City Commission - Regular Meeting

Thanks.

The Garden City City Commission regular scheduled meeting is called to order. Today is Tuesday, July 7, 2026. The time is 1 p.m. Madam Clerk, do I have a quorum?

Yes, Mayor.

Vice Mayor Orler will present the Pledge of Allegiance and invocation.

Please stand. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, Mrs. Sproul.

Heavenly Father, we meet today to conduct the business of our community and we ask for the clarity to make thoughtful, fair decisions that serve all our residents. May we work together with integrity and focus on the common good. We also pause to ask for safety for our first responders that they may be protected as they serve on the front lines each day. Let our discussions today be productive and for the benefit of Garden City. Amen.

Amen.

Next is the approval of the minutes of the last regular meeting, which if no corrections are offered, shall stand approved. Are there any corrections? Seeing none, they shall stand approved. On five is a section for public comment. This is an opportunity for members of the public to come up and offer comments to the city commission. If you come up, please state your name for the record.

Hello. My name is Tracy Meinzer. I know most of you, but not all of you. I work for the school district. And I am coming today to tell you about two things. One is an idea I have. I care a lot about public participation in voting and that sort of thing. And I've noticed you guys have really cool signs for community events. There's one on like 3rd and Kansas maybe and Stevens Park. And just a suggestion, I thought it'd be cool if we could get some big banners that maybe say like, voting today. We could reuse them every year to like remind people when they're driving by like, oh yeah, that's today. I should go real quick. Or maybe like voting this Tuesday or something. So that was my idea. And then the other thing I wanted to share was just a comment about the mill levy and the programs being cut and that sort of thing. And I just want to say how much me and my family value our city's programs. It makes Garden a really, really great place to live and to raise kids. And when I visit other cities, not to have my nose in the air, but I'm just like, oh, it's not Garden. It's a . So I really appreciate the opportunity to keep as many programs as you can.

Thank you, Tracy. Thank you. Are there any others? Okay, we'll move on to item six.

Mayor and commissioners, item 6A, the governing body is asked to consider and approve allowing the mayor to proclaim July 19th through 25th of 2026 as National Zookeeper Week in the city of Garden City, Kansas.

I move to approve the proclamation as presented and have Christy come forward and speak about it.

Second.

There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? SEEING NONE, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. OPPOSED, NAY. MOTION PASSES. OKAY. CHRISTIE.

I HAVE TO TALK ABOUT IT. THAT'S OKAY. BUT IF THE MAYOR WOULDN'T MIND READING IT AND THEN WE COULD HAVE A FEW STAFF TO JOIN US.

Great, do you have any comments for this?

Did you want to say anything about it?

Not really.

Oh, okay. We're just getting the semantics out of the way. Okay, yeah.

And here's the proclamation. Whereas National Zookeeper Week was created to focus on the need to protect and preserve wildlife and vanishing habitats and recognize the role animal keepers play in those efforts, And whereas many of the world's animal populations continue to decline, and for 99 years, Lee Richardson Zoo has inspired conservation through the collective efforts of its animal care, animal health and nutrition, maintenance, conservation awareness, and administration teams, working together to encourage action and help change this trend. Whereas zookeepers dedicate themselves to physically demanding work every day and at all hours and in all weather conditions, carrying out their responsibilities with exceptional determination, passion, and commitment, And whereas zookeepers are dedicated to saving species by providing exceptional care to individual animals, continually improving their skills and knowledge to enhance animal welfare and inspire guests through each species' unique conservation story, And whereas zookeepers have the honor of working closely with many rare and wonderful animals, but also bear the emotional burden when those animals pass on. And whereas for zookeepers, it is both science and an art to provide top quality animal welfare for the zoo residents and contribute to safe and engaging experiences for zoo guests. Hoping guests would connect to wildlife and wild places, and whereas through their combined efforts, the staff of Lee-Richardson Zoo, with the support of the City of Garden City and the community, have created an inclusive environment where all are welcome to view and learn about a wide range of species and how we can each do our part to contribute to their conservation. Now, therefore, I, Tom Nguyen, Mayor of the City of Garden City, do hereby proclaim the week of July 19-25, 2026 as National Zookeeper Week in the City of Garden City and encourage ALL RESIDENTS TO EXPRESS THEIR APPRECIATION TO THE ANIMAL CARE PROFESSIONALS AND THEIR COLLEAGUES AT LEE RICHARDSON ZOO FOR THEIR EFFORTS AND TO VISIT THE ZOO AND ENGAGE IN THE PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES AT THE ZOO THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. SIGNED AND SEALED THE SEVENTH DAY OF JULY, 2026, TOM WITTENMEHR. .

OK, here we go.

Ready? One, two, three. That's great.

Congratulations.

Item 6B, the governing body is asked to consider and approve the proclamation naming July as Parks and Recreation Month and July 17th as Parks and Recreation Professionals Day in the City of Garden City.

I'll entertain a motion for this item.

I move to approve the proclamation as presented.

Is there a motion or a second?

I second.

There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes. Tisha.

Good afternoon. It's really exciting every year in July we get to celebrate National Parks and Rec Month and honor all of the staff members that make our parks and recreation in Garden City. This year, the National Recreation and Parks Association, their theme is the power of, and I think that's really valuable when we talk about all of the things that our Parks and Rec professionals do and what Parks and Rec means to our community. The power of connection, Parks and Recreation is where relationships grow, cultures meet, and communities bond. The power of play, from playgrounds to programs to youth sports, play fuels creativity, joy, and lifelong learning. The power of community, public spaces offer room for everyone to gather, celebrate, and heal. The power of nature, nature restores and inspires us, and parks ensure that everyone has access to those benefits. The power of belonging, welcoming parks and programs make every person feel valued. And finally, the power of well-being, parks and recreation advance health, resilience, and shared community benefits. So today we have some of our Parks and Rec professionals with us and I just want to make sure that we thank them for everything that they do.

