Remarks by Sylvia Ortiz
66 remarks on the record, newest first · Page 1 of 3
Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I welcome to the podium Elder Shanae Calhoun. She was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, and graduated from Florida State University. Spending eight years in Florida, in 2013, she made her way to Topeka, where she became a member of El Shaddai Ministries Community Church and began putting down roots in the community she now calls home. With more than 15 years of experience as a community organizer, Shanae has worked through Topeka JUMP to influence policy and funding decisions that make life more manageable for Topeka families. Today, she serves as an elder at El…
So that's awesome. And El Shaddai Ministries is in my district. It's right at 10th and Sherman. It's huge. You can't miss it. And if you want to be spiritually fed, go see them.
Thank you. I don't have a problem with putting this on the ballot for the people to vote on. The problem I have is paying the money. That's the problem I have. I don't care what anybody says about things up and all this other stuff that we spend. I'm going to vote no. I'm not going to support this because I believe that money can be used for something else. I was out to the election office and they stopped me and they said that they had quoted us wrong. Did they come back and that they were sending you a new amount? It could have even been Brenda because I said, is it the mayor? Is it the…
Yeah, because they said they really gave us something that was under it.
It doesn't matter who you vote for. Just go out and vote. I gave everybody some applications via email and hard copies. I would hope that you would take them serious and they're free to give out, but they do save lives and they do help our firefighters. This is Fire Prevention Month. I don't know where Chad's at. Chad, you want to come up front real quick? If he's here, say something to our people. He's not here?
He might be in the back, Mayor. If he is, I'd like him to come and say something. We should be pushing our fire prevention month every October, pushing it hard. Because when I see those emails, I just cringe. And I don't think that we really need to do that. Hi, Chad. Come on and give the people a hand. Give us some knowledge that we don't have, that we need.
And one more thing, Mr. Mayor, if I may. Who? Cody Foster, I love you. Bye.
Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I'm out of breath here. I thought it was fitting that we would have our fire chaplain come and give the invocation tonight. This is Holly. Reverend Holly Tapley is the Disaster Response Coordinator for the Great Plains United Methodist Conference covering Kansas and Nebraska. A native of Alabama, she served churches in the South for 30 years before joining the Great Plains Conference. Reverend Tapley represents faith-based organizations on the State of Kansas Homeland Security Supervisory Committee. She became a chaplain for the Fire Department. four years ago. We…
Thank you. I'm not going to reiterate what people have said, but I think we need to still work on the language, and I think we need to do it in August. We got one shot at this, and talking to some of my constituents, I tell you what, there's some that say they don't want to do anything for the homeless. They don't want tiny homes. They can't build a tiny home. So why should they provide one? But when I look at the acquisition of vehicles and equipment and other purposes related to providing public safety services for the city, what does that mean? I mean, that's what I'm saying. It has to be…
You know, as I'm sitting here listening and thinking about a homeless situation, I wonder if we could put some, or if we would be, you guys would be open to, there was a couple here that was homeless. They just wanted some money to go back home. And I wonder if we could put that in a wording, some type of wording to do that. They were at Shunga, on Shunga Creek. at least for two or three weeks. And then I think there was some members of the city that got together and got them a ticket to go back home.
You know, Braxton, I kind of like that. I'd like to see us implement that, and I know my attorney's watching, so I'd like him to give me a call tomorrow so he could look at this as well. He's getting late.
He might be, but I'll send this to him anyway.
Will you just cut me off? I thought you were done.
So I'd like us to put something like that in there. Yes, ma'am. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
Well, thank you, Mr. Mayor. I want to go to page 14. And I'd like to ask my colleagues to take the existing word out and to consider that and take it out. Because I pay for a sales tax, a street sales tax, and I don't get the same benefits as everybody else.
Well, I'm just putting it on the record right now, so Brenda can mark that in there because I'm tired. I would like a curb, a gutter, and not a ditch. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
in my neighborhood and what I've been paying for for the last 20-some years. I don't need that, city manager, with all due respect.
And District 3, District 2, a whole bunch of us have paid for it, and we don't get it. Okay. But I bet if Spencer went down his street, he'd get something.
Real quick, as promised, I bought some smoke alarm applications. Take what you want. But please take some and hand them out. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I would like to call up Reverend Jonas Franco to the podium. He is an ordained minister and member of a mistorial body of Pentecostal Church of God International Movement. He has served in ministry for 19 years and has had the privilege of serving in pastoral leadership within the Topeka community. Most recently, he served for five years as senior pastor of Roco I'm sorry, during his pastoral tenure, which means strong rock, becoming actively engaged in the community, serving and supporting individuals and families through a variety of outreach efforts and community…
It's always good to see an updated plan. It's always good to see a park go in. What's the location for the park, Dan?
Okay. Just make sure those high school kids stay at school and not in the park like they do at home.
Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I think we're slowly moving, but we are moving. I want to express, I don't know how many times a week I contact Carrie and say, Can you give me a call? I have another person that's homeless. Deputy Chief Holcomb, he's my number one guy. I call him and I run things by him. Brett, I want you to hear this before you leave. I want you to hear this. Because at the jail, they now have a special spot for the mental health. And Breakthrough has their own social worker that works there several hours. So when they get there, they're not with the other people in jail. They go into…
If they are 18, Carrie? Yes. And their parents have asked them to leave? Or I don't know what the situation is, but I know there's four of them.
Not quoted here: it may name a member of the public. Hear it at the meeting.