Topeka City Council Meeting – November 6, 2025 (Transcript Dated November 2)
Topeka City Council Meeting – November 6, 2025
Note: The meeting transcript begins with "Good evening and welcome to the November 2 meeting", while the provided meeting date is November 6, 2025. This summary uses the supplied date but notes the discrepancy.
The meeting covered routine consent items, public comment on police accountability and claims, action on a Community Improvement District (CID) and Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district for Sunflower Crossing, and a postponed Reinvestment Housing Incentive District (RHID) proposal for Lawrence Bay Phase 2. A discussion on utility rate structures drew significant council debate, and two executive sessions were held.
Consent Calendar
- Approved: Professional consulting contract with Columbia Capital Management LLC for debt and investment management; utilities department contract with Bartlett & West Inc. not to exceed $476,000; public works contract amendment with Professional Engineering Consultants PA for updated amount not to exceed $59,000; three-year labor agreement with AFSCME Council 61-1294; several public infrastructure resolutions for water main replacement, crack sealing, alley reconstruction, and street improvements; meeting minutes of October 21, 2025; and malt beverage license applications for Odin's Lair, Superado, and On the Run. (Vote: 9-0)
Public Comments & Testimony
- Senator Lassiter urged the council to show empathy and approve two claims (one for the family of Taylor Lowry and one for a child's education/pain and suffering), stating the amounts were small compared to money spent on outside counsel. He referenced the biblical story of Pontius Pilate to encourage the council to "wash their hands" of past injustices.
- Deborah Saw spoke on behalf of the family of Taylor Lowry and the young child involved, asking for compensation and for the mother to learn who killed her son. She emphasized the need for the city to do what is right.
- Demobrius (mother of Taylor Lowry's daughter) detailed the 2022 police shooting of Taylor Lowry, criticizing the use of lethal force when a knife was present, lack of de‑escalation, and that an officer used an unapproved firearm. She requested justice so her daughter can attend college without worry, and noted that if necessary she would pursue a lawsuit.
- Amber Lavin (sister of Dylan Wallstrom) spoke on behalf of her brother, who was killed in an officer‑involved shooting. She stated the family has spent three years seeking answers and called on the council to make change and hold law enforcement accountable. She noted that multiple families are suffering.
- M. Twemlow (spelling from transcript) read from a federal court ruling that denied the city's motion to dismiss a retaliation lawsuit by a city employee. She highlighted the judge's finding that the city conducted a retaliatory investigation, that the HR director and police commanders provided false statements, and that no discipline has been issued. She urged the council to take accountability.
Discussion Items
- Action Item 3A & 3B (Sunflower Crossing CID and TIF): Deputy City Manager Braxton Coffee presented resolutions to set public hearings for a Community Improvement District (CID) on December 9, 2025, and for the TIF project plan (separate from the TIF district hearing scheduled for November 12). The development is a ~7‑acre project at Kansas and Topeka with a $16 million investment (convenience store, restaurant, retail). Both resolutions passed unanimously (9‑0).
- Action Item 3C (RHID for Lawrence Bay Phase 2): Deputy City Manager Coffee introduced a resolution to establish a Reinvestment Housing Incentive District for ~105 lots at Lawrence Bay. The developer (LB Lots LLC) proposed paying past‑due specials plus a discounted present value of future specials, and requested the city convey land around a pond. Several council members expressed strong opposition: concerns about waiving delinquency requirements, the developer owing past taxes (foreclosure action), the size/price of homes possibly exceeding RHID limits, and the precedent of forgiving debts. Councilmember Dobler moved to table the resolution to the December 9 meeting to allow staff to negotiate better terms. Councilmembers Hiller and Kell voted no; motion carried 7‑2. Councilwoman Valdivia also asked the city attorney to provide a legal opinion on whether the proposed homes (likely priced above $150,000) are eligible for RHID under state guidelines.
- Non‑Action Item 4A (Water/Wastewater Rate Structures): Utilities Director Sylvia Davis presented a proposed ordinance to revert the "Readiness to Serve" charge (which applied to inactive accounts) to a base charge only for active customers, effective January 1, 2026. This change would increase the base charge for active users (e.g., average residential bill from $39.99 to $41.67) while eliminating charges for ~2% of inactive accounts. Council debate revealed strong opposition to shifting the revenue burden to active customers and businesses. Councilmembers Duncan and Deputy Mayor Kell argued the Readiness to Serve charge was intended to pressure property owners to develop vacant lots, and eliminating it without alternative would hurt active users. Councilmember Dobler asked staff to bring back multiple options, including cost‑cutting measures. Director Davis acknowledged that the council needs to decide soon to allow administrative changes by January 1. No vote was taken.