Thank you. And I'll read the proclamation. Whereas parks and recreation programs are an integral part of communities throughout this country, including the city of Garden City, whereas parks and recreation are vital to establish and maintaining quality of life, promoting physical and mental well-being, fostering community connections, and contributing to the economic and environmental strength of the community and region. And whereas our parks and recreation professionals daily maintain our pools, beaches, campsites, marinas, picnic areas, athletic fields, skate parks, dog parks, festival venues, gardens, visitor centers, historic and cultural attractions, and many other recreational facilities and amenities, normally as unsung services. And whereas Kansas local parks generate over one billion in economic activity annually, with the service of parks and recreation professionals, and whereas there are over 8,000 programmers, managers, maintainers, landscapers, facilitators, lifeguards, coaches, event organizers, and caretakers who plan, provide, operate, and enhance the experience of our parks, recreation programs, and facilities in the state of Kansas, whereas the U.S. House of Representatives has designated July as Parks and Recreation Month, and whereas the City of Garden City recognizes the benefits derived from parks and recreation resources, Now, therefore, I, Tom Windmayer of the City of Garden City, do hereby proclaim the month of July, 2026, as Parks and Recreation Month, and July 17 as Parks and Recreation Professionals Day in the City of Garden City. We encourage all citizens to explore the opportunities available in our parks and recreation programs, services, and facilities. We also extend our appreciation to all parks and recreation professionals for their essential service, which enriches the lives of the citizens of the City of Garden City. Sign and seal the seventh day of July, 2026, Tom Windmayer.

One, two, three. Good. Thank you.

Pretty short list on report of the city manager. It's just the monthly sales tax report. Do you have any questions or comments? Hearing none, we'll move on to item eight. That's meetings of note. If any of those require an RSVP, please do that through the city clerk's office. And we're ready for item nine then. It's the appropriation ordinance. And if approved, it would be ordinance number 2614-2026A.

I move to approve appropriation ordinance number 2614-2026A. Second.

There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes.

We're not quite at the 1.30 public hearing time, so if it's all right, we'll move to 10B, Mayor. Great. The governing body is asked to consider and approve an ordinance regarding the rezone from C1, Neighborhood Shopping District, and R3, Multifamily Residential District, to PF, Public Facilities District, for the property generally located at 722 North Campus Drive in Garden City. And if approved, this would be ordinance number 3050-2026. Alicia.

The Garden City Community College is requesting to rezone 722 North Campus Drive from C1 Neighborhood Shopping District and R3 Multiple Family Residential District 2PF Public Facilities District. The proposed rezoning area is approximately .46 acres and is the current location of the College Construction Academy. Recently, the city approved the site plan for a new building on the site, during compliance with the zoning regulations, including rezoning to the appropriate zoning district for a college. Although a building permit has been issued, a certificate of occupancy will not be granted unless the state commission approves this rezoning request and the plaque is recorded at the register of deeds. Community colleges are not permitted use within either scene one or our three zoning districts, requiring that the property be rezoned before a certificate of occupancy is issued for a new building. This location currently houses the construction academy building and is adjacent to the rest of the campus, not directly abutting any residential properties. During the site plan review process, staff reviewed to ensure that the site complies with all the applicable regulations and is developed in a manner to promote public health, safety, and welfare. The factors combined will limit any negative impact on the surrounding properties not owned by the community college. The comprehensive planned future land use map designates this area as medium density residential. Although this use isn't consistent with the plan, this is the most appropriate district given its historical use and proximity to the existing college campus. The governing body may make its determination and state its findings in accordance with the criteria in section 27.040 of the Garden City zoning regulations. And below is that complete list for the criteria. The Planning Commission recommended approval of the proposed rezoning request at their May 21st, 2026 meeting by unanimous vote. Your alternatives today are the governing body may adopt the Planning Commission's recommendation to approve the rezoning request and approve the rezoning ordinance. The governing body may override the Planning Commission's recommendation by a two-thirds majority vote and deny the rezoning request. Or the governing body may return the Planning Commission's recommendation with a statement specifying the basis of the governing body's failure to approve or disapprove. staff recommends the governing body adopt the Planning Commission recommendation and approve the proposed ordinance.

I'll make a motion that we approve the recommendation of the rezoning request and approve the rezoning ordinance of 3050-2026.

This motion, is there a second?

Second.

There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes.

Thank you. Item 12A, the governing body is asked to provide direction for future use of the state theater. Danielle.

Good afternoon, mayor and commission. At the February 3rd, 2026 city commission pre-meeting, the governing body discussed several options related to the future use of the state theater, which is generally located at 418 North Main Street. The options discussed included development and issuance of a request for proposal, list the property for sale, provide a city-owned use proposal, demolition of the facility, and take no action. At the conclusion of the meeting, it appeared that a majority of the commission was interested in either releasing an RFP or listing the property for sale. As a result, staff have prepared an RFP for the City Commission to consider as one of the options. At the pre-meeting, the City Commission also expressed interest in including a clawback provision regardless of if the direction was to release an RFP or list the property for sale. That language has been included in the RFP and could also be included in a sales contract if the property were listed for sale. Finally, there was some discussion about the use of various incentives to help ensure a successful project. That language has been included in the RFP and would also be available to the city commission if the property were to be listed for sale. So there are seven alternatives before you today. One, the city commission may direct staff to release the request for proposal as drafted. You may direct staff to release the RFP with modifications. The city commission may direct staff to list the property for sale. City commission may direct staff to develop a proposed city use for the property. The City Commission may direct staff to demolish the structure. The City Commission may direct staff to take no action at this time or some combination thereof. Staff has no recommendation. We did look at the potential fiscal impact for demolition of the facility. We anticipate that being about $150,000. I will say that's about $150,000 without doing a full engineering review of understanding really what all would go into that. But that's the best available information that we have at this time. CURRENTLY, WE DO NOT HAVE ANY FUNDS IN THE 2026 OR 2027 BUDGET FOR THIS PROJECT. AND THEN OBVIOUSLY, DEPENDING ON WHICH ACTION YOU ALL TAKE, WILL DEPEND ON WHAT THE FISCAL IMPACT MAY BE AND THE TIMING OF THAT FISCAL IMPACT. SO, WANTED TO KIND OF OPEN IT UP FOR DISCUSSION. HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS IN YOUR PACKET. I'VE INCLUDED BOTH THE RFP AND THE PRESENTATION THAT WE TALKED THROUGH AT YOUR PRE-MEETING.

Any thoughts, any questions for staff?

