Reopening plan to be discussed

Plans for reopening facilities and activities that remain closed in Shawnee County because of orders issued to fight the spread of COVID-19 are among topics local elected officials plan to discuss this coming week.

Shawnee County Commissioners Bill Riphahn, Kevin Cook and Aaron Mays will meet at 9 a.m. Monday in their chambers in Room B-11 of the County Courthouse, 200 S.E. 7th. After that meeting concludes, they will convene as the county’s Board of Health.

That board, which also consists of Riphahn, Cook and Mays, will discuss the “Shawnee County Reopening Plan,” according to Monday’s agenda.

Both gatherings will be open to the public, after commission meetings in recent weeks were closed in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

The Topeka City Council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in its chambers at 214 S.E. 8th. The meeting will be closed to the public but will be aired live on the City of Topeka’s Facebook page, the city’s website at www.topeka.org and on City4, the city’s cable TV channel, said Molly Hadfield, the city’s media relations coordinator. Anyone with comments about anything on the agenda may email cclerk@topeka.org.

The mayor and council plan to continue a discussion they’ve been holding in recent weeks about how to deal with budget challenges the city faces that were brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

City manager Brent Trout took steps earlier this month that included eliminating the jobs held by deputy city manager Doug Gerber, neighborhood relations director Sasha Haehn and emergency management coordinator Jim Green.

The mayor and council also plan to consider:

• Extending through July 8 a suspension of council rules they put in place March 26 to fight the spread of the coronavirus. The rules suspension is currently scheduled to run through Wednesday.

• Amending the 2021-2023 Capital Improvement Budget and 2021-2030 Capital Improvement Plan they approved May 19 by reinstating certain page numbers that were deleted as a result of amendments adopted that day. Those deletions, if allowed to remain, might jeopardize the city’s bond and budgeting authority, according to a document in the agenda packet for Tuesday’s meeting.

• Authorize the sale, consumption and possession of alcoholic beverages at the Rock and Food Truck Festival, which is set to be held July 25 at Evergy Plaza at S. 7th and Kansas Avenue.