The City of Emporia is currently considering a new fee that would be used to help with needed stormwater improvements across the community.
During the Emporia City Commission regular study meeting Wednesday morning City Engineer Jim Ubert proposed an Equivalent Residential Unit (ERU) structure that would be tailored to Emporia as a “fair way to pay for future stormwater improvements.” According to Ubert the city has a significant backlog of said projects which totals roughly $18 million.
He says the new structure would allow the city to fully address these issues over time rather than simply taking a “band-aid” approach, which it has had to do in recent years, given that there is no dedicated revenue stream for said projects. Ubert explained how the structure would work during an interview with KVOE News.
The proposal appeared to have support from the majority of commissioners, however, Commissioner Susan Brinkman noted she would not be in favor of the structure so long as it included USD 253 Emporia Public Schools. Based on the proposed structure, the district would be paying just over $750 per month which would be more than $9,000 per year.
Brinkman fears that to pay for said fee, the district would have to take money out of the classroom.
Ubert stated he understands this concern, but also noted that taking the district out of the structure would shift the cost to others. The proposal is still under development at this time and will come back before commissioners as part of their next regular action agenda.
In other study business on Wednesday, commissioners also reviewed and gave their approval to the establishment of a joint task force involving representatives from the city, county, school district and the Emporia Recreation Commission. The task force’s main objective, if approved by the other mentioned entities, will be to consider ways in which the county and city mill levies could potentially be lowered in the future, with Deputy City Manager Mark Detter noting Wednesday that the total mill levy, encompassing all taxing entities previously mentioned, is considerably higher than most other cities and counties of similar size.
Detter says one such way to accomplish this goal would be through the establishment of a new sales tax. He says those dollars would help to reduce the number of taxpayer dollars that are used to cover costs for various projects and services, thus, in theory, reducing the mill levy.
If agreed to, the task force would consist of 11 members with two appointments each for the city, county, district and ERC. The task force would also include three additional members representing a “City of Third Class in Lyon County appointed by the Emporia City Commission, a member of the Township Board of Trustees appointed by the Lyon County Commission, and a patron of Emporia Public Schools within the school district boundaries of USD 253.” Detter says additional conversations are expected in the coming weeks with hopes of having a preliminary report ready for presentation by January 2026.
Before Wednesday’s study session, commissioners held their regular action meeting during which time they approved a a tourism-related capital support agreement with Dynamic Brewing LLC, for the construction of three new regulation disc-golf courses and one foot-golf course at Champions Landing. Per the agreement, the city will allocate $53,950 in transient guest tax dollars, as discussed between commissioners and Champs owner Jeremy Rusco back in April.
Per the agreement, the courses will be made available, free of charge, to all Emporians and students at Emporia State University and Flint Hills Technical College. The allocation has drawn some criticism in recent weeks with some individuals questioning the need for the use of TGT dollars for the project.
City Manager Trey Cocking during Wednesday’s meeting noted the TGT dollars are specifically for projects that increase tourism and visitations to the community, noting the disc golf is one of the main drivers of said traffic in Emporia each year.
Cocking also stated Champions is the only business that has approached the city with such a project in recent years. With that in mind, Cocking says the city is always looking for new and unique ideas to increase tourism in the community and welcome any individuals with such plans to come forward and speak with city leadership.
The Emporia City Commission will next convene on Wednesday, June 4 at 11 am inside the Municipal Courtroom at White Auditorium.
ERU Fee Structure available below
Stormwater ERU Basis for Different Property Types (ERU Fee = $1)
1.) Single family residential structures up to 1,500 sq. ft. =
0.5 ERU x 8039 structures = $4019.50/mo. $48,234.00/yr.
2.) Single family residential structures 1,501 sq. ft. and up =
1 ERU x 1522 structures = $1522/mo. $18,264.00/yr.
3.) Apartments = Estimated 3,000 units @ 0.5 ERU = $1,500/mo. $18,000/yr.
4.) Residential buildings converted to apartments = 195 bldgs = 613 units @ 0.5 ERU
=$306.50/mo = $3,678.00/yr
5.) Mobile Home Parks = 12parks = 769 units @ 0.5 ERU = $384.50/mo = $4,614.00/yr
6.) Commercial/Industrial = Impervious area/3000 =57,967,308.28/3000 x 1 ERUs =
$19,322.44/mo. $231,869.28/yr.
Estimated Total per month = $27,054.94
Estimated Total per year = $324,659.28