So in the RFPs, they would state whether or not they want to lease it or whether or not they want to purchase it outright. And that would have to be clear in the proposals, correct?

Correct. And we have restructured the RFP from what we've done the last couple times. to hopefully help spell that out much more clearly. So the intent with how we've had this structured is there needs to be a very clear request of what the proposal is requesting of the city, whether that be incentives, whether that be a lease of the facility, a purchase of the facility, a donation of the facility, what have you. But yes, we do have in there that lease or purchase both would be an option available based on the needs of the proposal. And we do include that clawback provision regardless of which of those two options are identified.

For myself, I would prefer the property listed for sale, but I think also The condition description of that property, I'm not entirely sure how quickly that would move on the market. So that's also another factor to consider. And I would be pretty open to, is there, I mean, for staff, is there a way to also elicit for sale to see if we have potential buyers? I guess you could see that in RFP as well. But is that a possibility for both? Or if we just leave it as RFP and see what we get?

I think the intent of the RFP, like it was last time, was to be very broad so that if somebody did want to purchase the property, they could make that very clear in their response proposal. Now, I will say the timeline outlined in it, we're talking a couple-month process by the time you release the RFP, give folks an opportunity to tour the facility, ask questions, give staff a week to respond to those questions. and then give people another kind of three weeks to put their proposals together. So we are talking about a couple-month-long process. But in that, they certainly could say, hey, look, we're interested in just buying the property outright. And they could kind of go through the rest of it and say either here's the proposed project or, look, our offer is our offer. We just want to control the future use of that property. And you all could consider that and weigh that with the other proposals that come in. Great.

I like the RFP. I think I like as much as I'd like to see it sold as well. I also understand that I mean, I don't want the city to be put in a position where we'd have to come up with money to I would think that any proposals would need to be pretty well thought out and pretty independent as far as what they're planning to do with it. Which would be put in the RFP.

Any other thoughts from other commissioners?

At this time, I lean more towards the RFP. I find myself going back and forth between the RFP and also listing the property for sale. And I think, to me, what seems like the best option is do the RFP process first, and then if we don't find anything from that RFP process, then we can go towards the listing process.

Listing for sale.

Yeah, I think so, too.

That's fair. Mm-hmm.

I move to direct staff to release the request for proposal as drafted.

There's been a motion for alternative one. Is there a second?

I second.

There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Seeing none. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed nay. Motion passes.

Thank you.

Still have a few minutes before 1.30. We'll take up 12B. The governing body is asked to consider and approve the purchase of the bid from Annexter-Westco for $310,093.74 to purchase 30,000 feet of underground primary cable.

Good afternoon, mayors and commissioners. In May 2026, bids were received from five vendors that met the city's specification. Annexter West Coast submitted the lowest bid for the 30,000 feet of underground primary cable at a cost of $310,093.74 with an estimated lead time of one to two weeks. As economic growth continues in the eastern part of the community, the demand for reliable electrical capacity continues to increase. To support this growth, the new electrical distribution circuits for the Morris substation located near the K-156 in Jimmy Barber Road are required. This project has been designed and engineered to include two new underground three-phase circuits installed beneath K156. Both circuits will run parallel along South Jenny Parker Road. One circuit will connect to the existing feeder servicing the fire station number three, re-establishing a loop distribution system. The second circuit will connect to the existing feeder servicing the refinery and Shulman Crossing, also restoring a loop system. In addition to reestablishing Duluth systems, these two circuits will provide increased system redundancy, improve reliability in the area of the community, and create additional capacity to support future development and growth. And you have the five Bid submitted there. Your alternatives today are the governing body may choose to approve the bid from Annex III Westco for $310,093.74 for the purchase of 30,000 feet of underground primary cable. Option number two, the governing body may not approve the bid from Annex III Westco. Recommendation, staff recommends that the governing body approve the bid from Annex of the West for $310,093.74 for the purchase of the 30,000 feet of underground primary cable. Fiscal note, funding for this purchase will come from the material distribution line item, The proposed revised 2026 budget for this line item is $1.15 million with a remaining balance of $33,649.67. However, the Southwest Power Pools Transmission Regulatory Rights Program managed for the City of Garden City Electric Department by the Kansas Municipal Energy Agency was recently closed out for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. As a result, the city of Garden City received a refund of $1,713,885, and if approved today, that $310,093.74 will come out from the material distribution line item budget, creating a negative balance in that account. However, the additional revenue of $1,713,885 will be used to offset the negative balance, and no additional cable orders will be placed and received in 2026. And with that, I'll take up any questions.

Any questions for Jose?

I guess are we anticipating any other cable purchases?

I mean, I know it's... Not for 2026.

Okay. Just making sure. Yes.

I understand.

And then, I mean, I looked at that, too, and all the lead times, except for... the one that we're looking at, approving possibly, everybody else's lead times were like 30.

Yes, that is correct.

And theirs is one to two weeks. So they have the cable on hand then? They do have the cable on hand. Just making sure we approve this and they come back and it's like, I mean, I saw the bid, but I just want to make sure because everybody else was 34 to 36 weeks. Okay. That was all my questions.

I have the same questions.

I make a motion that we approve the bid from Anitrek. How do you say that? Anitrek Westco for $310,093.74 for the purchase of 30,000 feet of underground primary cable.

Is there a motion? Is there a second?

Second.

Is there a motion and a second? Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed nay. Motion passes. Thank you. Thank you.

12C, the governing body is asked to consider and provide a letter of support for additional MIH ARPA funding for Garden City Partners 1 LLC. Alicia.

Mayor and commissioners, the Kansas Modern Income Housing, MIH, program allows cities... Incorporated in Kansas with a population of fewer than 60,000 to request grants or loans for infrastructure and or housing development in rural areas. In 2023, Garden City Partners 1 LLC received Moderate Income Housing American Rescue Plan Act and in 2024 received Kansas Income Housing Tax Credits for a multi-family project known as San Sage Square. The Kansas Housing Resources Corporation announced additional available funding which is limited to the current MIH ARPA guarantees with grant agreements. The additional funding available will be used to assist the existing MIH ARPA employees in addressing any financial gaps in their projects. The funds can be used to cover increased construction costs, cost overruns, financing gaps, or any other project related cost increase that are affecting the completion of their projects. To meet the application deadline of June 30th, 2026, the city manager's office provided a letter expressing the city's support for the project and the additional help. The letter was sent with the indication that the City Commission would formally consider ratifying the support expressed in the letter after July 7th regular meeting. If approved, staff will provide KHRC with a copy of the unapproved minutes as evidence of the City's Commission support. As with the existing MIH ARPA, these additional funds must be expended by June 30th, 2026. Your alternatives are the governing body may ratify the letter of support for additional MIH ARPA funding. The governing body may not ratify the letter of support for the additional MIH ARPA funding. Staff recommends the governing body ratify the letter of support for the additional MIH ARPA funding.

