City Council - Regular Meeting

Then we And I'll start too. I'm not sure. Yeah, but I do not have another calendar.

final product. So mention it or if you want me ask me questions. Thank you. Enjoying all the

mics don't work.

Um they are not as It's that Evening everyone.

Good evening. Thank you. Welcome to the city council study session March 23rd 2026 the uh first meeting that we are having at the end municipal comments. So congratulations you're you're all first. So with that, first presentation that is up is 2026 annual comprehensive financial report to

evening. I'd like to go ahead and ask um Chester Moyer with Brown to go ahead and come forward. Um every year the city's financial activities are audited by an external third party. Um so that audit those audit findings are reviewed and then ultimately the city presents its audited comprehensive report year. So this year Mr. Moira will be discussing the findings of the audit for the 2025 financials. Thank you very much. Council member Chester Moyer and I'm an audit partner with the firm Ruben Brown was introduced. I an external auditor. Ruben Brown is a auditing firm and um we're the 33rd largest auditing firm in the nation and I lead our public sector services group very large in our firm. Um uh very pleased to have that to run that group. So, I'm based here in Kansas City. Um, and I did want to mention here as we can I have a presentation that helps you walk you through the required communications. And this is the black and white cover what that looks like. I'd like to show it on the screen. So this introductory letter um has a few elements to it that I wanted to point out. First of all, if you follow the cursor, this is for June 30th, 2025. So we're summarizing the audit results from that time. We did perform our audit under generally accepted auditing standards, but we also perform the audit under government auditing standards. And government auditing standards are promagated by the office of management but and budget of the federal

government. an extra layer of auditing standards that city follows. We did have um audit of the city that I'm going to be covering here as well as a compliance audit of the federal funds that the city received. So I'll go result about a little over 900 hours of team from Ruben Brown work auditing. We covered a lot of different departments, engaged with a lot of the people and really appreciate the cooperation that we had through that process. Starting on the left side here, I'll highlight a few items that just a reminder that our relationship and working with this audit is with management most frequently. So, we're engaging with them, ask our questions, and audit the information they provide. However, we are accountable to you saying the constituents of so look closely with management. We are evaluating management's responsibilities for their accounting policies and um the transactions that they make. So you have there no transactions were entered during the year that lacked authing policies that the city implemented the Gatsby which is the governing for issuing financial information for issuing standards under which your financial information is reported. They had a new statement number 101 that the city implemented this year. It took a lot of effort for the city to do that. I'll talk a little bit later on the approach to that implementation. It's a good effort left side here. I want to point out that the financial statements that you review in the audit, they do contain estimates. Management does have to make estimates and we evaluate those estimates to make sure that they're reasonable in relation

to the financial statements that they are estimating. So, for example, we have two of the estimates highlighted here. City is participating and offers an other post-employment benefit program. City hires an actuary to perform that calculation. It has a lot of estimates included in that calculations. We evaluate those estimates. Then right below that we have a comment on the compensated absences calculation that was standard this year and there are estimates included around the usage of absences. We do audit all of the disclosures of the financial statements. We are opening up to if we feel like our there's deposits and investments for the city show nature and and time frame that the investments that the city holds. Tax revenue which are the sources of revenues for the city. Then the long-term obligations shows the obligations that this we are required to communicate to you any corrected or uncorrected misstatements that we identify as a course of the audit. And what that means is that the financial information is presented to us and as we work through the audit, we identify changes that we recommend that we would require to be made. In this case, we had one item that we would we're showing as an uncorrected statement. Now, this terminology is a little bit deceptive because this is a result of the way the city elected to implement the new Gazby accounting standard around. So if you look under the text here at the bottom lost the cursor here but this is really a practical approach that we had to implementing this standard. So to follow the standard by the letter of it was written require a prior period

restatement and I think I'm very clunky in the presentation said the city did what most municipalities did which was to present it in the current year going forward and because of that reporting of historical information what would it have looked like had it been presented. On the next page, we have um two items around our audit report. So the only thing that's in the financial statements that is actually is the audit report itself. So we want to point out anything that might be different well in that audit report normal. It still means it's okay. It just is something else that gets added that's extra. And in our audit report, we are referring to another auditor that dam Arena which is incorporated in the financial statements. We do coordinate our activities with that other auditor. Make sure that we're on the same page as far as planning expectations and statements. We're pleased also to report we want to point out that there were no difficulties in dealing with management performing this audit. Again, we work with them over 100 hours throughout the year form this audit. We're very with the response. Financial statements when you look at them, they have um a lot of information in them. They're about 200 pages long. After I finish this, I'll just show you. So, we audit what's in the middle of the financial statements, which is the basic financial statements. At the beginning, there's a transmitter letter. That's the city presenting information in its own words about the operations of the city. At the very end, there's statistical information. It shows trend data for 10 years or so. And they're information that we review and repeat. We don't actually audit those elements of the

