District 4 Advisory Board

District IV Advisory Board Meeting Minutes June 03, 2013 www.wichita.gov The District IV Advisory Board Meeting was held at the 6:30 p.m. at the Lionel Alford Branch Library, 3447 S Meridian. Six (6) DAB members, six (6) staff and seven (7) citizens were present. Members Present Staff Present Councilmember Blubaugh Kelli Geier, City Manager’s Office Don McManamey City Manager Robert Layton John Whitmer 2 police staff June Bailey 2 fire staff Nancy Wilhite Jerry Warren Craig Gabel Order of Business Call To Order Councilmember Blubaugh called the meeting to order at 6:50 p.m. The June 3, 2013 agenda was approved as submitted. (Bailey/Warren: 6-0) The May 6, 2013 meeting minutes were approved as submitted. (Gabel/Wilhite: 6-0)* PUBLIC AGENDA The public agenda allows members of the public to present issues not on the agenda to the District Advisory Board. Each presentation is limited to five minutes unless extended by the Board. 1. Scheduled Items No items were submitted. 2. Off-Agenda Items No items were submitted.  STAFF PRESENTATIONS Public Safety Reports 3. Community Police Report Police staff reported the following:  28 beat o Community Police Officer Floyd has been reassigned to another police beat o May crime statistics:  17 larcenies  2 auto thefts  6 residential burglary  29 beat o May crime statistics:  3 auto thefts  many larcenies – shoplifting  2 burglaries – 1 nonresidential  299 beat o Special assignments  handing out flyers informing people of burglaries in the area and how to help prevent them  assisted HUD with an audit on the Windridge Apartments – did a survey on who lives there and checked for any outstanding warrants on residents  sex offender sweep with Sedgwick County to make sure that these offenders live and work where they have reported.  13 beat o Last month crime statistics:  9 residential burglaries – trying to identify suspects, but no leads  2 business robberies  same business robbed twice, TP’s Smokehouse  suspect robbed other businesses and was caught last Monday  14 beat o Sunflower NA had a very successful cleanup  58 volunteers  3 skids  1 recycle skid  18 cubic yards of trees to mulch   Pocket Park is active during Riverfest, so police are monitoring it closely. CM Blubuagh asked what the police department thinks of the Riverfest. Officers responded that some officers like it because of the overtime and it is pretty organized. It was also asked what the crime statistics are for Riverfest. Officers replied that they did not have those available. It was also asked how far the west boundary is for the River Festival. Officers stated that Lawrence Dumont is the west boundary for off-duty officers. 4. Fire Report Fire staff reported the following:  District 4 May fire calls o 5 arson o 2 accidental o 1 under investigation  574 medical response calls – decrease from 587 in 2012 o 70% of calls are medical response calls  There will be a fire camp at South High with 180 eighth graders participating Councilmember Blubaugh asked if there were going to be any public meetings regarding fireworks safety. Fire staff stated that they will have the usual media coverage and public service announcements to promote fireworks safety. They also stated that the six foot rule is still in effect. Fireworks cannot shoot more than six feet out or six feet up. Any fireworks over these limits are not allowed in the City of Wichita. Councilmember Blubaugh suggested that fire staff attend the district breakfast June 29 to inform the public on this issue. Action Taken: Received and filed. NEW BUSINESS 5. Preliminary Budget Review: 2014-2015 Robert Layton, City Manager, presented a preliminary overview of the current financial environment, with a review of City revenue and expenditures trends; as well as, financial projections relative to the development of the 2014-2015 Proposed Budget. Community input is being sought to define priorities and develop ideas on appropriate service levels and priority areas to incorporate into the budget. This is the first budget meeting with the District Advisory Boards. Later, a joint meeting of all the DABs is tentatively scheduled for June 26, 2013. This later meeting will include the presentation of specific strategies being considered as the 2014 – 2015 Proposed Budget is finalized. Staff is available to further discuss these strategies at the July DABs as well. The operating budget will be reviewed by the City Council in July and adopted on August 13th to be in compliance with state law. Gabel asked about our community comparison with others in that our budget is 70% payroll. Layton stated that pension benefits are difficult to change. Staff did an analysis last year and found that the pension system will be in the red for the next five or six years because people are retiring and there are not enough new employees to sustain it. He added that the retirement and pension systems are currently 90% funded. Whitmer and Bailey asked why City employees are allowed to be vested into the retirement system after