Wednesday was David Dennis' last meeting as Chairman of the Sedgwick County Commission.
Mr. Dennis served as chairman the last 2 years. One of his final items of business was to present the 2019 Chairman's Award. It went to Kansas Honor Flight, which provides World War II, Korea, and Vietnam War veterans an all-expense paid trip to Washington D.C.
The commission named Pete Meitzner as the new chairman. He thanked the group for their endorsement and spoke about the challenges ahead in 2020.
"Obviously the problems that we've talked about with Spirit and our region continues to have. I'm glad what we've done last year elevating the importance of addressing mental health and substance abuse, homelessness," Meitzner said.
The commission named Lacey Cruse as chair pro tem.
The commission also approved an expansion of the West bank redevelopment tax increment financing district in downtown Wichita.
Brent Shelton, Deputy Chief Financial Officer for the county, explained how the TIF would assist the area. "This expansion allows funding mechanisms and eligibility for some TIF expenditures in and around the Delano neighborhood. It will provide some additional, immediate parking needs right near the new baseball stadium," he said.
The Wichita City Council approved the same measure on December 17.
The county also gave a thumbs up to the South Central Neighborhood Plan, a neighborhood-wide vision for improvements and capital building. The plan will focus on the area, centered on south Broadway.