information. We do read them to make sure they're consistent with what audit likely is. Okay. So I mentioned it before that this was audited under the office of management and budget government auditing standards as well. So as a result of that we're required to issue a separate or basically a report on internal controls. It's really a byproduct of the audit that we look if we identify any deficiencies in internal control then we would be required to report them to our full screen report. I mentioned that part of the scope of our audit is completing the federal funds audit. So the city is receiving federal funds during the course of the year and with those funds come strings attached as far as compliance requirements, how the money needs to be spent. So this year the city spent had 14.85 million of federal expenditures and we audited on the right side you can three major programs. That's groupings of funds federal government has identified as being similar. The largest was the assistance listing number 21.027.3 million. We audited two additional programs as per required by the federal government standards and that got us 57% coverage of the expenditures. We did have um one instance of non-compliance that I'll go through when I actually review the single audit specifically to okay along with um any communications that we would have been required to make government auditing standards report communications that we have to make in the single audit. We have other observations that we made

just as a close want to keep track of what was recommended in the prior year, current status and go through. So starting from the bottom, um we we're encouraging management in the financial area especially to continue to evaluate ways to shorten the financial statements, reduce the number of planned journal entries that are made. And um we report in the status that corrective action has been t taken and that we have identified noticeable improvement recommends that effort and it is resulting in a smoother going up from the bottom. Middle one reconciliation of building utilities is also an area that we do spend a considerable amount of time testing. community control testing over the utilities building and we wanted uh we wanted to encourage the city to improve the efficiency of the reconciliation process in that effort. Then the financial statements and the taken June daily imports have made that process better and that has been that man has been taken. And then finally at the top the tracking of capital assets being migrated completely into the system. The city continues to work on that to monitor that will financial close this. And the last attachment that I have here is the management representation letter. So as a a effort to close down the audit and make a final representation as our final piece of audit evidence. We ask management to confirm that all the questions that we've asked them have been responded to to the best. It shows you of questioning that we do this.

Just to continue real quick, I wanted to highlight this is the financial statement of the annual comprehensive financial report. You look up at the top and we can see it's, you know, almost 200 pages long, but like I said, we audit the middle part of this at the front and back is the work of the city and it's not audited. But I'll just run through. These are some of the statistical tables that we don't audit but provide a lot of useful information to the constituents of the city. Example employees by function. All this information again is not audited by us but is reviewed or read by us to make sure it's consist. And then to repeat about the federal funds audit that we performed, we do issue a separate deliverable to it as the single audit just to run through this giving you the highlights. This is your government auditing standards report. This is what indicate any control deficiency to report. The second report is our report on compliance. We're still issuing a clean or unmodified opinion on that overview. Identify this is the short portly. This is your beginning of the expenditures that the city had grouped by all the different grades that the city receives and different ways that the federal government requires that education. There's a there's your 14.8 million. Very small there, but 14.8 dollars that was spended of federal funds during the so I did want to point out this is where our of non-compliance gets reported in the single audit so that we tested did not have the suspension in department

basically making sure that the federal government has not prohibited that vendor from putting receiving federal funding say it is a common funding that we work that receive that but it is something that we do to the city of action plan for which they have done we're pleased that they have protection do want to point out one final thing on this s summary schedule of prior audit findings this is a required schedule the single audit as It includes anything we would have identified in the preview. So this was finding here sometimes the process to implement these track of actions does take period of time. So for example the thought it was done completed and submitted there could be a period of time which said so we're overlapping and above that is a financial statement um finding that we reported in the prior year as a part of the government auditing standards report just to report so just to summarize the audit here we had opinion on the financial statements that's the highest level of offer as auditor s and happy to take any questions that you have about

any questions or comments to Mr. Moyer. Um just want to clarify that report as part of that process at chairman of that committee. We had a conversation.

Yeah. Yeah. Thanks. So you can It's middle of March here. Um this is for the June 30th, 2025 year end, but we're interacting with the city for 10 to 11 months out of the year this. So um the federal funds audit that we just finished that's due to the federal government of March March. So that gets submitted. We submitted that at the forment as well. So from June until about May, we're doing something city. So as a part of our process, I mentioned we work a lot with the city. you know, 900 plus hours that we're working them are with the city. But we do talk with others outside of the city management, specifically you to make sure that you're not hearing anything that we need to about it. We talk about our risks with you, the risk that we've identified, how we're addressing those risks, how we address our procedures in general, just to make sure again that we're all on the same page, that um that there's active communication between us and you, and that you're informed. that you've learned about your that committee and um so we have those conversations ask each of the council member also to fill out survey responding to us about any some of the similar information conflicts fraud and concerns they might have that we and then towards the conclusion of our audit we did present this maybe dialogue um the results of the audit and to report our audience the results. There is there is a goal of having active communication with you as the governing body and that um he can inform us of items that need to be considered for general knowledge. Councilman Fears

is the chairman of the audit finance committee and councilwoman wy and myself on that. So this is our second time going for the review. We have a little deeper dive um last month. Um I'll certainly still open up for questions from the amount of time and energy in but also So I can work that you do um talk about the test of that means through state and what you're doing.

