City Council Report /w Gordon Basham; Clifton Square and Skateboarding

and this is the city council report. Short report number one, followed by short report number two; both to be aired on 10/15/90, followed by the long report to be aired on 10/16/90. Two controversial issues will come before the council tomorrow morning. Issues that in the past several weeks have drawn public comment. The first matter will be the request by the owner of Clifton Square Shopping Center in the College Hill for an issuance of a minor street permit. Jo Zakas wants the permits so she can make lighting and landscaping improvements around Clifton Square, but the aspect of the permit that has nearby residents upset is her request for a street parking variance that would allow diagonal parking on two residential streets nearby. Homeowners in the area say allowing such parking would create traffic problems and pose a hazard to children who walk to nearby schools. City staff has recommended the permit be granted. The other issue which is likely to draw both public and council comments is the second

reading of the proposed bias crimes ordinance. Three weeks ago, the council passed on first reading an ordinance that beefs up other city criminal statutes by making it illegal to base those crimes on hate or bias relative to a person's race, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability, or sexual orientation. That element, sexual orientation, caused council members Greg Ferris and Frank Ojile some concerns. The following week, when the ordinance came up for a second reading, councilman Willis Wall asked that the reading be deferred for two weeks in order to allow more time to study the constitutional validity of the measure. The ordinance is expected to pass, although it's expected the vote will be close. Councilman Rip Gooch indicated he may offer an amendment to the ordinance that in essence says the ordinance shall in no way be construed as condoning acts of homosexuality. Also on the council's agenda will be reports on sewer odor control by the firm of Brown Caldwell. Last December, the council authorized a comprehensive sewer odor control study. That study is being done in two phases. The report on phase one will be presented tomorrow morning. On the councils

set agenda will be the second reading of an ordinance that will outlaw skateboarding on public property in the downtown area and the city council will be asked to hire the law firm of Foulston and Siefken to represent the city in another lawsuit by a second group of Wichita police officers. Earlier this year, the city settled the suit by a group of officers out of the court that charged the city violated the fair labor standards act of forcing officers to stay in radio contact during their meal breaks. The second suit is being filed by over a hundred officers who were not a part of the original suit. The city staff wants the council to authorize up to a hundred thousand dollars in legal fees for Foulston Siefkin saying it would be more costly, both in terms of time and money, for the city legal department to handle the case. The council meeting gets underway tomorrow morning at nine o'clock in the council chambers at city hall. It's open to the public. For KMUW, I'm Gordon Basham. And this is short report number two; short report number two. The bias crimes ordinance will be back for a second attempt at a second reading.

On September 25, the council passed on first reading an ordinance that makes it illegal to violate other city criminal statutes when the underlying motive is hate or bias based on a person's race, sex, religion, age, physical disability, or sexual orientation, among other things. At the first reading, council members Greg Ferris and Frank Ojile both objected to including the sexual orientation provision. Two weeks ago, council member Willis Wall pulled the second reading of the ordinance from the consent agenda and got the council to go along with his request that the measure should be given more time for study to ensure its constitutionality. When it comes back before the council tomorrow for its second reading, city council member Rip Gooch has indicated he may offer an amendment to the ordinance that, in essence, says the ordinance shall in no way be construed as condoning acts of homosexuality. It's expected the measure will pass, although the vote may be close. Also up for consideration tomorrow morning is the request by Jo Zakas, the owner of Clifton Square for the issuance of a minor street permit. Ms. Zakas wants to improve the lighting and landscaping around her College Hill shopping area. She also wants a street parking

variance in order to allow diagonal parking on nearby residential streets. That issue has some neighbors who live nearby upset, claiming diagonal parking will cause traffic problems and pose a danger to children who walk to nearby schools. The city staff has recommended the permit be granted. The council is also expected to receive the first phase of a two phase study on sewer odor control. Last December, the council authorized the firm of Brown and Caldwell to conduct a two phased comprehensive study of the problem. The council will get the first phase report tomorrow morning. Two items of note are scheduled for the council's consent agenda. One is the reading of an ordinance that will outlaw skateboarding in the downtown area. The other is the hiring of the law firm of Foulston and Siefkin to handle the lawsuit against the city by over a hundred police officers. The suit claims the city violated the fair labor standards act by forcing officers to stay in radio contact during their meal breaks. The city settled out of court a similar suit by another group of officers earlier this year. The city legal department wants the council to authorize the spending of up to a hundred thousand dollars in legal fees for Foulston Siefkin, saying it would be more

