46we want in this community from growth to

1:04:48economic development to better

1:04:49neighborhoods to less crime. There's a

1:04:51to healthy community, it's connected to

1:04:53all of that and we have to have some

1:04:55investment into those programs beyond

1:04:58just tax incentives that all the

1:05:00builders continue to want to build those

1:05:02those programs those houses. So I will

1:05:05remind people too that we'll have chance

1:05:07if if we move this forward between now

1:05:09and March to provide additional

1:05:10information to the public, show them how

1:05:12it will be spent, provide them the

1:05:14information on those programs and how

1:05:15they work, and be able to go out in the

1:05:17community and talk with them about that.

1:05:19And if as as was brought to us last week

1:05:22and and clarified when the question came

1:05:24up, if after a year or two we decide

1:05:26this isn't working the way this

1:05:27governing body can take a vote and

1:05:29repeal the tax. If if that becomes a

1:05:31concern of the citizens. This is not one

1:05:33I I foresee that being an issue, but we

1:05:35do have that ability and authority. Um

1:05:37if we think that it isn't going to to

1:05:39where we do. So I can support it um for

1:05:42those reasons um moving forward onto the

1:05:45onto the March ballot. I do understand

1:05:47the cost concern, but again we're

1:05:49spending significantly more than that to

1:05:52deal with this problem now, and I think

1:05:54we can find those funds in some of the

1:05:55even some of the money we talked about

1:05:56tonight. Um that that's been freed up in

1:05:59in reserve funds to to pay for this and

1:06:01and I'm going to be hopeful as an

1:06:02extension of this that if this passes

1:06:04and moves forward, that means we're

1:06:05already doing this. So it will also

1:06:07allow us as we have the next

1:06:08conversation about the auditor position

1:06:10to maybe ask the citizens to make that

1:06:12change, which also will have an economic

1:06:14benefit to the city long-term moving in

1:06:17the next year. So So those are the

1:06:19reasons that I I will probably vote yes

1:06:20this evening on this on this motion.

1:06:24>> Council Member Hiller.

1:06:25>> Uh just one more comment and you touched

1:06:27on it. Um there has been a pretty strong

1:06:30uh inclination on the part of this body

1:06:33to to move the concept of having an

1:06:35internal auditor forward. Um

1:06:39in effect that would be able to

1:06:40piggyback on this

1:06:43because otherwise it would stand alone

1:06:45or it would have to wait until August as

1:06:47well.

1:06:48So for those who were really wanting to

1:06:50move that along also again, there's an

1:06:53economy in piggybacking.

1:06:55Thank you.

1:06:57>> Any other comments or questions for

1:06:59staff on this issue?

1:07:02If not, we have a motion on the floor to

1:07:05just to clarify, the motion is to move

1:07:07this

1:07:08question as written and proposed to a

1:07:10March ballot.

1:07:13With that, I will ask the clerk to take

1:07:14the vote, please.

1:07:28>> Okay, we have eight yes with council

1:07:30member Ortiz voting no, the motion

1:07:32carries.

1:07:35>> [applause]

1:07:35>> ALL RIGHT.

1:07:36WITH THAT

1:07:43WE WILL NOW MOVE ON TO ACTION ITEM B.

1:07:46City clerk.

1:07:49>> B is discussion with possible action of

1:07:51a charter ordinance introduced by city

1:07:53manager Dr. Robert Perez amending

1:07:55charter ordinances as codified at Topeka

1:07:58Municipal Code section A2-24 and A2-25

1:08:02concerning the powers and duties of the

1:08:03mayor and governing body in relation to

1:08:05a city auditor.

1:08:09>> City manager.

1:08:10>> Thank you, mayor members of the

1:08:12governing body. Uh this item we did

1:08:13cover in the previous presentation. As

1:08:16mentioned, this would allow the

1:08:18governing body to have the city auditor

1:08:21uh if approved um

1:08:23by the public to report directly to the

1:08:26governing body.

1:08:27Um as mentioned, we did touch on this in

1:08:29the presentation. We can put that uh

1:08:32information back up and then answer any

1:08:34questions that you may have.

1:08:37>> Yeah, I'll just I'll just add to that

1:08:39that um as we had this discussion in the

1:08:41creation of this position, which we've

1:08:43budgeted for, we might have to make an

1:08:44amendment to that, but we can move

1:08:46forward with that posting next year and

1:08:48hope that this even if this charter

1:08:49doesn't get changed immediately, we can

1:08:52still bring that person in and sort of

1:08:53still work with them to to start their

1:08:55job.

1:08:56This is not uncommon of the cities that

1:08:58have this in Kansas that it is

1:08:59independent of their internal staff,

1:09:02that they do report either to a at the

1:09:04direction of a committee of the

1:09:06governing body and then the governing

1:09:07body as a whole. So, this is not

1:09:10uncommon. In fact, this is the common

1:09:12practice as to how you would set the

1:09:13structure up. But, as we talked about,

1:09:15our charter says we don't get to just

1:09:17change our charter because we feel like

1:09:19it. We have to ask the citizens to to

1:09:21change that charter, which they voted

1:09:23and approved for two decades plus ago.

1:09:25And so, the purpose of this change of

1:09:27the reason this is two different

1:09:29things on your agenda tonight is step

1:09:31one is just

1:09:33agreeing to the new language and what

1:09:35the change would be in the charter. And

1:09:37then the second action item would be if

1:09:38we want to put it on the March ballot

1:09:40for the citizens to vote for that

1:09:41change. So, so that's that's why we're

1:09:43doing it this way and that's why it's

1:09:45the change is being proposed.

1:09:48Are there any other comments or

1:09:49questions from the governing body?

1:09:53If not, looks like we have a motion from

1:09:55Councilmember Kell to approve and a

1:09:57second from Councilmember McGee.

1:09:59>> I've got comments.

1:09:59>> Oh, public comment. You're right. Should

1:10:01have flipped my page over. Sorry, I

1:10:02apologize.

1:10:04Next First up, we do have some public

1:10:06comment. First up, Mr. Joseph Ledbetter.

1:10:14>> Good evening, governing body, staff, and

1:10:17public.

1:10:18I uh

1:10:20as I said on the previous one,

1:10:22I'm not for or against. I actually like

1:10:24affordable housing. I

1:10:25have great concerns about the other part

1:10:27of that sales tax.

1:10:29And I worked with for

1:10:31how to housing in the past, Cornerstone,

1:10:33other people.

1:10:35Uh

1:10:36this

1:10:37this one

1:10:38I'm not taking a position on, but I'm

1:10:40going to point out some uh

1:10:41concerns I've got. So, I'm looking at

1:10:43the uh

1:10:45uh charter ordinances, uh the charter

1:10:47ordinances exist. The city manager shall

1:10:49have the power and it shall be his or

1:10:50her duty to

1:10:52uh F, control and administer the

1:10:55financial affairs of the city.

1:10:57K, keep the council at all times fully

1:11:00advised of the financial condition and

1:11:02needs of the city.

1:11:04Uh

1:11:06you've already got

1:11:07in my opinion, uh Neil Dobler, I've

1:11:10talked to him about this. I've talked to

1:11:11some other people. You already have it

1:11:14in your charter ordinance to have the

1:11:16manager provide this information.

1:11:19Uh

1:11:20if it's not being provided,

1:11:22that's on you to deal with it.

1:11:24Uh

1:11:25if you want a a separate auditor, that's

1:11:28fine. I mean, I thought you should have

1:11:30a CPA a long time ago, and I've said so

1:11:33publicly.

1:11:34Uh because I like them to sign the

1:11:36reports. Are they going to sign the

1:11:37reports? No, they're going to be an

1:11:38auditor. So,

1:11:40I don't know exactly how this will be

1:11:42executed. Uh I'm willing to watch it,

1:11:45but I think what people are

1:11:48telling me a lot, I mean, a lot of

1:11:50people, are saying just

1:11:53get rid of this charter ordinance and

1:11:54put it on the ballot in uh August or

1:11:57November that we're going to change form

1:11:59of government back to the strong mayor.

1:12:02And uh

1:12:03it's

1:12:04it's just something that people are just

1:12:07clamoring for. They've tried this for 21

1:12:10years. I'd say for the last 10 years it

1:12:12hasn't worked well. Uh Colson was pretty

1:12:15good. And he was a very He was very good

1:12:17with finances, and I noticed that right

1:12:19from the start.

