October 23, 2007
The Board of Commissioners of the City of Lawrence met in regular session at 6:35 p.m., in the City Commission Chambers in City Hall with Mayor Hack presiding and members Amyx, Dever, Chestnut and Highberger present.
The Mayor proclaimed October 21-27 as Civic Engagement Week.
CONSENT AGENDA
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to approve the City Commission meeting minutes of October 9, 2007. Motion carried unanimously.
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to receive the Health Board meeting minutes of August 20, 2007; the Hospital Board meeting minutes of September 19, 2007; the Mechanical Board of Appeals meeting minutes of September 17 and 21, 2007; the Public Transit Advisory Committee meeting minutes of August 14, 2007; and the Traffic Safety Commission Meeting minutes of October 1, 2007. Motion carried unanimously.
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to approve claims to 463 vendors in the amount of $1,168,363.70. Motion carried unanimously.
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to approve the Drinking Establishment License for New Hampshire St. Bistro, 811 New Hampshire; El Mezcal Mexican Restaurant, 1819 West 23rd; and Jet Lag Lounge, 610 Florida. Motion carried unanimously.
The City Commission reviewed the bids for 2007 Weatherization Scope of Work, storm windows, weather-stripping of doors and attic insulation for the Neighborhood Resources Department. The bids were:
BIDDER Storm Windows Weather Attic Insulation
Stripping Doors
Kennedy Glass Inc. $20,694.79
Advanced Glass & Mirror $24,912.18
T& J Holdings, Inc. $2,360.00
Billing Construction $4,783.50
Midwest Insulation $12,118.00
Staff Estimate $26,500.00 $3,000.00 $13,800.00
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to award the storm windows bid to Kennedy Glass, Inc, in the amount of $20,694.79; weather-stripping to T & J Holdings, Inc for $2,360; and attic insulation to Midwest Insulation for $12,118. Motion carried unanimously. (1)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to approve Change Order No. 1 in the amount of $68,968 to contract with Kansas Heavy Construction for 2007 Overlay and Curb Repair Program, Phase 1. Motion carried unanimously. (2)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8192, establishing Baldwin Creek west sanitary sewer interceptor line connection fee. Motion carried unanimously. (3)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8193, incorporating by reference the “Subdivision Regulations for Lawrence and the Unincorporated Areas of Douglas County, September 11, 2007 Text Amendments”. Motion carried unanimously. (4)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8191, establishing two “disabled parking” spaces in front of New York Elementary School. Motion carried unanimously. (5)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8189, establishing an “all way stop” at the intersection of 4th Street and Maine Street. Motion carried unanimously. (6)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to approve unanimous recommendation from the Traffic Safety Commission to install pavement markings and signing at the DeVictor Park Trail Crossings on Harvard Road. Motion carried unanimously. (7)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to adopt on first reading Ordinance No. 8188, providing for a Special Use Permit (SUP-07-07-07) for the SE Lawrence Benefit District No. 1 Pump Station, near the northeast corner of the intersection of East 1700 and North 1300 Roads. Motion carried unanimously. (8)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8187, an ordinance providing for the rezoning (Z-08-16-07) of approximately 537.70 acres, from GPI (General Public and Institutional Use District) to GPI-FP (General Public 7 Institutional Use District). Motion carried unanimously. (9)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Resolution No. 6744, declaring the necessity to acquire necessary property interests and authorizing a survey and description of land or interests to be condemned for the construction of gravity sanitary sewer lines from north of West 6th Street and the South Lawrence Trafficway, north and east along Baldwin Creek to Pump Station 48. Motion carried unanimously. (10)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to authorize use of City streets and waiver of City costs associated with support of the half marathon and 5K race on Sunday, April 20, 2008. Motion carried unanimously. (13)
As part of the consent agenda, it was moved by Dever, seconded by Amyx, to authorize the City Manager to enter into an Investment Advisory Agreement with Public Financial Management, Inc. Motion carried unanimously. (14)
A member of the KU Student Senate pulled for separate discussion, Ordinance No. 8190, establishing “no parking” along the south side of University Drive from Crestline Drive, east to its end. He said as the University and Lawrence did construction, the one thing that always suffered, from a student’s perspective, was parking. He said this was another issue where students would be penalized with tickets. He said he understood the safety concerns expressed by the property owner regarding emergency vehicles, but suggested looking at other options.
Mayor Hack asked the KU student if he attended the Traffic Safety Commission meeting.
The KU student indicated that he did not attend the meeting and was not prepared, but as he looked at the agenda, it seemed like another obstacle for students. He asked the Commission to take his comments into consideration when voting.
Mayor Hack said a number of parking issues in Lawrence were in neighborhoods that had a number of rental units and were located close to the University. She said checking on the City’s website for Traffic Safety Commission meetings would be a good opportunity to become civically engaged and perhaps the student’s thoughts would be helpful to the TSC.
Commissioner Highberger said he shared the valid concerns that were raised by the KU student. He said there was a tension between good urban design and street safety for the firefighter needs, but he was not prepared to overturn the unanimous vote from the TSC.
Moved by Chestnut, seconded by Amyx to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8190, establishing “no parking” along the south side of University Drive from Crestline Drive, east to its end. Motion carried unanimously. (15)
Commissioner Highberger pulled from the consent agenda for discussion, authorizing the City Manager to execute a ground lease with Kansas Athletics, Inc. for a boathouse facility in Burcham Park. He said he would like to see a modification to the ground lease. He said he was a strong believer in intergovernmental cooperation, but Kansas Athletics Inc., was not a governmental entity in the same way as the University. He said they were making substantial alterations to the City’s park property and he would like the ground lease returned to staff with a request to negotiate a higher lease payment amount.
Mayor Hack called for public comment.
After receiving no public comment, Commissioner Amyx asked if Commissioner Highberger saw this ground lease different from the arrangement with the Fire/Medical Station at 19th and Stewart Avenue.
Commissioner Highberger said that lease was with the Endowment Association which would be a similar quasi non-governmental entity. He said those two leases could be considered similarly and he realized the City worked an arrangement with the Endowment Association for a $1.00 lease on that property.
Commissioner Amyx said he did not disagree with Commissioner Highberger’s concerns about the University of Kansas Athletic Corporation, but he thought it should be understood that the City had give and take relationships. He said the relationship established with regard to the Fire/Medical Station made a lot of sense and should carry over to this particular piece of property.
Mayor Hack agreed with Commissioner Amyx. She said the City was dealing with the University of Kansas in a number of areas and to pull out one segment for a special type of arrangement, she could not support. A lot of work had gone into this project and the City had precedent for a Fire/Medical Station at 19th and Stewart Avenue and she would not see the boathouse issue any differently.
