Updated Oct. 10

Earlier statements from Evergy stated issues were caused by both the city and Evergy equipment, which was found to be inaccurate. An issue with an Evergy transformer was the cause of the voltage drops.

Updated Thursday 1 p.m. 

Evergy completed repairs on one of its transformers last Friday after electric service disruptions over the last couple of weeks, Public Works Director Branden Boyd said Monday night.

Now that the transformer is repaired, the city is awaiting a summary with information on exactly what caused the issue and what was fixed, he said.

The Eudora Times has messages in to City Hall to ask about billing and damage claims and heard from Evergy late Tuesday afternoon. The Times asked twice to talk to someone at Evergy and instead was sent a statement from spokeswoman Gina Penzig.

“Evergy was made aware of electrical issues resulting in power fluctuations impacting the city of Eudora,” the statement said. “Ultimately, issues were found on both Evergy’s and the city’s distribution systems. Evergy responded and addressed our issue in a timely manner. Because the city is the electric provider for the customers within the city, any claims process would be handled by them.”

The city said Thursday there are no definitive updates as of yet, and conversations with Evergy are still ongoing. Assistant City Manager Zack Daniel said they will likely have another update Wednesday if the city is able to set a meeting with the right people.

In other business during Monday night’s City Commission meeting, Boyd also said construction on the K-10 pedestrian bridge crossing will be done in October.

Boyd said there has been a delay on the fencing for the project, which has set the finish date to later next month. The material is expected to be installed Oct. 18, and will take four days to complete. If materials do end up coming in earlier, they will install them as soon as possible, he said.

In other business, an existing shelter at Lucy Kaegi Park will be renovated into a storage shed to give Parks and Rec more space.

The plan is to convert an existing large shelter at the park into a fully closed storage building. The space will de-clutter the Rec Center community room and gym closet while providing a safe space for items now stored outside. This will also help the city to stop paying for a storage shed rental.

Since a structure is already there, the contractors will use the existing concrete pad and steel beams and will replace both the roof and some deteriorating wood. The building will have a large garage door and new access door, as well as new siding, paint and gutters.

After receiving three bids for the work, the city recommended local business Cox Homes to do the project. They estimated the lowest cost at $33,230. The commission approved this decision.

Mayor Tim Reazin asked if this was a long-term fix or a short-term Band aid to the storage issue.

Parks and Rec Director Sally Pennington said whether or not the size of the Rec Center were to increase with a new building some day wouldn’t dictate this need. She said there’s a lack of storage throughout the entire building and the storage space would be used immediately.

Commissioner Tim Bruce asked if it was standard practice to pay a portion of the money to the company before the work starts.

City Clerk Kelly Delay said anything above $15,000 has to come through the commission, but there is no rule on when payment takes place. The pay schedule is up to negotiation with the company.

Pennington noted that for all the bids they received, each requested about 30-40% of the cost upfront.

In other business, work to plan for the RAISE grant is ongoing within the city, which distributed a request for proposals for design and engineering work related to the project.

A panel was created to review those proposals. It includes the city manager, assistant city manager, someone from city Public Works, Douglas County Public Works and a representative from the school district.

The city received eight responses and picked four to bring in for interviews before its selection. Negotiations into cost, scope and pay will begin before the commission will review and vote on the recommendation.

No action by the commission was recommended at this time.

The last farmers market of the season will begin at 5:30 p.m. Residents will be able to shop in Village Green until 8 p.m. Pennington said there had been good success so far and said she is looking forward to growing the offerings in the future.

Police Chief Wes Lovett said there was a good turnout for Cones with a Cop earlier this month with over 100 kids attending. Lovett said they’d be having lunch with the elementary schoolers Thursday for Lunch with Law Enforcement.

In other business, the City Commission will meet Wednesday to conduct a special meeting pertaining to City Manager Kevyn Gero’s annual review. The commission will be in executive session for the entirety of the meeting.