District 4 Advisory Board

District 4 Advisory Board Minutes February 3, 2020 www.wichita.gov The District 4 Advisory Board meeting was held at 6:30 p.m. at the Alford Library at 3447 S. Meridian, Wichita, KS 67217. There were nine (9) District Advisory Board members in attendance. DAB Member Michael Gomm officiated. There were eight (8) City Staff and seven (7) members of the public present. DAB Members Present DAB Members Absent Dalton Glasscock Kit Corby Michael Gomm Stephanie Hartman June Johnson David Kapaun Guests Matt Lashley Jim Waton Alex Martinez Chris Stark Don McManamey Alan Kailer Jonathan McRoy Jeff Best Rebecca Robertson David Long Brett Letkowski Council Member Erik Maybee Vice Mayor Jeff Blubaugh Staff Present Staff Present (continued) Rebecca Fields – Community Services Dist. 4 Lt. Matt Schulte - WFD Paul Gunzelman – Public Works Scott Wadle - Transit CP Officer Robert Kempf – Patrol South Bryon Jabara - WFD CP Officer David Perkins – Patrol West Dave Yearout - MAPD ORDER OF BUSINESS At 6:31 p.m. DAB Member Michael Gomm opened and called the meeting to order. He then asked everyone to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Mr. Gomm proceeded with the agenda and asked approval for the February 3, 2020 agenda. DAB Member Don McManamey made a motion to approve and DAB Member David Kapaun gave a 2nd. Motion was approved 9/0. The next item was approval for the January 6, 2020 DAB meeting minutes. DAB Member Jonathan McRoy motioned to approve and DAB Member Dalton Glasscock gave the 2nd. Motion was approved 9/0. STAFF REPORTS DAB Member Michael Gomm asked for the Fire Department report and Cpt. Jim Heath stepped up to the podium. Cpt. Heath reported there were seven (7) fires in District 4, several causing significant damage. There were a total of 24 fire alarms, 57 service alarms, and 390 medical alarms. Page 1 of 6  District 4 Advisory Board Minutes February 3, 2020 www.wichita.gov Cpt. Heath then relayed the story where a man was working on a vehicle in his garage and accidently set the garage on fire. The resident tried putting out the fire himself, so by the time 9- 1-1 was called and the fire unit dispatched, the firefighters could see the flames of the structure when they left the fire station. Cpt. Heath warned everyone to keep their trash carts away from touching their homes. The fire that occurred at Osage Park on January 11 was due to a trash bin catching on fire where someone had thrown a cigarette. The fire caused an estimated $70,000 in damage to the Osage Park Recreation Center. Councilman Blubaugh then asked Cpt. Heath if there was ever a time when there were not enough resources for the Fire Department in District 4 when there was a fire. Cpt. Heath carefully replied that they run 2 trucks and 5 staff around 50% of the time, and often trucks from other stations need to join them in their efforts. Councilman Blubaugh stated that District 4 is the largest District geographically and he wants to make sure that the Fire Department has the necessary resources for public safety. Mr. Blubaugh thanked Cpt. Heath for the great job they do and would like to help make their jobs a little less stressful. Officer Perkins from Patrol West then stepped up to the podium and reported that all crimes were currently down for the month of January (robberies, burglaries, larcenies, and auto thefts). Officer Perkins said that they are probably down due to several arrests that were previously made. However, larcenies to autos are up 39% (for Patrol West), and he reminded everyone to lock their cars, don’t leave anything in plain view, especially firearms. Year-to-date since January 1st, Patrol West reports 20 stolen firearms from vehicles. Patrol South reports 12, Patrol East reports 15, and Patrol North report 3. If this trend continues, there could be upwards of 400 firearms stolen just from vehicles in 2020. Recently, traffic units from Patrol West patrolled for speeders on Maple Street from Ridge Road to 135th Street West. As of January 22nd, they had issued a minimum of 34 citations. They will soon be running radar on Pawnee from Maize Road to 135th St West. Officer Perkins asked for any questions, and DAB Member June Johnson asked about the status of the While Glove Motel on west Kellogg. Officer Perkins states the White Glove Motel was sold, and that there are only 4 rooms at this motel that were approved to be rented out. The rest are uninhabitable. Councilman Blubaugh then said that yesterday afternoon a man had come to his door selling cleaning supplies. Mr. Blubaugh said that he took a picture of the man and a picture of his vehicle tag. He said that the man had a “badge”, but when Mr. Blubaugh gave the information to the Police, he found out that the man had just gotten out of jail for burglary. Councilman Blubaugh warned everyone to be leery of people that go door-to-door like this. Officer Perkins stated that anyone selling door-to-door within the City of Wichita is required to have a merchant’s license from the City of Wichita. He further suggested that if anyone comes to your door saying that they ran out of gas, or need to use your bathroom, not to let them inside. Most of these requests are so they can case your house or go through your medicine cabinet in search of drugs. Tell them that you can make a phone call or call 911 on their behalf. Page 2 of 6  District 4 Advisory Board Minutes February 3, 2020 www.wichita.gov Officer Robert Kempf from Patrol South then took the podium to give the statistics from Patrol South in District 4. In January there were 89 burglaries