Yeah. When we perform a test of internal controls what we're looking at is the population of activities that happen during a period for a specific transaction class. So I mentioned utility billing with one of the areas where we test the controls. What we're looking for is over a period year pull out from the populations are determined by the AICP sampling sample. What we're looking for in terms of a control and also in terms of of the actual compliance with the um items in the amount the amounts that are on the bills and so on that they're making the way to the lender. We're making sure that that information is being captured and reviewed. That there's a review taking place of that information um as it makes its way from the source the origination point all the way to the financial statements which would be so the control in that case would be a review of process. We're looking share that documenting.

Yeah. What else? I have 80. Thank you. You and your team to review bill of health. Thank you. It is up to AC 2026 transportation update. Manager.

Um if you could imagine the first match of the World Cup is only 85 days away my mind, but here we are. Um this evening, Mr. Jason Sims is here. He is the director of transportation for Casey 2026 and he is going to talk to us about how Independence is playing a part. Both the Independence Square and the Independent Center are parking locations and part of the um traffic and transportation plans for KC 2026. And so Mr. Sims is here to talk basically about how they are connecting the region for this event and how transportation services and what transportation services will be. And with that,

thank you for your time. Thank you, council, for allowing me this opportunity to get the transportation plan for the World Cup. Uh, we have three objectives for KC 2026 that are outlined by our boarders. Deliver Kansas City magic. We understand and feel the hospitality of the We want to rise on the world stage. And we certainly want to leave a lasting legacy. As you can see, we have um six matches. Um our covered quarterfinal match and our first match starts on June the 16th. And so happens the first match, I believe, will be one of our biggest matches because of the base camps, Argentina and Alria. We have four base camps. Uh just to put this into context, uh we have three pot one teams base camping in, uh Kansas City, Algeria base camp. Um of all of the host cities, New York does have four closest to having a pot one team. Uh all the other host cities on the campaign. Moving on to the transition plan. I mean to our uhation plan connect AC 2026 we have three services that weing all 33 days of the tournament the airportly right now the airport serve uh once per hour ACTA we will be establishing when I say we connect 2026 standing up our own transit system for what is going to take 225 charter buses to accomplish this task. Being first to market for our charter buses which makes everything for charter

got the best price first to the market next year in late 24 actually and we'll be doing the airport every 15 minutes 33 days of the tournament hours a day. The second is our stadium direct. I want to highlight that only match ticket holders uh can access the stadium be different than a fuse game. Certainly you have to have a match ticket. It will buy at our last FIFA free test for free um gating stadium and put into context there is no transit currently stadium um we are going to have to move 195 to 20,000 ft um charter service transit service. Uh so the culture uh certainly of Kansas City will have to change the we have gone from 21,000 parking spaces stadium which will be called the AC stadium during the tournament down to 4,000 spaces. Uh that is because of media centers and hospitality and all the things that brings but we only have 4,000 parking spaces. So we have to do a new um concept which is you know parking rides are not new but the amount of people we is is tremendous. Our four parking rides have been announced. We have one very close stadium in 40 independ city and our express FIFA FanFest service. You're at FIFA Fanfest. You can take an express bus directly. Uh the last is not a FIFA requirement. This is kind of that rise on the ring stage and also we want to um showcase AC magic. This is our regional model. This

is so that we can realize the economic impact of over 650 million dollars for the tournament. Uh we we thought through it as how will people get to opportunities and we established region direct. We're the only host city that is establishing a direct regional transit service um out of all the cities. This is kind of our legacy to the region of how transit can be effective in a bystate situation by state. um connecting region overlaid first is all of the existing service um through CHA through KC all the partners on the spine of that street car uh is certainly a um partner uh through south movefest. So we looked at the existing uh transit and try to look are uh served and we also then overlaid all the hotel and places that stay um and all of that data to be able to see where we stay. Um we looked at we had a list of about 60 sites. Uh we got down to 15 sites for and um those were 15 locations. Just to give you kind of a quick overview, we're going from an Alexa city center right now downtown. It will take you about an hour and 15 minutes. All of our sites are direct to your location one to one and it will trim over 50% of your travel time. We're very um concerned about the experience of riders. That's why we're going to call those buses not transit style buses and we're trying to alleviate the time, safety, and experience for all of our riders of