costly, both in terms of time and money, for the city legal department to handle the case. The council meeting gets underway at nine tomorrow morning in the council chambers at city hall. It's open to the public. For KMUW, I'm Gordon Basham. And this is a long report to be aired on Tuesday morning, the Morning Edition, 10/16/90. [inaudible shuffling] The council's workload will be relatively light this morning, but it faces a couple of issues that have drawn considerable public attention as well as comments. The first is the request of the owner of Clifton Square in the College Hill area for a minor street permit. If approved, which is what the city staff is recommending, Clifton Square's owner will make lighting and landscaping improvements to the College Hill shopping area as well as add on-street diagonal parking on Clifton Street and Victor Place. At last week's council meeting, Deb Talamantez, a resident who lives nearby, told the council she represented a hundred percent of the residents who live near Clifton Square who are

opposed to the diagonal parking. "We want you to oppose the angled parking and the minor street permit. [inaudible] plans include purchasing a home on the corner of Yale and Victor. Negotiations have been in progress. I'm not sure where they stand right now, but further plans as stated in the aesthetic committee meeting include tearing down those properties, closing Victor street, which Ms. Zakas stated to me that she owned and creating a parking lot against my backyard. That scares the hell out of me." KMUW talked with Jo Zakas, the owner of Clifton Square, about that. "That is totally inaccurate and she does not represent 100% of the neighbors. She represents about five strong." What exactly is the situation as far as the relationship between Clifton Square and the neighbors? They claim that the big problem is encroachment upon their neighborhood. "Well, we had, I feel, a very good relationship with the neighbors. You know, when Clifton Square started in 1972, which the five neighbors that are doing the loudest protesting at the moment didn't even live in the College Hill area at that time, we were welcomed with open arms. Cause we had a hippie colony on one corner, a huge parking lot through the center with many potholes in it and a drug rehabilitation center on the other corner. I was relatively new to Wichita at that time and I looked at this square block and I thought, you know, something needs to be done. It's a beautiful neighborhood and I got the idea to do a Clifton Square. In this eighteen-year period of time, we have had two complaints from the neighborhood. One was on some music because we were playing some Muzak throughout the parking lot which of course we've since

discontinued. Another was one of our tenants had parked their car in front of a neighbor's home which has been several years ago and we corrected that. So for her to say, or for anyone to say that we do not have a good relationship with the neighborhood is inaccurate." One of the major complaints obviously is the fact that they're saying the diagonal parking is going to pose not only a traffic problem but a safety problem as far as the children are concerned. How do you answer that? "Well, before we went ahead with this plan, and this wasn't an overnight plan, I had been talking to several of the movers and shakers of Wichita and asking their advice as to what could Clifton Square to maintain its viable place in the marketplace, and no one had any ideas until we came up with the thought of perhaps doing the parking on the Clifton Square property and doing it at an angle. Some of the suggestions previously were to go into the neighborhood and to tear down houses in order to have additional parking. That, in my0 opinion, is not good for the neighborhood nor is it good for the Clifton Square shopper. They want a shop at the door. We, in putting together the parking plan, I talked with the school, the

College Hill School. I also spoke with one of the mothers whose child is a safety patrol person. We observed the children as they walked to and from school and their policy is to walk on the west side of Clifton and they continue to do that. The only time that the children come on the east side of Clifton is when they're coming to Clifton Square. and with our new plan, particularly with the angled parking which we think will be easier for customers to get in and out. We have also put in some additional sidewalks. The sidewalks will be in front of the automobiles per safety policy, so I think we had covered that. Also you must remember, that Clifton Square, being the type of center that it is, doesn't generate as much traffic as other centers do. The council was to have originally acted on the request last week but postponed action until today at the request of Ms. Zakas. Also up for consideration under the category of unfinished business will be the second and final reading of the bias crimes ordinance. The ordinance was to have gone to second reading two weeks ago. The action that was postponed on

a motion by council member Willis Wall. The city wanted the ordinance studied further to make sure it will withstand the test of constitutionality. The ordnance is drawn fire from council members Greg Ferris and Frank Ojile because it contains language that makes it a crime to violate certain city criminal statutes based on other things: a person's sexual orientation. The ordinance also outlaws hate related crimes based on age, sex, race, or national origin. City councilman Rip Gooch, who voted for the ordinance two weeks ago, told a city hall news conference he'll support it again this morning. 'I think that the thing about this is, in my way of thinking, the only thing that I want to say in this bill is that people should be treated fairly and should not be harassed because of whatever they are. I don't think you should be harassed because you're a redhead. [inaudible] So, I don't see any reason to accuse the city council of endorsing