Any questions for staff? I make a motion we approve and ratify the letter of support for the additional MIH ARPA funding.

Second.

Is there a motion and a second? Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes. Thank you. And it is a little bit past 1.30, so we'll move back to item 10A.

Item 10A, a public hearing for consideration to adopt the development plan and establish the reinvestment housing district for, incentive district for Thompson Point by ordinance. This is right before the governing body. If approved, it would be ordinance number 3051-2026. Alicia. Thank you.

Alicia, before you start, I'm going to call in Melissa Foster, who's with Zimmerman Properties, so that she can join the call on behalf of the developers. So give me just one second.

Do we have enough before we read the staff report?

Hi Melissa, this is Danielle Burke within the City Commission Chambers. We are just getting ready to read the staff memo for your project. So I wanted to make sure that you all were able to participate and I want to make sure you can hear me okay.

I can. Thank you so much for having me.

Yes, you betcha.

As required by state statute, the Thompson Point development comes before the governing body to consider the proposed development plan and to consider establishing a reinvestment housing incentive district. This is the last action the City Commission must consider before the development has an approved district. Thompson Point is generally located at North 11th Street and West Thompson Street. Phase one of this development will include two multi-family residential buildings, each containing 24 dwelling units for a total of 48 dwelling units. According to our current community housing assessment team, or CHAT study, to meet the current housing needs assuming a 2% annual growth rate, the city needs to build 3,912 units between 2030 and 2035. And the governing body has set a goal of 4,000 units by 2035. From 2021 to 2025, 280 RHID units have been completed. According to the CHAT study and the rate of housing development, Garden City continues to show a need for additional units. If the proposed ordinance is adopted, the Board of County Commissioners and USC 457 will have 30 days to evaluate the proposed RHID. Should either taxing entities determine it has an adverse effect on their jurisdiction, then that taxing entity will need to adopt a resolution stating such. If no such resolutions are passed, then the ordinance shall be in effect. If within that timeframe, either of the reference taxing entities passes such resolution, the city will need to take action to repeal the ordinance as required by state statute. Your alternatives today are the governing body may approve the attached ordinance, or two, the governing body may not approve the attached ordinance. Staff recommends the governing body approve the attached ordinance. And for the fiscal note, the city will reimburse property tax increments to the developer over the life of the RHAD. which is up to 25 years. The amount of property tax distributions cannot exceed $2,728,534.10.

The public hearing is open for consideration to adopt the development plan and establish the reinvestment housing incentive district for Thompson Point by ordinance. Is there anyone here to speak on this item? Seeing none, the public hearing is closed. Are there questions for staff? If not, I will entertain a motion for this item.

I move to approve ordinance number 3051-2026. There's been a motion.

Is there a second?

I second.

There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes. Thank you. Thanks.

All right, thank you, Melissa. We appreciate you joining. If you didn't hear the motion, the ordinance was approved.

Item 12D, the governing body is asked to consider and approve a draft of the 2027 city budget so that the indication of revenue neutral rate intent can be authorized to be signed by the mayor. Chair.

