Mayor’s Minutes - May 6th, 2025 - Economic Incentive & Stormwater Management

We’re back with another Mayor’s Minute(s), recapping highlights from the May 1st City Council meeting, with Mayor Rick Walker!

Tune in for updates on an economic incentive agreement with Geiger Ready-Mix Co., changes to the City Hall renovation project, and a stormwater improvement plan for 89th Street.

 

00:00 Welcome to Mayor's Minutes 

00:17 Supporting Education 

00:32 Economic Development 

01:08 Stormwater Management Project 

01:31 City Hall Renovations Update 

02:15 Community Development Block Grant 

02:45 Rhythm & Roots Event Recap 

03:22 Conclusion

Episode Transcript

(00:06):
Hello De Soto, and welcome back to the next installment of Mayor's Minutes.
Your quick and clear recap of what's going on at City Hall. 3 00:00:13,416.666666667 --> 00:00:16,986.666666667 I'm Mayor Rick Walker, and let's get into our May 1st Council meeting. 4 00:00:17,166.666666667 --> 00:00:23,256.666666667 We started with our consent agenda where the Council approved a donation request from the Starside Elementary PTA. 5 00:00:23,326.666666667 --> 00:00:30,306.666666667 Their request will help with the purchase of new educational technology directly supporting students and teachers right here in De Soto. 6 00:00:30,483.333333333 --> 00:00:32,166.575636593 From there, we jumped to New Business. 7 00:00:32,220.960336047 --> 00:00:38,128.737689788 We held a public hearing to consider the approval of an economic development incentive request for Geiger Ready-Mix. 8 00:00:38,282.071023122 --> 00:00:42,665.926336047 Geiger's a familiar name in the area and has been in De Soto for the past couple of years. 9 00:00:42,883.137220401 --> 00:00:47,567.94466938 This move will allow them to build a permanent facility near a 103rd Evening Star Road. 10 00:00:47,677.94466938 --> 00:00:59,436.243442623 The approved package includes a property tax abatement, 50% for 10 years, a sales tax exemption on construction materials, and the PILOT agreement that defines how the payments would be made in lieu of taxes. 11 00:00:59,512.91010929 --> 00:01:07,722.91010929 These are tools that we use to support job creators and long-term investment in our community, and we welcome this new $44 million investment to De Soto. 12 00:01:08,117.91010929 --> 00:01:12,17.91010929 Next up was the Stormwater Management Project on 89th Street. 13 00:01:12,47.91010929 --> 00:01:30,842.53610929 The Council approved the reimbursement agreement with Johnson County Stormwater Management Advisory Council, or SMAC, that will reimburse the City for up to 75% of the cost of the engineering study that we approved last month So we're looking to replace an undersized culvert under 89th Street just east of Kill Creek Road. 14 00:01:31,120.869442623 --> 00:01:40,990.86944262 And over at City Hall renovations are well underway and as often happens with old buildings like this one, which is for instance, over 106 years old, we've hit a few surprises. 15 00:01:41,152.48042369 --> 00:01:45,472.48042369 Last month we had a couple of change orders to consider, and we have several more this month. 16 00:01:45,572.48042369 --> 00:01:56,355.81375703 These would include repairs to the existing chimney, some modifications to the lower-level restroom to account for some plumbing issues that were uncovered under the floor. 17 00:01:56,452.48042369 --> 00:02:04,342.48042369 All told these changes total just over $93,000 and are covered by the contingency fund that is built into the project budget. 18 00:02:04,492.48042369 --> 00:02:14,183.36454841 Just as a side note, we are still well within the limits of the contingency and with demolition being complete we think we're pretty well past most of the surprises that we might encounter with the project. 19 00:02:14,356.69788174 --> 00:02:15,76.69788174 Knock on wood. 20 00:02:15,156.69788174 --> 00:02:19,519.75954841 We also looked at our 2026 Community Development Block Grant application. 21 00:02:19,563.09288174 --> 00:02:28,173.63709943 This year our staff is recommending that we look at projects that would replace the aging sidewalks in Old Town along Shawnee, Delaware, and Wea Street. 22 00:02:28,273.63709943 --> 00:02:37,663.63709943 These are some of our oldest neighborhoods and with new activity downtown, we need to make sure that we have the best sidewalks we can for improved walkability and safety. 23 00:02:37,663.63709943 --> 00:02:45,546.97043276 So, we want to create and attractive downtown, and we want people to have a way to get down there safely, stroll around, and enjoy the community. 24 00:02:45,693.63709943 --> 00:02:51,243.63709943 Which brings me to our past Friday night, which was our very first Rhythm Roots event Downtown. 25 00:02:51,380.3037661 --> 00:02:58,670.3037661 The weather gave us a run for the money early on, but things settled down just in time for a double rainbow, and we ended up with a beautiful evening. 26 00:02:58,803.63709943 --> 00:03:10,563.63709943 We had a great turnout in spite of the early rain, and I had a chance to follow up with KJ's and Chills on Saturday, and both businesses were happy with how the first event went and are looking forward to the next one. 27 00:03:10,563.63709943 --> 00:03:16,623.63709943 And I think we're all looking forward to warmer weather and maybe that'll bring some bigger crowds, but it was a fantastic vibe. 28 00:03:16,653.63709943 --> 00:03:22,803.63709943 The band was great and the community showed up, so I'm excited to see what this series holds for the rest of the season. 29 00:03:22,946.97043276 --> 00:03:24,536.97043276 And I think that's it for this week. 30 00:03:24,536.97043276 --> 00:03:26,996.97043276 Thanks for tuning in and I'll see you around town.