More details on Wichita sales tax proposal could come soon from council

On Tuesday, the Wichita City Council will discuss more details of the $850 million sales tax proposal that’s on the March 3 special election ballot.

While the ballot language names broad categories for revenue collected to go towards, it doesn’t say specifically where the money should go.

Currently, the $850 million plan would set aside $25 million for Century II, the city’s convention and performing arts center, while dedicating $225 million to a convention center expansion and $75 million for a new, private-public partnership to build a $150 million performing arts center.

Another $225 million would go to public safety capital improvement projects.

$150 million would go to a nonprofit to run the city-owned Second Light homeless services — or any other “multi-agency center” — and an affordable housing fund.

Council members are set to make more specific recommendations Tuesday.

“If this tax passes, strong guardrails must be in place to hold current and future councils accountable,” Wichita Mayor Lily Wu said in a Facebook post.

An agenda report shows that city staff are currently recommending that the city not prioritize certain areas to fund first when revenue begins to come in.

If passed, sales tax collection would begin on July 1, with the first receipts going to the city on Sept. 1.

“Funding each of the five initiatives annually, based on its percentage share of total sales tax revenues, aligns with the ballot language, which does not prioritize any initiative and reflects the referendum’s all-or-nothing structure, with each initiative being considered equally,” the agenda report read.

However, Wu is proposing a different approach: the first $300 million collected by the city as part of the sales tax should go towards homelessness and housing, property tax relief, and public safety.

The mayor also made more specific recommendations.

For public safety, the mayor said the city should first address deferred maintenance in its police and fire facilities, before building anything new.

“This initiative is meant to fund capital projects, not ongoing [costs of] personnel,” the mayor’s recommendations read.

The mayor also suggests an early sunset of the sales tax if Wichita Forward, the group that proposed the sales tax, were unable to raise $25 million in private funds in the first three years or $50 million in the first five years to go towards a new downtown performing arts center.

The council is also scheduled to host a town hall about the sales tax on Feb. 6 at 6 p.m.