Council approves street bonds, housing‑board membership change and other measures in unanimous votes

The Hutchinson City Council on Jan. 21 approved funding and housekeeping measures the city said are intended to support street repairs, housing redevelopment and administrative updates.

The council voted to authorize bonding for the West 30th Avenue reconstruction project, to amend the housing commission membership ordinance, to update administrative department listings in city code, to establish the Landmark Reinvestment Housing Incentive District (RHID) and to accept the 2024 Land Bank annual report. All actions were approved by roll call.

Angela Richard, director of finance, told the council the West 30th Avenue project award had already been made and that the bonding request is to cover contingencies and related water‑line work. “We are asking to bond $775,000 for project costs,” Richard said, and added that the total authorization request is higher “to allow for any additional bonding costs … that amount is $925,000.” The ordinance to authorize bonding was approved by roll call.

Carissa Paxton, housing coordinator, described the housing commission amendment as a procedural update that allows the commission to appoint nonvoting ex‑officio organization representatives without changing the city ordinance each time partner organizations shift. The council approved the amendment by roll call.

City Attorney Paul Brown described the administrative code update as a housekeeping item to correct department listings that had not been amended in decades. The ordinance amending sections on administrative departments was approved by roll call.

Dave Sotelo, director of strategic growth, summarized the proposed Landmark RHID as an initial step under Senate Bill 90 to permit incremental‑tax reimbursements for upper‑story residential rehabilitation in the designated district; the council approved the resolution establishing the district and authorized the mayor to sign.

Carissa Paxton also presented the land bank annual report. She said the land bank did not acquire new properties in 2024, sold one lot for a modular home, provided rights of first refusal on three parcels for multifamily development, and is increasing its allocation for property acquisition to account for rising land values. The council approved the annual report by roll call.

Votes at a glance (as recorded in the meeting): - Ordinance authorizing reconstruction and bonding for West Thirtieth Avenue from Main to Adams: approved (roll call: all voting members present voted yes). - Ordinance amending housing commission membership (Section 2‑1501): approved (roll call: all voting members present voted yes). - Ordinance amending administrative departments (Sections 2‑2401 and 2‑2402): approved (roll call: all voting members present voted yes). - Resolution establishing the Landmark Reinvestment Housing Incentive District: approved (roll call: all voting members present voted yes). - Land Bank annual report for 2024: approved (roll call: all voting members present voted yes).

The council also approved the consent agenda at the start of the meeting without separate public comment. Formal roll‑call tallies were read aloud for each ordinance and resolution during the meeting record.

The meeting packet and staff presentations note follow‑up steps for the RHID and the land bank, including public hearings and potential developer agreements before tax‑increment reimbursements begin.