from motor vehicles, 38 aggravated assaults, 20 auto thefts, 16 residential burglaries, 10 non-residential burglaries, 4 individual robberies, and 1 robbery of a business. The auto thefts were up 2%, and auto thefts, aggravated assaults, and drive-by shootings were up significantly. On a positive note, domestic violence cases were down in numbers. Officer Kempf said that their South Broadway Corridor Team continued to monitor motels and other hot spots on south Broadway for crime. There were no questions for Officer Kempf. Robyn Belt, Manager of the Alford Branch Library then took the podium. Ms. Belt reports that Alford’s Circulation count for January was 9,053 items. Alford’s gate count for January was 5,996 visits. This Thursday evening we are hosting a screening of the Academy Award Nominees for Best Short Film in the Live Action and Animated categories. The event begins at 4:30pm, and each film is 40 minutes or less. Several of the films contain adult themes and may not be suitable for children under age 12. You can now access downloadable audiobooks with your Wichita Public Library card. Visit the Wichita E-Reads section on the library website or the Overdrive app on your mobile device to see our available titles. They have about 200 titles that are available all the time, and others that will be featured. The library will be giving free faxes to anyone that was laid off during the recent aviation layoffs. All Wichita Public Library locations will be closed Monday, February 17 in observance of President’s Day. Customers with a library card in good standing can still access our digital resources online while the library is closed. There were no questions for Ms. Belt. PUBLIC AGENDA No one spoke on the public agenda. NEW BUSINESS At this time Paul Gunzelman, Engineer for Public Works, came to the podium to present concepts for the Delano Path and update on path from Exposition Street to the Prairie Sunset Trail. The presentation was in a PDF format, and you can see/hear the presentation by watching the video that is posted on the Wichita District 4 Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/WichitaCityCouncilDistrict4/videos/476076246417069/ The first phase of this project is scheduled for construction and completion in 2021 and the next phase will be constructed in 2023. Brett will present an update for the bicycle paths that will then connect the Delano Path to the Prairie Sunset Trail that is located west of the Big Ditch. Both of these programs are in the Capital Improvement Program. Mr. Gunzelman then handed the Page 3 of 6  District 4 Advisory Board Minutes February 3, 2020 www.wichita.gov presentation over to Jeff Best with LK Architecture, the company that is contracted to design the Delano Path concept. DAB Member Don McManamey asked if this information was available on line, and Mr. Best stated that Delano United has it uploaded on their website. Mr. McManamey further commented that updated bicycle maps and destinations would be helpful to out-of-town visitors that are here on business. Councilman Blubaugh was wondering why a park was being incorporated into the Delano Path when Seneca Park and Delano Park are all located a few blocks away. Mr. Blubaugh states that the budget doesn’t allow for maintaining all of the current parks. There were a few other questions and comments from DAB Members, before Brett Letkowski with TranSystems presented the concepts and ideas for connecting the Delano Path to the Prairie Sunset Trail. Councilman Blubaugh asked if this would be completed by 2023, and was told that the construction would not begin until 2023. One of the major obstacles of this plan would be crossing West Street and the Big Ditch. These will be worked out as they continue to explore options. Mr. Letkowski stated that crossing West Street further south of McCormick would not work due to having no right of way and that it is a very concentrated area of industry along West Street south of McCormick. Downtown Streets Conceptual Plan was the next item on the agenda presented by Scott Wadle, Senior Management Analyst with the City of Wichita Transit Department. (You can view this plan by going to http://www.wichita.gov/Parking/Pages/DowntownStreets.aspx) A grant has provide money for a substantial part of this plan. There will be an open house on March 24 that will allow the public for more input. Mr. Wadle states that a significant amount of data has been collected during the past year in order to gather feedback from the public as to their concerns and what is deemed the most important to commuters and those who live in the downtown area. Mr. Wadle shared maps of the most traveled areas of public transit, private vehicle traffic, and bicycle paths. He then shared that the plan looked at how improvements could be made that considers safety, walkability, and best traffic flows. Another consideration is to turn one-way streets into two-way streets. Mr. Wadle showed several drafts of potential bicycle and transit networks. Councilman Blubaugh asked Mr. Wadle if the multi-modal center that is planned for Delano would be built first before the Downtown Streets Plan is implemented. Mr. Wadle replied that this hasn’t been worked out yet, but welcomes any feedback that Councilman Blubaugh has on this issue. Another concern was how traffic lights will be synchronized in order to allow for better traffic flow. Mr. Wadle replied that Traffic Engineering is looking into new modules that update the Page 4 of 6  District 4 Advisory Board Minutes February 3, 2020 www.wichita.gov current traffic