1:12:21He had empathy for the people. He had uh

1:12:24a sense of urgency when people had

1:12:27urgent problems with uh crime or uh

1:12:30codes, as uh we talked about back then

1:12:33when I was president of High Crest. We

1:12:35had a horrible problem with codes not

1:12:37being enforced.

1:12:38It's better now, but

1:12:41we still have these street problems that

1:12:43people are fed up with.

1:12:45We've got a flat sales tax, and I think

1:12:48in part because we're not keeping our

1:12:50main thoroughfares open,

1:12:52and uh we're not finishing the projects

1:12:55in a timely fashion in many situations.

1:12:59So, what what I hear people say is just

1:13:02change the whole charter ordinance and

1:13:04go back to a strong mayor. We elect

1:13:06somebody from Topeka to run this town.

1:13:10And I've heard as little as 2 years at a

1:13:13time. I said, "I'm open to that."

1:13:16And uh

1:13:17and there's a lot of people that want to

1:13:19talk about changing the structure of

1:13:20council, but mostly it's about we want

1:13:24to elect somebody from Topeka

1:13:26uh that lives here with their deputy

1:13:28living here, their CEO, whatever it is,

1:13:31owning a home here, voting uh voting

1:13:32here. And that's what I hear the most

1:13:35about. So,

1:13:37was that related to this? I probably

1:13:39stretched that, but uh

1:13:42on this, I don't know if it's really

1:13:43going to help or not, but

1:13:46I don't have an opinion on it. Okay,

1:13:47thank you.

1:13:49>> Thank you.

1:13:50>> Next up, we have Danielle Twemlow.

1:14:01>> Good evening. Um with

1:14:04this moving forward um with the last one

1:14:06in March adding this on, I'm very

1:14:09supportive of that. Um I do hope that

1:14:11something very similar as to what was

1:14:13brought up um for the last um

1:14:17um issue is to have a rubric created,

1:14:21some sort of accountability um standard

1:14:23that we want this auditor to focus on.

1:14:26Um that we really ask a series of

1:14:29questions much like that equity focused

1:14:32um response. Um so, where is the

1:14:34greatest risk of public money being

1:14:36wasted, mismanaged, or inadequately

1:14:39accounted for? Who bears the greatest

1:14:42financial or human consequences when our

1:14:45systems fail? Where would an independent

1:14:48audit produce the greatest opportunity

1:14:50to correct systematic problems and

1:14:52improve outcomes?

1:14:53Um this allows for an equity-focused

1:14:56approach. Um doesn't just simply

1:14:58prioritize departments based on

1:15:00complaints or the amount of money they

1:15:02spend. It should evaluate both financial

1:15:05risk and the unequal unequitable

1:15:07consequences of administration

1:15:09decisions, especially for residents with

1:15:12the fewest resources to absorb all the

1:15:14consequences that they bear. So, I hope

1:15:17that the council themselves produces a a

1:15:21rubric that they would like to see

1:15:23carried forward. Finance risk and

1:15:25accountability. Um what are the

1:15:27unexplained balances, weak um

1:15:29documentation, missing trade audit

1:15:31trails, those kinds of things. Um equity

1:15:34and disparate impact. Um whether

1:15:37policies are disproportionately

1:15:39burdening low-income households or

1:15:40historically underserved neighborhoods,

1:15:43small businesses, or residents with

1:15:44limited ability.

1:15:47Um the service and human consequence. Um

1:15:50where are we seeing um potential effects

1:15:53on safe drinking water, housing quality,

1:15:55public health, neighborhood stability.

1:15:58Um different repeated errors of

1:16:00inefficiency, unnecessary administrative

1:16:03steps, duplicated work, those sorts of

1:16:06things that we've brought up over and

1:16:07over again. Along with urgency and

1:16:09scale, whether the problem is ongoing,

1:16:12growing, time-sensitive.

1:16:14Um and whether we have an opportunity to

1:16:17make um corrective action in the biggest

1:16:19type of change with that. Um so,

1:16:22prioritizing, um we've heard over and

1:16:25over again, utilities and financial

1:16:27operations of that accountability. Um

1:16:30billing, liens, collections, economic

1:16:32development incentives, and how we do

1:16:34that public investment. Um procurement

1:16:37contracts and project management with

1:16:39that. Um and I would like us to go back

1:16:42to that DEI ordinance that was

1:16:44dismantled um,

1:16:46last year um, kind of out of nowhere,

1:16:49but probably with a large guys to remove

1:16:53some of the

1:16:55um, ability for our um, city employees

1:16:58to have a safe place to bring um, things

1:17:02forward that are not appropriate for

1:17:04them to be able to use the kind of same

1:17:07channels of arbitration. Um, we need

1:17:10that as their step back. We need to to

1:17:13to reinforce some of those things that

1:17:15were taken away with that DEI ordinance.

1:17:18Um, so we are building equity into this

1:17:20audit. Um,

1:17:21we're focusing on what is causing the

1:17:24most harm to our citizens and that is

1:17:27through that financial burden, but also

1:17:29with how we are performing within our

1:17:31community. Um, that distribution of

1:17:33benefits, the cost analysis, um, where

1:17:36we are giving tax breaks um, to people

1:17:39who are making millions of dollars while

1:17:41continuing to increase um, a a life

1:17:44service water utility um, for people who

1:17:47are who are barely surviving. So, I am

1:17:49asking that that same consideration be

1:17:52taken um, into account about how we're

1:17:54moving forward with the way that this

1:17:56um, auditor functions and um,

1:17:59there are many many other examples of

1:18:01equity focused um, initiatives. Thank

1:18:04you.

1:18:04>> Thank you.

1:18:05Next up, Henry McClure.

1:18:08>> [clears throat]

1:18:13>> Good evening, Your Honor.

1:18:15Thank you for the opportunity to speak

1:18:17to you and

1:18:19thank you for the city council person

1:18:20that's not walking behind me.

1:18:23So, anyway,

1:18:25hey, you know, there's citizens that

1:18:27have come forward with things

1:18:30that are basically audits.

1:18:33And let's talk about go Topeka.

1:18:35And let's talk about go to Pica

1:18:38and the things that they paid for with

1:18:41sales tax money

1:18:42that went on the ballot. We've heard

1:18:44tonight how important it is to have that

1:18:47ballot. In fact, I emailed you all the

1:18:51uh ballots

1:18:52from the first um

1:18:54sales tax.

1:18:56And you can see

1:18:57economic development's on there, but the

1:19:00will of the people, it was all about

1:19:03streets.

1:19:05We

1:19:05So, what's so funny about your job?

1:19:08All you got to do You can make your job

1:19:10so easy.

1:19:12Mind your own business, fix the streets.

1:19:15That's it. That's all you got to do.

1:19:17Make sure the police and the fire people

1:19:19got enough money that they want to work

1:19:21here. And while we're talking about

1:19:23auditing, what about the employee audit?

1:19:27You might have remembered I ran for

1:19:29mayor.

1:19:30And all I heard was the whistleblowers

1:19:34talking about

1:19:36how many problems we had.

1:19:39And then you

1:19:41hired a consultant

1:19:43and didn't go through the city manager

1:19:44or through HR. When are the people ever

1:19:47going to know about that? And I've still

1:19:49had people come forward that work for

1:19:51your

1:19:52for our city

1:19:54concerned.

1:19:56So,

1:19:57why are we having an audit

1:20:00answer to you guys? Why doesn't the

1:20:02auditor

1:20:04answer to the people? I mean, you're

1:20:06going to hire the auditor anyway.

1:20:08And somehow, someway, I'll bet the

1:20:10auditor slips through on the vote.

1:20:13But it will it will all depend on the

1:20:15language.

1:20:16But

1:20:18I don't want you auditing it.

1:20:20I don't want you the only one getting

1:20:22the audit.

1:20:24You decide

1:20:26like a

1:20:29a monarch from time to time the way you

1:20:32communicate with me

1:20:33of what you're going to look at and what

1:20:35you're not going to look at.

1:20:37And I don't like that.

1:20:40I don't like the fact

1:20:42that I have found inequities

1:20:45of what go to Topeka spends money on.