It was moved by Amyx, seconded by Dever, to authorize the City Manager to execute a ground lease with Kansas Athletics, Inc. for a boat house facility in Burcham Park. Aye: Amyx, Chestnut, Dever, and Hack. Nay: Highberger. Motion carried.
Commissioner Highberger pulled from the consent agenda, the approval for a “sign of community interest” to be placed on the North 2nd Street bridge crossing the Kansas River. He asked about the name of the event.
David Corliss, City Manager, said the name of the event was “Bras across the Kaw.”
Commissioner Highberger asked what the event consisted of.
Mayor Hack said garments would be hung from one side of the river to the other. This was not the first community where that type of event took place. She said the money received for this event would be donated to Healthcare Access to help pay for breast cancer screening and mammograms for people who could not afford those services. She said she did not find the event offensive and thought the Commission could support the event.
Commissioner Highberger said it was obviously for a good cause, but it seemed a little crass and though it would be more appropriate to have the name of the event mentioned on the agenda rather than having it slip under the radar, but he also supported freedom of expression.
Mayor Hack called for public comment.
After receiving no public comment, it was moved by Chestnut, seconded by Amyx, to approve as signs of community interest a request to place informational signs on the North 2nd Street bridge crossing the Kansas River and use of public right of way for a breast cancer awareness event sponsored by KLWN radio. Motion carried unanimously. (16)
CITY MANAGER’S REPORT:
During the City Manager’s Report, David Corliss said there were questions about the City assessed valuation growth in recent years and staff provided information in the report. The City’s assessed valuation for the 2008 budget was calculated at approximately a 3.7% increase over last year and was not the same as it was in previous years. The assessed valuation would have a budgetary impact as staff continued to provide City services as well as looking at the 2009 budget process.
Also, he said Chuck Soules and others in the Public Works Department along with the Kansas Department of Transportation were proceeding with the planned bidding of improvements at 19th and Louisiana. A well attended public meeting took place. He said the construction time table was aggressive and unfortunately, it required the closing of that intersection next summer. The intersection would be opened, weather and contractor permitting, in time for resuming regular school. The waterline work would have minimal traffic interruption before closing the intersection.
He said staff provided an implementation report concerning International Codes and was involved in a transitional period of educational public relations work. Staff planned on being good stewards in making sure they followed through in adopting the new I Codes.
The City Commission had asked for a staff report on “demolition by neglect” issue and the report indicated items staff could address regarding targeting resources. Dilapidated structures were primarily looked at on a complaint basis. The City did not have the resources or orientation to provide block by block canvassing, but staff might be able to target resources by looking for those situations. He said he thought the issue was worthy of additional City Commission discussion at some point. Staff had provided program improvement requests in the past for Comprehensive Code Enforcement, but those program improvements were not able to be funded.
Also, he wanted to acknowledge the Concrete Crew and Traffic Engineering Division for their good work regarding City projects along with the Legal Services Department in hosting the Equal Opportunity Law Update Seminar.
Commissioner Highberger said in addition to the information provided by staff concerning “demolition by neglect”, he thought the City Commission had asked for information regarding any legal tools other communities used, that might be useful.
Corliss said staff would work on looking at other legal tools from other communities
Commissioner Chestnut said regarding the 19th and Louisiana improvements, he asked if staff would communicate with the neighborhood well in advance and consult with the surrounding neighbors about diverting traffic. He said he could see a number of scenarios and was interested in the process to make sure the neighbors were informed.
Chuck Soules, Public Works Director, said staff had conducted several meetings with the neighbors and the neighbors were advised the road would be closed. One driveway was a concern on 19th Street, but that concern would be addressed with the property owner. Also, the property owner of the Laundromat business on 19th and Louisiana was satisfied with the proposed improvements. During construction, the high school would use the southern entrance and message boards would be displayed for people traveling in that area.
Commissioner Chestnut said it would be helpful to understand how the cut through worked in that area. Some neighbors in that area would have a quiet summer and others were going to have more traffic diverted into their area.
Soules said staff would try to detour traffic to Massachusetts, Naismith, 23rd and 6th Streets.
Mayor Hack said regarding their trip to Washington D.C. and meetings with legislators, they were very pleased with the response from legislators. She said they informed legislators what was going on in Lawrence and hoped to draw attention to Lawrence’s earmarked items and for future funding of long term transportation needs. (16)
REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS:
Consider authorizing the Mayor to execute the required agreements related to City participation (along with the Kansas Biosciences Authority, the Lawrence-Douglas County Biosciences Authority, and Douglas County) in the sale of the property and building located at 3813 Greenway Drive from Douglas County Development, Inc. to Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, L.L.C.
Mayor Hack said due to a financial interest in the company, she would abstain from discussion and vote of this issue because of a potential conflict of interest.
Corliss said in early January the City Commission executed a memorandum of understanding with the Kansas Bioscience Authority that provided for City funding of $125,000 a year, over ten years, for this building that was built on speculation at the East Hills Business Park. The facility was vacant but was used, at times, for temporary tenants. He said the hope was for a strong tenant or numerous tenants to use that building for bioscience purposes. The City Commission, at that time, thought it was a wise use of public funds. During the period of the past few months, the likely lead tenant decided to purchase that building. The agreement changed and was no longer solely with the Kansas Bioscience Authority as the property owner. The community, City, County, and the Lawrence/Douglas County Bioscience Authority that received most of its funding from the City and the County were going to be the primary supporters of the incentive that was outlined in the different agreements. It was similar to what was discussed when the Kansas Bioscience Authority was going to be the property owner.
Laverne Squier, President, Chamber of Commerce, said Douglas County Development, Inc. (DCDI), would also partner in joining the City and County in funding this project. Also, as the Kansas Bioscience Authority (KBA) has been displaced by Deciphera in terms of ownership of the building, he wanted to emphasize that KBA was still very supportive of this project and had invested their funds in this facility. The funding projection was in balance and was being matched dollar for dollar in terms of the initial and performance grants. Deciphera was a great company; it was the type of company they wanted to cause to grow. He said Deciphera was noted by KBA as the premiere bioscience company in the State of Kansas at this time.
Vice Mayor Dever called for public comment.
A member of the public asked if public funds were being used for this project.
Commissioner Chestnut said yes, the cost would be $1,250,000 over a ten year period.
The member of the public asked if it was fair for the City Commission to fund this project when tuition was going up.
Commissioner Chestnut said the agreement for the sale of that property at East Hills Business Park supported the initiative taken by the previous City Commission to commit to that funding, which was appropriate. Economic development was a major part to consider as a community to enhance job growth and the City’s tax base. Deciphera was a flagship organization that drove a stake in the community as far as bioscience. One challenge was the University presented a tremendous amount of intellectual capital in the community, but Lawrence was having a difficult time retaining that type of business. There were several examples of small, more incubator type groups that had moved on to other communities. The community needed to retain those types of businesses because that job growth and the overall enhancement of the community were definitely worth the investment. He said the agreement had changed, but the financial commitment was identical.