Following the input received during the budget discussion on June 30, 2026, Special Meeting of the Governing Body, staff have made the following adjustments to the budget as it has been presented. The items marked as green in the list of proposed adjustments have been implemented. This had a positive impact of $250,050 on the 2026 budget and $1,163,480 on the 2027 budget for a combined total of $1,413,530. Attached to this item is the list reviewed at the June 30, 2026 meeting, divided by each designated color rating rather than the full list combined. Revenue of $400,000 has been added to the general fund for 2027 from the 0.15 sales tax proceeds, in lieu of utilizing those funds to facilitate improvements under the capital improvement plan. Based on the preliminary estimated valuation from the County Clerk, the value of one mill for the City of Orange City is $326,356. Following the adjustments listed above, additional adjustments of the following amounts will be required for the designated mill rate. To achieve a one mill increase at $39,502, you would need additional cuts of $346,154. To achieve a flat mill levy at $35,502, you would need $670,509. and to achieve a revenue neutral rate of 37.504, you would need $998,212. The input received from the governing body was a desire to reduce the amount held for the potential implementation of any adjustments to the city's pay scale. Following the third-party consultant's analysis, the initial budget for this intent was $1 million. Therefore, based on the targeted mill levy amounts indicated above and the remaining budget gaps indicated, the following amounts indicate what would be available to be utilized for this intent should each targeted mill levy be selected. So if you do a one mill increase, you'll have $653,846 remaining to use for that implementation. If you're in for a flat mill levy, you have $327,491 remaining. And if you utilize the revenue to trade, you have $1,788 remaining for that. In reviewing the full list of green items that were eliminated, staff wanted to bring two of them to the governing body's attention for consideration. The first is the elimination of the MyGCKS application in the 2027 budget. The financial impact of this reduction is $15,500. We anticipate this would allow us to maintain the application through September 2027. Currently, we have just under 1,000 users who have enrolled in the MyGCKS application to receive text alerts from the City. The City can consider alternatives to this application, but any such transition would likely reset enrollment and require time to reach the same level we are currently experiencing. If desired by the Governing Body, this item can be removed from the list of reductions, or the cost of such can be reallocated to other funds that benefit from the alert system, such as the utility departments. If the Governing Body prefers to maintain this budget reduction, staff will consider alternatives to communication tools in the future. The second item to clarify is the anticipated revenue of $263,000 for the adjustments to the fee schedule related to the fire department. specifically this income is an anticipation of building insurance companies for the garden city fire department's response to accidents fires or environment environmental concerns chief ursic has researched the anticipated revenue from other departments that currently build insurance companies for such instances based on the total number of incidents in 2025 for which we could have built an insurance company we calculated 263 000 in potential revenue This assumes that we receive payment from each incident, which likely would not be the case. In instances where any involved party does not have insurance, we would unlikely receive payment. Alternatively, calculating by each instance doesn't consider times when multiple vehicles are involved, and we would bill multiple insurance companies or large event buyers where the billing would be for a per hour rate rather than a lump sum, for instance. We also anticipate implementing these changes in the fall of 2026, which would likely create additional revenues not accounted for in this calculation. While there are various assumptions in the calculation of the $263,000, staff believe this amount appropriately represents a potential revenue level for 2027. If the governing body desired, we could adjust this anticipated revenue to a more conservative figure, given the uncertainty about what we will actually experience. A final consideration for the governing body this time, as you consider an indication of the revenue to rate the tent, is the construction project for the temporary housing for the police and sheriff departments. The approved renovation agreement totals $5,439,246. The current memorandum of understanding between the city and the county indicates that this cost is to be split 50-50 between the two entities. This means the city's obligation would be $2,719,623. Due to the necessity of this move related to environmental concerns with the mechanical systems of the law enforcement center, staff have discussed with county staff the use of a portion of the proceeds from their .50 sales tax bond issuance for the renovation cost of the temporary facility. The city originally intended to issue temporary notes to finance the renovation of the temporary facility and then have those notes retired through payments from the county bond proceeds. However, after consultation with the city's bond advisor, it was determined that the most logical path forward was to pay the graduation costs directly from the proceeds of the county bond issuance, as that language was included in the county's ballot measure. Staff have continued to work with county staff on this issue, but an updated memorandum of understanding has not yet been finalized for approval by both government bodies. Should an agreement to use the bond proceeds to cover this cost not be reached, the city will need to find alternative funding source for its $2,790,623 share of the cost as well as Willamette County. If no other alternative is identified, this cost would represent approximately 8.333 mills. While an increase of such significance to the mill levy would be the last resort, indicating the intent to levy such would provide transparency on the R&R intent rather than publishing a lower rate and then including a higher rate on the hearing notice at a later time. Should a new agreement with the county be reached between now and the budget hearing in September, the governing body could ultimately reduce the validity rate from the amount published, including the increased rate and multiplication of taxpayers and the hearing notice would allow the governing body the flexibility to move forward with such, if no other alternative is available. At this time, a decision must be made regarding the City's intent to exceed the Revenue Nutri Rate. The deadline to submit an indication to the County regarding the Revenue Nutri Rate is July 20, 2026. The City's requirement is to indicate whether or not the City intends to exceed the Revenue Nutri Rate. The City is also asked to include an anticipated bill levy rate, which will be included in the publication sent to residents by the County. The final bill levy adopted by the city and published for the budget hearing can differ from the mill levy rate included in the publication. However, the city aims to accurately estimate the anticipated mill levy rate. So the alternative is before you today that you may authorize the mayor to sign the indication of revenue neutral rate intent, stating the city intends to exceed the revenue neutral rate, and identify a mill levy rate to be included on the publication sent to citizens. or authorize the mayor to sign the Indication of Revenue Neutral Rate intent stating the city does not intend to exceed the revenue neutral rate and indicate the revenue neutral rate or some other rate lower than the revenue neutral rate to be included on a publication sent to citizens. Staff recommends that the governing body authorize the mayor to sign the Indication of Revenue Neutral Rate intent stating the city intends to exceed the revenue neutral rate and identify for the levy rate to be included on a publication sent to citizens. There is a presentation included in the attachments about myGCKS, a little summary report. And Eric will be able to answer any questions you have regarding that. Chief Red Sticker, I can help answer any questions you have about the revenue for the fire department. And you still have time to kind of Decide on some of those items as well. It's just a follow-up as well from this morning's conversation regarding the fleet enterprise rollout. The outfitting for the police vehicles was a question of mass at the end. It's approximately 15,000 for each vehicle that we plan. And that incorporates not anticipating being able to reuse the equipment or selling the equipment that's captured from the vehicles that are being replaced. And so we had originally $45,000 budgeted for that with a reduction of two vehicles, there's $30,000 remaining. But the PD vehicle budget amount of $163,000 remaining and the lease enterprise first year cost of $120,000, you'd have about $43,000 available to then kind of recapture back the additional outfitting cost should we experience it. I think everybody did go forward with the enterprise. You would be able to offset those costs and have no budget impact and an additional need to calculate something else in the budget for this year. With that, I'm happy to answer any questions. At the end of the day, we just need an indication on whether you want to exceed that revenue rate and what bill maybe you want to include on there as your target.

Any questions for staff? Any thoughts?

And on the indication rate, like if you set it here, you can go down from there, but if you set it here, you can't go up, correct? You want to set it down, correct? Right, right, okay. Okay. And remind me again when we make that final decision.

So you indicate on the notice that goes out to the county, and since we've got another meeting before the 20th today, you can actually change from the rate indicated. But once we publish our hearing notice, that would be a lot. Okay. Okay. But I would strongly recommend that if you're going to indicate something on the hearing notice that you stick to that or you publish from the county as well. And so to the same vein, if there was an indication to say let's cover and make sure we have an option to, I would strongly propose that your indication going on publication now should be at the Highwater Park and then you come down from there.

So you're recommending, I mean, kind of a new wrinkle on this whole thing. We didn't really anticipate until I opened the memo this weekend and started reading it. It was the shift or non-shift of our obligation for the temporary LEC. So the recommendation would be to increase it. I mean, there's an 8.33 mill increase. So the recommendation is to make that?