1:20:47You, my city council person,

1:20:51my county commissioner,

1:20:54should make the CORA request. You guys

1:20:57should care about

1:20:59What will really be interesting is to

1:21:02prove later that you don't care about

1:21:04it. But you guys should be saying,

1:21:07"Well, hang on a second here.

1:21:09Henry's pointed out some stuff.

1:21:11Our our public auditor has pointed out

1:21:15some things. The The unpaid consultant."

1:21:20If life was perfect, you'd die and come

1:21:22back as a consultant to Topeka.

1:21:27But um

1:21:31we've got to do things differently.

1:21:34We had a good city manager around here.

1:21:36His name was Norton Bonaparte.

1:21:38And we ran him out of town.

1:21:40It's a shame.

1:21:42Colson wasn't any good. He did His wife

1:21:44didn't even move to town.

1:21:45>> [clears throat]

1:21:46>> But that aside,

1:21:49if you're going to do the auditor,

1:21:52why don't you put in the ballot

1:21:54that they have to report to the public

1:21:56or it should be automatically public.

1:21:57Thanks.

1:21:59>> Thank you.

1:22:00>> All right.

1:22:01>> Go back to the city council. Are there

1:22:03any

1:22:04Council member Hiller?

1:22:07>> I just wanted to clarify a little and I

1:22:09appreciate Danielle's comments,

1:22:10especially broadening the view.

1:22:14As far as I look at an internal audit, I

1:22:17look at it that

1:22:20that it's a good internal practice.

1:22:22We don't necessarily have to have

1:22:24something terrible that's wrong or that

1:22:26we're seeking out, but instead uh uh uh

1:22:30an audit could be based on personnel,

1:22:32could be based on program,

1:22:35and it could be based on finances or any

1:22:37combination of those. It to me, you're

1:22:40looking at is there a way we can work

1:22:42smarter and better? Let's pick X

1:22:45department of a particular year. Not

1:22:47necessarily because there's anything

1:22:49wrong, maybe there is, but how can we

1:22:51work smarter and better? What are we

1:22:52doing? What do other communities do and

1:22:55so on.

1:22:56So, um again, we've heard the term

1:22:59forensic audit come up pretty often.

1:23:01Again, I think that there might be times

1:23:04when it's more forensic because we

1:23:06really think something sick and we're

1:23:07looking for it. But, um I hope that our

1:23:11view on the part of all of us is that

1:23:13that is a healthy

1:23:15um process to go through just to work

1:23:18smarter and better

1:23:19in all the different ways that we we

1:23:21work each year.

1:23:23My hope also is that with that in mind

1:23:25because there are so many different

1:23:27dimensions to what we do as a city, that

1:23:30the the as a routine,

1:23:33what would happen is once a year the

1:23:35council would decide what subject matter

1:23:38or departments we did want to look at in

1:23:41a particular year and planned out

1:23:43accordingly

1:23:45to get those audits done and who would

1:23:46be involved.

1:23:48I hope I'm not off base in what other

1:23:51people's visions were as well. Thank

1:23:53you.

1:23:54>> Councilmember Bradbury.

1:23:57>> Thank you.

1:23:58Um

1:24:00I

1:24:02agree with uh Councilwoman Hiller.

1:24:05When I think of an independent with the

1:24:07city auditor, I think of a a performance

1:24:09somebody who's going to look at the

1:24:10operations um of the city, um the

1:24:14internal controls, any risk management,

1:24:18um

1:24:19any, you know,

1:24:22evaluating our our contracts and whether

1:24:25or not we're meeting

1:24:28objectives that we want to meet and

1:24:30ensuring that we're using the taxpayer

1:24:32dollars um

1:24:34efficiently and wisely.

1:24:36Um

1:24:38I also want to note that there are

1:24:41several different

1:24:43um qualifications an internal auditor

1:24:47uh

1:24:48can have. An internal auditor can have a

1:24:51CPA. They can also have a CIA, which is

1:24:54a certified internal auditor, which

1:24:56audits internal controls and risk

1:24:58management and um internal auditing.

1:25:02Um they can also have a CGAP, certified

1:25:05government um auditing professional,

1:25:07which is a someone who audits government

1:25:10practices and public sector

1:25:12accountability. There's all types

1:25:14There's various types of

1:25:17uh credentials this person can have. It

1:25:19does not have to be solely a CPA.

1:25:23We it can also have a CPA.

1:25:25Um but this

1:25:27this is this is something

1:25:29that um

1:25:33whose whose whole objective would be to

1:25:36make our city operate more efficiently.

1:25:40Um and I don't see

1:25:43how

1:25:44that would be a a negative thing if

1:25:46we're making [clears throat] an effort

1:25:48to use our dollars

1:25:50um more wisely and um

1:25:53provide services more effectively.

1:25:59>> Council Member Miller.

1:26:00Thank you, Mayor. Um

1:26:02quick I just want to go run back on that

1:26:05for quick second, Councilwoman. So, the

1:26:07thought would be that just like our

1:26:08annual legislative agenda,

1:26:11we would have a focus for our auditor

1:26:13from a year-to-year basis that they

1:26:14would but that they can still address

1:26:16other things throughout the year as

1:26:19needed from the council, correct?

1:26:22>> Certainly could. I mean, one of the

1:26:24thoughts I had was we could contract per

1:26:27issue also, rather than have a full-time

1:26:29staff, but that's up to us.

1:26:32>> So the way those have worked in the

1:26:33other cities that do them is exactly to

1:26:35what you're saying. You they have, let's

1:26:37say, three or four projects throughout

1:26:39the year. You work with them and say,

1:26:41"This is these are a couple projects

1:26:42that we've decided we'd like you to look

1:26:43at." They'll give you the assessment,

1:26:44"Yeah, I can do that in 2 months or

1:26:46that's going to take me 6 months,

1:26:47Councilman. Let's adjust it." And then

1:26:48same, in the meantime, if small things

1:26:50come up you want them to take a look at.

1:26:52But also then, to Councilwoman Hiller's

1:26:53point, the goal is not to say, "Go in

1:26:55and, you know, create chaos." It's quite

1:26:57the opposite. It's figure out where we

1:26:59can make improvements, figure out how

1:27:00you can help staff find efficiencies,

1:27:02things that the rest of us haven't

1:27:04thought about. So yeah, to your point,

1:27:05that's that's it. You get that project

1:27:07list and then

1:27:08we'll talk some more and I plan to

1:27:09bring, whether it's November or

1:27:10December, a more structured what that

1:27:12would look like in terms of whether we

1:27:13want to do that all at the council level

1:27:15or where we want to put the initial

1:27:16discussions with one of our committees

1:27:18who would then bring it to the council

1:27:19level. How how we would want to

1:27:20structure that internally.

1:27:22>> Thank you for that clarification.

1:27:23Appreciate that. Um I think that would

1:27:25be good.

1:27:26Um I think a quarterly update uh to the

1:27:28public would be something that I think

1:27:31would uh be a way for our public to

1:27:33understand exactly what's going on. Um

1:27:37on a 90-day basis, I think that's enough

1:27:40time for them to adjust to different

1:27:42things that are happening.

1:27:44Um but also for the public to stay

1:27:46informed. Um you know, we have a lot of

1:27:47people that have some comments on this

1:27:49position and I think some

1:27:51some of them are uh

1:27:53valid. Um but

1:27:57if they think or expect this employee to

1:28:02then be someone that they can just

1:28:04continue to call on to say, "Hey, you

1:28:06need to look at this, look at this, look

1:28:07at this, look at this, look at this,

1:28:08look at this."

1:28:09That's not what we're doing here. I just

1:28:11want to make sure that others know that.

1:28:14Um and I think that's the same way we're

1:28:15looking at it, correct? Okay. So, thank

1:28:18you.

1:28:19>> Councilmember McGee.

1:28:20>> Thank you. I thank you. Hit the points

1:28:22[clears throat] I was I was going to say

1:28:24is

1:28:25this is something where we can

1:28:28like you say, create a specific list

1:28:31and use the items we want to start with.

1:28:34Make it

1:28:36define what what

1:28:38define, provide the the the directives

1:28:42the direction for it

1:28:44and then let them go and seek out

1:28:48the information they find

1:28:51and develop

1:28:52you know, they could come up with, you

1:28:53know, recommendations for

1:28:55efficiencies

1:28:58areas where we can improve, areas where

1:29:01we're doing good.

