If discussions from Wednesday afternoon are any indication, it seems commissioners for the City of Emporia and Lyon County have differing views on what a new interlocal agreement could mean for the local community.
Commissioners discussed the topic as part of a recent joint meeting Wednesday with the city of Emporia expressing interest in the creation of a new agreement that could potentially lead to the establishment of a new metropolitan planning area. The previous metro area was a three-mile stretch of county land surrounding the city of Emporia which was subject to city zoning ordinances.
The metro area was abolished after the previous interlocal agreement was terminated back in July of 2021 with the prospect of conversations on a new agreement that never came to fruition. During Wednesday’s conversations, county commissioners expressed concerns over city ordinances being used to dictate the use of county-owned land.
Commission Chair Rollie Martin added he does not believe county residents would find the idea favorable.
City Commissioner Jamie Sauder says the issue is not one of control, but instead a matter of community growth.
While Wednesday’s conversations became slightly tense at times, Martin and Sauder both stated they do not believe that will be indicative of any future conversations with Martin saying “We’ve got to work together” and Sauder noting he does not believe the conversations from Wednesday will be “indicative of what we are able to agree on moving forward.”
There is currently no word on when the city and county may revisit the topic.
In other business Wednesday, Emporia City Commissioners and representatives of the Emporia Recreation Commission broached the possibility of having county leadership involved in discussions of the future of the Lee Beran Recreation Center. As KVOE has reported over the past several months, the ERC is looking at the possibility of updating its current facility or possibly building a brand new center in the near future.
Last month, Assistant Director of Rec Operations Amanda Gutierrez noted a desire to have a broader conversation that involved county leadership as the venture moves forward. According to Gutierrez, between 15 to 20 percent of the individuals who use the rec center are individuals who live outside of the city limits, making a county presence a necessity.
County commissioners have taken the idea under consideration and plan to discuss it further at a later time. Gutierrez sees this possibility as a major step forward in the process.
Emporia City Commissioners are set to revisit the rec center venture during their next regular meeting on December 20 when they will review and potentially take action on a memorandum of understanding to secure design and consultant services for the project. This comes as the ERC has proposed placing a half-cent to one-cent sales tax on a future election ballot to serve as a funding mechanism for the project.
Commissioners have yet to state when they will revisit that proposal.
