Newton City Commission Summary
Week of August 26, 2026
City receives unmodified opinion on 2025 financial audit
Commission votes to exceed revenue neutral rate
City approves $66.8 million budget for 2027
Housing pipeline shifts to active production phase
Phase 2 adds $5.5 million in senior housing
City to repurchase 10 acres of airport land following missed deadline
Commission amends ordinance for off-schedule trash pickups
Residents raise privacy concerns over automated license plate readers
City receives unmodified opinion on 2025 financial audit
NEWTON, Kan. — The Newton City Commission received an unmodified opinion — the highest possible rating — on its 2025 financial audit during Tuesday's meeting. A representative with the audit firm Knudsen, Monroe & Company LLC reported that the city's financial statements are free from material misstatement and comply with generally accepted accounting principles. A separate single audit of the city's expenditures of federal awards, specifically testing the airport improvement program, also returned an unmodified opinion with no required findings. The representative credited the finance department for maintaining strong, year-round accounting policies despite operating without a finance director during the audit preparation period.
Commission votes to exceed revenue neutral rate
NEWTON, Kan. — The city commission unanimously approved a resolution to exceed the state-mandated revenue neutral rate following a public hearing. Harvey County Clerk Rick Piepho set Newton's revenue neutral rate at 69.408 mills, representing the exact tax rate needed to generate the same property tax revenue as the previous year based on new, higher property valuations. Commissioners opted to lower the current mill levy from 72.353 to 70.942 mills, using the fractional increase over the revenue neutral rate to fund airport bonds, interest and special liability funds.
City approves $66.8 million budget for 2027
NEWTON, Kan. — Following the revenue neutral rate hearing, the city commission unanimously adopted a $66.8 million operating budget for 2027. Under Kansas statutory convention, the city budgets on a forward calendar for the upcoming 2027 fiscal year while simultaneously reviewing the financial audit for the most recently completed 2025 fiscal year. The budget avoids adding new city positions, purposefully spends down the general fund cash deficit and ceases a previous practice of transferring approximately $1.2 million from municipal utilities to support the general fund. Officials stated the budget maintains funding commitments for an ongoing salary study and external funding requests while easing the burden on utility ratepayers and slightly lowering the overall property tax mill levy.
Housing pipeline shifts to active production phase
NEWTON, Kan. — Newton's housing initiatives have transitioned from the planning phase to active construction, according to an annual housing update presented to the city commission. The report highlighted several active projects, including the near-completion of Fox Ridge Phase 1, which brings 68 units of single-family homes, duplexes and triplexes to the market. Additional developments include dirt work on 71 duplex units by Artistic Builders LLC near Sand Creek Station and a planned 60-lot single-family subdivision, moving the city toward addressing a regional deficit of 20,000 single-family homes.
Phase 2 adds $5.5 million in senior housing
NEWTON, Kan. — Construction is officially underway on Phase 2 of the Harvest Pointe development, adding 28 new housing units exclusively for Newton residents age 55 and older. The $5.5 million project will consist of seven residential buildings, substantially expanding the city's inventory of senior living options. The project is a critical piece of the city's broader strategy to diversify its housing portfolio, which seeks to add duplexes, multi-family units and specialized senior housing to ease the pressure on Newton's constrained real estate market.
City to repurchase 10 acres of airport land following missed deadline
NEWTON, Kan. — The city commission directed staff to execute a buyback of 10 acres of land near the Newton City/County Airport from 21 Albemarle LLC. The city originally sold the parcel at the northwest corner of Oliver and First Street in April 2022 for $79,000, with a contractual stipulation that the developer construct a 40,000-square-foot facility by May 2025. Because city records indicate no permits have been pulled and 21 Albemarle LLC allegedly did not meet the timeline, the city will invoke a clawback clause to repurchase the property at the original $79,000 price using economic development funds, allowing the city to market the land to new prospects.
Commission amends ordinance for off-schedule trash pickups
NEWTON, Kan. — Residents who miss their scheduled trash collection day will now face a $14.33 fee to request an off-route pickup. The city commission unanimously approved the amendment to the solid waste collection ordinance to correct an oversight from a broader code update passed last November. The new fee is designed to help the city recover the cost of extra staff time and fuel required to dispatch sanitation trucks for special collections, with commercial customers facing similar fees scaled to their dumpster sizes.
Residents raise privacy concerns over automated license plate readers
NEWTON, Kan. — A newly deployed network of 11 Flock Safety automated license plate readers drew heavy criticism from residents who cited data privacy and surveillance concerns during the meeting's public forum. Residents argued the six-figure, 36-month contract was executed without sufficient public input and warned that local vehicle data could be vulnerable to out-of-state searches and corporate data breaches. Mayor Rich Stinnett defended the purchase as an operational tool acquired under Police Chief Craig Dunlavy's purview, noting that a newly launched public transparency portal shows the system's search history is minimal, highly regulated and currently limited to active investigations.
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