He said the agreement for sale of that property for bioscience purposes was attributable to the efforts of the City Commission, Chamber of Commerce, Douglas County, and everyone involved in a way that was fiscally responsible and met the commitment of the initial terms. He said he was very much in support of this agreement.
Commissioner Highberger said he was not satisfied with the agreement compared with the initial Memorandum of Understanding that was signed, but that sometimes happened when negotiating. He said he preferred that a cost benefit analysis be conducted, but if this agreement worked out, it would vastly return far more than the public investment and hoped that was the result.
He said he noticed a typo in the Consortium Agreement on page 3, 6B, which stated the matching Employment Award(s) would equal the KBA financial support resulting from Deciphera employment creation in Lawrence, Kansas but in no event not to exceed $500,000. He said the double negative in that sentence appeared to be a typo and he thought the agreement should be reworded to remove the “but in no event” clause and just read “not to exceed $500,000.” He said other than the double negative typographical error he would happily support the agreement.
Commissioner Amyx said a year ago it seemed as though the bioscience industry was going to happen with the original Memorandum of Understanding. He said Dan Flynn, President and CEO of Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, wanted his business to stay in Lawrence for years to come. He thanked Flynn for understanding the importance of his business to the future of the Lawrence community and he knew good things would come from this action.
Vice Mayor Dever said in studying the information provided, this was an opportunity to gain approximately 150 new high paying/high quality jobs in the community over the next 10 years. He said Deciphera was being courted by surrounding communities in the Lawrence area and the prior City Commission stepped up and saw the need for this great opportunity for people to go to school, live, and work in Lawrence. He said if they were not willing to invest in the community, he asked how they expected other companies to invest in this community.
It was moved by Chestnut, seconded by Dever, to authorize the Vice Mayor to execute the required agreements related to City participation (along with the Kansas Biosciences Authority, the Lawrence-Douglas County Biosciences Authority, and Douglas County) in the sale of the property and building located at 3813 Greenway Drive from Douglas County Development, Inc. to Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, L.L.C. Aye: Amyx, Chestnut, Dever, and Highberger. Nay: None. Abstain: Hack. Motion carried.
Conduct public hearing to consider Ordinance No. 8138, establishing the maximum assessments for the construction of Stoneridge Drive, Overland Drive to 6th Street, and Ordinance No. 8137, establishing the maximum assessments for the construction of Overland Drive from Queens Road to Stoneridge Drive.
Mayor Hack called a public hearing establishing the maximum assessments for the construction of Stoneridge Drive, Overland Drive to 6th Street, and for the construction of Overland Drive from Queens Road to Stoneridge Drive.
Chuck Soules, Public Works Director, presented the staff report. The resolution was adopted directing the improvements to be made. All of the right-of-way was dedicated through platting of ground. The estimated cost of the project was $2,750,000. The City owned the park and water tower properties, and when the original benefit district was established, the City had a $60,000 obligation for the additional width of Stoneridge at the intersection. The traffic signal for this intersection was included.
Stoneridge South was already bid and the contractor was currently working on that project. The entire intersection and the signalization were included with this benefit district and the cost would be split out to the south benefit district and the right turn lane off of 6th Street.
In conjunction, bids would be taken for Overland Drive from Queens Road to Stoneridge where a roundabout was planned for that intersection. Only two tracts were involved in this benefit district. The estimated cost was $2,220,000, all the right-of-way was dedicated for this project, and there were no costs to the City.
Commissioner Amyx asked what the City at large participation costs would be for the additional width at 6th.
Soules said no more than $60,000. He said the City would pay for the additional width of the road plus the additional subgrade treatment if there was any storm sewer pipe, the additional width from 31 to 36 foot.
Commissioner Chestnut said currently there was construction south on Stoneridge, he asked about the estimated completion date of that area.
Soules said prior to Thanksgiving.
Commissioner Chestnut asked if the signalization would be installed at that point.
Soules said no. The signalization would probably be installed next summer. The median would be installed, but the signal would not be installed for about 8 months.
Mayor Hack called for public comment.
Upon receiving no public comment, it was moved by Chestnut, seconded by Dever, to close the public hearing. Motion carried unanimously.
Moved by Chestnut, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8138, establishing the maximum assessments for the construction of Stoneridge Drive, Overland Drive to 6th Street. Motion carried unanimously. (17)
Moved by Chestnut, seconded by Amyx, to place on first reading Ordinance No. 8137, establishing the maximum assessments for the construction of Overland Drive from Queens Road to Stoneridge Drive. Motion carried unanimously. (18)
Consider Denial of request to establish an Adult Crossing Guard at the intersection of Bob Billings Parkways and George Williams Way.
Commissioner Amyx said he visited with an individual about the criteria needed before an adult crossing guard was assigned to a specific intersection. He had mentioned to the Mayor about deferring this item to allow the Parent/Teachers Association time to come up with a way to pay for the Adult Crossing Guard. He asked staff to come up with the amount of money it would take to allow for a crossing guard and to give the association time to respond before the City Commission took action.
David Corliss, City Manager, said the item could be deferred and staff would find out the actual dollar amount.
Mayor Hack said she would prefer to work out some arrangement at that intersection rather than denying the crossing guard and worrying about consequences later. She asked how long would this item be deferred.
Corliss said staff needed to make additional contact with the Parent Teacher’s Association (PTA).
Carrie Mandigo said a PTA meeting was taking place on November 13th.
Mayor Hack called for public comment.
Mandigo said she attended the Traffic Safety Commission meeting to support the request for a crossing guard. She said she lived on the south side of Bob Billings Parkway, had a child enrolled at Langston Hughes, and lived 0.7 miles from the school. She said she would not let her child walk to school because it was a four lane street and a 40 mph speed zone. She said in this day and age when people were trying to promote neighborhood schools, be green, and keep their kids healthy, she could not let her child walk to school. Instead, she said they were waiting in a school line for approximately 30 minutes with their cars running.
She said she went around the neighborhood and gathered 21 signatures from people whose kids attended Langston Hughes Elementary that wanted their kids to walk to school only if a crossing guard was available. She said Corpus Christi was on the south side of Bob Billings Parkway and found 11 parents that walked their children to school and would appreciate a crossing guard.
Jackson Hoy, a second grader at Langston Hughes, said he would like the City Commission to consider a crossing guard for Langston Hughes so that he could safely walk to school next year. He thanked the City Commission for their time and consideration and for working hard for the people of Lawrence.