It depends on how much the governor wants to stick their neck out a little bit. So if you remember during the general fund discussion, I pointed out the line that had the cost with no budget. At that time, the conversation has been ongoing with the county for quite some time. I believe the intent of all parties at this time is that we will utilize the bond funds for the project, but we don't have anything in writing dictating that. And so the concern for the city staff to not present this to you is to say, hey, we don't want a curve ball to come in at the last moment when you're now stuck in a corner. And so I think indicating the high watermark of that additional middle levy allows flexibility for the governing body to have an alternative option if there's nothing in writing between the city and county at the time that you have to publish a final budget. Because otherwise those costs are being experienced during 2026 and you'll basically be spending all of your cash forward that you're anticipating in this calendar year. I do think it's doable. We could find another alternative within our funds of the city to facilitate that cost, but this gives you full flexibility of the choice of the governing body to kind of have options to go forward. there were some considerations that kind of the initial conversations that have happened got stacked up a little bit where the bond issuance was issued with an understanding of being tax exempt and there's some conversation on the with it being a rented facility and us not having ownership or their parameters or their roadblocks to then utilizing those bond funds so that's kind of where the conversation has been teeter-tottering back and forth a little bit probably why there's been a delay and not something in final form. But during the budget process, I apologize if it seems like we're blown a fast one on you. We really anticipated it would be resolved. We have something in writing in the plan.

We've been asking for weeks and I had a one-on-one meeting last Wednesday with the county administrator and said, look, we're doing what you're doing on Monday. I think you need to take it into consideration for your R&R hearing. We need to take it into consideration for our R&R meeting because it's 50-50. We're both in the same space with the exception of it would take less mills for them to raise their 2.5 than us to raise our 2.5. But I followed up with Derek again right before the meeting and he said their county council believes that the interlocal agreement that we had in place in last July covers both parties. And I asked again, that includes reimbursement in advance. Because there's an oversight committee, the agreement has all that. But the way we use the oversight committee reviewed payments after they've been paid, Reimbursements after they've been reimbursed, they were reviewing much like an auditor does in arrears. The transactions made were all in accordance with the... They weren't playing finance director, that nature. So we... We're not in control of this one. We were in control of the other one. And so I think we've been looking for several weeks for clarity. We believe it would be handled much in the way that our sales tax would be handled, but we also are getting mixed signals. So... Based off of Derek and I's communications today, the best I could get was, I think so. So hopefully, I don't see why it couldn't be accomplished that way, but again, we've asked for several weeks in writing that that is how we could handle it so we could move forward with budget confidence. Because neither organization can go back and undo what you did during budget. You pass your budget, you pass your budget. It would be a hardship for at least a year to figure out how you juggle that. Like Derek said, I think you could dump every... If you end up getting the rug jerked out from underneath you by Finney County, I think you could go dump every reserve you have, cover the cost of this, and then it would all come out in the wash and... 2027, but that's not fun, nor if anybody decides to issue debt, you have a group come back and review your depletion of your cash balances. You're not going to be viewed very favorably by underwriters and those types of things. It would be a hardship. It would also be a hardship having to publish up eight or up nine, whatever it would take to...

Cover this lack of communication. Because we were looking at... I mean, we were looking... Yeah, because... I mean, we were looking at one to possibly two mils. And then when I saw that, it was like... That was, yeah, an unexpected consequence.

There are some jurisdictions that have set their, when they publish an indication, they set the bar high. They publish something saying we're going to be up at this X level with an intent to then come down because that then sets their high water market. So it is not common since the revenue to rate went into effect and this legislation changed. that some jurisdictions have chosen to do that. They kind of set the expectation high, and then when they come back down at the final hearing and say, hey, we're going to do four mils less than this, it just gives them the grace to kind of do that. And so that's – we generally haven't done that as an organization. We typically have proposed and published what we truly intend. But we would be remiss of the staff not to present this to anybody and make sure you have the – the knowledge of what's happened or what's not happened. And staff fully did anticipate that this would have been resolved before we got this point in budget.

One other out, Daniel's reminding me, one other out we do have is to issue temporary notes. And then you wouldn't even have to budget a payment. Temporary notes you can structure, I think, however you want to, or the first payment to be due in 2028. So you could issue, you could use a debt mechanism, to cover the whole cost or to cover the city's half and then just build the county for their half. There would be an added cost to the project for that, but it would be I would say if faced with that or dumping all your reserves, I'd probably advise you to issue temporary debt. But if you wanted to avoid publishing up nine or up ten or up eight because of I do have confidence that the intent of Finney County and Garden City is to live up to the spirit of the agreement from last July. The mechanism of how do you make sure you can adopt a 2027 budget with confidence is still sort of up in the air. If you have the appetite to, if she does, and add the cost of issuance to the overall project costs, you could choose that route in lieu of publishing R&R notice that was an egregious number.

If you go the route of dumping all the debt, would that put us in a financial emergency?

So one of the indications of your financial emergency is that the community trust reserves have a balance of $2 million. The first place I would go to to say to facilitate the cost would be the capital group reserve. So from one point on the list, you would say yes, but it also says if it wasn't intended or anticipated. And so I think you would go through the exercise, we'd point that out, but that you would have then... PURPOSELY SPEND THOSE DOLLARS. WE'VE DONE THE SAME IN THE PAST WHERE WE FINANCED THE PROJECT WHEN WE DID THE JENNY PARKER ROAD IMPROVEMENTS OR THE FARM LINE ROAD IMPROVEMENTS. WE FINANCED A PORTION OF THAT AND REIMBURSED. SO IT'S NOT THE FIRST TIME THE GOVERNMENT GOING TO BE ABLE TO USE THOSE FUNDS FOR A PROJECT THAT FAIRLY WELL DEPLOYED THE FUND AND THEN BROUGHT IT BACK. AND TO MATT'S POINT THAT WE ANTICIPATE YOU WOULD THEN GET RECOUPED AT SOME POINT IS OUR EXPECTATION. unless the conversation completely fall apart. But the language for utilizing some of the funding from bond issuance to cover the temporary facility was included in the ballot language for this purpose to cover this anticipated renovation cost that we would experience. It's just trying to finalize making sure the language is absolutely clear between both parties and there's a signed agreement that says we're all in favor that we're using the bonds for this rather than the city just sending the full bill over to the county.

I think for me it's really difficult to publish a millivy rate that's eight to nine. And I think even if, with all the knowledge that we have, I think that makes it difficult for a community to receive it in the same way. I think for myself, I'd much rather prefer to... adopt the mill levy, whichever that we need for our budget, and then have to dip into either temporary notes or that be our reserves.

I was wondering, the 20th is when we have to have it over to the county, right? Right. Could we have a special meeting like on next week Thursday or something? Find out if they could come up with something to let us, for kind of a clearer expectation, we could do a special meeting just on this item. If we could visit with the county again so they could give us a little clearer direction. That would give... I'm just throwing this out there. That would give us a little more time to...

