By LUCIE KRISMAN
Traffic congestion, infrastructure, affordability and housing were among the top concerns that Eudora residents brought to City Hall Tuesday night.
The city is in the midst of updating its comprehensive plan and scheduled a town hall meeting to hear from the community on how to plan for the next 20 years.
Dave Knopick, a community urban planner and consultant to the city, gave a presentation on the planning process and the existing conditions of Eudora.
Knopick said the new comprehensive plan will be adopted as a resolution, not an ordinance, and community input is crucial.
"I will never know your community as well as you do," Knopick said. "No matter what reporting I do, no matter what facts I look at, I will never know it like you know it."
Rex Tedrow was among about 30 people who attended the two-hour meeting to give input.
"I think one of the big issues is how are we going to pay for all of these sidewalks, all these streets, all these improvements," Tedrow said. "I think cities are under more pressure now. They're not getting as much money."
Among Eudora's named best assets by community members were the sense of safety, the fire department and emergency services, the small town character, the charm of downtown and the history Eudora has.
"I think it's the heart of the people that live in Eudora that is really special," Ami Bruce of the Chamber of Commerce said. "When something happens in the community, the community shows up in a big way."
Eudora resident Joni Becker said this public meeting was a chance for her to witness the process of planning for Eudora's future instead of finding out what Eudora's future looked like later.
"I don't know if I've totally formulated the change I'm looking for, but I'm interested in hearing what plans are being formulated right now," Becker said. "I just think this is an opportunity to hear things firsthand instead of after decisions are made."
Eudora resident Gary Pratt said it is important for his family to know what Eudora's future looks like.
"My family is fourth-generation Eudora and we have seven kids," Pratt said. "We care very much about where this town is going."
Eudora High School senior Brianna Hemel was offered extra credit by her government teacher to attend the public meeting. However, she said she was interested and wanted to continue her involvement with Eudora's future after attending the town hall.
"I think this is something I would come to again," Hemel said. "Initially coming, it was for the extra credit, but continuing being involved and doing the focus groups, it's not as much for the class benefits but more about improving our community as a whole."
Vice Mayor Ruth Hughs said, as a city commissioner, community participation in things like the public meeting help the commissioners serve their community effectively.
We make the decisions that affect the next 20 years, that's what we're aiming for," Hughs said. "All of us commissioners could not do our job without you putting in your time here."
Members of the community who could not make the meeting are encouraged to take the comprehensive plan survey and voice their opinion on what they want for Eudora's future. The survey will be available until midnight Monday.
At the time of the meeting, the survey had 623 responses. Of the existing responses, Knopick said the most important assets noted were the quality of schools and small town character and the most pressing issues were traffic congestion and internet service.
Knopick said five focus groups will be conducted over the next few weeks to gain more public input, as well as interviews with property owners and business owners in Eudora.
Assistant City Manager Leslie Herring said tools like the survey and the upcoming focus groups will help the city meet the needs of all sections of the community in Eudora.
"We're really, really trying to make sure that what is the product of this process is real and is a representation of what the community as a cross-section feels like now for the next 20 years until we do our next plan," Herring said.
Reach reporter Lucie Krisman at eudoratimes@gmail.com.
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