Matt Hoy, Jackson’s father, said he wanted to mention they had a street that was a four lane street and a speed limit of 40 mph. He was not familiar with any school crossing in town where students cross four lanes of 40 mph traffic without a crossing guard. He said he appreciated the City Commission’s comments and would like the Commission and staff to consider ways to improve children’s safety crossing this intersection like other intersections in town.
The City Commission deferred this item for an indefinite period of time to allow time to come up with an idea to pay for a school crossing guard before the City Commission took action.
Discuss the proposed alignments of the South Lawrence Trafficway and consider directing staff to draft a letter from the City to appropriate state and federal officials.
Mayor Hack said the original letter to the Federal Highway Administration was sent in May of 2006 and it was in response to the information received that secured federal funding for the completion of the South Lawrence Trafficway on the 32B route. In order to use the federal funds, the Federal Highway Administration had to agree with the decision of the Corps which was then backed up by KDOT that 32B was the completion of the route for the South Lawrence Trafficway.
After discussions, she agreed to rescind that letter, but she had not had a chance to have a conversation with her fellow City Commissioners. She said this was an opportunity to comment on whether or not to rescind that letter and send a follow up letter to the Federal and State officials at KDOT, acknowledging the work of the Corps and KDOT in support of 32B.
She said she was asking that public comments be limited to 3 minutes.
Commissioner Highberger said before proceeding to public comment, he prepared some slides on a potential alignment he would like to present. He said he would try to refrain from making any argument.
A member of the public asked the Mayor to preface the item concerning the SLT.
Mayor Hack said the SLT had been proposed for many years in terms of a route for Lawrence to bring traffic from K-10 to I-70. She said Senator Roberts had acquired some federal funding for this route and in order for that funding to be used the Federal Highway Administration had to sign off on that route. The City Commission voted 3-2 and Mayor Amyx signed the letter that was sent to the FHA indicating the 32B route was not the preference of the City Commission at that time. Two weeks ago Commissioner Amyx asked that this issue be placed on the City Commission agenda because there was a different City Commission and different thoughts about the 32B route. She said they could have just sent the letter, but the Commission thought it was important to have public comment.
Commissioner Highberger presented the current SLT map from I-70 and Farmer’s Turnpike to the north and down US 59 in the south. He said his concern was as the City was preparing to grow past those boundaries, it became extremely difficult to have viable traffic patterns and connective coherent neighborhoods when there was no access for a mile or two miles. The alignment he was encouraging people to consider for a southern connection was not a freeway option, but a multi-lane boulevard constructed on existing right-of-way that would use the public land the City had available.
The next slide was the southern part of the route. He showed existing roads where the SLT could connect. Using existing right-of-way would minimize the public cost and the environmental impact. He thought there were viable designs for high traffic roads that would meet the needs to where this road was designed. He also showed an overview on what the intersection on the multiway boulevard would look like. It had two center lanes separated by trees on each side of the main trafficway and was a one way street for access to the existing houses and businesses close. He also showed a cross section of the road. It would have 150 feet of right-of-way and the traffic lanes could be constructed on the right-of-way and side lanes could be platted at the time the land developed. He said cities all around the country were spending millions of dollars to rip freeways out of the urban areas because it created divisions in neighborhoods and created traffic difficulties. They found they could move significant volumes of traffic while building roadways and raise the property instead of depressing them.
Stan Ross, Lawrence, said he was a faculty sponsor for the Wetlands Preservation Organization and was also a Haskell employee of 30 years. They have been trying to protect the wetlands for 18 years. He came and talked to the City Commission numerous times before. The response from WPO had been the same and never wavered. They did not care where they built a trafficway, just not through the wetlands. They had a couple of Planning Commissioners come to their meeting last Monday night and talked about Haskell bringing a proposal to the table. The more they thought about that, they knew they did not need to bring a proposal to the table. 31st Street used to be the end of the City limits, but now that was not going to be the case. The City was going to jump to the south, west and as far as it could to east. As far as 31st Street was concerned, there were some things they as a group would allow to take place. Briefly they would like to perhaps see traffic lights and signals at the intersections of Haskell and Louisiana. They would also like to see a marked pedestrian crossing at 31st Street and Barker with a 30 mph speed limit in that area. Also, if possible a flashing light at that pedestrian crossing. They would like 31st Street to remain two lanes. They wanted to see the road made safe and right now it was not a safe road. He thought it could be accomplished by resurfacing. He drove on 31st Street the other day and it was a dangerous road at that time because water kept splashing up from the other lane. Resurfacing would take care of this problem and make the road safe. They were asking for these things to be put in place for that road not only for the safety of their own students but for the multitude of students in their own school district and elsewhere in the local area that come to visit the wetlands. Throughout their history, they had government bodies make arrangements or deals with them, and do a turnaround. This was nothing new to them, but they had to stand their ground and say this was what they would allow.
Debra Kirk, a student at Haskell Indian Nations University, said she was opposed to any thing that would disturb the wetlands. The proposal for the South Lawrence Trafficway they did not care where they put it, they just did not want it to go through the wetlands.
Lacey Ummerteskee said she was opposed to the road going anywhere near the wetlands.
Carrie Maynard-Moody, on behalf of the Sierra Club, and the Wakarusa Group Sierra Club, said they were the oldest and largest environmental organization in this country. Their mission was to not only explore the wetlands but protect them as well and pursue all lawful means to do so as well. They were in support of a greater regional transportation plan in all parts of the world. The Sierra Club was concerned about the change of the planet. She said when they as a community were considering this highway project 18 years ago, the planet was different. Transportation was a critical component as a partial solution to curbing global warming. This was not a transportation project; it was a highway project. It was very important this City consider working regionally with MPOs to consider a regional transportation plan. They should give it some time and let those players come to the table to consider a transportation project that might consider the SLT but consider other transportation options. Regional transportation was a partial solution to curbing global warming and could not afford the emissions from automobile use.
Margaret Stevens, Haskell Indians Nations University student, said she was the secretary for the American Indian Studies Club and was opposed of the South Lawrence Trafficway going through the wetlands. The wetlands were sacred to them as indigenous peoples, not only to the Haskell students, faculty and Lawrence community members, but also to visitors of Haskell and Lawrence. Just last week they had their inauguration of their new president and the Board of Regents representative came to Kansas from California and brought sacred rocks from California to the wetlands. She said her daughter enjoyed going to the wetlands and the wetlands were sacred to them.
Cecelia Flores, Lawrence, said she was a Haskell student and member of the Wetlands Preservation Organization. She opposed the South Lawrence Trafficway going through the wetlands. She said she would like to address the situation that happened Monday night at the WPO meeting. Mr. Eichhorn on the Planning Commission raised the question of whether or not if remains were found during the construction of all of this, what would happen to all the remains. He stated there was already a site they would be removed to, and it was the first they had ever heard of it. It may be something they should look into more since they did not know where the site was.
