The sales tax questions read:
• Shall the City of Great Bend, Kansas be authorized to impose a fifteen-hundredths of one percent (0.15%) City-wide retailers’ sales tax (the “Sales Tax”), to pay the costs of Quality of Life purposes, improvements, and initiatives throughout the City, including the payment of financing costs related thereto, and to provide property tax relief; with the collection of the Sales Tax to commence on April 1, 2022, or as soon thereafter as permitted by law; all pursuant to the provisions of K.S.A. 12-187 et seq. as amended?
• Shall the City of Great Bend, Kansas be authorized to impose a one tenth of one percent (0.10%) City-wide retailers’ sales tax (the “Sales Tax”), to finance the costs of police station improvements, including the payment of financing costs related thereto, and to provide property tax relief; with the collection of the Sales Tax to commence on April 1, 2022, or as soon thereafter as permitted by law, and to terminate 20 years after its commencement; all pursuant to the provisions of K.S.A. 12-187 et seq. as amended? (KP &F) Shall the following be adopted?
• Shall the City of Great Bend, Kansas be authorized to impose a two tenths of one percent (0.20%) City-wide retailers’ sales tax (the “Sales Tax”), for the purposes of financing the operations of the City’s police and fire departments, including the funding of pension plans therefore, and to provide property tax relief; with the collection of the Sales Tax to commence on April 1, 2022, or as soon thereafter as permitted by law; all pursuant to the provisions ofK.S.A. 12-187 et seq. as amended?
There will be three separate City of Great Bend sales tax questions on the Nov. 2 general election ballot following action by the City Council Monday night. These would help fund quality of life improvements, pay off the city’s debt incurred for a new police station and cover the cost of changes to the benefit package for the Police and Fire departments.
The council at its Aug. 2 work session reached a consensus on the questions, City Administrator Kendal Francis said. Monday, they ironed out some final details.
These proposed taxes include:
• .10%- debt service construction of a new police station with a 20-year sunset. The estimated revenue comes to $377,752 per year.
The estimated $5.8 million, 25,000-square-foot facility at 12th and Baker on what is now a city parking lot and will also house the Municipal Court.
It should be paid off before the sunset. Any funds generated after that will roll into an account to pay off future debts.
Originally, this also included replacing City Hall by remodeling the remainder of the Events Center office complex. The cost was estimated at $8 million, but that idea was dropped due to the cost.
• .15% - quality of life improvements with no sunset. The estimated revenue comes to $566,628 per year.
This covers improvements to parks and other recreational facilities, as well as maintenance.
• .20% - pension for public safety personnel (police and fire) with no sunset. The estimated revenue comes to $755,504 per year.
However, this one required some discussion.
Currently, city (including the Police and Fire departments) retirement plans are with Mission Square Retirement, a non-profit independent financial services corporation providing retirement plans to the public sector. The city is not a part of the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System, although for the past several years, the city has upped the city’s contributions to Mission Square to better align with KPERS.
Under KPERS is Kansas Police and Fire, which is specifically for uniformed firefighters and police officers. Great Bend is one of four cities in Kansas not using KPF, which is seen as the industry standard.
Police officers and firefighters say this would make the departments more competitive and help eliminate the rapid turnover that plagues both. It also offers a guaranteed pension for retirees.
However, making the change would be more expensive, about $550,000 per year. This is the equivalent of 6 mills in property taxes.
The tax is enough to cover the cost for a few years, but it was noted that the cost will increase annually to nearly $850,000 by 2033, and possibly more.
The council fears this will still force the city to raise property taxes to meet the need.
“We cannot afford this 10 years, 20 years down the road,” said Ward 1 Councilman Alan Moeder. He requested an alternative version of the question be used.
This included more generalized language that would allow the retirement sales tax to be utilized to augment the current plan or be used for KP&F.
Most on the council were worried about being locked into the KP&F plan. Once the city signs on, it cannot leave the program.
The council can still opt for KP&F should it want to, Francis said. But, that would come after the election should it be approved.
