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Eudora voters will decide in November whether to continue an existing city sales tax to instead go toward public safety after the City Commission Monday night approved putting the issue on the ballot.

The city for 20 years has charged a 0.5% sales tax to pay off debt from building the Community Center and pool. That debt will be paid off this year, but city staff recommended continuing the tax to support public safety equipment and infrastructure. 

Continuing the sales tax and shifting its focus to public safety would help the city accomplish one of its top priorities for 2027, funding at least three new full-time firefighters, without raising property taxes. 

“I don’t want to send our firefighters or police officers in the line of duty without the proper equipment,” Commissioner Jason Musick said. 

Commissioner Alex Curnes said he thinks the new revenue stream would be good because public safety services are used by people outside of town, and the sales tax would shift some of the financial burden to them. He said he was glad the sales tax wouldn’t sunset because as the city grows, the fire and police budget will grow with it, which is a good way to budget. 

Commissioner Roberta Lehmann said she’d rather see the sales tax than the property tax. 

“I think it would be irresponsible to not put it on the ballot,” Lehmann said. “That would not make us very good commissioners, to not give the people the opportunity.”

The topic will be on voters’ November ballots. If approved, collections would start in April. 

Commissioners discuss 2027 budget

The sales tax redirection is part of broader discussions city commissioners had Monday about the city’s 2027 budget. 

City commissioners voiced approval for a handful of budget priorities, including public infrastructure, economic development, public safety and residential growth as they began planning for next year’s budget. 

Commissioners heard from City Manager Zack Daniel about the city’s preliminary goals for the 2027 budget during a work session Monday night.

The message was similar to what Daniel has been telling commissioners at past meetings. He said the city’s budget is supported too much by residential property taxes. The city is working to drive more economic development to increase sales tax collections and encourage more industrial growth northeast of town to increase nonresidential property tax collections.

Daniel described it as a three-legged stool: property taxes, sales taxes, and other city fees and charges. 

He said Eudora has long had a budget mostly funded by residential property taxes because the community includes many people who live in town but work elsewhere. But the city can still work to alleviate those property taxes. 

Mayor Tim Bruce said he wants city staff to reinvigorate its focuses on economic development to continue to drive sales taxes up. 

“I think we really need to shift some focus back on our economic development and get that figured out. It’s kind of hit a stall for the last eight months,” Bruce said. “I feel like we’ve got some stuff looming and some projects that we’ve got some time and energy invested in that need to either move on or move off.”

Other budget priorities for 2027 included evaluating city buildings, investing in utility infrastructure and repaving roads. 

Daniel said the city next year is planning to fund a space needs analysis to evaluate city-owned facilities like the Community Center and public safety building, which Daniel said are undersized. Plus, the city is continuing to work on a new Water Treatment Plant, which will eventually house the city’s public works department. 

This year, the city completed a handful of design and evaluation steps on the plant. Daniel said the city plans to apply for federal funds to help finance the project, which he said are necessary for its completion. He said they’ll have clarity on those federal funds by the time budget adoption is planned in September. 

Commissioners also heard about a plan for a new electrical substation in town. Daniel said the city is hoping to time these big infrastructure purchases with growth in town to help spread the cost burden. 

One major discussion Monday night was about the city’s pavement management program. 

Daniel said the 2027 budget had a little more than $1 million in planned roadwork, including some of the last projects planned with the city’s 10-year road improvement plan. 

Commissioners voted Monday night to agree to a new three-year contract with CYVL to overhaul how the city tracks and maintains its pavement management moving forward, including a shift from manual visual inspections to newer LiDAR technology, which is a laser-based system that generates 3D maps that allow staff to more accurately detect potholes and cracks. 

The city is also continuing to utilize grant funds for roadwork around town, including a BUILD grant the city plans to use to widen Church Street to three lanes with a dedicated center turn lane, add roundabouts, realign 20th Street and improve infrastructure.

Daniel said the city wants to give a presentation about the redirected sales tax and budget planning on the road around town over the summer to keep the community updated. 

Commissioners voiced a desire to have the city communicate with the public about its budget and the ways the city is working to save money while still providing essential services.  

Lehmann said she has seen department heads have whittled their budgets down over the years to save money.

“I do have some confusion about people not understanding the budgets, because I’ve sat here for the last several years, our departments have whittled their budgets down. I’m super impressed with how hard they have come to the conclusion, ‘Okay, this is the priority, this is not. We’re going to hold this back,’ and as a commissioner I have no complaints about how our department has handled their budgets, They really take them down to bare bones,” she said.

Lehmann said her dad served on the commission in the ‘70s and ‘80s, but they didn’t have a clear vision for the future during their planning. 

“They didn’t plan for 30, 50, 60, 80 years out,” Lehmann said. “And we are doing that right now. And so, frankly, I’m proud of what we’re doing, because we are doing the work that needs to be done.”

Musick said he’s heard a big frustration from residents about when they come to public hearings and commission meetings, they make statements but feel it doesn’t make an impact. 

“People want to see where some of the money is, and how do we save, and really how do we do sacrifice?” Musick said. 

Curnes said the list of commission priorities matches what he’s heard from the community, and he wants the budget to match those community needs.

“For a couple years now, I’ve joked about this having a water feature, or, you know, some sort of a pond with a fountain,” Curnes said. “And I think that’s lovely and fun and fantastic. I want that to be the last thing that we do when we’re talking about paying for firefighters or paying for roads or making sure that we have staff that wants to stay here.”

Other notes from the meeting

In other business Monday night, the commission recognized the newest graduating class of the Eudora Citizens’ Academy and received a quarterly staffing update. 

Plus, the commission approved an agreement with Zoom Fiber, a De Soto based high-speed internet provider, to operate in city rights of way. Zoom Fiber would pay $4,000 each year to operate in town.   

The commission also approved changes to its fees. The biggest change is the addition of registration fees for UTVs in city limits, which the commission approved last month. The schedule says it will cost $100 to register a vehicle and $50 for a renewal. The registration program for UTVs will start June 1. 

Finally, commissioners approved a resolution that would allow the city to apply for a grant to help fund improvements to the Eudora boat ramp. 

Parks and Recreation Director Sally Pennington said bids for the Pilla Park improvement project open May 18. Plus, the pool will open June 1. 

Assistant to the City Manager Michael Gentry said the city has already received 18 applications for its property tax rebate for seniors program on the first day. Applications are still open. 

City Clerk Kelly Delay said she has sought out some price quotes for updates to the City Commission room at City Hall. 

Reach reporter Cuyler Dunn at [email protected]