I think I'll turn it over to you. Is that okay? Jen says I'm wrong. You could also probably have a motion that indicates that should an agreement be signed, then this is your indication, and I could hold off until the 20th to actually submit and have the mayor sign it. You've got kind of a plan A and plan B, that if the agreement's signed, it's this mill that you indicate, and if an agreement's not signed, it's this mill that you indicate, and then if the agreement's in place, I then submit one or the other to the county based on that. Any agreement would happen.

Depending on what the agreement says, that may need to come before the governing body, most likely would. So then we would have two steps in between there. So I don't think that that's a good option because none of the people sitting here have the authority to approve that agreement on your behalf.

Oh, I see. If an agreement did come up, we would still have to approve it.

Yes, which is good. That would complicate things and complicate timing too, I think.

I mean, I was just throwing that out there to see if that could give us a little more time to make a decision. But, I mean, you said it's been weeks and we haven't gotten anything back from them permanently, kind of on a concrete basis.

So even if we have information by then, I guess the most information we would know by then is whether or not they would be drafting an agreement? by the end of that special meeting, right? Like, we wouldn't have the agreement to take up by then? I don't think so. Because they'd have to approve it.

The only thing would be if maybe we put it on the 20th, they would have their agenda out by then, because their next meeting would be the 20th, and if they have it on their agenda, then we know. Well... That'd be the only...

It's at 5 p.m. on a Monday. That's the latest.

It's a bit...

I think the difficult thing is regardless of when we decide to indicate if we're going to... an indication of our intended mill levy, I think we wouldn't know when the agreement would be approved by both government bodies. And I think that's the hard part for me, is that if it's one month, two months down the line, that makes it very difficult as well.

Do you mean the MOU? Is that what you're talking about?

Well, I think it would be a very specific agreement as opposed to just an MOU.

Well, I mean, you're talking the agreement about the temporary... in the funding for that, right?

Yeah.

Is that the agreement you're talking about?

Yeah. But more specifically, maybe like probably a pay schedule for that, I assume.

So the language in the MOU currently states that the operating costs are split 50-50 and the remodel costs are split 50-50. So that's the language that's in question is because that dictates that we're splitting that cost. And realistically, it indicates that intent from us and them that's been expressed is that we all split it 50-50. We use the GEO bond funds. we would need an update to the MOU that dictates the capital improvement costs that the bond dollars are used for those.

Right.

And I think part of what's probably adding to some of the complexity is we've got a cost-sharing agreement related to the renovation where we've got the 50-50 language identified. We've also got a sales tax agreement that we also approved at that same meeting that talked about You know, this is what's intended to be in the ballot language. If it gets approved, these are the things that may be covered. But again, it's very... Really, I think the intent of that is to establish that sales tax audit committee. And so there's a couple different agreements and I think a couple different ways to kind of arrive at the resolution that we're talking about, which I think is... was good on the front end, but probably adding some complexity on the back end to make sure that we've got all of the agreements saying the same thing.

I'm open to a special meeting, having more information maybe next week, just so... it can kind of maybe iron out a little bit more of these complexities to be able to say, well, what is the quote unquote safe option here? What can we be a little bit more risky on? I think with a little bit information, I think that might be easier for me to make a decision on.

I'd be open to a special meeting. Hopefully, though, by then there is an actual agreement of some sort by then. I mean, that's assuming that there would be one.

Yeah. I would just ask of the government body, I am planning to be out on the 15th, 16th, 17th, so if we could do it around those days, I would prefer, but I completely understand if that's not possible as well.

You said do it on the 15th? No, do not.

Do not. I prefer, personally. So...

Yes, this is a good point.

I'm not available the 13th, but I could do the 14th.

I will be gone all week.

The morning of the 20th?

Yeah, that works for me.

Depending if it's at, if it would be early morning. Early morning. I've stepped the bus.

How early were you thinking?

8.39.

I mean, we could pick up schools. Oh, you're picking them up. Oh, that's right.

And setting up. We could do early morning, 9.

That would be okay with me. What is the appropriate motion for this?

I actually don't know that you need a motion for. You'll handle that by the call, I believe. City Clerk, correct? It'll be a call that you sign. So that'll provide the public notice. But for the public's benefit, I think it'd be worth maybe a... a vote for the expression of consensus that you'd like to take up this issue on a special meeting to be held at any time. Sure.

Before I do that, can I ask for a little more input on the first two items, the green items, the myGCPS and the fire revenue. Is there any feedback from the commission on also wanting to adjust either one of those or leave them included in the reductions or adjust consensus on them? If you choose to include YGC case and not take that out of the budget, it just means you'll have to find an additional $15,500 and something, which I think we can find.

That contract also isn't due until next September. Correct. So you could actually take up the consideration of the 2028 budget. And if you wanted to wait and see where you sit then, you could save it then if you liked the service. Consider you liked the service.

I would advise it back in next year. Yeah.

Yeah, and maybe even to explore other options of applications, I think.

Yeah, I like the service. I mean, I really do. I think it is added value, and I do wish that more than 1,000 people used it, but I think it does provide a service to the community.

As for the fee schedule for the fire department, personally for myself, I would...

kind of like to see the anticipated revenue to be the more conservative figure. Same. Anything, Pinterest, thoughts on that?

I'm personally fine with that figure, the $263,000.

Likewise, this could be adjusted next year. If there's not a strong opinion to reduce it, you can adjust this on the fly next year as you read the budget. We have more time to back up where we're at.

I'm good with that.

I'll leave them both included, and then we'll try to present back an item at the special meeting, just solely focusing on your choice of revenue to rate tent, and then anticipate a bill levy. In preparation for that, I can have a couple of scenarios drawn up. The party figures presented here were one up flat in revenue to rate. Would you like me to continue to include those? Is there something... COUNTY PIECE ASIDE, IF YOU'D LIKE TO PRESENT AS THE ELECTED CHOICE ON THAT ITEM, OR JUST PRESENT IT AS IS TODAY WITH MULTIPLE OPTIONS?