transit. Um so we're all strategically placed uh so that we can um get people opportunities. So if you get on a bus at the legends fanfest and they want to come to square all of these movements are available 33 days of the tournament roughly about 16 hours a day and a bus will service sites every just a quick over everything out quick overview of our regional network. Um we're very proud of this. This is uh the legacy that we're trying to leave as um go to the ballots. People are passionate about transit and change the culture city as relates to service recap. Airport three days every 15 minutes in our FanFest hub are so from the airport. Uh this is actually going to be a free service for 33 days. Uh you'll get access to the street car. You'll have access to our regional region direct 33 days every night. One outlier going to Lawrence every 30 minutes 15. Then the stadium direct for match holders ticket holders only. Um that will operate only six days for match day service. uh the four locations plus fee for payments. I'm happy to um announce today I was going to solicit your support but happy to announce that we do have an agreement with the center and we do have an agreement with ACATA for the bus stop working but all that is uh in place now.

I appreciate all the help from council certainly um you feel helped us um and we're ready to go and highlight some of the comments. So I was at the independent center with the team going over this with and we were talking about security and what that's going to look.

Oh yes. So um safety and security is um very very prime we don't know about all of our sites we are in law enforcement um it's going to be working together four law enforcement six match days every time it's open it's a reg this is a regional site and a match day site we always have law enforcement present um some of our match are late. Um you can see midnight 1 o'clock there will be law enforcement there also weired uh there will be minimum for fire security also we have staff there will be site working this site staff for this site is over site lighting towers surveillance camera towers and we'll be monitoring all of the activity at all of our parking lots from separate and caught our truck, our traffic operations center.

So the parking right at center is that strictly stadium fest? Yes. So, uh, the stadium the stadium direct only for six match days and, uh, you have to have a ticket if you're on. There will be a cast. We'll be announcing that probably within the next two to three weeks will be fair or casting service stadium highly compared relates to pricing. Matter of fact, it's very low pricing. But we'll be announcing those calls at every age.

And where where can they drop in? It's in our bus at FanFest. So a bus fanfest is the hub transit access to regional direct services access the free carc set up there

that is running 18 hours a hours a day. We'll be posting infest to announce their specific independent square. Envision where? Here's a good question. All of the recent stops. Some of us center is also a really but in some of some of the sites probably other treating it as a no stop as the city some of the cities are allocating some are not we're treating it as questions.

Um, oh, our first service starts at 4 times do not open your facility until 3. So we start our first services at best and operating start of the match start for saying

I'll go home in Come on. I'm just kind of much ination system hospitality test things for everyone system. So you said early You could come from the legends make it explain to me that's only on match day

any day. Any day. So our regional direct here all of our region direct services uh terminated FanFest. So here in the middle you can see and they go to transportation to base camp. Oh my god.

So daily seven days and also a World War I museum be open. testing over and that uh 18-day schedule is now posted on the

responses 2026 responsible for all overlay safety and security and all So the lighting and surveillance are all staff everything that it would take to run the site just get very impressive site. Can you mention the countdown? That's fantastic. I don't know how I count trafficing questions about that session. stop and the actual stop lights

a lot different traffic controls as are signed. We go across the ocean.

I've heard that still beautiful. I like it. for the six match.

Sims, thank you for the hard work and thank you for the presentation and the update. I didn't believe we're close. We're almost there. Good. Good to be here. Thank you. Up next is the art policy manager. I'd like to go ahead and ask GK Calhan and Nancy Effort to come forward. Um they are members of the city's arts council and just as a reminder for everyone council was created um by city council back in 2017 and they advise the city on all things art related. Um and they are here to talk to you this evening about potential changes to the 1% for the arts program.

Thank you. part of the box taking quite some time there. Uh we had smaller committee a subcommittee put together.

Thanks for uh having me today and I'm really glad I'm not working on that traffic plan. Tell you that much. This is going to be a little more fun I hope for you guys to talk about. So you know first of all who is the arts council again? Can we actually raise our hands? Arts council member few of us here in that corner. Thank you so much. I mean, I want you to know that it was established through a resolution to have an arts council. It used to be the mayor's council of the arts. Now, it's the independent arts council. We're basically a subbody that kind of reports to you guys and gives recommendations. That's what our job is. Uh not to make policies or do anything, but to recommend anything would be best to improve the city. We're currently nine members that come from all types of art backgrounds. So, visual arts, applied arts, business, performing arts, so on. So, we're here to serve you guys and hopefully um move the city together. So, I'm going to give you a little overview of our policy. Um you know, right now we have an existing policy and it's really to build independence identity through the arts, strengthen pride, enrich lives, um and support economy. You know, right now it's 1% for the arts policy allocates a small funding of a capital budget of your of a project towards the arts. What's really important on this slide for me is that this is not a new tax. This is not impacting core services. So, I know when people hear 1%, they think the gas pump, they think we're coming after a sales tax. This is not that. This is a different um uh to be used in your toolbox and it's not going to impact core services. It's really a smarter way to build a city that people are proud of. So, let's talk a little about 1% for the arts and what they do. So, I told you what it doesn't. It really has community impact. People take care of places that they're proud of. They're happy. They thrive in those places. There's a lot of research that our subcommittee found on how it impacts public health and safety. It's really good for business. Some things it does is it attracts talents and entrepreneurs to move to your