lights in downtown Wichita. Additionally, there are concerns about how some of the width of some streets is affecting the street parking in downtown Wichita. DAB Member Rebecca Robertson questioned why there were the issues of the street widths in downtown Wichita, especially the problem with Market Street that has a very narrow left lane that jogs after an intersection. Mr. Wadle states he is unsure as to why this has occurred since it has been this way for decades. DAB Member Don McManamey would like to see consistency throughout the downtown area so it is less confusing. When Mr. McManamey recently traveled to Central Key and Safe on north Market St., there was no where to park. DAB Member June Johnson concurred that this is confusing and that the “delivery only” parking space is allowed to be used as a parking space for those who trade at this particular retailer. There were no further questions or comments for Mr. Wadle, so Chairman Gomm moved forward on the agenda. Mr. Dave Yearout, Principal Planner with the Metropolitan Area Planning Department (MAPD) presented the next two cases: CON2019-00053: The District IV Advisory Board considered an application to request a Conditional Use to allow outdoor vehicle and equipment sales on property zoned LC Limited Commercial ("LC") located on the west side of South Meridian Avenue and south of West McCormick Avenue. The subject property is a paved, parking lot that has been secured with a chain- linked fence, with the west 10 feet of the lot unpaved. There are no buildings presently on the property. The applicant has provided a proposed site plan indicating a 10-foot by 12-foot building will be established to serve as the office for the proposed sales lot. There are four parking spaces for customers shown to the west of the proposed building, with two existing trees along the west property line to remain for landscaping. DAB member Michael Gomm asked if there were any objections from neighbors/residents at MAPD, and Mr. Yearout replied no. DAB Member Dalton Glasscock motioned for the DAB to approve and DAB Member Don McManamey gave a 2nd motion. Motion was approved 9/0. ZON2019-00057: The District IV Advisory Board considered an application to request rezoning of the 4.7 acre subject property from SF-5 Single-Family Residential (SF-5) to GC General Commercial (GC), that is located on the west side of South Seneca Street and north of West 63rd Street South, in order to match the zoning with the rest of the land owned by the applicant at this location and to accommodate the expansion of the business (Chance & Sons Transmission). The subject property is being platted as Chance & Sons Transmissions, Inc., Addition, and is also impacted by a drainage channel which provides surface drainage to the Wichita-Valley Center Floodway facility further to the south. The plat provides proper designation and protection for the drainage improvements. Page 5 of 6  District 4 Advisory Board Minutes February 3, 2020 www.wichita.gov The surrounding neighborhood has existing GC zoning and commercial uses on the west side of South Seneca Street north of 63rd Street South owned by the applicant. The property at the northeast corner of South Seneca Street and West 63rd Street South is also zoned GC, but occupied with a single-family residence. The land to the north and west is zoned SF-5 Single-Family Residential (SF-5) and occupied with single-family homes. Property south of 63rd Street is zoned RR Rural Residential (RR) and occupied with single-family homes. No one in attendance at the DAB meeting objected to this case. Mr. Yearout explained that this has not yet been heard by MAPC, but he has not received any calls objecting to it. DAB Member Matt Lashley motioned for the DAB to approve and DAB Member David Kapaun gave a 2nd motion. The motion was approved 9/0. BOARD AGENDA As there was no Old Business on the agenda, Chairman Gomm then opened up the meeting for discussion amongst the DAB Members. Mr. Gomm stated that he was happy to report that all 4 lanes of West Street were currently re-opened. Councilman Blubaugh stated would like the City to consider repurposing Century II as that seems to be what the majority of his constituent are wanting. DAB Member Johnson stated she had heard that Wink Hartman was willing to finance whatever it took to keep Century II. Councilman Blubaugh asked everyone to keep Commissioner O’Donnell in their prayers as Michael O’Donnell Senior, pastor of Grace Baptist Church, passed away yesterday, February 2, unexpectedly while in Miami, Fl. Councilman Blubaugh had a two-hour meeting with Mayor Whipple last Tuesday and thinks that Mayor Whipple has some really good ideas and Jeff is very optimistic about the new Mayor. Jeff thinks that having fresh eyes on the City Council will be good for Wichita. Another issue that Councilman Blubaugh mentioned was the 1-year contract that is held by WAVE to hold 20 events at Naftsger Park in downtown Wichita. Mr. Blubaugh said he was contacted by other companies who said they did not know there was a Request For Proposal (RFP) that had been opened by the City of Wichita for this park, and Jeff is wanting more consistency and transparency on these types of contracts. Dab Member Jonathan McRoy commented that he was very happy to see a Wichita Transit bus at the McConnell AFB, and that there were people on that bus. Chairman Gomm then asked for a motion to adjourn. DAB Member Matt Lashley made a motion and DAB Member June Johnson gave the 2nd motion. Motion was approved 9/0. The meeting adjourned at 8:00 pm. Page 6 of 6