District 6 Advisory Board

District VI Advisory Board Minutes www.wichita.gov Monday Evergreen Branch Library August 6, 2018 2601 N. Arkansas, Wichita, KS 67204 6:30 p.m. Conference Room The District VI Advisory Board meeting was held at 6:30 p.m. at the Evergreen Branch Library conference room, 2601 N. Arkansas, Wichita, KS 67204. There were six District Advisory Board members, the Council Member, ten staff members and four members of the public in attendance. Members Present Staff Present Joel Weihe Matt Williams, Metropolitan Area Planning Department Lorenza Snyder Lieutenant Sarah Oldridge, WPD Gregory Boyajian Officer Nate Schweithale, WPD Bill Longnecker Officer Steve Jerrell, WPD Matt Brown Officer Francisco Tejeda, WPD Gisela Peña Captain Carlos Rodriguez, WFD Carrington Thom (Youth member) Three WFD firefighters Council Member Cindy Claycomb Brandon Findley, Office of Community Services Members Absent Guests Shaun Rojas Charlene Manning Angela Martinez Kendice Talty Denise O’Leary-Seimer Scott Thane James Deckhard Carolyn Lindsey Linda Matney Call to Order Council Member Cindy Claycomb called the meeting to order. Approval of Minutes The minutes for July 18, 2018 were approved. Motion passed (6-0) Citizen Agenda Scheduled items: None Off-agenda items: Dan Warren spoke about dust that is being created from the dirt roads in his neighborhood and its potential effects on the population in the area. After giving his presentation he asked that Public Works determine when the silt fraction level would be high enough to endanger people’s health. He also asked that the District Advisory Board support him in requesting that Public Works determine the level of silt fraction that is unacceptable and produce a plan to further mitigate dust from dirt roads in his neighborhood. Kendice Talty spoke on behalf of several different churches in the Delano community in protest of the new business, Tight Ends Sports Bar, to be located in the new Delano development. She stated that the collective believes this business exploits women for profit and highlighted concerns about the attire that waitresses are required to wear, which the collective deemed highly inappropriate and not conducive to the family atmosphere of other businesses in the area. Carolyn Lindsey wished to echo the sentiments of the previous speaker, Kendice Talty. She stated that she doesn’t have a problem with a sports bar being built in the area but has a problem with this particular sports bar. She stated that she understands that the City isn’t in a position to do much because the property is zoned properly but that Delano has worked very hard to be recognized as family friendly and this type of establishment could hurt the community because it is more of a gentlemen’s club than a restaurant due to the attire of wait staff.  August 6, 2018 Patrick Murphy, representing the Delano United organization, stated that he understands that the Tight Ends Sports Bar is being built according to appropriate zoning regulations, but that he wanted it to be known for the record that it is not appreciated. He stated that the original idea was to bring a grocery store to that location, which was very well received by the community. He stated feeling like the new introduction of this sports bar was deceptive to the citizens in the area. He also stated that there is currently a petition with over 500 signatures in protest of the sports bar due to the community wanting the area to be family friendly. Charlene Manning protested the closing of the Evergreen and Linwood libraries and asked if it was still a consideration being considered. Council Member Claycomb explained that the libraries had been secured for at least another year while the Library Branch Study was further examined, but that monies had to be shifted from other projects to do so, which means it is only a temporary fix while a permanent solution is being considered. Action Taken: Receive and file Staff Reports Fire Department Report: Captain Carlos Rodriguez gave the fire report and informed the community that there would soon be another Fire Department Academy if anyone was interested before being called away on fire. Community Police Report: Officer Schweithale, WPD Patrol South, gave an update on the Old Town area. He stated that undercover police officers and the Old Town camera system had been utilized to make a dozen or more arrests and various warnings associated with drinking in public. He also stated that Officer Darrin Williams had been added to the Homeless Outreach Team roster and is now working with their office. He also reported that Washington DC had recognized the Wichita Homeless Outreach Team as an industry best practice and will be having them come to DC to explain how they operate their program. Officer Jerrell, WPD Patrol North, stated that there had been a string of garage burglaries that had been greatly reduced after making a couple of arrests of suspected thieves. He also stated that car break-ins are a big issue right now. He encouraged people not to leave items in their car to avoid temptation for thieves. He also asked that people be prepared for pedestrian traffic as school starts back up. DAB: Do you know the ratio of break-ins on locked vs. unlocked cars? Officer Jerrell: No, I am afraid I do not. I can say that detached garages tend to be burglarized more than attached garages though. DAB: Can you tell us about the bicycle patrols in the area? Officer Jerrell: We currently have bicycle patrols on Broadway, which are trying to clean up some of the crime that takes place in that area. We also have bicycle patrols in other areas and they operate just like other police officers. Officer Tejeda, WPD Patrol West, stated that there were six auto thefts in the area last month and that after an arrest was made those numbers dropped significantly. He also stated that there would be a summer discovery event coming up in Orchard Park and that Bryant Opportunity Academy will soon be opening in the area as well. He also asked