community. It supports tourism and hospitality sectors. It strengthens local local business districts like Englewood Arts for example, downtown square. Places that were not thriving that now today through the arts you can visibly see in our community are thriving and all the businesses are rented. Um it's also a proven model. We're not here trying to ask you guys to do something new experimental. Philadelphia adopted this in 1959. There's over 350 cities in the US that have a warm of 1% for the arts. Uh, and what's really nice is it scales with our city's growth. As we grow and we do more improvements with municipal dollars, then our fund grows and scales with the city. And so we kind of do that together. And it's a really nice thing and it adds um permanent assets to the city that the city can then look back on. So, like I said before, we already have a 1% for the arts policy, and this policy applies to um public art using um city funds done on with municipal projects. When we read the policy, there was at least seven areas that we thought we wanted to clarify and maybe suggest an update. Some of them are really simple. If you read the old policy, it still had Mayor's Council for the Arts, not Independence Arts Council. So, one was just to get the name the shift and so that was you know just a clerical mistake. Um other things we want to do is clarify definitions on what is public art what is not public art. We want to rely align with regional best practices. So we did as a subcommittee a research on national best practices around 1% for the arts but we also looked at what our neighbors do and we'll look at that a little bit. Um, we want to remove any outdated provisions that were in there. So, we had the city help, city staff, um, help us look at it and there were some outdated provisions

that were no longer. We wanted to expand eligible projects. Right now, it's for a municipal buildings. We think that should be expanded to other municipal dollars, not just building a building. Um, we also wanted to add services. I've seen in other cities where they had a bunch of capital projects come through and they bought a bunch of art and then they had no money to fix it up. Later it started deteriorating. City was really in a pinch. Now they had all this beautiful art was falling down and they didn't have that in the budget. And so we think that should be something added into the policy just so we protect ourselves for the future going. We wanted to formalize what the guidelines were for how we decide accepted as a public art piece and what doesn't and what waiver criteria the council and the city has to wave those options if needed to be. Um and then we wanted to really focus on lasting community make our place just more attractive for everyone everyone happier more del. So what does public art fund just you know really simple it's things like sculptures mural streetcape elements um parking and trail signs way finding placemaking so these are some of the things that can fund it's one small percentage makes a big impact on a community I want to talk dollars because I talked to a few of the council members and I really appreciate your time and trying to get to understand what's best when presenting this policy update for us and I think some of the confusion lies on the blanket of just the one feels like it's a blanket over everything that we're budgeting and not everything would be eligible the ory changes that we're testing. So, um the city staff has helped me pull together a few examples here. We can just kind of run through a very but the 24 complete streets highway. As you can see, it was a 23.5

million project. I'm kind of grabbing. Um, and out of that, the MODOT cost share uneligible for the 1% for the arts policy even in its current update as we have it written. Um, the street sales tax, which I know is a concern for citizens because we need streets to ride on and we don't want to mess with that sales tax. That is not eligible for 1% for the arts. Some of the federal grants we got were not eligible. But the ARPA funds, for example, by law, we're out of that $23 million talking a $40,000 revenue for the arts. And might be a lot of different opinions on this, but I think out of $23 million, $4,000 to make sure our community is vibrant and does not sound like a business. Um, but if you look at the 40 highway complete streets project, there was zero money eligible for sent for the arts there because most of that money came out of the street sales tax and some federal STP grants that are not eligible. But this slide is really just showing you a breakdown of how not everything that we do will be eligible for this percentage based on the type of money the city needs to use because as we know doing projects takes funding from all different sources. Another thing I think is important is this was in the original 1% for the arts. It was incentives. We give tax abatements to local businesses and other nonprofits and things and then it was removed from the document and they're asking it was a recommendation essentially put this back in. So if you see the independent surgery center, they had a a decent tax evadement of $3,000. 1% of that would have not sound like a big ask after you're um but Wallally's a for-profit corporate business would have had a a nice chunk towards the arts and investment in our community. Um out of their uh their