Tweesna Mills, a Haskell student, said she opposed the proposal of the SLT through the wetlands because not only did she or other students use it for religious purposes, but historical and educational purposes as well. It would be more destructive to them as native people than a convenience for people trying to get to their destination faster.
Laura Routh, Lawrence, said tonight they had the opportunity to act and establish a legacy of foresight in planning and to establish the respect for the diversity of the community and ecosystems. They also had an obligation to maximize the public resources already expended on long range land use and transportation planning. She implored the City Commission to keep an open mind as they considered the decision regarding the support of the routing of the SLT. The issue had been on the table for a long time, but several new realities have been presented and these must be considered before the City took a new public stand on this issue. New reality one was the City’s new wastewater treatment plant would be coming online before this road was built. It seemed likely to her that the City would annex the area south of the river before the land was developed. Thus, a southern route for the South Lawrence Trafficway made sense. New reality two was a question: how did the City plan to handle the truck traffic which would come from the intermodal facility in Gardner and the regional distribution complex that was emerging in Ottawa. These key developments were never brought up in the Corps of Engineer’s environmental impact statement and these factors were being ignored largely by the County and Federal Highway Administration. She believed the new realities were relevant to the South Lawrence Trafficway discussion and must be seriously considered by the City of Lawrence. A 32nd Street alignment did not make sense. In contrast, a south of the river SLT route did several things that were clearly in the best interest of this community. It diverted traffic around the City, it kept the SLT out of the wetlands, which many, many people consider sacred ground and an irreplaceable local natural treasure. It reduced congestion from morning and afternoon commuters and eliminated much large truck traffic on 23rd Street. She asked the City Commission to please not abrogate their responsibility as civic leaders by ignoring new information. There were obvious problems with the 32nd Street alignment. If it went through it would further divide the community and cost the City money in the long run. She asked each City Commissioner to reflect and ensure their decision tonight was well informed and reflected the best long term interest of the community.
Michael Caron, Save the Wetlands President, said he wanted to let the City Commission know that right before he left from work he received a call from Charles Hawkins as a representative of President Warner of Haskell and she reiterated that Haskell’s position had changed in no way which he interpreted it to mean they were still adamantly opposed to any road through the wetlands. He said he wanted to give a historical context to why Haskell and many other people were so adamantly opposed to this road and what it meant. He said when he was 6 years old in 1952 the Eisenhower administration tried to terminate as many tribes as possible in this country. Another thing they did was to pass a law modeled on the 1948 law that was to give back all the land the federal government had taken for various elements of WWII preparations like bombing ranges and ammunition plants. There was an effort to model a law based on the 1948 law to take all the land from the closed Indian Boarding Schools and return it to local communities. It was in 1952 and went on for a number of years. Local Lawrence folks decided that since they had a Kansas president with many, many Kansans in positions of high power that they ought to get some land, too. That was when they got the white administrator at Haskell and BIA officials to go along with a giant rip off of Haskell land. Haskell was less than 1/3 the size it was at that time. It was the Lawrence community fathers who were largely responsible for Haskell being 1/3 the size it was then. That issue of land was incredibly important to Native Americans because they have been ripped off many times in terms of their land. It was very personal and local here because their campus was now 1/3 the size and stuff that was historically and spiritually incredibly important to them was taken away by the representatives of the City. It was this City that was responsible for that. He said Senator Roberts was the administrative assistant for Senator Carlson at the time it was done.
Joe Douglas, Lawrence, said he was speaking partly as a psychiatrist. Saturday he and his wife were out in the wetlands and it was an amazing experience to be out there. In the middle of the wetlands, there was no building, road, car or truck in sight. It was amazing being there and being on land like that was good for the soul and psyche. It was a good experience and one that was rare in the current society. They did not have anything like that anywhere else in Lawrence. It was an incredible area and 20 or 30 years from now when the wetlands were surrounded by development, he could imagine children and citizens of Lawrence thanking leaders who managed to preserve that land as a treasure to the future.
Ron Warman said the wetlands were an easy bicycle ride for he and his wife to go over to the wetlands. He said he lived there for 20 years and did not think there was anything more divisive than this issue. The one thing he thought of was the mall because it was the other time the City Commission went against the needs and wishes of a lot of people in the City. He said running it through the wetlands was something they should not mess with.
Raelynn Butler, Tulsa, Oklahoma Haskell student said she was a senior in the environmental science program and also a voting Lawrence resident for three years. She said tonight they would make a decision that was controversial in the community for 20 years. She said maybe they made the decision 10 years ago, 15 years ago, or last week, but some of them it was clear in their campaigns on the way they felt about the South Lawrence Trafficway. Tonight what she said may not influence their position or decision, but would like to address the City Commission anyway. The fight for the road on both oppositions had been hectic. She could go through and say why the Wakarusa Wetlands were important to this community for numerous reasons, but felt like the City Commission already heard their cry and know exactly how they felt about it. She wanted to remind them their fight was not over and they would continue to fight until this issue was resolved. It would be resolved in court when they won their case. She said they needed to settle the traffic problems. A road through the wetlands was not the answer.
Patrick Flavin, Board of Directors Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, said several of the past City Commissions have endorsed the 32nd Street alignment. It now had a blessing of KDOT and the Corps. Obviously this issue had a lot of scrutiny and a lot of people looking at it for many, many years. It was ultimately once again decision time. He spoke as a spokesperson of a large body that was in support of the City Commission to endorse rescinding such a letter to go forth with the 32nd Street alignment. As a citizen, business person and family man in this community, for his own edification he took it upon himself to visit the wetlands with Roger Boyd to hear the history from him and explain the 32nd Street proposal. He said he walked away from that as an informed citizen thereafter fully convinced to save the wetlands was the 32nd Street alignment.
Lucia Orth, said she was an instructor at American Indian Studies at Haskell, Law and American Indian Religious Freedoms, and Treaty Law. She wanted to speak first for another professor, Bridget Chapin who had to leave. Chapin was a biology professor at Haskell and had a PhD in Aquatic Ecology from KU. Last semester Dr. Chapin took 119 students during class instruction to the wetlands. Professor Chapin spent 6 lab periods in the wetlands, which equated to 18 hours of lab instruction time. This instruction had occurred within 30 feet of 32nd Street, which was the gravel road through the center of the wetlands during these labs. Haskell Wetlands was listed nationally as one of the most endangered sacred spaces in the country. It was one of six that people follow. She said they heard many of her students and was very proud of them. She said she lived here for 17 years and had a Juris Doctorate from Notre Dame, had taught at Haskell for three years and did not comprehend how integral the wetlands were for the use of sacred space and indigenous religious practices until she was at Haskell. As the Journal World said, Haskell was growing stronger and the students were so spectacular. She urged the City Commission if they decided to put a trafficway in, to follow a road that was already there and not tear up any more Kansas farmland.