that there have been instances of gun thefts from cars and would ask that people be vigilant about protecting their firearms from theft. He also reported that with the NBC baseball tournament happening at Lawrence Dumont Stadium, there was an increase in vehicle larcenies. He also stated that the department has stepped up its no loitering ordinance at Exploration Place due to problems in the parking lot after hours recently. Officer Jerrell: We would also like to mention that Neighborhood Night Out will be next Tuesday the 14th and we would like to see the numbers increase. You can get on the City’s website to set up an event. Also next Saturday, August 18th is the Love Your Community event at Evergreen. They will have a free car show, talent show, food and clothing in addition to a lot of different activities. We expect 800 to 1000 people at the event. Action Taken: Receive and file  August 6, 2018 New Business ZON2018-00023 Matt Williams, Metropolitan Area Planning Department, presented an application from R&M Investments I, LLC (applicant) and InSite Real Estate (agent) requesting CBD Central Business District zoning on 0.39 platted acres located at the northwest corner of West Douglas Avenue and North Osage Street. The subject site is currently zoned GC General Commercial, and is developed as a commercial building. The building on the site has zero lot-line setbacks on the north, south and west sides. The requested CBD zoning would provide maximum flexibility with code required parking and building setback standards. The site is located within the Delano District, a commercial district serving west downtown Wichita with a variety of commercial, personal service and entertainment uses since the 1870’s. The site is within the Delano Neighborhood Plan area, and the Delano Overlay Neighborhood District (D-O). There is currently a project under way by the Metropolitan Area Planning Department (MAPD) to develop an updated area plan for the Delano district. The Metropolitan Area Planning Commission (MAPC) voted to approve this plan on March 8, 2018. At this time the plan is awaiting final City Council approval. One strategy in the plan is to rezone all of Douglas Avenue between Seneca Street and the river to CBD; to allow for continued development of this type, accommodate existing uses, and preserve the character of this important piece of the neighborhood. This rezoning case would support that effort. Questions/Comments from the DAB: Council Member Claycomb: Do any board members have anything to say about the case? DAB: What I read with respect to Central Business District and General Commercial, it seems that the major difference was that it eliminates any setback for a business district and then the parking places are then shareable and not obligated to a particular business. Other than that, they looked almost identical. That’s my synopsis. Action Taken: Weihe/Longnecker made a motion to approve the request. Motion passed 6-0 Issues of Concern Greg Boyajian: The walking path on the east side of the river by the 14th hole has overgrown trees and bushes that need to be trimmed. This causes a hazard for bicyclists and pedestrians. Neighborhood Reports Gisela Peña: On the 24th of July, we opened the Mercadito Hispano at the Nomar Plaza. We currently have 25 vendors and small businesses in the Mercadito. We are open Saturday from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. and Sunday 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. We have different entertainment and live music, activities for the kids and lots of different foods and merchandise. It is a lot of fun for the whole family and we will be open every weekend until October 28th. Matt Brown: Orchard Park is having a Movie Night on September 25th inside the Orchard Park Recreational Center Gym and we will be showing the movie Ferdinand. Council Member Claycomb: I have just a couple of things to add. Some of you are wondering about the fireworks report. The City Manager informed me that we will be covering that at a City Council Workshop soon. We will also ask that the results be presented to the DAB in October. Also in terms of the budget, the closure of the branch libraries was taken out and City Arts will be staffed as it has been and we will be researching a responsible model for running that facility with the Arts Council over the course of the next year. Clapp Golf Course will still be closed, but it will not be closed until after a master plan has been developed. One proposal is to not have every golf course open on every day in the winter months, but only to have one golf course open per day on a rolling schedule. The master plan for Clapp golf course should be complete by June of 2019. The current idea is to close the Clapp golf course and convert it into some type of greenspace, but that plan is not complete yet.  August 6, 2018 Greg Boyajian: Has the City done any research on what other cities similar to ours are doing to grow and attract business to their area and what amenities in respect to parks, libraries etc. they are creating to grow their city? If this is being done, I would say from my perspective that work isn’t being well conveyed to the public. So with that being said, would it be reasonable to allow the City to start presenting that information at DAB meetings so that we can compare ourselves to other cities and start a conversation as to how to change things in an effective way based on data. Council Member Claycomb: I don’t know that we have formally done this. We certainly have looked at pieces of that picture though and we could probably pull something together. Greg Boyajian: I think that would be a good approach. We seem to be making decisions simply based on the budget, but we need to be more focused on what cities are doing to keep growing and what they are not doing that is causing them to shrink. ADJOURN Meeting was adjourned. Respectfully Submitted, Brandon Findley District VI Community Service Representative Office of Community Services