Press Releases

The City of Topeka and the United States Army Corps of Engineers will host a public meeting on a study conducted by the Corps on possible measures for reducing flood risk in the Shunganunga Creek. The meeting will be held on October, 25th from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in the Holliday Building at 620 Madison Street.
After a flood event in 2007, the City of Topeka asked the Corps to conduct a study on the Shunganunga creek and look at options for flood control. In this 50/50 cost shared study, the Corps completed hydrologic models of past flooding, including the 2007 flood. The Corps also performed real estate assessments, surveys, plan formulation, construction cost estimates, and economic analyses. The Corps has used this data to evaluate multiple alternatives to reduce flood risk in the watershed.
The Corps will be presenting some potential improvements to help reduce flood risk. Some of the alternatives would potentially be eligible for federal cost share. Projects that qualify under the federal program would be eligible for 65-35 split cost between the Corps and the City of Topeka. There is a cap on the Corps contribution of $10 million in improvements, including the cost of the study and design.
The public is invited to this meeting to listen to and provide input on the recommendations from the Army Corps of Engineers.
For more information, contact the Utilities Department at 785-368-3111.

The City of Topeka is offering a Small Business Grant Program for 2020. Any business that employed between 1-25 persons as of March 1^st, 2020 is eligible for the program. The applicant can apply for up to $20,000 in assistance for eligible expenses. The owner of the business must be low to moderate income (LMI) or employ low to moderate income person(s).

HUD defines LMI as no more than 80% of the median family income for the area. Please refer to chart on Page 1 of application form.

The purpose of the Small Business Grant Program is to provide operating assistance to business owners to continue the operations of independent small businesses and keep residents employed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the City is utilizing federal funding through the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, all operating assistance must be utilized under federal regulations. Completed applications will be accepted on or after October 1, 2020. Applications will be accepted continuously until funding has been depleted.

“The City of Topeka is grateful to work with our federal and local partners on stretching the safety net for our small businesses during recovery. Particularly so our most vulnerable population can keep working through these unprecedented times,” said Planning Director Bill Fiander.

Grant funds can be put towards the following expenses that occurred after March 17, 2020:

• Payroll
• Rent/Mortgage,
• Utilities
• Loss of Inventory
• And any purchases needed that were COVID-19 related, such as food packaging supplies, PPE equipment, changes required to work station to maintain social distancing, etc.

Applicants will have until October 20, 2021 to use the grant funds. Minority and Women owned businesses will receive priority in the selection process, and 25% of the total grant allocation will be set aside for MBE/WBE businesses. Grants can’t duplicate funding requested and received through other federal sources or programs. Grant funds cannot be used to pay off debt.

 

 

 

The City of Topeka continues to work through the investigation into the use of force that was generated during the arrest of Tamiko Mitchell on August 23. We are aware that the Facebook post about her interaction with a police officer is causing concern in our community. The Topeka Police Department is conducting their internal investigation into the use of force and we want you to know that we remain committed to being transparent throughout this process. At the conclusion of the investigations, findings will be released to the public when possible.

In this case and with any use of force that is generated during an arrest, a supervisor is notified immediately and they arrive on scene to speak to the citizen involved in the use of force. In this instance, the Shift Commander responded to the scene, which starts the official internal Use of Force Review Board process. This extensive review process goes through multiple layers to ensure the use of force was done legally, within policy and in accordance with our training procedures. This process is currently underway and has been since the arrest took place on August 23. You can find more information on the Topeka Police Department’s Use of Force Policies on the website: https://www.topeka.org/tpd/topeka-police-policies/

“The City of Topeka is moving as quickly as possible to complete the investigation.  We take this incident very seriously and are committed to a fair and complete investigation of the facts related to Ms. Mitchell’s incident and injury,” said City Manager Brent Trout.

The Independent Police Auditor, Ed Collazo, will conduct an independent investigation of the incident. We understand the community’s desire to see the body worn camera video. The City of Topeka will be releasing the body worn camera video of the incident once legal requirements are met.

City Manager Brent Trout contacted a representative of Ms. Mitchell to request an opportunity to meet with her, that request has not been accepted at this time.

Topeka City Manager Stephen Wade announced Tuesday that he is taking an extended leave of absence for an undisclosed amount of time.

At Tuesday’s City Council Meeting, the City of Topeka’s Governing Body took action to temporarily name Richard U. Nienstedt of Ottawa as acting City Manager. Nienstedt, a tenured City Manager and City Administrator, retired from the City of Ottawa in March.

“I want to assure the Topeka community and the city’s dedicated staff, that I will honorably serve the city during this time. It is my priority to ensure the continuity of operations of the city, and I’m honored the Governing Body selected me for this temporary role,” said Nienstedt.

Nienstedt is married to his wife Rita, and together they have three grown children who live in Olpe, Garnett, and Columbia, Missouri. They are proud grandparents to nine grandchildren.

Nienstedt assumed the role as Acting City Manager Tuesday night, and will begin working in Topeka later this week.

