VISIONEERING WICHITA
BREAK OUT GROUP REPORT
GROUP # 14
Facilitator: Bill Wunder
Elected to the Vision Task Force: Diane Leubbage

(10) Educational Opportunities for All

• Retention of graduates

(9) Urban sprawl (control)

• Infrastructure development

(8) Diversity Employment Base

• Generate hi-tech jobs
• Create right types
• Focused economic development jobs

(7) Improvement of Public Transportation & Use of and build reg. transportation hub

• More attractive thoroughfares.
• Monorail system

(6) Get Youth Involved and Start Younger

(5) Celebrate diversity

(4) Build Sense of Community

• Support home grown businesses
• Promote fine arts (2nd tier)
• Rid us of inferiority complex

(3) Focused Economic Development Plan

• Keeper of Plains (landmark)
• Tourism promotion
• Renewable energy hub

(2) Develop and Promote Affordable Housing

• More housing downtown
• Mixed use areas

(.5) Human Services

• Recycling plan

(.5) Centralize Government

VISIONEERING WICHITA
BREAK OUT GROUP REPORT
GROUP #15
Facilitator: Vera Bothner
Elected to the Vision Task Force: Jim Graham

(9.5) Infrastructure

• Transportation planning
• Zoning
• Easy parking downtown
• Amtrak
• Subsidies for airfare
• Urban master planning
• Downtown revitalization
• Eastside/Westside equality

(9.5) Image

• Tourism – conventions, gambling, aviation museum
• Ecology
• Change Cowtown name to Old West Wichita
• Attitude
• Clean up city/eyesores (refineries)
• Support for publicity for cultural institutions
• Better parks/pools
• Free downtown parking
• Community hospitality

(8) People Issues

• Family stability
• Health care
• Early intervention drugs/crime
• Health care facilities
• Higher ed
• Better education – pay pre-K through college
• Safe places for youth
• #1 education in Kansas
• Technical education
• Promote neighborhood associations

(7) Government

• Consolidated government – make it happen
• Have politicians listen to people
• Efficient
• Local people – not consultants
• Targeted taxes
• Better representation in Topeka
• #1 efficient government in nation

(6) Solutions

• Healthcare endowment
• Save companies & require they reinvest locally
• Open to new ideas, alternative strategies
• City endowment
• Community endowment program
• Government efficiency accountability czar
• Make suggestions happen

(5) Employment/Workforce

• Quality jobs to attract quality people
• Hot spot for consultants to live & work
• Military presence
• Worthwhile tax abatements equitable

VISIONEERING WICHITA
BREAK OUT GROUP REPORT
GROUP # 16
Facilitator: Morris Dunlap
Elected to the Vision Task Force: Jan Hiebert

(10) Economic Development

• Funding needed for Convention & Visitor’s Bureau
• Funding needed for advertising for tourism
• Need to develop jobs other than manufacturing (bio sciences, medical, etc.)
• Need better entrepreneur fostering environment
• Fair Fares needed – continue to support
• Medical services highest employer – grow this area
• Need to choose companies carefully for industrial revenue bonds
• Creative class to promote vibrancy
• Industrial park needed
• Mass transit system
• Identify other cities by which to benchmark Wichita – adopt Baltimore Accountability model
• Keep industries we have here HERE and diversity those
• Need downtown services (grocery stores, cleaners, drug stores)
• Air service –play up geographical location – distribution hub
• Rail services – play up geographical location – distribution hub

(9) Education

• Educators need to be dedicated to area
• English language & culture needs taught in community areas
• Employment forecasts & models needed to shape educational programs for area
• Character Connection initiative to continue
• Need to be able to rehabilitate criminals into workforce
• Stronger basic education needed for area youth

(8) Government

• Cowskin & Calfskin flooding problems – fix instead of patch problems
• Combine duplicate services in city 7 county – remove obstacles
• Coliseum projects – select only one, or make each special purpose
• Maintain streets, waterways & fix flooding
• Reallocate beautification funds from roads to parks
• Need more information available on elected officials’ positions on issues
• Dirt roads still exist on west side even after Mayoral pledge to only process with paved.
• People need more influence over budgeting
• Need continuity in leadership

(7) Quality of Life

• Direction – finding signage
• Promote Wichita as clean & nice city, not as Cowtown
• Need more parks & green space
• Make Wichita a place where kids want to say
• Downtown needs services (groceries)
• Wichita citizens can be own worst enemy – need to improve our own image projections/citizenship
• Communities need easy access to “how to’s” for area issues (recycling, transportation, etc.)
• Divided streets with trees & shrubs can cause obstruction of views for drivers & added work to communities
• Resource center required

(6) Environment

• Recycling & conservation
• Aquifer pollution
• Dirty river vs. River City image (desired)
• Power generation
• Waste disposal
• Alternative power generation (wind, etc.)