Key Outcomes
- Consent agenda approved (9‑0).
- Resolutions for Sunflower Crossing CID and TIF public hearings approved (9‑0).
- RHID resolution for Lawrence Bay Phase 2 tabled to December 9, 2025 (7‑2), with staff directed to renegotiate terms and report back. City attorney to provide eligibility analysis.
- Utility rate discussion deferred; staff to prepare alternative rate options and present at a future meeting.
- Two executive sessions were held: first (20 minutes) on personnel matters under KSA 75‑4319(b)(1); second (45 minutes, extended by 30 minutes) on litigation and attorney‑client privilege under KSA 75‑4319(b)(2). No action was taken in open session following either session.
- Announcements: Next regular meeting rescheduled to November 12 (Veterans Day); city launched a fundraising campaign for residents affected by the federal government shutdown (SNAP benefits) with fire department boot drives November 14‑15; congratulations to Mayor‑elect Spencer Duncan (elected November 4).
Meeting Transcript
Good evening and welcome to the November 2 meeting of the Governing Body Call of the Community Order. If you will give your attention to the Council Woman Gilbert, who will provide the education, stand as you are able, and then remain standing. When to introduce Reverend Donna Gilchrist, she is pastor at Westside Christian Church, Disciples of Christ denomination. She came to us from Oklahoma in 2018. Westside Christian started as Auburn Dale Mission in 1909 in a little church around First and Lindenwood, just down the street from where the current church and fellowship building are at Sixth and Lindenwood. A woman named Clara Hazelrig served the church as one of its early pastors from 1914 to 1931 and had a tremendous influence on the flavor and actions of Westside Christian today. An element of that special flavor is the community engagement of Westside. Westside is part of the Midtown Community Services Group that includes Westside Christian, Westside Baptist, Potwan Presbyterian, Meadows Elementary, and Loman Hill Elementary, and variously other groups such as the Episcopal Diocese rooted to Peka and Silverbacks. Current activities include a kids' closet, Thanksgiving boxes for Lowman Hill students, and holiday boxes for Meadows students. Westside Christian is a part of Doorstep. Members do some volunteer work with Family Service and Guidance Center, Ronald McDonald House, and KVC Behavioral Health Care, and members are in the process of developing some services for children and adults with disabilities. West Side is a musical church. They have a music ministry and their choir and bell choir have performed at events such as the Topeka Center for Peace and Justice's Martin Luther King Day program and Nativities and Noel's. It does a fall music festival that includes the Topeka High Madrigals and Potwyn Presbyterians String Ensemble. It's wonderful to see a church so rooted in the community. Reverend Gilchrist herself has also served on the Topeka Center for Peace and Justice's board for the past seven years and currently serves as its chair. So I'd like to I'd like to open this evening with uh a book, um, just a very short devotional from Will Bowen, um, Letters to You Love God. And so if you'll just listen as if these were written lovingly to you from God, to you. If I could put my arms around you, I would, but that would mean I'm outside of you rather than one with every cell of your being. If I could speak to you, I would. But that would set my voice apart from the sounds of nature and the voices of others. If I could hold your hand during times of trouble, I would, but that would close your grasp just when your hands need to be open and reaching. If I could guarantee you a pain-free tomorrow, I would. But that would only serve to rob you of the growth and clarity difficult experiences bring. If I could convince you that you are loved, guided, and lack nothing just as you are, I would. For indeed, that is the truth. Love God. Will you pray with me? Giver of life, as we settle into this space, we breathe deeply, breathing in, breathing out, settling in. So thankful for your presence and for each person in this room, for each person in this city. Open the eyes of our hearts, Lord, so that relationships might be deepened and strengthened, and Topeka might be transformed by your wisdom and love. These meetings and discussions have the capacity to become an ordinary fabric of ordinary days, and yet we look to you to move each person here beyond the ordinary, filled with the knowledge that what they do truly matters and affects lives. Give each council member the strength to stand behind their constituents, as well as the flexibility to bend and compromise. Give our mayor and his staff all that they need to govern well. Remind this council that their individual differences bring important perspective to the table. This work is valuable. Open the eyes of each heart in this room. May they see the opportunity to transform Topeka as they lead with compassion, integrity, respect, and love. Amen. Under God with liberty and justice roll. Okay, Madam Clerk, roll call, please. Mayor Padilla. Here. Council members Hiller. Here. Valdivia Oklahoma here. Ortice. Banks. Here. Kel.
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