Ward 4 Councilman Junior Welch said public safety personnel wanted to join KP&F for more than its pension plan. It also offers accident coverage and other benefits. Welch was the only council member voting for the more specific KP&F wording.
All three taxes are considered “general” sale taxes, Francis said. This means there is a caveat that allows them to be used for property tax relief.
“That allows us, should we chose to do so, use that money for whatever purpose,” he said. “However, we know these monies will be used for the stated purposes.”
If approved, the taxes would go into effect April 1, 2022.
The .45% total for all three would the city’s sales tax rate to 8.75%. This is still in the middle of the pack compared to similar cities, Francis said.
Great Bend City Council meeting at a glance
Here is a quick look at what the Great Bend City Council did Monday night:
• Approved resolutions placing the .1 0% Debt Service sales tax, .15% Quality of Life sales tax and .20% Pension for Public Safety Employees sales tax questions on the Nov. 2 general election ballot.
• Approved an architectural agreement with GLMV of Wichita for a total cost of $498,500 for the design of a new Police Station.
• Approved changes to the Neighborhood Revitalization Plan.
At the council’s joint meeting with the Barton County Commission in March, it had initial discussions about creating a county-wide Neighborhood Revitalization Plan. Since that time, staff from all cities in Barton County have been working with the county to formulate that plan, with the goal of making it as uniform as possible, but still serving the individual needs of each entity.
It will be a 10-year plan, Great Bend’s two targeted areas will remain, and there will be new eligibility criteria, City Administrator Kendal Francis said.
• Approved a change order with Venture Corporation in the amount of $86,963.15 for the 10th Street-U.S. 56 cost-share project.
The City requested changes to the recent improvements project to include adding additional rebar and dowels to the concrete base repairs and the repair and relocation of several storm inlets, City Administrator Kendal Francis said.
The changes resulted in a net project cost increase of $86,963.15. Those costs fall within the approved cost-share grant budget.
• Approved closing Main Street from 19th Street to Lakin Avenue from 2:30- 4:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 1, for the Great Bend High School
Homecoming Parade.
• Approved changing the date for the council meeting.
The meeting falls on Labor Day which is a Holiday observed by the City. It will be held, instead, at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept . 7.
• Heard an update from City Administrator Kendal Francis. He noted the council will return its meetings to City Hall starting Sept. 20. They had been moved to the Events Center to allow for more social distancing due to COVID-19.
• Heard an update from Christina Hayes, community coordinator and Convention and Visitors Bureau director. She focused on the success of Party in the Park this last Saturday at Veterans Memorial Park. She estimated that over 6,000 people showed up for the various events that lasted throughout the day.
• Approved an abatement for tree removal at: 1923 Adams, Marcia Melton.
• Approved abatements for trash and refuse at: 2101 Washington, James F. Jr. and Marcella A. Lloyd; 1401 Cherry Lane, MI-Re Great Bend LLC.; 1701 Hubbard, Thomas Pearson; 1816 Holland, Gene Nguyen; 1426 20th, Amy Satterfield Revoc Trust; 1719 Holland, Juan Flores; 319 Grapevine, Luz Carrillo Flores; 106 3rd, Glen and Rebecca Sander; 14 3rd, Sandra Alicia Contreras; 1019 Frey, Mario Bustamante Elizalde and Maria Raquel Bustamante; and 1424 10th, Heather Ramirez.
• Approved an abatement for a motor vehicle nuisance at: 1419 9th, John Love.
• Removed 407 McKinley from the abatement list for trash and refuse violations. The property is a commercial site owned by Mark and Krista Ball.
The issue was a large stack of pallets and firewood on the property that had received public complaints, three in the past week, said Doug Disque with the Code Enforcement Office.
Mark Ball was present at the meeting and said the pallets were used for shipping manufactured goods, as well as firewood in the winter to heat the building. He said he has never heard anyone complain before.
In the end, Mark agreed to better and more neatly organize the piles. He said he should have them taken care of this week.