homosexual acts, because they said that he shouldn't go out and be gay bashing. That's what we are saying and that's what I'm saying and I don't think that is beyond what we should stand for." "Judge Wall and Mr. Ojile have shown concern over the viability of the ordinance, whether it's going to survive in the courts or not." "You take these things, you take these thing as they come and if you want to find a reason, you'll find a reason. You make the decision and go ahead. I think we have others that we deal with and we find the same thing. Can it, will it hold in court. Let the

court settle that part." Gooch has indicated he may offer an amendment to the ordinance that in essence says the order shall no way be construed as condoning acts of homosexuality. Although the vote is expected to be close, the council is expected to pass the second reading of the bias crimes ordinance. The council will receive a report on sewer odor control, a problem which has been especially bad down in the south part of town. There will also be a public hearing of a proposed assessment for twenty-two water distribution systems, most of which will be paid for by the district that will benefit from them. On its consent agenda, the council is expected to pass on second reading of the ordinance that outlaws skateboarding in the downtown area. Another consent agenda item will be the hiring of Foulston Siefkin, the law firm, to represent the city in a second law suit by a group of police officers. Assistant city attorney Ed Randels outlines the details of that law suit. "Earlier this year, a suit was settled in [inaudible] Wahl, et al vs the city of Wichita from which was a group of 260 some police officers pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act and largely over the mealtime issue. That suit was settled

in January and April of this year, and subsequent to that time there's been a lawsuit filed by officers that were not part of the first lawsuit seeking similar things that were settled in that lawsuit. Now the big difference between the current lawsuit and the last lawsuit is that it specifically includes some lieutenants and detectives in this lawsuit that were not included in the last." How much was the last lawsuit settled for out of court between the two parties. "Two and a half million dollars." What is the expectation, at least, what is the other, what are the litigants, the plaintiffs in this particular suit. What are they asking for? "Well they're asking for back pay and they are seeking other damages on top of that. It's still too early to determine how much back pay It would be, really, at issue.

If all the back pay was claimed was would be awarded. It's far too early in the litigation to determine that. They have not even made a real determination of that issue." Randels said it's common for the city to hire an outside law firm to handle such large suits since having the city legal department handle it would be more costly both in terms of time and money. For KMUW, I'm Gordon Basham. [tone] City council reports for 10/16/90, short report number one. Much of the council's agenda today was routine. Much of the time it spent, though, was on two issues that drew a good deal of public and council comments. The first item was a request by Jo Zakas, the

owner of Clifton Square for the issuance of a minor street permit. Ms. Zakas came to the city seeking to the permit in order to make a landscaping and lighting improvements in the College Hill shopping area. She also sought a variance to city parking statutes which would allow her to expand the number of parking spaces on nearby residential streets. Like last week, there was more public comment from residents who live near Clifton Square who oppose the project. Their fears included the further encroachment into the neighborhood. Speaking out on behalf of the project was Ms. Zakas, one of the tenants of Clifton Square and another College Hill neighbor who lives three and a half blocks away. Council member Sheldon Kamen, who represents the College Hill area took the lead on addressing the concerns of those against the projects and worked toward a compromise. The final motion on the matter made by Kamen included a ban against further expansion by Clifton Square into the adjacent residential area, a recommendation to the city's traffic commission that a public hearing be held on eliminating parking on one side of the one hundred block of Clifton and the payment of a one-time fee for the permits that amounts to just over two thousand dollars.

The measure passed the council unanimously. The other issue which saw eighteen people speaking out, both pro and con, was the second reading of the bias crimes ordinance. The measure ties existing criminal city statutes to the new law and imposes fines and or jail time when the violation is based in hate or bias. Those provisions in the ordinance include bias against race, sex, disability, national origin, and sexual orientation, among other things. That portion of the ordinance, sexual orientation, drew comment from a range of Wichitans, including members of the clergy, members of the gay community, and the legal community. Mayor Bob Knight had the last word on the ordinance though. Calling on the community as a whole to set aside their prejudices and pull together to heal the community, as well as set aside their rage and insults. Council member Willis Wall made the motion the ordnance include warning that, in essence, the state's passage of the measure in no way condones or promotes the gay lifestyle. The ordinance passed its second reading by a vote of five to two with council members Greg Ferris and Frank Ojile voting in the negative. For KMUW, I'm Gordon Basham.