Lavern Squier, President Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, said he would like to comment on the issue from an economic development perspective. As a community they were blessed to have assets of all kinds. The people were the corner stone. Within that context, the support systems they have put in place in Lawrence to serve those citizens, the busing system, the healthcare systems, and the homeless population, those issues had to be fueled by some degree of energy. That energy ultimately came around to jobs and business investments paying for those complementary systems to keep the community what it was. They had a distinct need for industrial lands in this community that was going to be discussed time and again in upcoming meetings. To that end they had to integrate solutions for industrial land with transportation solutions. Further, as they looked at the transportation and job creation, K-10 became a vivid part of that equation. Furthering K-10’s growth patterns, they saw safety issues becoming a more paramount issue. They saw opportunity beyond the safety issues of being lost because businesses could not make an investment in a community because they could not reach transportation destinations getting from K-10 in the East Hills Business area to I-70. They could not circumvent the community or go through the community efficiently and they were saying efficiently in a reasonable amount of time. It was not regarding only freight but people. More than half of the employment lived outside the community and had to move inbound. They had a significant commuter base that lived in the community and had to move outbound on a daily basis every morning. He said he would support the City Commission’s reconsideration of this issue. They had to make some decisions and had to address the transportation solution and needs of this community. It related to their economic development portfolio, job creation and their ability to sustain themselves over the long haul.
Mark Cline said he believed all of them were very proud Rod Bremby pointed Kansas away from 19th Century power generation to 21st Century power generation. He said he would like to see them tonight do something to make them all proud. He said they should look in the newspaper tomorrow and see that the City Commission had moved from 19th Century thinking to 21st Century thinking, and in particular has put great thought and investment in. Public transportation over wasting transportation was at long last showing the respect for religions that were here before they imported religions here and tried to impose them on people who were doing very well without assistance.
Xavier Barraza, a Haskell Indian Nations student and member of Haskell Board of Regents, said both of those councils recommended that the City Commission do not go further on the South Lawrence Trafficway. They also recommended they look into the reconsideration of using existing roads south of Lawrence city limits. He suggested Commissioner Highberger’s proposal.
Stephanie Barrows, Lawrence, said she was a Lawrence resident for 14 years. She came here as an undergraduate and stayed for a Master’s degree. Her degrees were in Biology and Latin American Studies. She did some of her work with indigenous people in Brazil talking about community development. She had studied some of the issues but in a different context. She did some research projects at Haskell and wanted to point out sometime it was presented as a Haskell versus Lawrence type of thing. They heard that it was sacred to Haskell students, Haskell faculty, and people outside of Haskell. But it was not just sacred to indigenous peoples, it was sacred to other people, too. She had tried to present herself as a genuine person when visiting Haskell. She learned a lot and it had become a sacred space for her, too. She was not the only one and knew there were organizations in town that were doing recreational and educational programs for public schools, so it was not just for Haskell students, Baker students or KU students. There were young people using these places. She said as long as this issue had been going on in Lawrence, why had no one proposed a regional bus system. She had been to Brazil and they had a phenomenal bus system. They did need to make some adjustments with getting to work, but being a person who used her bike and bus system to get to work, it was not easy but it could be done. If there was a way to make something regional that they could coordinate with other cities, they could probably have a much better regional bus system. They could attract jobs and people would not have to leave town to find a decent paying job.
Karen Heeb, said she was present on behalf of the south side 31st Street neighborhood, which was 1300 between O’Connell Road and Noria Road. They have asked and not received a satisfactory answer to the following question: if the 32nd Street alignment was chosen for the SLT, why could it not be on the existing road bed of 1650 North? According to the maps they had seen, the suggested alignment of 32nd Street had major portions in the flood plain and cut the land in half of the property owners on the south side of 1300. If the 32nd Street alignment were to be on the existing 1650 North road bed, it would not have nearly the disruption nor cost of a new road bed that cutting through these properties would have. She said 1650 was in the flood plain, but so were major portions of the proposed 32nd Street alignment.
Mayor Hack thanked all of the speakers for their comments. She said the conversation they would have would be in regards to a letter that was sent to the Federal Highway Administration of May 2006 regarding the 32B route and federal funding thereof. She said Commissioner Amyx asked this item be placed on the agenda with the consideration of rescinding that letter and replacing it with a letter that would reflect current City Commission position, but they did not know what it was.
Commissioner Amyx thanked everyone for speaking with him over the last two weeks. He said it was no secret that since 1985 he had been in support of a roadway that was to go to the south side of Lawrence. His original support was for 31st Street and had probably never wavered from that. For a long time he had the opportunity to visit with Michael Caron at length and had the opportunity to carry the plans for the development of the South Lawrence Trafficway that would include the 31st Street alignment of the property. He carried it for a long time and would come show that there were plans that existed for development of roadways. He asked this item come back before the City Commission because when they discussed the item a year ago in May the first thing that happened was they looked at an alternative of 42nd Street. He thanked Commissioner Highberger for bringing up his comments about looking at additional roadways and right-of-ways that do exist. He thought as they looked at warrants, its development, its growth, that they were going to look at other roadways as needed as they looked across the south. They looked at south of the Wakarusa River. He thought one of the things that was important to this Commission and the previous Commission he served on, as they looked at new urbanism, was the development of the roadways that run east/west and north/south. He said as he looked at this roadway, the only thing they have really done was as they looked at the new Water Reclamation Facility, as they put the lines on that particular piece of property, it would include the expansion of a 42nd Street alignment. He never heard an endorsement by KDOT or Federal Highway or any major players in the development of a 42nd Street roadway. He was willing to do anything to negotiate with anyone to make a roadway happen. He thought it was critical as they looked at the development of traffic that was going to come into Lawrence and they had no way in the community be able to handle the influx of that new traffic that was going to happen. He wanted everyone to understand that he had looked at what was going to happen with traffic from the new inter modal coming from the south and east. He believed they could not handle any of that traffic that was going to come their way. He knew there were talks and a need for a roadway that existed on the east side of the town that was going to connect Highway 10 to the Kansas Turnpike. It could be a toll road or whatever, but they needed another roadway. They were going to need a roadway that was going from east to west that was going to tie Highway 10 back to Highway 59. If there was a way to make 31st Street happen, he would have done everything he possibly could to make that happen. He did not believe there was enough right-of-way there and did not believe that the encroachment into Haskell’s campus was something they should ever even consider doing again. He believed he learned that particular part of the deal. He asked if a roadway could be developed on 32nd Street that was going to be able to take care of a lot of the concerns of the students of Haskell and other folks from Haskell and hold it near and dear forever for many reasons. He thought it might be able to and would take a lot of work in this community. There were a lot of people that did not believe that, but if they had a roadway where it could happen, he thought that was it. He said court would probably happen and that was probably where they were going to end up. He thought that rescinding the letter he sent on behalf of the City last year, look at another alternative, he thought was something he would support. He said he favored 31st Street, but still thought they needed a roadway north of the river. He did not disagree that they would need future roadway developments to the south.