1:29:04But they will be able to provide that

1:29:05in, like you said, maybe a quarterly

1:29:07report.

1:29:09And we

1:29:11bring that report forward

1:29:13and then we move on to the next one.

1:29:15I I think that's

1:29:18a good approach. We can't just throw

1:29:20somebody in and say

1:29:22go do it all.

1:29:25But I think if we give

1:29:27clear direction

1:29:29I think this will be a

1:29:32a good project

1:29:34and a good way

1:29:36to

1:29:38find issues and also find efficiencies.

1:29:43Thank you.

1:29:44>> Deputy Mayor.

1:29:47>> Okay, my concern is

1:29:50who is going to develop the personnel or

1:29:54the

1:29:55job profile

1:29:57and what qualifications are needed? Is

1:29:59that something the council's going to

1:30:00do?

1:30:01>> I'm working on a version to then run by

1:30:03staff to then bring to this council to

1:30:05review

1:30:06as we speak. My goal is by last meeting

1:30:09in November.

1:30:10Knock on whatever, just that helps.

1:30:13>> And we've also been researching as well,

1:30:16qualifications, etc. And so

1:30:18>> Yep, staff has been doing some homework.

1:30:20>> So we'll definitely sync up with the

1:30:21mayor and

1:30:23support however we need to.

1:30:25>> Okay, cuz I'm concerned whether we get

1:30:27the right person that's the one that

1:30:29actually will do the work that we're

1:30:31wanting.

1:30:34And I'm a little concerned about

1:30:3610 of us

1:30:38directing.

1:30:39So

1:30:41unfortunately, when there's all of us

1:30:44involved, it can be a little chaotic at

1:30:47times, so

1:30:48I want to make sure there's a direct

1:30:50line established

1:30:52of how this person how their work is

1:30:55going to be

1:30:57um

1:30:59decided on and directed.

1:31:02That's very important.

1:31:04>> And Deputy Mayor, I think uh you've

1:31:05heard from your colleagues, right? Like

1:31:07essentially, um the way that it would

1:31:09work would be an annual work plan and

1:31:12audit and annual audit work plan that

1:31:14you all agree on. And I think one of the

1:31:16council members mentioned, you know, we

1:31:18anticipate this project taking 80 hours,

1:31:20another one taking, you know, 160, etc.

1:31:23Um and then again, all of you have the

1:31:25input to change that um as part of what

1:31:28they look at throughout the year.

1:31:31>> Okay.

1:31:33>> All right, we have a motion and a second

1:31:34on the floor. Just to clarify, this

1:31:36motion is to approve the adopted

1:31:38language that would be put into the

1:31:40charter. This is not yet a vote to put

1:31:42anything on the ballot in March. That's

1:31:44what's next on the agenda. So this is

1:31:46just to approve the charter what the

1:31:47charter language would be.

1:31:49With that, as I see no other questions

1:31:50or comments, I will ask City Clerk to

1:31:52take the vote, please.

1:31:53>> This also requires seven votes to

1:31:56approve.

1:32:04Councilmember Ortiz

1:32:09There we go.

1:32:11Okay, we have nine yes, the motion

1:32:13carries.

1:32:15>> All right, with that we move on to

1:32:17action item C, city clerk.

1:32:24>> C is discussion with possible action of

1:32:26an ordinance introduced by city manager

1:32:28Dr. Robert Perez calling for an election

1:32:30to be held on March 2, 2027 for the

1:32:33purpose of voting on the charter

1:32:34ordinance.

1:32:35>> City manager.

1:32:37>> Thank you, mayor and governing body. I

1:32:38don't have anything else. We

1:32:40again, as mentioned, this item would be

1:32:43to actually call for the election on

1:32:45[music] the charter ordinance that you

1:32:46just approved.

1:32:49>> We do have two people signed up for

1:32:50public comment on this item. First up,

1:32:52Mr. Joseph Ledbetter.

1:32:53>> I'll wave my right to speak on item 5C.

1:32:56>> All right, next up Mr. Henry McLear.

1:33:00>> [snorts]

1:33:01>> I'm going to talk on 5C, too. I signed

1:33:03up for that.

1:33:04>> All right.

1:33:04>> Thank you, sir.

1:33:06>> With that, are there any questions or

1:33:07comments from the governing body? If

1:33:09not, the motion is always in order.

1:33:13We have a motion to approve from the

1:33:14council member Miller and a second from

1:33:15council member Banks. And again, this

1:33:17would be to place it on the ballot along

1:33:19with the other item that we approved

1:33:21earlier this evening.

1:33:25Council member Ortiz.

1:33:27>> Do we have to pay extra for this?

1:33:30>> It would be It would be part It would be

1:33:32part of the ballot that we would put

1:33:34together.

1:33:34>> I'm just asking.

1:33:35>> I'm just [clears throat] asking. Thank

1:33:37you.

1:33:41>> There are no other questions or

1:33:42comments, then I would ask the clerk to

1:33:44take the vote, please.

1:33:51>> Okay, we have nine yes, the motion

1:33:53carries.

1:33:54>> All right, with that we will move on to

1:33:57public comments.

1:33:59First up, we have Mr. Joseph Ledbetter.

1:34:07>> Thank you, [clears throat] everybody.

1:34:09Um

1:34:11I want to talk about couple quick items

1:34:13tonight. Um

1:34:16First off,

1:34:18go over that uh new bridge, the

1:34:20Popponesset Viaduct. I I went over it

1:34:22the other day. I may even send you

1:34:24pictures of that. That's uh awesome.

1:34:27Uh it's 2 months ahead of schedule, the

1:34:30way

1:34:31really good construction projects are

1:34:33run on highways and roads.

1:34:35And it's uh

1:34:38it's really awesome. I mean, it's a

1:34:39quarter of billion-dollar project, and

1:34:41this city has has won that. And uh I was

1:34:44privileged to get to help lobby on that

1:34:47very hard. It was It was not an easy

1:34:49project to uh get through the

1:34:51legislature, but we did it.

1:34:53Um

1:34:55the only thing I was thinking about is I

1:34:57you know, after I drove over it, I said,

1:34:58"Wow, this thing is going to be We're

1:35:00going to have two bridges done in the

1:35:02time

1:35:03that it takes to

1:35:04open up Fair Lawn." And actually, it may

1:35:07be shorter.

1:35:08So, uh I just thought I'd mention that.

1:35:12I went out to uh

1:35:14one of Cody's

1:35:15uh projects today just on my own. I just

1:35:17walked through uh the mall, seeing the

1:35:20vast amount of work being done out

1:35:21there.

1:35:22And uh

1:35:24you know, Cody uh

1:35:26this city is very fortunate to have

1:35:27somebody like that of his caliber

1:35:30uh and his partner that have invested so

1:35:32much money in this community,

1:35:34including uh the building It's not AT&T.

1:35:37It's uh the building at 5th and or 6th

1:35:40and Monroe.

1:35:42I went in there today, too, just to

1:35:44look around, had a cup of coffee, uh ate

1:35:46something. I said, "You know,

1:35:48this is quality work." And uh

1:35:52you know, it I hope it does everything

1:35:54they they want it to do uh with uh

1:35:56business startups and

1:35:58uh things like like that. Um

1:36:01it's it's good to have somebody that

1:36:04actually believed in developing downtown

1:36:06and putting their own money into it. You

1:36:08don't see

1:36:09people making a lot of money in a lot of

1:36:12communities who put their money right

1:36:13back where it came from. And I I

1:36:16appreciate that about him.

1:36:18And one of the things I I appreciate

1:36:19about the mall and how he's operated it

1:36:22so far

1:36:23uh is they always have Easter egg hunts.

1:36:26Uh my little girl just loves it. She

1:36:28actually drew a card and sent it, you

1:36:30know, I had I sent it to him thanking

1:36:33him

1:36:34uh because I think there's 2,000 kids

1:36:37there the last one, probably 1,000 the

1:36:39first one. This is a guy that thinks

1:36:41about the kids. He saved the uh

1:36:44recreation area.

1:36:46Uh

1:36:46you know, he's he's done all that and

1:36:49yet he's rebuilding

1:36:52almost all of the mall, not not

1:36:53Dillards, but almost all of it.

