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City Manager Barack Matite presented information about a recent grant proposal to the commission. Matite said proposed improvements along Church Street will be a "game changer."
City commissioners created a plan Monday night for how to fill the upcoming vacancy due to Vice Mayor Ruth Hughs’ pending retirement.
Hughs announced her resignation March 28, planning to fully step down by late May.
Those interested in joining the commission must submit a letter of interest by May 4 to City Clerk Kelly Delay. The commission will then review these letters, and interview applicants on May 16 and 17. The selected candidate will be sworn into the commission on June 13.
In other news, representatives of Peaslee Tech provided a presentation on the status of the technical school in Lawrence. According to CEO Kevin Kelley, Peaslee Tech provides the most apprenticeships in Kansas.
“This is going to have some potential impact for folks in Eudora,” Kelley said. “We’re starting and expanding quite a number of apprenticeship programs in a lot of areas.”
Kelley and Andrea Chavez, executive director of grants and administration, provided details on the programs the school has introduced over the last several years, including intermediate welding and a GED program.
Kelley said he is hopeful Peaslee Tech will be funded as a public program in the future. According to Kelley, a bylaw revision will result in Peaslee Tech’s board being appointed by the Douglas County Commission, rather than the internal appointments that have occurred in the past.
“Every year, I go to the city of Lawrence and Douglas County and request funds, and bless them, they’ve given them to us every year,” Kelley said. “But that’s not a good long-term solution. What we’re hoping to do, by being under a publicly-elected board, is to seek legislation to have Peaslee Tech be a publicly funded tech school like any others in the area.”
In other news, recently hired city employees were recognized by the City Commission. Three out of four new firefighters were at the meeting, including Jeremy Hunnicutt, Theodore Gilmore and Jacob Hankins. Andrew Ohman also joined the fire department.
City Manager Barack Matite also discussed a recent grant the city applied for, which would fund a project to provide various improvements along Church Street. Matite plans to submit the letter Tuesday, which requests over $16 million for a project estimated to cost over $18 million.
“This is going to be a game changer,” Matite said. “[These are] improvements that will be needed not only now, but as we continue to grow.”
After some residents raised concerns over who to contact about stray or injured animals, The Eudora Times spoke with Police Chief Wes Lovett and Mayor Tim Reazin about the issue. Lovett encouraged those who find stray animals to call Public Works at 785-542-2153.
If an animal is found after hours, both Lovett and Reazin said they are unsure of any other options besides leaving a voice message with Public Works and contacting the Lawrence Humane Society.
According to city code, an agent of the city is allowed to take at-large animals into a secure place for up to four days, then the animal will be taken to the Lawrence Humane Society.
Matite said he would look into community concerns on the issue.
“We are looking into that, and we’ll provide any feedback to you all,” Matite said. “We’ll do what we can to get the facts.”
Shannon Wells, executive director of the Lawrence Humane Society, said Tuesday that their building is not staffed after 6 p.m., but her staff responds to some emergency calls in Lawrence and unincorporated parts of Douglas County.
“[Eudora] will engage us on a case by case basis for services if they need us,” Wells said. “They have their own police department, but sometimes if they don’t find the owner of an animal they would contact us and arrange for what we call a transfer. The animal comes into our facility, and ready them for adoption.”
Wells said the point of contact if a Eudora resident finds a sick or injured animal would be the police department. She added the Humane Society is open to further conversations with Eudora in terms of creating new agreements.
“We have had these kinds of conversations before, and that’s how we ended up providing some service for Lawrence and the unincorporated county,” Wells said. “We look at call volume and kind of anticipated need, and discuss what it would look like to create that arrangement from a staffing standpoint and the costs associated with that.”
Wells said she appreciates the concerns expressed by Eudora residents.
“I appreciate that people are concerned about animals not suffering,” Wells said. “That aligns with our concerns as well.”
Reach reporter Abby Shepherd at [email protected]