Ark Valley News - Kechi names Beall municipal court judge

Kechi names Beall municipal court judge
By Taylor Messick
Last Updated: July 19, 2018

The Kechi City Council unanimously approved Terry Beall as the city's new municipal court judge on July 12.

The move came after the council voted to discontinue the municipal judge position as a city employee in favor of contracting the position on May 24. The position used to be a part-time city employee. Beall was serving as the city's prosecutor before being confirmed as the new municipal judge. He also currently serves as judge for Goddard, Bel Aire, Park City and Haysville. His contract runs through May 2019.

City Administrator Bob Conger also reported some good news the city received on July 12. The city's credit rating was recently upgraded from A+ to AA-.

“This is a real win for the city," said Conger. “This indicates to people who are investing in the city that the city is a good risk and we pay our bills. When it comes time to take out bonds or borrow money, we're going to get some of the lower interest rates that are out there."

In other business, the council:

•Heard a presentation from Park Board Chairman Jack McCormick about the potential of a splash pad in the city.

•Heard an update from city treasurer Nicole Bailey on the “Save the Playhouse" campaign.

•Unanimously approved a letter in support of the North Junction project.

•Reviewed and unanimously approved the final proposed 2019 budget.

•Failed to make a motion for a job step-level increase for Tyler Mosier.

All members of the council were present. There was a 30-minute executive session and an additional 10-minute executive session taken to discuss personnel matters and no binding action was taken.