The Governing Body wants to assure the community that the business of the city will not be interrupted during this time. As this relates to a personnel matter, the city will not be commenting further.

 

The City of Topeka Utilities Department employees have taken water samples from the Shunganunga Creek on 6/24/19 to test for elevated levels of bacteria. Test results will not be available until 6/25/19. However, as a precaution The City of Topeka Utility Department is advising Topeka area residents to avoid contact with the Shunganunga Creek flowing from SW Washburn Ave., throughout the City to the point of confluence with the Kansas River until further notice.

This issue is due to recent heavy rain events and a mechanical issue at one of our pump stations in Central Park. The stormwater infrastructure has been struggling to handle the excess water from recent rain events and saturated soils, known as inflow and infiltration, in the sanitary sewer system. This excess stormwater combined with sanitary flows may be causing areas of the system to overflow into the Shunganunga Creek.

As a precaution residents are advised to avoid contact with the impacted waterway and to keep pets out of the stream.

Topeka staff will continue to monitor the water in local creeks and waterways and provide notification when the advisory can be lifted.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment has been notified.

The City of Topeka Utility Department is advising Topeka area residents to avoid contact with Butcher Creek from SE 29^th St to SE 21^st & Lakewood and Shunganunga Creek from 21^st & Lakewood to the point of confluence with the Kansas River, as well as a tributary flowing west from 29^th & Freemont to Butcher Creek.

Field crews discovered a sanitary sewer overflow in a heavily wooded area stemming from a blocked sewer main.  The overflow discharged to a local tributary and eventually into Butcher Creek. The blockage has been removed to stop the overflow, but bacteria levels in the water bodies could remain high.

As a precaution residents are advised to avoid contact with the impacted waterways and to keep pets out of the streams.

Topeka staff will continue to monitor the impacted water bodies and provide notification when the advisory can be lifted.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment has been notified.

The test results from recent samples taken from the Shunganunga Creek have come back with acceptable levels of bacteria. These results allow us to lift the stream advisory that was put in effect on June 6th. If you have any questions regarding this incident please call:
Ryan Woolaway
City of Topeka
785-409-8636

At about 9:15 this morning, a Zoo Keeper found herself in the same outdoor space with a seven year old Sumatran tiger. The Keeper sustained injuries but is being treated at a local hospital and remains in stable condition.
Zoo personnel responded immediately. In less than ten minutes, the tiger was called into an adjoining indoor holding space. The tiger was never out of its enclosure.
While the zoo briefly closed during the time of the incident, it reopened shortly after.
“The male Sumatran tiger, Sanjiv, simply reacted the way that is normal for a tiger to do,” said Zoo Director Brendan Wiley. “There is absolutely no consideration of euthanizing the tiger.”
Over the next several days, a complete investigation will be conducted that will also review all policies and procedures around tiger management at the zoo. “If we need to make updates to our current procedures, we will most certainly do that,” said Wiley.
The zoo staff is highly trained and experienced in working with tigers. Safety is always in the forefront. The entire zoo team routinely trains for emergency situations like this.
The Topeka Zoo considers its Sumatran Tiger Program to be one of its best well rounded animal programs. “For this critically endangered species we have an active breeding program, we make regular contributions to the science of caring for this species and our community financially supports a ranger on the ground in Sumatra,” said Wiley. “Right now, our focus is on our injured team member. Our thoughts and prayers are with her and her family.”

For just over a week, Sunda the Asian elephant has been dealing with an illness that took a serious turn Sunday morning. “Last Monday, Sunda started blowing a discharge from her trunk,” said Zoo Director Brendan Wiley. “Sunday morning, the illness took a turn for the worse. She became very lethargic; almost unresponsive. She was very pale. By early afternoon on Sunday, she began to stabilize.”

Initially, the illness presented as an upper respiratory infection. When the symptoms  began, Sunda was started on broad spectrum antibiotic and anti-inflammatory medications. So far, cytology performed on mucus from the elephant’s truck last week has not shown any abnormal pathogens but the sample will continue to be cultured over the next two to three weeks. Radiographs of the trunk were also taken to rule out sinus blockages and potential tooth problems. She has also received additional hydrating fluids regularly.

“Although she is more stable now, until we can pinpoint exactly what is going on her prognosis is guarded,” said Staff veterinarian Dr. Shirley Llizo. “While it could just be a nasty upper respiratory infection, we can’t rule out pneumonia, lung cancer, or other systemic diseases.”

Sunda is 58 years old and came to the Topeka Zoo and Conservation Center in 1966. She has been the matriarch since the day she arrived. She has been a favorite of the community and a mainstay for over 50 years. At 58 years old, she is a geriatric elephant. It is estimated that there are only twelve other female Asian elephants in North America that are older than Sunda.

Like people, some illnesses are harder to fight off particularly for elderly individuals or animals. “Sunda is one of those animals that just steals your heart,” said Wiley. “You hope they live forever but time has a way of catching up to all of us. We all hope Sunda will pull through this.”

As Sunda’s condition changes, the Zoo will post updates on their Facebook page.