thing there they would have had almost $100,000 towards the arts. If you think as community and business partners, this is not a hard request for the city to ask that you show up as a business and also want to support. So what could looks look like in independence? And I think this is really important especially as um we're the arts council and a lot of people the council here and publicly know me as being part of the Englewood district. This is not just for one part of independence. This is for all of this 1% for the arts touches everywhere. um depending on how the projects happen and where they happen is probably where the art would be located. Part of those are some of the guidelines we want to update in this proposal. So this could be on our parks and trail enhancement. It could be gateway coordinates, historic district representation for this new building that we're in now for the municipal comments. So this is really I want to be very clear this is to support all of independence not just so taking a step back I want to talk about kind of where we are now as the arts council we are newly reformed there are some members that were the council previously and some new members and we've been having some conversations about some really exciting development projects in the city and how art can play into those and enhance neighborhoods and those spaces for everyone and you know a few of The things we've talked about, this is one example is the Truman Connect project, which I I know is finding its way through, but we are looking at identifying nine paths and locations along that stretch from Lexington to Sterling on Winter Road. Public art could be seems like it's a very um idea that is being taken seriously. But what I want to also point out is right now our public art fund has I think $550 in it. So can't buy a lot of art for that. And we're going to put in nine pads.

This is one of those reasons why I think it's a really important time to talk about updating this policy so that when it comes in the next few years and those pads are finished and we're ready to put sculptures that there's money in the fund to be able to make that happen. So, another thing that um was asked of uh our group was to talk about what our neighbors are doing. So, what are they doing in the communities around us because there's some communities and Liberty being one example that I love to point out recently. I don't know if you've been to their downtown square, but I was floored. It's quite beautiful right now. They have public art everywhere. They enacted um their version of this a few years ago. So, I really wanted to give you an example of some what some of our neighbors are doing. So, Kansas City um they actually made theirs an ordinance in 1989. So, it was 50 years ago that they have a 1% for the arts policy and I put through 1% for the policy up there because it is very similar to the policy that we are suggesting the city council take a look at. Other areas like Gladstone, Lee Summit and Shaunie use their um CIP funds and they link that to their wonderful. So when they're doing these community improvement projects, that's where they get 1% for the arts. Uh that's another model that we could suggest and and talk to the council about if you were interested. Our ourly look at those models more, but it grows very slow. Can also say that I also sit on the Gladstone Arts Commission board. It's just a really slow growing model. And so that that's not one that I would suggest, but it is an option to look at. Um, in Kansas City, Kansas, they use developer project based contributions, and that's how they're funding their public arts projects. And then in Liberty, which seems to be working well, they're using a guest tax for their Airbnbs, bed and breakfast, and things like that. Again, our policy is not a tax. It's using existing dollars. So, that's not one I would suggest either. And I kind of wanted you to have a picture of what everyone else is doing as well.

So kind of to slightly wrap up here, but why 1% for the artworks? In Missouri alone, it's a $1.7 billion economic impact. There's over 13,000 jobs. Most nonprofits report that when people go to see a play or come to their nonprofit, they're going to go out to eat, pay for parking, want to outfit potentially. Um they're going to provide they're going to put money on local services. So this is research. Um you know, art helps increase foot traffic. It helps boost tourism. There's some really good reasons why this is a idea. Why does it matter to independence right now is that we are currently working on multiple infrastructure and neighborhood revitalization projects. I think now is the time to have this conversation so that we're really looking at our public spaces holistically and not just about the infrastructure of how do the lights turn on and off, is the traffic running correctly, but do people want to live here? Do they want to move here? Are we attracting people to come? So again, 1% for the arts is not a new tax the way we'reing it. It's using existing budgets for projects. It helps strengthen the economy, build community identity, and I think creates lasting public assets. Now, we'll leave you with this. My entire career has been about leaving places better than I found them through the arts. I think this policy is one smallly that but I think self for that presentation I'll open it up to the floor conversation used as

yes so again I don't remember how much it was 90,000 um they do the or site or have to go through the office council and they would decide where

that's part of what we want to flush out if this policy would get adopted as some of those guidelines and I think the answer would be yes they would probably be able to do the art on site typically that is how it works but in some situations it's not the best so for an example we recently as a council we're talking to the fire department and some of those fire stations are not in very public areas And so the money that they would put into the coffers for the 1% they were thinking might be better pulled in a public area where they could have a a memorial to lost firefighters or people of service, men and women of service. And so I think it would depend. It's kind of an as situation, but most likely it wouldinenity of that dollars were

Yes. often people have very different ideas about what there would be some guidelines on community sensitivity to projects.

