The Wichita City Council approved an additional $1 million for COVID-19 response measures.
The original $1 million budget established in April has already been spent. City Manager Robert Layton was asked if the expenditures would be reimbursed.
“We’ve been working with the county regarding submitting something to FEMA for expenses, primarily those that are associated with public safety expenses that we had early on. And then also we had some discussions with the county regarding allocation of some of the funds that they received related to COVID-19,” he said.
81 percent of money spent thus far was related to salaries and benefits. Other costs included disinfection products and setting up city staff to work from home.
In other city news, the council approved amending city code regarding the sale of tobacco products to minors. Back in December, the federal minimum age to purchase those products was raised from 18 to 21.
The city unveiled their plans for fireworks enforcement for the Fourth. Seven teams, each comprised of 2 police officers and one firefighter, will investigate the city's hot spots. Two additional teams will handle complaints. Last year, the city received over 1100 complaint calls about fireworks and issued 59 citations.
The city approved applying for a $1 million federal grant, aimed at reducing crime and for homeless outreach in the downtown area.
The council also approved around $10 million in industrial revenue bonds for Wichita Urology Group, who plan to build a 26 thousand square foot surgical and support center in northeast Wichita, right behind their current location near K-96 and Webb.