CITY MANAGER’S REPORT

Week ending February 1, 2013

 

January sales tax distribution

The City of Lawrence has recently received its January sales tax distribution.  The distribution is the result of retail sales from mid-November to mid-December.  The January 2013 distribution is counted as 2012 revenue because the sales took place in 2012. The distribution of $2,835,542.34 is $150,000 more than the prior year distribution for the same month. The city has now received the 2012 distributions. The 2012 revenue was $32,363,922 compared to the budget of $30,555,463. 2012 city sales/use tax is up 4.8% from 2011 while county sales/use tax is up 5.8% from 2011.  Please see the attached memo for more information.

 

Update on recreation center at Rock Chalk Park

Pursuant to City Commission direction, staff has been meeting and preparing drafts of documents for City Commission consideration on February 19. While the recommended contract language has not been finally determined, and the proposal is subject to further work by the attorneys involved in the drafting of the documents, the general outline of the draft Development Agreement contains the following:

 

The City shall bid the Recreation Center as a City project, with plans reflecting the location of the Recreation  Center to be on Lot 2 of Rock Chalk Addition No. 1 with a pad-ready, building permit-ready site. The bidding by the City shall be in the same manner as the bidding of other City construction projects. The bidding shall be open to any and all construction firms (City licensure for contractors, mandatory pre-bid meeting requirements, etc. would apply). The opening of the bids for the Recreation Center shall be at City Hall at a time and place as advertised in the bid announcement.

 

The parties acknowledge the proposed Rock Chalk Park development includes a mix of both University of Kansas Athletics facilities and City facilities, and that such combination of facilities enhances the overall athletic, economic, and community impact of the site. The combination of facilities and the different funding sources for the construction of the facilities require the cooperation and collaboration of all parties to ensure the successful completion of the facilities within appropriate timeframes and budgets. For example, both KU and the City benefit by the construction of the public streets, parking lots, sanitary sewer, waterlines, sidewalks, etc. serving the property. 

 

The City and the KU Endowment Association, through the KU Endowment Association entity RCP, LLC, shall enter into an agreement for the construction of infrastructure and related improvements at Rock Chalk Park.  The City shall be responsible for these infrastructure and related improvement costs on an audited cost-plus basis, provided that these costs are not for the specific KU Athletics facilities, but only for the shared items set out in the agreement. All of the invoices and related costs that the City would pay will be audited and available for public review and inspection. RCP, LLC and Bliss Sports II, LLC will enter into an agreement for the construction of the infrastructure and related improvements. The City’s contract will be with RCP, LLC.

 

The total City costs under the Development Agreement  – Recreation Center costs and infrastructure costs –  are capped at $25 million.

 

2013 Street and Infrastructure project funding summary 

As a follow up to City Commission discussion during consideration of the 2013 pavement maintenance program, attached is a summary of 2013 street/infrastructure projects coordinated by the Public Works Department.  The City continues to successfully utilize several funding sources to meet community needs for street and infrastructure projects.

 

2012 Water Production Report

As everyone in Lawrence remembers, in 2012 we experienced a relatively hot, dry summer with substantial city water demand. Please see the attached report detailing water production in 2012 and a staff memorandum on water revenues and how additional 2012 water revenues are planned to be spent on necessary costs and infrastructure improvements.   

 

2012 Engineering Division annual report.

The Engineering Division of the Public Works Department is responsible for the review and approval of all public improvement plans for streets, sidewalks, rights of way, driveways and storm sewers. The division administers, designs and inspects these projects. The division evaluates pavement condition and contracts for major pavement restoration and replacement, and solicits grants and other funding for major reconstruction or new construction projects. In addition to project management, the Engineering Division includes work groups for storm water engineering, traffic engineering, bridge inspection, levee inspection/monitoring, surveying and supports services, including providing mapping and GIS functions for public information. The Engineering Division is responsible for the Farmland Industries redevelopment project including remediation efforts of ground water and future development as an industrial site. Please see the attached annual report, Farmland progress report, 2006-2012 street maintenance map, and 2012 street maintenance as-built map.

 

City website tops 2.7 million page views in 2012

The city’s website continues to be a valuable asset to citizens looking for information on city services, programs and events.  In 2012, the city’s website had 1,080,130 visits with 51% of those visits being from new visitors.  From those visits, the city website registered 2,743,720 page views.  City staff was asked to speak at the League of Kansas Municipalities in October 2012 about website transparency and their A+ rating by the Sunshine Review.  City staff continues to monitor web trends and add services, including streaming video, to the website.

 

Sidewalk gap project completion

Construction for the CDBG Sidewalk Gap Project has been completed. This project was funded with Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds allocated for 2011 and 2012, for sidewalk improvements in low to moderate income areas. The total cost of the project was $142,000 and 2,725 linear feet of new sidewalk has been constructed. Gaps were filled in several areas around the city. The city has received compliments from residents in Babcock Place about the sidewalk recently installed on New Hampshire from 17th to 19th Street. New sidewalk has been constructed on the east side of Iowa Street from Harvard Road to 6th Street to fill in areas that previously had no sidewalk. This allows pedestrians to travel south from the intersection of 6th Street & Iowa Street where they previously could not. New sidewalk has also been installed in heavily traveled pedestrian areas including east of 9th and Iowa and the south side of 11th Street from Indiana to Mississippi in response to public requests. Please see the attached report for photos.

 

Staff members obtain GISP certification

Micah Seybold, GIS Coordinator in the IT Department, and Cameron Smith, GIS Analyst in the Utilities Department, each have received certification as a GIS Professional (GISP) by the GIS Certification Institute (GISCI).  A GISP is a certified Geographic Information Systems Professional who has met standards for ethical conduct and professional practice, and requires achievement in three areas: educational achievement, professional experience, and contributions to the profession.

 

Parks and Recreation annual report

Please see attached 2012 Annual Report for the Parks and Recreation Department. Highlights for the year included:

 

Transit update

Bob Nugent, Public Transit Administrator, has provided the attached memo updating the City Commission and the public on several projects forthcoming for transit this year, including evaluation of sites for a transit hub, the service management contract analysis for transit services in conjunction with the University of Kansas, the status of enhanced late night service, and the temporary move of the current transit hub at 9th and New Hampshire to the east side of Vermont between 8th and 9th Streets.