Yes, I think there would 100% be guidelines on community sensitivity. And again I think all the way the charter is written or the our um council is that we would be making recommendations to the council the final approval is approval is chosen. So there would be a process where the probably most likely put out an RFP um with less submissions go through a choosing process make recommendations and it would be chosen along those lines. But yes, I'm thinking about um uh nudity or graphic content or um things that are polar polarizing probably be things that would be heavily considered. Hence also the update to the to put on this because we think that one thing the policy currently is missing if there are no not really any guidelines.

I understand what you asking to consider. So I a suit processing of dollars that should be allocated to buy public art for city um through a consensus of the council and the council subconsil and the council. on how those dollars would be spent effective

about.

Yeah. So, a number of communities. I think right now there's one company called the Creative Arts Alliance that I currently work with some of my other roles. There's 23 Missouri communities that rent public art, for example, and it's a much more cost-e effective way to get public art rotating in and out of your community. Uh they just raised their rates. Um but so the city of Gladstone is one of their communities that we work and for a a decent size about my height size public sculpture. You can get that forum $1,500 a year two-year commitment. So for $2,000 and um they help arrange that and the artist brings it in and it out. So, back to those pads that we they were a very specific size because they need to be at least four four. It's not a very large footprint, but that's one way at a low cost that you could have ads like that all over the city. Rotate artwork. The really neat thing about that particular program is if a small business owner, neighbor, someone just loves that piece in front of their house, you have the first option to buy it. So, you could buy it and make it a permanent piece. A lot of times this is how cities start showing public artwork and they test it out with the community, but it's also how they build their collection. They might get a piece that really resonates with that neighborhood and the neighborhood decides or the city or the arts now decides to purchase preview of types of So, we're looking at um municipal um construction or build projects. I hope I'm using the right terms that

um please. Uh but you know, so we we put in there um some streets, bridges, and culvert sort of things that were outside of the sales tax. Obviously, there's some things that are excluded from that. We're looking at if you're going to come, we do a whole park system that you maybe consider 1% for the arts for the park. Uh right now it's really narrow as in it's it's municipal building. So new fire stations, the municipal commons. This is that this is the way it's written currently and that scope just will not grow very often and it'll be very restricted to very specific areas of the city versus you were talking about um other municipal construction projects. That answer your question correctly?

At all about maximum.

Yeah, we did a lot of research on that and that's definitely been a big conversation. Um the city of Kansas City, for example, has no cap. Why we have so much beautiful art at the airport building. Obviously a big project. Um Johnson County had a million dollar cap. So out of our recommendations, I think we've suggested that we some sort of I think on the million-dollar mark seemed to be on average what all of our neighbors were doing. But like I said, a lot of cities don't the project the more you know you need to dress it up and um would cap out at a million dollars. you know, would be it would cap out at a million dollars per project. Um, but that would be changed or debated. This is just recommendations compared on what other neighbors are doing. Like I said, the city of Kansas City has no cap. So, their their 1% is unlimited depending on how big the project is. So, if you have a $ 1.3 billion airport project, you get million dollars for the airport. Um, but our neighbors in Johnson County, they kept theirs at a million, and we thought that was reasonable. Um, okay. With there's been some conversations with with policy. So within the economic development metro, everybody has this show been any push back with developer thing that you've heard. community including the cities m

I have not heard of any specific examples where there's been push back partly because this is not a new like I said it's cities that's been around since the 50s um and there's over 300 cities that do this so developers are they're used to this sort of um language but that also being said not every city does it through one policy some like the city of San Francisco which was in our research early on they also do theirs through a hotel tax because theirs through a tourism tax and we're that's not something that we are suggesting as part of the policy. Um but I I have not heard of anyone walking away from a project such the other discussions that we have had are using the micro highway model as as an example the ARPA funding there the the 40 mill,000

$4,000 classes right here. Yeah, 40. Just say so if if this policy would tie to that 40,000 I'm going to kind of direct this to in manager that 40,000 would have had to use that out of general fund services actually

because it wouldn't have been budgeted. Yes. if you didn't want to take it out of project cost. Now I will clarify that typically any infrastructure cost project is funded out of its very special sales tax which you know as Ed aware we have many special sales taxes. So street sales tax would likely been expected to come up with that difference. Um some other Pik and I have had this conversations just about u being very careful about things that including very specifically designated and purposed park sales tax, street sales tax um public safety sales taxes and those things that um to be clear about those lines even including utility funds just because again we do cost of service studies never has the cost of 1% been added to water. Um so that would either yes have to be covered by the general fund director glaring at me right now. Um but or come out of that special revenue. The alternative is if you're looking at just a CIP budget, do you have that total number? you save from that budget number, but that means less of the project dollars are going to the actual infrastructure for which that project.