City council short report number two. The issue has sparked the most public comments as well as council comment was the second and final reading of the bias crimes ordinance. The measure imposes fines and or jail time against a person who bases their violation of other city criminal statutes in bias against a person because of their sex, age, national origin, disability, race or sexual orientation. That last proviso, sexual orientation, was the focus of the public comment with eighteen speakers evenly divided for and against it. Several members of the clergy spoke out against the ordinance basing their objections in scripture. Among those defending the measure was the Reverend Jim Bell, who heads up Interfaith Ministries Wichita. He had criticism for his fellow clergyman saying Christianity throughout the ages has has a sad history of justifying such prejudices of slavery and discrimination against women

through the use of scripture. Bell called on the council to support the measure which in the end they did by a vote of five to two, with members Frank Ojile and Greg Ferris voting against it. In its final reading, the ordinance includes a phrase that in essence states the ordinance in no ways supports or promotes the gay lifestyle. Also on the council's agenda was a request by the owner of Clifton Square for the issuance of a minor street permit. Jo Zakas had requested the permit to allow the College Hill shopping area to make certain lighting and landscaping improvements as well as provide on street diagonal parking nearby. Residents living near Clifton Square have opposed the parking plan, claiming to allow the diagonal parking would increase traffic in the area and pose a danger to children who walk to nearby schools. Those speaking on the issue included one nearby resident who reiterated the parking objections and the concern over further encroachment by Clifton Square into the neighborhood. Those supporting Zakas plan included a College Hill resident who lives three and a half blocks away who said the shopping area has benefited College Hill. The vote on the issue was unanimously in favor of granting the permit with certain restrictions. Two of

those restrictions include a prohibition against further expansion into the neighborhood and the payment of a one-time permit fee totaling just over two thousand dollars. For KMUW, I'm Gordon Basham. And the long council meeting reports for ten, seventeen, ninety. Ten, seventeen, ninety. The two items on the council's agenda that promise to attract the most comments, the request by Clifton Square for a minor street permit and a second reading of the bias crimes ordinance lived up to those expectations. One of those urging the council to vote against granting the Clifton Square permit was Betty Chitester, who lives on Victor Place, one of the two streets nearby. "I just want to say that if you approve this minor street permit, it will be the property owners who will continue to pay year after year after year for that expansion and that the signal you'll be giving to

the citizens is that the individual interests, what's to the best interest of the neighborhood and for the individual property owner owner is not really as important as the priority that's been given to commercial interests." Speaking out on behalf of granting the permit was College Hill resident Jane Gilchrist. "I have shopped at Clifton Square often. I feel that it has been a reality for nineteen years. It has kept in the character of the neighborhood and I would much prefer to see Clifton Square as a viable, continuing, specialty shopping center then have it go out of our neighborhood and then have to deal with what might come into the neighborhood after that." Final council action on the matter was to approve with some restrictions, Clifton Squares request for the minor street permit. One of those restrictions is that the shopping center not expand any further into the surrounding residential neighborhood. The council action that, by far, that drew the most comments was the second and final reading of the bias crimes ordinance. Eighteen people spoke on the measure with an even division for and against it.

The ordinance imposes fines and or jail time against people who violate other city statutes, when that violation is based in hate or bias. The one provision of the ordinance which drew by far the majority of the attention yesterday and over the past three weeks the ordinance has been under consideration, was a provision that includes a person's sexual orientation. One of those speaking out against the ordinance was Brad Bennett, the chairman at the Sedgwick County chapter of the American Family Association. "Our recommendation: either throw out this ordinance as a best choice you can make or add the clause it should in no way be construed to promote or endorse homosexuality as a lifestyle if you are determined to pass it. I want to commend council members Ferris and Ojile for opposing it and that concludes my remarks." "Thank you. [clapping] That will not be allowed in this chamber. [clapping] You understand. You'll be removed. Now, we have strong feelings here both ways. The rules of the council is we will not allow those kinds of outbursts. We invite your comments. We invite your participation