Commissioner Chestnut echoed Commissioner Amyx’s comments about thanking everyone for their input and comments. He said this was a very complicated issue. They had a serious traffic problem now. It was not something that was going to happen, but something that was happening now. Any traffic bypass was going to avoid accidents, injuries and save lives. He did not think there was any doubt about that. The fact was they had a serious traffic situation on East 23rd, going past East Hills, in that corridor of K-10. There were not many days that went by that he did not hear people commuting in or out on K-10 that talk about the serious accidents they had in that corridor of K-10. He was starting to work on the modeling and regardless of the route it would relieve that significantly. He thought they had to recognize where they were at right now.
Any major road project they undertook was going to have environmental and cultural impact. That was why the Federal Highway and the Corps had its process as far as they were reviewing the final environmental impact study that was done. One thing to point out in that study the routes were considered and one thing that had not been discussed was the other routes alternate to 32B also had environmental impacts. In particular, 42nd Street crossed the Wakarusa River twice. They would have a number of environmental impacts on whatever route they chose, and one of the reasons one of the most important items in the Corps report was the mitigation plan. He knew that a lot of people did not agree with that placement, but it was a significant mitigation in the situation. He thought he other thing was that this was a choice of priorities and in the criteria that went into the Corps report, it considered safety, efficiency, cost, and all the environmental impacts. He thought it was important to note that it really went through that process and there was a significant amount of input from all the stakeholders including the Sierra Club. There was never a good choice when laying roadway, especially in any part that was not urban. One thing he agreed with Commissioner Highberger about was the fact they would need those other routes in concert with a bypass and not a substitute for it. A lot of the traffic modeling they were starting to do in T2030 really showed the fact the improvements needed on 31st Street, 31st and Haskell. All of those things were being considered with a number of issues and a lot of the improvements talked about that were seen as substitutions for this, really needed to be done in concert with it because of the traffic flow they would have. The choices were never easy and he spent a lot of time reading all the documentation that was out there, and he believed they needed to rescind the letter and support the federal highway adoption of the final environmental impact study. It was a rigorous review and did not believe it was ever easy to make those choices, but one thing that was commented on was the number one issue for the citizen survey that was given back to them 6 months ago was east/west traffic flow. There were a number of citizens from Lawrence that were suffering everyday because they could not get from point A to point B in any reasonable time and it was dangerous. They were creating arterials in their town that were not designed for that.
Commissioner Highberger said he took issue with a couple of points Chestnut made. He said he would like to see the traffic modeling for T2030 because there was nothing he had ever seen in the past that indicated that even 31st Street, 32nd Street or 42nd Street would take a significant amount of traffic off of either 23rd Street or South Iowa. Maybe situations changed, but he had not seen anything to indicate that. Second, he said the mitigation would add five or six more times to the amount of wetlands they have now. He assumed it was 5 or 6 more than the amount that would be destroyed by the project. He found it curious the mitigation project got proposed as an advantage of the 32nd Street option. There was nothing to stop them from creating artificial wetlands.
He said his major concerns were building a freeway would be a tragic mistake for the future of the community. The routes of the roads were projected to be within the City limits. They needed to look at the situations on the west side of town now and future situations commissions would be facing in trying to build traffic patterns that would work instead of building streets with bottlenecks and massive traffic clogs they have on the existing streets now. They were trying to build coherent neighborhoods. Building a freeway where what was going to be an urban area would be such a mistake. They could look around the country and see that cities were spending millions of dollars out of their urban areas; Portland, New York, San Francisco, Milwaukee, and many more in the works that had done this. They found when they did that they could handle the traffic. Given that experience, he did not know why they would move forward when they knew it was going to be a difficult situation for future commissions. He strongly encouraged whoever drafted the next letter to not opt for a freeway option. If they were talking about building a road next to the University of Kansas and had the student body president of KU here and a representative from the Board of Regents and asked them not to do it, it would be the end of the story. He was convinced that the 32nd Street route was an environmental disaster and a threat to the Native American community in this town.
He said one of the questions the Federal Highway Administration would be deciding was whether there were feasible and prudent alternatives to the 32nd Street route. The record was very clear there were feasible and prudent alternatives, whether it be a freeway that did not go through the wetlands, or the solution he proposed that he thought would meet the traffic needs in the future, enable them to build a livable community south of Lawrence in the future, and would minimize environmental damage because it used existing road way. It would also minimize cost and most of the right-of-way was already acquired. He thought cost was another thing. They did not know where they would get the money for the 32nd Street at this point. If they were really trying to meet their future traffic needs within their lifetime, he thought looking at existing right-of-way was the only way to go. He looked around sometimes and saw things that elected officials had done in the past that made him think what were they thinking. He also thought of what they were doing now and future generations would look back and say that about them. This was one of them and building a road next to Haskell Indian Nations University was one of the things that future generations were going to look back and ask what the current City Commission was thinking.
He encouraged the majority of the City Commission in drafting this letter first reject any freeway alternative if they chose to ask FHWA to consider a freeway alternative, to serve 42nd Street. Also in the letter address the changed conditions that the current letter addressed.
He said John Norquest was the former mayor of Milwaukee and was now the Director of the Congress for the New Urbanism and he wrote an article a few years ago about Milwaukee’s decision to rip the freeway out of their downtown. One thing Norquest noted was that traffic engineers were learning that urban street grids could distribute urban traffic more efficiently than super highways. Widening roads to solve traffic congestion was like loosening your belt to cure obesity. They all knew that roads generate traffic and if they were looking for the best volume squisher for the community, they should not design roads that met their needs without generating traffic.