1:36:56And uh you know, he's started at least

1:36:58five restaurants and restaurants, those

1:37:01are hard business. He redid a hotel

1:37:03downtown. I wish he would have uh been

1:37:06able to take on the Hotel Topeka and

1:37:08saved us $18 million, but uh

1:37:12uh he didn't get to do that one. But uh

1:37:16I I certainly believe uh we would not

1:37:18have forked out any money if he had had

1:37:20it. Uh it's just my opinion.

1:37:22And these comments, by the way, are

1:37:23mine, my personal opinions, okay?

1:37:27So,

1:37:28I just uh appreciate somebody like that.

1:37:31I doubt he's been thanked enough, but uh

1:37:34I'll I'll thank him. And uh I appreciate

1:37:36what he's done for this community

1:37:38and what he continues to do. And

1:37:41in addition to hiring a thousand people

1:37:43locally, you know, a lot of them live

1:37:45right here in Topeka.

1:37:47And uh

1:37:49it's it's amazing to see somebody that

1:37:51caliber step forward and do the business

1:37:53he's done here.

1:37:54Uh

1:37:55I had a friend uh

1:37:57you know, Tom Peterson that developed a

1:38:00lot of property here, but I

1:38:02he's been surpassed. Now, he's he's

1:38:04gone, but uh he did a lot of property in

1:38:07this town. And uh

1:38:09I think Cody's surpassed him with his

1:38:11partner. In fact, I know he has.

1:38:14Anyway, thank you very much. And I'm I'm

1:38:16going home to my little girl. See you.

1:38:17>> Thank you.

1:38:19Next up, Danielle Twemlow.

1:38:22>> [snorts]

1:38:31>> Thank you. I did want to um thank

1:38:34everyone. I have been seeing um a lot of

1:38:38really good questions being asked um by

1:38:41council members and a lot of

1:38:43follow-through that has been happening.

1:38:46Um also in committees and being very

1:38:48thoughtful about moving things forward

1:38:50and I really appreciate that. I think

1:38:53that that is exactly how we start seeing

1:38:55um the changes that we need to see to

1:38:57make our community thrive.

1:39:00Um

1:39:00I do want to point out something that

1:39:02hasn't come up many um times is through

1:39:06lots of my discussions that I've had

1:39:08with different um departments and um

1:39:12different leaders about

1:39:14the accountability or transparency or

1:39:16data or different things that, you know,

1:39:19we could be doing, doing initiatives, um

1:39:22things that it always comes back down to

1:39:24is um an inability to do X, Y, or Z

1:39:28because we don't have um the IT

1:39:31infrastructure. We don't have the

1:39:34ability to do X, Y, or Z, the website,

1:39:37or the IT capabilities, um the the to

1:39:40connect that. So, I would like for one

1:39:42of those uh strategic goals to include

1:39:45looking at how we can um support IT and

1:39:49to making sure that we can be um more

1:39:51active um for that transparency and

1:39:53collaboration. That really should be the

1:39:55core, you know, again going upstream as

1:39:58to why can't we do some of the things

1:40:00that we need to do to be accountable, to

1:40:02be transparent, to do the collaboration,

1:40:04to initiate this program. Um it really

1:40:07often comes back to we don't have the

1:40:10infrastructure, the digital

1:40:12infrastructure to make that happen. So,

1:40:14we we really should be looking more into

1:40:16how we can support that. Other things

1:40:19for that are really key components for

1:40:22for creating healthy cities, um

1:40:24principles that there are that

1:40:25sustainable mobility. Um the complete

1:40:28streets is a really good start to that.

1:40:31Um we need to figure out how we can fund

1:40:33public transportation better. Um clean

1:40:36energy and utilities, and the number one

1:40:39way we do that is no doubt hyperscale

1:40:42data centers, full stop.

1:40:44Um we need climate resis- resilience. Um

1:40:48more green spaces. Um we need to like,

1:40:51you know, listen to citizens and people.

1:40:54Um the number one way we bring people to

1:40:56downtown or community spaces is green

1:40:59space, um which we have none of

1:41:02downtown. And the small patch of green

1:41:04space that we did have, even with public

1:41:07objection, uh we filled it in with

1:41:09concrete, um which absolutely increases

1:41:13the heat. There's no um

1:41:15at all any sort of shade in a space that

1:41:18we want to bring and gather people.

1:41:19There's no green space for people to

1:41:21hang out and children to play. And any

1:41:23city that you go to, downtown has green

1:41:27spaces. Um but we need to see more of

1:41:29that. Um the inclusive um housing, which

1:41:32we have started on, and the and your

1:41:34actions tonight were were wonderful.

1:41:38Um economic vitality and innovation and

1:41:40over and over again it says support

1:41:42small local businesses, not throwing

1:41:46funding in on trying to attract um

1:41:48people from from out of town. Um job

1:41:51skills training which has been initiated

1:41:53um with a committee that mayor has put

1:41:56on with Liz Zone um starting with that

1:41:58effort. Anti-poverty investment, looking

1:42:01at those incentive structures, um public

1:42:04health education, we need more of the

1:42:06health department um in our meetings.

1:42:10And responsive and participatory

1:42:12governance, so that transparency, to

1:42:14that open data, clear public budgets,

1:42:17health and equity in all policies. Um

1:42:20those are, you know, reiterated time and

1:42:22time again and I want to leave you with

1:42:24that as you move forward um and and keep

1:42:28asking the questions and and keep keep

1:42:30doing the hard work.

1:42:32>> Thank you.

1:42:34Next up, Sharon Gillette.

1:42:38>> [snorts]

1:42:46>> Good evening, Mayor Duncan.

1:42:49Ladies and gentlemen of the City

1:42:51Council.

1:42:52My speech is not part of tonight's

1:42:55agenda was meant to be given a while

1:42:57back ago, but since I stayed up to 1:00

1:43:00a.m. that night while writing it, damn

1:43:03it, I'm going to I'm going to go ahead

1:43:04and give it tonight. Here goes.

1:43:07Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote a

1:43:10sonnet titled, "How Do I Love Thee? Let

1:43:14me count the ways."

1:43:16for her husband many, many years ago.

1:43:20I'm going to update that and title it,

1:43:23"How Do I Watch Thee? Let me count the

1:43:27ways."

1:43:30We as humans going about our everyday

1:43:33lives, are under surveillance.

1:43:37Some types of spying are widely known.

1:43:40We're pretty much We pretty much accept

1:43:42them.

1:43:43Ring and other security type cameras

1:43:47on our homes track walkers and cars as

1:43:51they pass by on the street or if they

1:43:54should tread on our property.

1:43:56Some of our newer model passenger cars,

1:44:00as well as many delivery type vehicles,

1:44:03such as Amazon and UPS, and many long

1:44:07distance trucking businesses use

1:44:10dashboard cameras that track eye

1:44:12movements to alert the driver if they

1:44:15become distracted or become drowsy.

1:44:19Retail stores, businesses, schools,

1:44:23medical facilities, government

1:44:24buildings, ATMs, airports, parking lots,

1:44:28and garages are just a few of the many

1:44:31places we are accustomed to seeing

1:44:34security cameras. The list goes on and

1:44:37on.

1:44:38Let's look into some other lesser known

1:44:41methods used to snoop on us.

1:44:44Many of the newer Target stores have

1:44:46shopping carts with chips implanted

1:44:50that track our movements throughout the

1:44:52store,

1:44:53supposedly to learn about consumer

1:44:56habits.

1:44:58In many Walmarts, the self-checkouts

1:45:01have an employee stationed there to

1:45:03help.

1:45:04But many times, they really seem

1:45:06distracted by their own cell phones.

1:45:09Uh-uh, these are not ordinary cell

1:45:12phones, but devices that track shoppers'

1:45:16movements from basket to price scanner

1:45:20to bagging area, monitoring the

1:45:23repetitions.

1:45:25The FCC has just

1:45:27banned newer models of foreign-made robo

1:45:31vacuums because

1:45:33some contain high-tech sensors that both

1:45:38see and record.

1:45:41Some of the new smart glasses type of

1:45:44eyewear can video tape you, but if the

1:45:47wearer is wearing a hat or has long

1:45:50hair, it can cover the warning light so

1:45:53you may not even know you're being video

1:45:55taped.

1:45:58Then there's the Flock cameras and other

1:46:00similar models that not only scan

1:46:03traffic, but are sometimes used

1:46:05illegally to stalk and track private

1:46:09citizens, suspected immigrants,

1:46:12political opponents, and on and on.