only seven years. Layton stated that he was not sure, as this decision was made long before he became City Manager. It was also asked if we are self-insured and Layton responded that the City is self-insured. He added that we had a drop in healthcare coverage for 2013, but with the new healthcare plan that is going into effect next year, the City is predicting a 10 – 18% increase in these costs. Bailey asked if the budget was accessible to the public in its entirety. Layton stated that the previous budget was available for full public view, but the new one is not. Bailey asked if the City was expecting any changes with state and federal government that will affect the budget. Layton said that gas tax revenue is going to present changes since gas prices are up and consumption is down. Gabel asked if there were cost savings with consolidating the City and Sedgwick County Offices of Central Inspection. Layton replied that they have seen minimal savings, but the consolidation was intended to make the department more customer friendly and easier to do business with. In three or four years when cross training employees is complete and construction and building permits increase, there may be more savings realized. Whitmer asked about the mill levy for the Bombardier expansion budget item. Layton stated that the mill has now been moved back, so there is $800,000 available, but it is not included back in the general fund. Bailey asked if the City is filling vacant positions from within. Layton said that we are trying to do this, but currently we do not have a lot of layoffs right now, just vacant positions that are not being filled when possible. Bailey also asked if some positions are doing furloughs. Layton stated that we have not had to furlough any City positions for a couple of years, but there may be a few federally funded positions that we may do this with in the upcoming year. Bailey asked about water conservation. Layton responded that the City is going public tomorrow with measures to help conserve water and is asking the public to help make staff aware of any leaks or other ineffective water practices that we can change to save water. Bailey asked about City owned property that isn’t being used. Layton stated that we are going to look at these vacant properties which aren’t being used to see if we can sell them and/or deed them over to adjacent property owners, which includes alleys. Bailey asked about the status of the neighborhood cleanups for next year. Layton stated that the funding for neighborhood cleanups will remain the same for next year as it is this year. Bailey encouraged the City to have a conversation with Sedgwick County regarding coupons for citizens to dump their trash at the landfill. Layton said that he will follow up on this idea. McManamey asked about the status of the Hawker Beechcraft tax credits. Layton explained that Hawker had to maintain their workforce and they fell short of this requirement in 2012 and will have to pay back these monies when they do not meet their obligations. McManamey asked if their obligation to meet this requirement changes if they file bankruptcy. Layton replied that it does not. Layton and Councilmember Blubaugh stated that they have toured the Hawker facility recently and they are doing some great things with their leadership and technology. They are getting back on track and producing about three planes a week. Whitmer asked when the Starwood call center would be ready. Layton responded that it should be ready by the end of the year. Josh Blick, 2039 S Everett, inquired about a pipeline to pump gray water to and from Botanica. Layton said that this is a project the City is hoping to do and increase the use of gray water overall in City use when appropriate. Layton also remarked that the ASR project is so beneficial for this because you can use 100% of the gray water and are not obligated to do a controlled release like Cheney which we are required to release some water downstream. Action Taken: Provided feedback and comment. OLD BUSINESS 6. No items were submitted. BOARD AGENDA 7. Board Updates and Issues CM Blubaugh reminded everyone that in order to help the drought situation, there will need to be a behavioral change on all of our parts and we will need to educate the public about conserving water. Bailey asked how we would handle senior citizens who had leaks and can’t afford to pay the expensive water bill. Whitmer replied that if your water bill is unusually high, you get a warning first. Bailey also commented that the City needs to set an example with low flush toilets, more water efficient landscaping, etc. Gabel presented to the Board a study regarding weather and precipitation patterns in relation to our concern with water conservation. CM Blubaugh also introduced and welcomed the new DAB Board members present at the meeting that will join the Board when they sworn in at the July: Peggy Bennett, Bennie Bowman and Matt Lashley. 8. Adjournment With no further business, the meeting adjourned at 7:53 p.m.