When it comes to the ever-evolving situation between Newman Regional Health and Stormont Vail, two specific tracks will hopefully lead to the same destination according to Emporia City Manager Trey Cocking.
During the most recent installment of KVOE’s Monthly Q&A With Trey segment Monday, Cocking delved into the situation saying one of the tracks involves legal input into Newman’s proposed zoning code text change in response to Stormont’s proposed construction of a more than $30 million medical facility in Emporia.
Cocking says track two of the situation deals with mediated conversations between the two entities, planning for which is currently in development.
There is currently no specific date for when mediated talks may begin, however, Cocking says the city wants to provide as much time as possible for the two entities to find common ground on the matter.
The Emporia Planning Commission will be taking up the matter for the second time as part of its monthly meeting Tuesday evening. During that time, planning commissioners will have the option to recommend either approval or denial of the code change or they could table it for a later time as they did following a nearly six-hour meeting back in November.
While the matter is likely months away from coming before city commissioners, Cocking says the commission has done a large amount of due diligence in preparing for when the situation finds its way to a future agenda.
The planning commission meeting will begin at 6 pm inside of the Municipal Courtroom at White Auditorium. There will be no public hearing on the matter during that time and the city will be livestreaming the proceedings online at EmporiaKS.gov.