Vice Mayor Dever said this was about the City Commission doing what was right for the future. He said they inherited this problem. They inherited the 31st Street that existed there right now and the existing SLT on the west. They were not new issues but issues that have been brewing for more than 20 years, and 31st Street for probably more than 50 years. They were not talking about doing anything except trying to create a solution to a problem that existed right now. As far as alternate routes, he thought that would be great and if they could sit down and create a better roadway and location that did not impact the cultural and historical areas of the community, they should do it. The decision they were being faced right now was there were no choices. They could either opt to take the 32nd Street B alignment and accept federal highway funds to build the road he thought they needed for relief or not. They have traffic problems now and whether or not this road was going to solve it, no one knew for sure. They could not build a road other than this one and could not afford to build another road in this community based on all information he had been provided. The Corps of Engineers have approved and/or signed off on this alignment. Whether or not he agreed with it or not was not his opinion and what mattered right now was if they wanted to have money to build a road, this was the one they would have to accept. He applauded Commissioner Highberger’s concept of running the road south and north, but it was 12.2 miles around. The existing right-of-way would be about 6.6 to 6.8 miles. They were talking about building 6 more miles worth of roadway. That was fine and he thought if it would mitigate some of the losses to the Haskell community and campus and could get off their right-of-way and move on, it would be fantastic as well. He was trying to create a solution to a problem, which he did not know what that was. To throw out other ideas and concepts and try to redirect their attention to the problem was not going to create a solution. He said he was more than happy to discuss alternatives if they had them. Everyone he talked to both at the federal government and to the people who have been working on this for 20 years, indicated to him this was it. If they did not agree to at least align themselves with what the environmental impact statements have said, then they would not be able to receive funding for the road. The community could not afford to build a road and needed funds from the federal government to do that. If they opt not to do that, they would have to suffer the consequences. If they wanted to attract businesses to their community and have the great services they all wanted to have, they had to have economic development. Unless they had ways to have businesses move here and places for the people who work here to drive on, they will not have any further economic development in certain portions of the community. He looked at it as an opportunity to decide to either agree or disagree with the roadway and want to move forward. For him it was a tough decision and he valued the wetlands and the sacred importance of this land. All he had to do was face the consequences and it was a tough job. They were trying to provide a solution and alternatives were great, but right now they had to speak to the issue at hand and thought this letter intended to do so.
Mayor Hack said a couple of things were called into question. First, she said was whether or not they were making well informed decisions. She said they did make well informed decisions, particularly with regard to this particular situation. It was not an issue any of them took lightly or an issue they had blown off or chosen one university over another. They have chosen one set of standards over another. She thought it was an unfair comparison. Secondly, they were involved in regional planning and regional transportation planning. Commissioner Chestnut served on the Transportation 2030 Committee which was working with the Planning Commission, traffic engineers and traffic planning consultants. They knew they had traffic considerations in this community and they were considerations they would be living with for a long, long time if they did not do something to ease the east/west traffic. They were saying when they visited Washington D.C., they loved the University of Kansas, the fact that they had great things going along with the University of Kansas, and it was in the middle of the community and they had to get around it somehow. That contributes to the traffic situation. The circumferential route had been on planning maps since the 1930s. They were working on regional transportation planning and looking toward solutions to issues as traffic came out of Gardner and up 59 when it got improved. The Corps of Engineers did do a rigorous study and they were called on the carpet for not studying south of the river. They included it in the most current EIS statement. They studied from no build all the way down to south of the river. The Corps of Engineers validated that 32B was to be the best route. One of the things important about 32B when they spoke about Haskell was that it would allow for the removal of 31st Street south of the Haskell campus. No other route allows for that or makes the Haskell campus whole or for the expansion of the wetlands, or protection of the wetlands for financial help of the preservation of the wetlands. They talked about litigation and agreed they would be in court on this for some time. It was important to understand that if the route was south of the river, there were people down there who were just as unhappy about it. Anytime a community built a large infrastructure improvement like this, they were going to be people who were unhappy about it. They had to think as City Commissions thought before them, they had to do the very best they could with what they know in this particular situation. They could sit and say what they were thinking. They were thinking they were doing the very best they could with the knowledge they had at the time and to accuse previous or future commissions of anything else was a disservice to people who chose to do this. If they wanted to be economically viable in this community, they would have to provide some transportation system that would allow businesses and employees to come to this community. They had to decide as a community whether or not they were going to stay just the way they were, not increase the ability to have jobs, and not increase their ability to have people who graduate from Haskell, Baker and from the University of Kansas to find jobs in this community. If they were going to stay just like they were, they were going to do what it took to bring businesses and industry in this community. Solving their transportation needs would help them get there. They have companies who said they did not want to talk to City representatives until they got the trafficway done. It would impact their ability to provide services each and everyone valued in this community. It could be the key to the economic sustainability of this community. They could either step up to the plate and do the right thing, or they can decide they would either cut services or raise taxes because there was no other alternative.
Moved by Amyx, seconded by Chestnut, to rescind the May 17 2006 letter and direct staff to draft a letter reflecting the Commission’s comments. Aye: Amyx, Chestnut, Dever, and Hack. Nay: Highberger. Motion carried. (20)
PUBLIC COMMENT:
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS:
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11/20/07 |
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TBD |
· Staff reports on Sales tax options and Impact Fees · Downtown Redevelopment Issues (public procedures and financing options) · Contracts for the development of maximum prices for the Wakarusa Water Reclamation Facility and for the conveyance system construction
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Moved by Chestnut, seconded by Amyx, to adjourn at 8:45 p.m. Motion carried unanimously.
APPROVED:
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Sue Hack, Mayor
ATTEST:
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Frank S. Reeb, City Clerk
1. Bid – 2007 Weatherization bids from Neighborhood Resources Department to Kennedy Glass (storm windows) for $20,694.79; T&J Holdings (weather stripping) for $2,360; & Midwest Insulation (attic insulation) for $12,118.
2. Change Order No. 1, $68,968 for contract with Kansas Heavy Construction for 2007 Overlay & Curb Repair Program Phase 1.
3. Ordinance No. 8192 – 1st Read, est Baldwin Creek West sanitary sewer interceptor line connection fee.
4. Ordinance No. 8193 - 1st Read, incorporating the “Subdivision Regulations for Lawrence & the Unincorporated Areas of Douglas County, Sept. 11, 2007 Text Amendments.”
5. Ordinance No. 8190– 1st Read, NO PARKING S side University Dr, Crestline Dr E to end.
6. Ordinance No. 8191 – 1st Read, DISABLED PARKING spaces for New York Elementary.
7. Ordinance No. 8189 – 1st Read, ALL WAY STOP at intersection 4th St. & Maine St.
8. Pavement markings and signing at DeVictor Park Trail Crossings on Harvard Rd.
9. Ordinance No. 8188 – 1st Read, Special Use Permit for SE Lawrence Benefit District No. 1 Pump Station (SUP-07-07-07), near NE corner of intersection of E 1700 & N 1300 Rds.
10. Ordinance No. 8187 – 1st Read, rezone approx 537.70 acres (Z-08-16-07) from GPI (General Public & Institutional Use) District to GPI-FP (General Public & Institutional Use) District.
11. