photo by: Chris Conde

The Douglas County Courthouse is pictured in September 2018.

Douglas County commissioners on Wednesday will receive an update on the county’s Open Space Plan, including a list of recommendations that could lead to a property or sales tax increase.

Revenue generated from a tax increase could be used to support various program models, including a new Open Space Department or grant program. In addition to potential new tax dollars, the county is also considering the establishment of an Open Space Foundation to collect private donations that would fund related programs, which could include the leasing of public land to farmers for conservation-oriented purposes. County spokesperson Karrey Britt told the Journal-World on Tuesday that a tax increase is not a foregone conclusion and that discussion regarding funding sources is still in the preliminary phase.

The Open Space Plan maps out the county’s approach for safeguarding and managing natural and undeveloped lands such as trails, native prairies, wetlands, wildlife habitats, agricultural lands and heritage sites. According to a memo from Kim Criner Ritchie, the county’s sustainability manager, the plan would provide the county with a “tool” to “intentionally work with public, private, and community partners on shared priorities around land use.”

At a work session in February, a project team told commissioners that the county was “about a decade behind everybody else” and had a lot to do to fully develop an Open Space Plan. Commissioners also learned that the Open Space Plan could involve the promotion of recreational activities and preservation of community history, and that progress was needed in floodwater management.

County leaders started the process of creating an open space plan in May 2019, and in August 2022, the commission set aside nearly $2.8 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding for various expenses related to developing the plan. At a public meeting in June of this year, community members shared concerns about the Open Space Plan, specifically the complications associated with land ownership and conservation easements, which are voluntary legal agreements that permanently limit how a piece of land can be used.

According to Criner Ritchie’s memo, Wednesday’s work session will provide commissioners with a “draft” of the community’s vision that was crafted through a public outreach campaign — as well as “preliminary program models, resources, and funding mechanisms that might be considered within the plan in order to sustain an Open Space Program in the future.”

An Open Space Plan open house is slated for 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the Union Pacific Depot, 402 N. Second St. The open house is aimed at gathering feedback related to focus areas and preliminary recommendations of the Open Space project team. This event is also designed to build on previous public outreach, including workshops, focus groups and nearly 1,000 survey responses.

In other business, the commission will:

• Consider approving a plan that would charge a $3 service fee at the Douglas County Treasurer’s Office and its two satellite locations. The current fee structure assesses a $5 service fee at the two satellite locations in Lawrence and Baldwin City but no service fee at the treasurer’s county courthouse location, and it generates approximately $121,000 per year.

Based on calculations provided in the agenda materials that used data from 2022, a $3 service fee at all three locations would have generated $211,089, an approximately $90,000 increase over the current structure. Douglas County Treasurer Adam Rains said in a memo that the restructured fees would cover increased costs to “personnel” and costs imposed by the Kansas Department of Revenue, “such as purchasing equipment like printers, computers, and scanners.”

“As costs continue to increase, the need to change fee structure is important to properly fund Motor Vehicle operations,” Rains said in the memo.

• Consider approving, in the consent agenda, a resolution establishing maximum weight limits for certain bridges in Douglas County. According to a memo from Chad Voigt, the county’s Public Works director, six bridges in the county were identified by the Kansas Department of Transportation as needing updated weight-limit postings. Voigt said KDOT identified those specific bridges as part of a multiyear project that aimed to provide load ratings for all county-maintained bridges in the state.

• Consider approving, in the consent agenda, the purchase of a 2023 John Deere cab tractor/diamond boom mower in the amount of $191,899. According to a memo from Gabrielle Rye, the county’s purchasing analyst, the existing tractor/mower was involved in an accident and is expected to be a total loss.

The commission’s work session begins at 4 p.m. at the Douglas County Courthouse at 11th and Massachusetts streets. The regular meeting follows at 5:30 p.m. The meeting can be viewed via Zoom at https://douglascountyks-org.zoom.us/j/96770093836. The agenda packet can be found on the county’s website, douglascountyks.org