1:46:16So,

1:46:18hyperscale data centers like the one

1:46:21Compass wants to build,

1:46:23they collect, store, and make available

1:46:27all of this surveillance for big tech

1:46:30companies to use at will.

1:46:34Let's not give them another set of eyes

1:46:37in Topeka.

1:46:38Thank you.

1:46:40>> Thank you.

1:46:41Next up, Amy Gillette.

1:46:53>> Hello. Good evening. My name is Amy

1:46:55Gillette, and um first off, I want to

1:46:58thank everyone here last week for your

1:47:02questions and skepticism

1:47:05in regards to the MTA's presentation

1:47:07about their data center. Um it shows

1:47:10that you're not only listening to the

1:47:12constituents, but that you are putting

1:47:15the time into research in a way that,

1:47:17you know, perhaps other people we've

1:47:19spoken to might not be. So, please know

1:47:21that we really appreciate that. I

1:47:23certainly appreciate it. Uh Um

1:47:26So, talking a bit more about the MTAA,

1:47:29um based on reviewing the past 4 months

1:47:31of MTAA meetings, and in fact a recent

1:47:35KSNT article,

1:47:37uh we found out about something aside

1:47:39from the data center, which is what

1:47:40they're calling the Great Plains Defense

1:47:42Autonomy Hub.

1:47:44And so, this is another project that is

1:47:47going to be near Forbes Field, the

1:47:49Topeka Regional Airport, and it's

1:47:51described as four buildings. One of

1:47:53these is for e-waste recycling. Um one

1:47:56is a rare earths processing center. One

1:47:59is magnet production, and the other is

1:48:02an electric motor plant. They say it

1:48:04will be used for drone and motor

1:48:06production, possibly for autonomous

1:48:09weapons.

1:48:10Um the MTAA slides also say the facility

1:48:13is going to be exempt from property tax,

1:48:16as everything built on their sites are.

1:48:18And this one will also attract state and

1:48:20local incentives, while being part of a

1:48:23federal opportunity zone, which

1:48:25according to the Missouri Department of

1:48:27Economic Development, is a federally

1:48:29designated economically distressed

1:48:31census tract that attracts private

1:48:33investment through capital gains tax

1:48:35incentives.

1:48:36This was described in the MTAA's July

1:48:38meeting as a way for investors or

1:48:40venture capitalists to avoid capital tax

1:48:43gains burdens.

1:48:45Terrible burden of making money.

1:48:47Um According to the MTAA's president, in

1:48:50the KSNT article, this facility will

1:48:52extract rare earths from coal dust

1:48:54produced by coal power plants.

1:48:57So, these are the facts that we know, or

1:48:59at least what the MTAA has said publicly

1:49:01so far. And

1:49:03here's what else we know.

1:49:05The US Environmental Protection Agency

1:49:07classifies rare earth elements as an

1:49:09emerging contaminant present in even

1:49:11trace amounts. Rare earths elements

1:49:14extraction and e-waste disposal have the

1:49:16capacity to cause significant

1:49:18environmental harms as well as negative

1:49:20health effects for both the workers and

1:49:22nearby residents.

1:49:24So, to take a little bit of this from a

1:49:26study in 2025, quoting from that. In

1:49:29recent years, numerous studies have

1:49:31demonstrated the toxic effects of REEs,

1:49:34rare earth elements, on various

1:49:36biological systems and companies

1:49:38encompassing the respiratory,

1:49:39cardiovascular, hepatic, neurological,

1:49:42immune, and reproductive systems. REEs

1:49:45demonstrate long-lasting presence in the

1:49:47human body even years after being

1:49:49exposed to them in a workplace. Workers

1:49:51inhaling REE particles are much more

1:49:54susceptible to acquiring respiratory

1:49:56illnesses such as airway inflammation

1:49:58and fibrosis. That's from a study called

1:50:01adverse effects and underlying mechanism

1:50:03of rare earth elements.

1:50:05Numerous studies have also highlighted

1:50:08the potential reproductive damage

1:50:10associated with REE exposures because

1:50:12once these elements enter an organism,

1:50:14they tend to accumulate and disrupt the

1:50:17normal function of the endocrine and

1:50:19reproductive systems.

1:50:21We don't need even more negative impact

1:50:24in an area that is already

1:50:25environmentally stressed from the

1:50:26industry that's there, let alone the

1:50:28prospect of multiple hyperscale data

1:50:30centers coming in.

1:50:32And if all this seems really far away

1:50:34for everyone,

1:50:35the most dangerous sort of particulate

1:50:37air matter pollution that this rare

1:50:39earth

1:50:41extraction facility and also the data

1:50:42centers are particularly going to put

1:50:44out is known to travel up to 30 miles.

1:50:47So, it becomes a concern for us in the

1:50:49greater area in protecting not just us

1:50:52here in Topeka. Thank you very much.

1:50:54>> Thank you.

1:50:56Next up, Megan Ryan, who I believe is on

1:50:59Zoom.

1:51:01No, she's not.

1:51:04Next up, Henry McClure.

1:51:10>> Good evening, Your Honor, and you for

1:51:12the opportunity.

1:51:15First, to clarify um

1:51:17a point about Cody Foster, I think he's

1:51:19a great guy.

1:51:20As a matter of fact, I've got a space

1:51:23available right next to his taco.

1:51:25So, you can call Henry McClure and I'll

1:51:28get you in business.

1:51:30We can do it before Christmas. Get some

1:51:32retail sales going.

1:51:33But,

1:51:35Joe was completely wrong and I I think

1:51:38it's important to clarify Joe. Joe

1:51:39sometimes comes down here and gets you

1:51:41guys to agree with him.

1:51:44But, the AT&T building is 6th and

1:51:46Monroe.

1:51:48The 220 Southeast 6th Street, it's a

1:51:52terrible deal.

1:51:54He gets He Look at your Look at your

1:51:57real estate taxes. He pays $3,500

1:52:00in real estate taxes and he does some He

1:52:03does play an extra

1:52:05uh kick on the

1:52:07uh

1:52:08for the IRB, but and I think that's

1:52:1163,000.

1:52:12But, he's getting a over a 30% return.

1:52:17That's not his money. We use sales tax.

1:52:20We use 9 and 1/2 million in sales tax to

1:52:23fund the construction allowance

1:52:25and to fund the go to peak lease.

1:52:29But, now

1:52:30who [laughter]

1:52:32I mean

1:52:33Who wouldn't Who would turn down a 30%

1:52:35return?

1:52:38That's not his money. And then on the

1:52:40top of it, he's his uh sales tax Look,

1:52:44the mall is just an office deal. Don't

1:52:47get all worked up about the mall.

1:52:50The mall you know, Dillard's is just

1:52:53hanging on.

1:52:55But, he shouldn't be exempt

1:52:59from sales tax through his IRB. And if

1:53:02you're going to give IRBs in the city,

1:53:05we shouldn't uh give away sales tax. If

1:53:09you've got enough juice to go get an

1:53:11IRB,

1:53:13you can pay your sales tax. And the most

1:53:15of people I know want to pay sales tax.

1:53:18I mean, we need to do that.

1:53:20And you know, actually Marshall was here

1:53:23the other day saying Colby

1:53:26is the highest. Well, sales tax actually

1:53:29isn't so bad.

1:53:31The bed You know, you tax people when

1:53:33you've got no choice. It's like the

1:53:35booze. They're going to go ahead and pay

1:53:37the booze. The guy's going to check into

1:53:39the hotel. He isn't going to look, oh,

1:53:41hang on, your bed tax is too high. You

1:53:44know, I'm driving to Alma. That ain't

1:53:46going to happen.

1:53:48But

1:53:49you guys, this is a your unpaid

1:53:52consultant

1:53:53wants you to start looking forward

1:53:55because

1:53:56I think it's going to be easier to

1:53:59consolidate the government

1:54:02um with the county and the city today

1:54:06more than ever because actions speak

1:54:08louder than words. I've been looking

1:54:10into the constitutionality

1:54:12of whether the sheriff and who can

1:54:15actually sit on it and I'm going to

1:54:16start looking at Wyandotte.

1:54:19But look at our streets.

1:54:21Look at

1:54:23the hotel deal.

1:54:25Look at the state of the state. What?

1:54:27Did I hear we're 13 million deficit in

1:54:3028? What do we got to look forward to?

1:54:34We're broke. We got to do things

1:54:36differently

1:54:38and it ain't going backwards to a strong

1:54:40form of government or strong mayor form

1:54:42of government. We need to move forward.

1:54:44We need to look at Wyandotte.

1:54:49We need to look at the success of

1:54:50Legends.

1:54:55We've got to start doing things

1:54:56differently.

1:54:59And Cody Foster, if you're watching,

1:55:00buddy, I don't hate you. I love you.

1:55:02You're a great guy.

1:55:04But that doesn't mean he gets the king's

1:55:06axe.

1:55:07Thank you.

1:55:09>> Thank you.

1:55:11>> All right. If no one else signed up for

1:55:12public comment, with that, we will move

1:55:14on to announcements.

1:55:16City Clerk.

1:55:17>> The November 3rd governing body meeting

1:55:19is canceled pursuant to resolution

1:55:21number 9789. [clears throat]

1:55:22That is also general election day.

1:55:26>> City Manager.

1:55:28>> Nothing tonight, Mayor. Thank you.

1:55:29>> Councilmember Ortiz.

1:55:32>> Um doesn't matter who you vote for, just

1:55:34go out and vote.

1:55:35I gave everybody some applications,

1:55:38um via email and hard copies.

1:55:42I would hope that you would take them

1:55:43serious

1:55:44and they're free to give out. Um but

1:55:47they do save lives and they do help our

1:55:49firefighters.

1:55:51Um this is fire prevention month.

1:55:55I don't know where Chad's at. Chad, do

1:55:56you want to come up front real quick?

1:55:58If he's here.

1:56:00Say something to our people.

1:56:01>> He's not in the room.

1:56:03>> He's not here?

1:56:04>> Nope.

1:56:07So, he's not in the room, ma'am.

1:56:08>> He might be in the back, Mayor.

1:56:10>> You want me to go check, ma'am?

1:56:11>> If he if he is, I'd like him to come and

1:56:13say something.

1:56:15Um we should be pushing our fire

1:56:17prevention month

1:56:19every October, pushing it hard because

1:56:21when I see those emails, I just cringe.

1:56:24And um

1:56:27I don't I don't think that we we really

1:56:29really need [clears throat] to do that.

1:56:31Hi, Chad. Come on and and give the

1:56:33people a

1:56:38Give us some knowledge that we don't

1:56:40have that we need.

1:56:43>> Smoke detectors save lives.

1:56:46So, we did a

1:56:48press release

1:56:51uh today. I think you can see it on 6

1:56:54and 10 news.

1:56:56Uh the collaboration and partnership

1:56:58with Red Cross.

1:57:00Uh, these are free smoke detectors, um,

1:57:03called downtown.

1:57:05And we need to get them in the homes.

1:57:07So, coming up on,

1:57:10um,

1:57:10the winter months,

1:57:13uh, we need to start thinking about

1:57:15this.

1:57:16So.

1:57:19>> Appreciate it. Thank you.

1:57:21>> You're welcome.

1:57:22>> And one more thing, Mr. Mayor, if I may?

1:57:24>> Who?

1:57:25>> Cody Foster, I love you. Bye.

1:57:29>> Councilmember Banks.

1:57:31Uh,

1:57:32thank you, Mayor.

1:57:33As Councilwoman alluded to, uh,

1:57:37fire safety month is October.

1:57:40Of course, this is a time that kids are

1:57:43indulging in fire play. And currently,

1:57:48uh, I don't think we push our ordinance,

1:57:51uh, enough when it comes to

1:57:54kids using fire

1:57:56equipment like lighters or matches. It

1:58:01It is certainly a tough time for them.

1:58:04And kids express themselves through

1:58:08fire play. A lot of times it isn't

1:58:10because they're bad kids. They're trying

1:58:13to tell us something. Asking, many

1:58:15times, for help in a lot of situations

1:58:17that they can't do anything about. Uh,

1:58:21as the past educator for the fire

1:58:24department, when I look back

1:58:27and I look at the programs that we do

1:58:29now,

1:58:31are nowhere near what we should be doing

1:58:33for our kids in our community. Grown-ups

1:58:36don't have a real problem with fire

1:58:38except being careless.

1:58:41And kids sometimes mimic their

1:58:42behaviors.

1:58:44And [clears throat]

1:58:45the behaviors that they mimic sometimes

1:58:47can not just injure them, but maybe, uh,

1:58:51cost them their lives.

1:58:53And so,

1:58:55if you have kids in your neighborhood

1:58:56that you talk to, just walk up to them

1:58:59sometimes and say,

1:59:01"What do you think about being safe

1:59:03around fire and telling another kid to

1:59:06be safe?"

1:59:08That gives us as grown-ups an

1:59:09opportunity to empower these kids. And

1:59:14the ones that are doing the fireplay are

1:59:16not just limited to little kids looking

1:59:19at a candle and doing something with it.

1:59:23It goes all the way through teenagers,

1:59:25sometimes even to young adults.

1:59:29>> Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

1:59:30>> Thank you.

1:59:31>> Council member Kell.

1:59:33>> Uh two things tonight. Uh Halloween

1:59:35safety. Please make sure on Halloween,

1:59:37it's going to be a busy night cuz it's

1:59:38on a Saturday night this year. Make sure

1:59:40you're watching out for uh kids running

1:59:42around.

1:59:44Uh

1:59:44as parents, make sure you try to keep

1:59:46your kids as close as possible to you,

1:59:48checking the road before you cross, all

1:59:50that

1:59:51great stuff. Check their candy, make

1:59:53sure there's nothing in there.

1:59:55Uh we we live in a weird weird world

1:59:57nowadays. Uh there's plenty of trunk or

1:59:58treats out there, so check those out

2:00:00also as an alternative.

2:00:03Jesus.

2:00:05Uh finally, um as councilwoman said, I

2:00:07don't vote I don't care who you vote

2:00:09for, just please go out and vote. Um

2:00:11there's a uh several state offices up

2:00:13for election.

2:00:15Um

2:00:16the rural voters vote a lot more per

2:00:18capita than we do in the urban cities,

2:00:20but the top 10 urban cities in Kansas

2:00:23are

2:00:25half of the population of the state. But

2:00:29uh people

2:00:30in Topeka, sometimes they feel it's a

2:00:31burden to go out and vote or they don't

2:00:33have the time or this or that. Check

2:00:35with your your work, a lot of works

2:00:37offer hour off to go vote. You go early

2:00:40to the elections office, I think the

2:00:42week before the election and vote there

2:00:44during working hours.

2:00:46Uh just please get out and vote. It

2:00:48makes a big difference. Uh, smaller the

2:00:50election, the more your vote counts.

2:00:51But, also

2:00:52uh, when it comes to the state

2:00:53elections, uh, state officials that that

2:00:57we know will represent the urban

2:00:59environments, uh, just not the uh, rural

2:01:02environments. Thank you.

2:01:05>> Councilmember Miller.

2:01:06>> Thank you, Mayor. I did have some things

2:01:08to say about voting tonight, but I want

2:01:09to go home and see my family. So,

2:01:11everybody get out and vote. Um, you know

2:01:13what we're up against out here. Thank

2:01:15you.

2:01:16>> Councilmember Bradbury.

2:01:18>> I was going to say the same thing about

2:01:20voting. Uh, get out and vote. Doesn't

2:01:22matter who you vote for.

2:01:24Uh, just get out and exercise your right

2:01:26to vote.

2:01:28>> Councilmember McGee.

2:01:29>> Um, I'm going to

2:01:32also

2:01:33mention a little bit on fire safety.

2:01:35It's It feels like we're actually going

2:01:37to have a little bit of a fall.

2:01:40Uh, and the fall weather means that

2:01:44people are have their fire pits going.

2:01:47So, let's remember to

2:01:49be safe with fire pits. Have a source,

2:01:54uh, water source or something to put out

2:01:55the fire if it

2:01:57gets out of hand. And just

2:01:59be safe.

2:02:00Thank you.

2:02:01>> Deputy Mayor Houfford.

2:02:04>> Okay, this is the zoo minute.