I LIKE MULTIPLE OPTIONS. I THINK ONE THAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT OVER THIS PAST WEEKEND WAS IF THERE'S A POSSIBILITY FOR EVEN ONE TO ONE AND A HALF MILLION INCREASE TO BE ABLE TO ADD SOME OF THOSE FUNDS, MAYBE HALF OF THOSE FUNDS INTO THE CIP, BECAUSE I THINK THERE ARE REALLY CRUCIAL PROJECTS ON THERE THAT WE CONTINUE TO PUSH OFF. SO JUST THAT SCENARIO WOULD BE HELPFUL TO THINK THROUGH. And then for questions for staff, if not, I'll take a motion to, I move to approve, sorry, I move to have a special meeting on July 20th at 9 a.m. in regards to education of the revenue and short rate intent.

Second.

There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes.

And clarify the time for that too. 9 a.m. 9 a.m., okay. Thanks. Thank you, Jared. Thank you, Jared. All right, item 13 is the consent agenda, or section 13 is the consent agenda. If there aren't any items on there that you'd like to pull off and talk about separately or that someone in the audience may be here to speak to you about, the appropriate motion would be to approve consent agenda items 13A through 13I.

Is there anyone here to speak on the environmental nuisances? Seeing none, I'll attend a motion for these items.

I move to approve consent agenda items 13A through 13I.

Second. There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes. Lastly, Commissioner reports. We will start off with Vice Mayor Orler.

I enjoyed the pre-meeting. Thank you for the very thorough discussion about our fleet. I mean, I know it's something that WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT VEHICLES, YOU KNOW, TO BE ABLE TO KIND OF QUANTIFY AND SEE JUST HOW MANY VEHICLES THE CITY HAS AND WHAT SOME OF THOSE ALTERNATIVES COULD BE, ESPECIALLY IN ACHIEVING, YOU KNOW, MAYBE SOME, YOU KNOW, INCREASE OR DECREASE IN THE BUDGET AND ALSO, YOU KNOW, THINKING ABOUT THE COMMUNICATION PIECE THAT WILL GO ALONG WITH THAT. as well, because I think it'll be important to have some sort of a communications plan so that when people from the community do question that we have some answers available. So I think that will be an important thing going forward. One word of caution, and that is on, you know, just there are a lot of people that use Tally Trail to walk, and I've noticed a lot of people lately where The walkers are doing what they're supposed to do and pushing the buttons, but not everybody's stopping. And there have been a few times where I've almost been hit as I stop for people. And so just a reminder that we want to encourage people to use Tally Trail, and the lights are there for a reason. And when they do use those lights, and even if they don't, just take caution when you're driving down the street. I enjoyed going to see the SanSage apartments and the progress in those buildings, and I'm really excited for when those open. I think those are going to be a really great addition to our community as well. had an opportunity to participate in the 4th of July parade and it was just a very well attended parade. A lot of different submissions, a lot of great pride in our country and in our community and it was such a well organized event and so thank you to everybody who PUT THAT ON, AND I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE A PART OF THAT AS WELL. AND I JUST HAD A REAL QUICK QUESTION. ON THE FLOWING AND SPRUCE LIGHTS, DO YOU KNOW WHEN THOSE MIGHT BE READY TO... I GET ASKED THIS ABOUT EVERY DAY. Because right now it's the flashing red.

Commissioner, the contractors in town today, they're doing some of the final touches up, and I think they'll be pulling operation by the end of the week.

All right, perfect. Thank you.

You're welcome.

Yeah.

That's all I have.

Great. You took my question. I'm sorry. It's okay. Commissioner Cessna. A good pre-meeting. Attended the 50th anniversary of Buffalo Dunes, which was really awesome. The course is really beautiful with the redesign and everything. So be there for another 50-plus years serving the community. It's another one of our crown jewels that we have here in Garden City. Really good pre-meeting about... the direction of our fleet of vehicles and how we would proceed on that. Kind of like the idea of having a communication tool, at least for us, so if people question us, we know what to present to the public as well. I was going to say, you know, great to see the stoplights up in flashing at Fleming and Spruce and just wanted to find out what time they were going to actually switch over and everything, but got that answered. Had a couple of questions from the community, and I know it's not a city thing, but it's a county thing, but people wanting to know when, if we can find that out, but when Third Street will open back up. I know they're still working on it and everything, but I've had a couple of people from the community just wondering. I don't know if you've heard anything or not, but if we could find something out. I told them I didn't know, but... The third street construction project?

Okay. Okay.

That's all I've had. Thank you. Thank you.

Commissioner Landgraf.

So I was able to attend the Buffalo Dunes anniversary celebration as well. Just want to say it was great seeing so many people in attendance for the celebration. It was also great being able to talk with members of the community and hear stories of what Buffalo Dunes used to look like when it first opened up and how much it's grown over the years since then. Also heard a lot of positive feedback about the fireworks show on the 4th of July about the quality of it. I did have questions from the community though. Just want to know what caused the delay in the fireworks show. So I was just wondering if Chief or Matt or someone could potentially... Chief can give you a little bit more detail.

This was a first-time vendor. The one that we'd used for several decades had told us they wouldn't be able to serve us this year. So we did have a new vendor. And it was all related to their setup.

Yes, the setup for the new company came in. I'm not sure if they were judging the temperature of the water or the humidity. Thank you.

The show was fantastic, but we'll need some reinsurances that they know what it takes to set up. We were running dangerously close to not abiding by our own rule. I think the show ended about five minutes before 11. Those who stayed around saw a great show.

Thank you.

Yeah, really great 4th of July for our community. I'm very excited. I'm very glad that Vice Marlowe was able to get through the parade. Also, 50th anniversary for the golf course, and it's always a joy to be out there. I'm excited to hop on the course today to celebrate, but also just a huge congratulations and a huge thank you to all the staff that work out there for the hard work that they put in. We're in the park. such a great event for our community. Always thankful for Garden City Arts to put on such a well-attended event. And I think just in general, I think for myself, I'm very appreciative of this budget season that we've had so far to see all of our departments, recognizing that we all are taking a chunk out of our own skin here. It's very difficult. And so I hope to know that we all, especially the governing body, appreciate the difficult task that we are all embarking on. And hopefully we will It will be over soon. The pain will end soon. So with that, that concludes all the items on our agenda. This meeting is adjourned.