Creating the Brown v. Board education mural, there was a lot of doubt about how this project was going to come about. Filling the south-facing wall of Hill and Co.’s building at 1424 S.E. Monroe St., near the Brown v. Board of Education historic site, was the largest undertaking the Topeka Mural Project had ever attempted. It involved coordinating with an artist with whom the mural project had never worked. From the project facilitators to city leaders, building owners and the general public, it involved a lot of trust. “I learned pretty early on that you have to just trust the [...]

The city’s governing body, consisting of the nine council members and Mayor Michelle De La Isla, plans to consider scheduling a citywide Nov. 6 ballot question election on whether to extend the current citywide half-cent tax for 10 years, through Oct. 1, 2029. The proposal would arrange for revenue from the renewed tax, like the current one, to be allowed to go only to cover “costs of maintenance and improvements of existing streets, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, alleys and street lighting.” Topekans in April 2009 voted 57 percent to 43 percent to approve the current 10-year tax. It began Oct. 1, 2009, [...]