I also think it's important too, I think what we're making recommendation is is that this is a pre-budgeted item and so this was included in the cost. So you wouldn't pack say we have to take from this project cost and have to come up with difference. It's like asphalt. It's a line item that's needed that we think is really it's already pre-budgeted in cost of the so if the city take on this policy it shouldn't be something that we have to go back and take from a project budget. It's included in the beginning and it's just part of something we do because we know it has an economic benefit on the other end. So, we're asking you to consider that economic benefit ahead of placement and then it's a pre-budgeted item. That's kind of how we're looking.

Manager CIP is what? Five years in advance.

Yes. Have the ability to modify them, but it is a five. I think one of the places for um consideration is the private community and development projects like that, especially those that are in I think that's a great place to look. Um and I think with the the concept of creating fun more left to be used throughout the city is a good thing. Doesn't always make sense to try and spend that whole 1% on site. Um connected is a great example. We do have those ads poured to showcase art through that corridor. Um but again your site doesn't even always allow for artistic component that might be large scale enough based on the dollars that being presented to. So forming a pool of money to be used citywide is a wise thing any again there's lots of refinement I feel like that needs to happen here but it's kind of

we're early on in the stages. We just want to present our findings. We're not asking for a vote or anything tonight. This is really like, hey, we've been looking at this. We've done some research and we know the existing policy definitely needs some. Um, and that's all we want to do is just open that dialogue as your subconsel and say, "Hey, this needs some attention and how can we with city staff?" So, not trying to disrupt services for beautiful things. We think they can be lifted up side by side. Council council and interrupt me if out of chair. I think you have some very strong the things that you have discussed on beautifying and making a good sense of place here and it was really fun. Honestly, I was my Jackson. It was really fun to collaboration with commission and the uh independence arts council and councilwoman Wy. I think that was the first time that there's been that kind of cross collaboration years. So, it was really

I've never seen at the new fire chief. I've never seen firemen so happy about art. They were really excited and I mean that was a really fun thing to see. um they pointed out some projects in Kansas City that they really inspired them feel happy about their job when they saw those memorials and I think you know um with that department and helping those people just day make sure we it's really nice and you know that I think

thank you for question the other um they all send um other groups that um not every well I don't I don't we got a turn I'm not sure every city has a council to send the projects to so that's a start every city of course in this does it slightly different but most of them do send those projects through the arts council and then those recommend just checks and balances sort of system. I think the answer to your question is yes, most of them do it that way. I can speak most specifically to Gladstones because I'm on that board now. They wait so there's a pool and they money a lot slower. Once they do, they first make recommendations to the council on areas of the city where the flat aren't and they think they within their park system. Once those recommendations get kind of the city council in they taken back to the arts council, they pick a spot and they put out an RFP process goes backwards and then once they have that and they got the RFP then and just so you know on a small piece of artwork on inexpensive side we're talking $50,000. If it's a large piece of artwork, the base alone to support it from falling over, as we might know from hoping to do potentially in the roundabout on Northern, um that base could be $200,000 in concrete and engineering. And so the art piece alone, I mean, so the fund does have to have some substantial money in it depending on how large. Hence, um my um Heather Wley's suggestion on printing or borrowing artwork is usually a good way

the art. Um, it is there are some things that make it a lot um prohibitive or not for a city to tackle, but then you don't own the asset. Um, I've also seen it where cities have bought the public art from early artist. Years later, they're worth lots of money and the city sells them off for a profit. That's very rare, but it does happen. I think there's something to be said about an iconic place that people have been visiting. My mom got proposed under this place and this and that, you know, and those things only happen if the city owns those assets. But then you have to take into consideration maintenance weather sort of things and that because that's why we suggested in this policy that some of that percentage of the money that comes in gets set aside for staff to manage that. I've seen other cities where that's gone. Have that set. So I think you would really want to do a combo. That's why we have you guys figure that out for

Absolutely. And there's nine of us. So better city manager and refinement. Are you able to to work with the council forment? I'm happy to continue. we have some great opportunities coming in the future. So, thanks for listening to our findings today. You know, we're the council is always available to answer more questions and we hope and thank you and thank you Yeah,

that concludes our meeting tonight. Thank you again for everyone for being here for the first inaugural study session. So concludes Oh, we will not conclude. We have one more thing. I just wanted to let everyone um know that happy to announce that our Rock Creek wastewater treatment plant received award for the large bioolids facility of the year from the Missouri Water Environment Association just today. So um we have gone from literally having that doesn't excite anyone but me. I know excited for you. I know. We went from defunct food center incinerator to new land application and are now the facility of the year. Excellent. So pass that on to the team out there.

That concludes our night. Thank you very much.

Yes ma'am. Yeah, for sure. Absolutely. Iraq operations. So good.