Officials plan motion in FEMA lawsuit

City officials, county officials and co-plaintiffs involved in a lawsuit with the Federal Emergency Management Agency over proposed flood-plain maps plan to file a motion in response to the latest court proceedings in time for the city's Tuesday public meeting.

FEMA filed a motion in federal court in late October to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the city, county, and three individuals -- Cecil O'Brate, Mark Dinkel and Gary Fuller -- against the federal agency's mapping efforts, which aim to place two drainage ditches and their surrounding areas within a redefined 100-year flood plain. If FEMA mandates that the proposed maps go into effect, it would add more than 1,800 city and county properties to a revised flood plain in an area that has not been included in any of the Flood Insurance Rate Maps in the past 30 years.

City Counselor Randy Grisell requested a deferral for a Nov. 18 deadline to file a motion in response to FEMA's late October action, City Manager Matt Allen has said. The deferral was not in response to any new information, Allen said.

City commissioners also will consider an ordinance at its next public meeting to approve the issuing of $1.1 million in industrial revenue bonds to the Garden City Family YMCA to continue construction of its new facilities.

Approval of the ordinance would provide support for the YMCA's $2.5 million expansion project.

Many local governments offer industrial revenue bonds as a way to encourage relocations and expansions of companies that provide jobs and expand economic opportunities for residents and the community. The city issues the bonds but is not making the loan. The investor buying the bond -- in this case Clayton Holdings, LLC, a Commerce Bank subsidiary -- will be making the loan, said Chad Knight, the YMCA's executive director.

The multi-million project includes a 10,200-square-foot addition that will include an expanded cardiovascular fitness area, strength training area and parking, along with improved men's locker rooms, family locker rooms and administrative offices.

The addition also means a new family recreational pool, a new early childhood center, a new entrance into the facility and a new child watch room. The new pool will feature a zero-depth entry, shallow depth, warm water, a slide and an area for kids to play.

The YMCA has already received a quarter of a million dollars in tax credits from The Community Service Tax Credit Program through the Kansas Department of Commerce and $2 million in pledges from private donors and clients toward the project, Knight said.

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