2:02:07Boo at the Zoo is this Saturday, the

2:02:0924th, and next Saturday, the 24th. And

2:02:13it's a good place to take your kids. A

2:02:16safe place to go for trick-or-treating.

2:02:19And believe it or not, we are 1 month

2:02:20away from ZooLights. It opens on

2:02:24November 20th, so

2:02:27that will be coming up very quickly.

2:02:31>> Councilmember Hiller.

2:02:32>> Thank you. I want to throw in a pitch,

2:02:35um,

2:02:36uh, regarding fire safety that both our

2:02:38property maintenance code, as well as,

2:02:40uh, in fairly short order, our fire code

2:02:43is adding carbon monoxide detectors to

2:02:46that

2:02:48um safety feature in your home. Uh for

2:02:51residential, the the issue there is if

2:02:54you have any gas-fired appliances, you

2:02:57should have carbon monoxide detectors in

2:02:59addition to those smoke detectors. So,

2:03:02stay tuned for that, read up on it. You

2:03:05can get separate detector modules, or

2:03:09they also combine them in a single

2:03:11model.

2:03:13Um for Halloween, um

2:03:16I live in central Topeka, which most

2:03:18people know. One of the big dreams I

2:03:20have, particularly for our kids and for

2:03:23our neighborhoods throughout the city,

2:03:25is that people will take

2:03:27kind of turn the tide and go to door on

2:03:30their own block and in their own

2:03:31neighborhood. For me, the the real

2:03:34measure of a neighborhood coming back is

2:03:36when we all feel safe enough

2:03:38and and comfortable enough in our own

2:03:40neighborhoods to go door-to-door and

2:03:41trick-or-treat with our neighbors.

2:03:44And last, certainly vote.

2:03:47That's it. Thank you.

2:03:48>> All right.

2:03:49Nothing for me this evening. However, we

2:03:51do have a need for one executive

2:03:52session. The city attorney would state

2:03:54the motion.

2:03:57>> Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

2:03:58The motion be to recess into executive

2:04:01session for a time not to exceed 1 hour

2:04:03to discuss personnel matters involving

2:04:05non-elected personnel as justified under

2:04:08KSA 75-4319

2:04:12subsection B, subsection 1.

2:04:14The open meeting will resume in this

2:04:16room in the city council chambers. The

2:04:18following individuals will be necessary

2:04:20to aid the governing body in its

2:04:21discussion: the city attorney, human

2:04:23resources director, and any other staff

2:04:25members as needed.

2:04:27>> I would move to approve. Do I have a

2:04:29second?

2:04:30Second from council member Kemp. All

2:04:31those in favor say I. I. All those

2:04:34opposed say no.

2:04:35>> No.

2:04:36>> Miller and Ortiz is our no. With that,

2:04:38we will take a 10-minute break before we

2:04:40go into executive session. Please be

2:04:41back here at

2:04:438:14.

2:05:00We have come out of executive session.

2:05:02However, no action is being taken, but

2:05:04we need to extend our executive session.

2:05:06So, with that, I'll ask the city

2:05:07attorney to make a motion.

2:05:16Maybe.

2:05:16>> The I don't I don't have one prepared

2:05:18for that, but I would just uh the motion

2:05:20would be to extend our current executive

2:05:23uh the

2:05:24>> I didn't hear anything, just FYI.

2:05:27>> Okay, she's making the motion to I guess

2:05:29I can make I move to extend our

2:05:30executive session by an additional 45

2:05:33minutes.

2:05:34I have a second.

2:05:36Yes, under the same previous conditions.

2:05:39Do I have a second?

2:05:40Second from

2:05:41>> Second from Councilman Roddy Viera Cola.

2:05:43All those in favor say I.

2:05:44>> I.

2:05:45>> I.

2:05:46>> All those opposed say nay.

2:05:47>> Nay.

2:05:48>> Nay from Councilman Ortiz. With that, we

2:05:50are going right back into executive

2:05:51session.

2:06:01All right, we have come out of executive

2:06:02session. There is action that needs to

2:06:04be taken this evening.

2:06:06So, I'm first going to move to suspend

2:06:09the rules. I move pursuant to governing

2:06:11body rules 6.38 and 9.1 to temporarily

2:06:15suspend to the extent applicable

2:06:17the requirements in rule 7.3A and the

2:06:19restriction in rule 5.3 on taking action

2:06:22on non-action items or other items to

2:06:24permit discussion and action tonight

2:06:25regarding the duties of city manager and

2:06:27related business.

2:06:30>> I'll second the motion.

2:06:31>> Second from the Deputy Mayor.

2:06:33Yes, do we need to sign in or

2:06:36roll call vote is

2:06:41Some turned theirs off, so we'll just do

2:06:43roll call votes.

2:06:47I think Ortiz turned hers off, so she

2:06:48can do it by a voice vote.

2:06:50>> Okay.

2:06:50>> I ask the clerk to take the vote,

2:06:52please.

2:06:52>> Okay.

2:06:53So, Council member Ortiz, this is for

2:06:55suspension of rules.

2:06:57>> Yes.

2:06:57>> Yes.

2:06:58>> Okay.

2:07:04Yay, and Miller's

2:07:12There we go.

2:07:14And Council member Valdivia Aquila

2:07:17for suspension of rules. Okay.

2:07:21Okay, we have nine yes.

2:07:24>> All right, passes nine to zero.

2:07:26Next, I move to accept the resignation

2:07:29of City Manager Dr. Robert M. Perez

2:07:31effective immediately, approve a

2:07:32separation agreement between the City of

2:07:34Topeka and Dr. Perez, and authorize the

2:07:37Mayor and legally appropriate city staff

2:07:38to execute the agreement on behalf of

2:07:40the city.

2:07:42>> I'll second the motion.

2:07:43>> Have a second from the Deputy Mayor. I

2:07:45would ask the clerk to take the vote,

2:07:46please.

2:07:52>> This one, right?

2:07:55Resignation?

2:07:57All right.

2:07:59Um Council member Ortiz

2:08:00>> Yes.

2:08:01>> and Valdivia Aquila

2:08:04>> Yes.

2:08:08>> Okay, we have nine yes.

2:08:11>> All right, passes nine to zero.

2:08:13Next, I move to appoint Deputy City

2:08:15Manager Braxton Copley as Acting City

2:08:17Manager effective immediately upon

2:08:19Robert Perez's departure with authority

2:08:21to exercise the powers and perform the

2:08:22duties of the City Manager until a

2:08:24successor in term City Manager or

2:08:26permanent City manager appointed by the

2:08:28governing body assumes those duties

2:08:30unless otherwise directed by the

2:08:32governing body.

2:08:33>> And I'll second the motion.

2:08:34>> Have a second from the deputy mayor. I

2:08:36would ask the clerk to take the vote,

2:08:37please.

2:08:38>> Okay. Council member Valdivia-Aquila?

2:08:41>> Yes.

2:08:42>> And Ortiz?

2:08:43>> Yes.

2:08:47>> Okay, we have nine yes.

2:08:48>> Okay, passes nine to zero.

2:08:51Next, I move to authorize the city

2:08:52attorney on behalf of the city of Topeka

2:08:54to negotiate and finalize an employment

2:08:56agreement with Michael Webb to serve as

2:08:58interim city manager consistent with the

2:09:00compensation benefits and other material

2:09:01terms approved by this motion. The

2:09:03agreement shall provide for service

2:09:05beginning Monday, October 26th, 2026 or

2:09:08another date mutually agreed upon by the

2:09:10city and Mr. Webb under the agreement. I

2:09:12further move to authorize the mayor and

2:09:14legally appropriate city staff to

2:09:15execute the agreement following the city

2:09:17attorney's approval to appoint Michael

2:09:19Webb as interim city manager effective

2:09:21on the commencement date established in

2:09:22the executed agreement subject to its

2:09:24terms.

2:09:25>> I second the motion.

2:09:28>> All right, I would ask the clerk to take

2:09:29the vote, please.

2:09:30>> Yes.

2:09:32>> Council member Valdivia-Aquila?

2:09:34>> Yes.

2:09:39>> Okay, we have nine yes, the motion

2:09:40carries.

2:09:41>> City attorney, are there any other steps

2:09:43or actions that need to be taken by this

2:09:45governing body this evening?

2:09:46>> Not this time, mayor.

2:09:48>> Then with that, this meeting is

2:09:49adjourned at 9:31.