(5) Urban Sprawl

• Metropolitan planning by region
• Stricter controls on development
• Inner city development
• Mass transit system
• Accessibility for public transportation
• Highway loop
• Environment & green space
• Development & planning/beautification with common sense

VISIONEERING WICHITA
BREAK OUT GROUP REPORT
GROUP # 17
Facilitator: Ed Hoeller
Elected to the Vision Task Force: Jeff Cooper

(10) Planning

• Create a viable, strategic plan endorsed by the citizens to enhance the physical form of the community & create livability.

(9) Education

• Best of class education community in State/Nation

(8) Employment

• Increase number of high paying, well educated jobs
• Broaden economic base

(7) Leadership

• Create an environment & attitude to best represent the interest of the community

(6) Social Issues

• Promote better quality of life for all citizens

VISIONEERING WICHITA
BREAK OUT GROUP REPORT
GROUP # 18
Facilitator: Connie Tindal
Elected to the Vision Task Force: Ken Rohling

(10) Economic Development

• Attract new industries
• Maintain current industries
• Diversity industry
• Long term tech plan
• Job training
• Airport travel costs
• Improve control over unregulated businesses
• Improve core area – incentives residential

(9) Education

• Develop pre-K
• Basic
• Higher education
• Under graduate
• Vo-tech
• Public/private initiatives
• Public finance
• Life-skill education for teens
• Attract & recruit teachers
• Instill value & pride in education/schools
• Junior achievement
• WSU – change image/perception

(8) Quality of Life

• Arena – downtown
• Improve core area
• Enhance recreational opportunities – lake
• Health/dental care – access, strategies
• Judicial system – juvenile, corrections
• Inmate population

(7) Infrastructure

• Flooding
• Landfill/trash management
• East-west link
• Long-term water consumption
• Airport travel costs

(6) Regional Planning

• MSA versus ICT
• Regional transportation
• Remove community barriers
• Expand to include surrounding cities & counties

(5) City/County Consolidation

• Community barrier (remove)
• Increase effectiveness
• Reduce cost

VISIONEERING WICHITA
BREAK OUT GROUP REPORT
GROUP # 19
Facilitator: Dian Jackson
Elected to the Vision Task Force: Doug Hye

(10) Economic Development

• Reduce taxes
• Increase tourism
• Pay for develop with revenue other than tax dollars
• New kinds of business
• Small business support small business friendly Chamber
• Transportation hub (local & national) aircraft maintenance hub
• Skills inventory
• Core competencies & sell it
• Realistic evaluation of both jobs & workforce needs

(9) Education

• Improve technical & vocational education
• Education friendly Chamber
• Unique educational experiences in USD 259
• Fund education
• Change/expand school boundaries
• Programs to develop young adults, ages 20-30

(7.5) Government

• Local public transportation
• Specialized transportation for mentally & physically disabled & elderly (evenings & weekends)
• Revise political environment
• Unified legislators
• Recycling
• Functional consolidation

(7.5) Quality of Life

• Local public transportation – evenings & weekends
• Mentally & physically disabled specialized transportation
• Youth participation in civic development
• Youth retention
• More appealing activities for young adults

• WSU football – loss of 2,000 students since 1986
• Better shopping – classic retail
• Affordable health care for low income
• Review health care costs
• Attractive retirement communities

(6) Leadership

• Community unification
• Empower visionaries
• Strong identity
• Revise political negative environment

(5) Infrastructure

• 13th St. bridge – ditch
• flooding
• traffic – general – 21st & Maize area
• retain established neighborhoods

(4) Youth Focus

• Youth participation in civic development
• Youth retention
• Economic development to keep & attract youth
• More appealing activities for young adults
• Increase diverse sporting events

VISIONEERING WICHITA
BREAK OUT GROUP REPORT
GROUP # 20
Facilitator: Terry Behrendt
Elected to the Vision Task Force: Felicia Fields

(10) Economic Development

• Recruitment of different industries
• Tax incentives
• Affordable airfares
• Job diversification
• More technical jobs
• Generation X leaving in high numbers

(9) Education

• More technical jobs
• Build technical school
• Align educational opportunities with workforce
• Education K-12

(8) Quality of Life

• Affordable health care
• Provide health care for poor
• How to build athletic program
• Family support
• Support single families
• Recycling
• Programs to rebuild community - restore inner city housing/communities
• Health care for elderly
• Affordable assisted living for chronically ill
• Decline of standard of living
• Embrace diverse population

(7) Tourism Attractions

• Parks & recreation
• Waterwalk
• More social events
• More theatre, sports, arts/cultural events
• No entertainment
• Facility to market more venues