but show courtesy." That rebuke by Mayor Bob Knight brought comment from a former city council candidate Robert Cowdrey. "Good morning one and all. What we're dealing with here is freedom of speech. My name is Robert Cowdrey and and it really riles me and I have to address Mr. Knight's admonition of people when they want to applaud. This applauding people do is a speaking out. They're saying 'yes, I agree with that', 'no, I don't agree with that' and to tell somebody, especially when you're in position when you're being paid by the individuals who are trying to tell you something with their applause, that they can't do that is untenable." "Those are the rules of the council. If you'd like to speak to the item..." "Then the rules of the council of those of a dictatorship." "We accept that. Proceed." "Well, I wish you'd quit interrupting me." Okay. Okay? Others speaking out against the ordinance was businessman Bill Wright. "If you look at the dollar bills in your

pocket. If you look on the back of it, you'll find words written there too. It says "In God We Trust." Can you picture back when this country was founded two hundred years ago? Apparently, the gene pool had not yet deteriorated enough so as to allow the so-called genetic mutations homosexuals wish to claim to hide behind. Can you imagine the sheer scorn and laughter that you would have heard from our founding fathers and legislators about the motion here before us today?" Jim Walling of the Kansas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union also oppose the ordinance but for legal reasons. "We in dealing with this as we do with our huge agenda of cases we handle nationwide every year have simply never been able to put into words something that clarifies what conduct gets to be illegal when it's when it is joined with an improper motivation toward a group." Reverend Amos Sanders spoke out on the family values in his opposition to the ordinance. "As ministers and Christians of a better society,

we oppose this issue that has been brought before the government of our city. We feel that what has been asked is immoral not only to our city but also to the individuals. We are a people, we are the people that are trying to set a standard for our youth as well as what this community was founded upon. That is a family. The standard has already been set and we pray that you that represent the people would hold up the standard and take a stand against this ungodly issue." Among those speaking out on behalf of the measure was the Reverend Wanda McDaniels who was part of the task force that drafted the ordinance. "I will never condone hate. Jesus loved the sinner. He did not love the sin. And then there's another scripture that says judge not that you'd be judged by the same judgment and I feel that this council when they, if they accept this ordinance is saying to Wichita, Kansas we cannot

judge you by the color of your skin. We're not judging you by your lifestyle. We're only saying that you have the right to be protected against those that do hate you." The Reverend Jim Bell, who heads up Interfaith Ministries, spoke out in favor of the ordnance, criticizing those who based their opposition to the measure on scripture. "The religious community, in particular we who are Christians, have a sad history of justifying our prejudices and our persecutions. Christians, using scripture as justification, have supported slavery, have kept women in second class status, have branded certain persons as witches and at one time referred to left-handed people as children of the devil. People who committed suicide were refused burial from within the walls of the church. Divorced persons who remarried were not welcome at the church's altar. We choose our scriptures to validate our prejudices." Another who urged the council to adopt a bias crime ordinance included Bud Thomas. "I'm just a father, a father of a gay son,

and I have heard all of these accusations. He's a queer, he's a pervert when they don't even know my son. They don't know him from Adam but yet they're willing to stand up here and call him a pervert, a queer. He is a decent human being, which he deserves protection." Wichita artist Jed Clawson also spoke in favor of the ordinance. "I've seen several people here who seem to be saying that it's acceptable to go round beating of members of our society who don't happen to share their sexual preference. They tell us it's not only right but necessary to protect our families, our way of life. I don't know about you, but I've seen this mentality before. About thirty years ago, the beginning of the civil rights movement when segregation was preached from quite a few pulpits and a hundred years before that when slave owners quoted scripture to justify barbarism. Don't let these people fool you. It's

exactly the same thing." The final word on the issue though came from Mayor Bob Knight. "I believe that citizens in this community deserve my heartfelt views on this and I'm going to support the ordinance and I'm also going to call on men and women in this community because every one of them that stood up here and made a claim, the commitment to pull together and to heal this community and to set aside the rage to set aside the insults and to set aside this compulsion we seem to have for only supporting our only narrow views. Let's try to create a climate in this community where human beings can thrive and reach their potential and see fulllness in life. So, I would now call the question. All those in favor of the motion signify by saying 'aye.' Motion carries five to

two, with council members Ferris and council members Ojile in the negative. The ordinance that was adopted is with an amendment that states the ordinance in no way condones the homosexual lifestyle. For KMUW, I'm Gordon Basham.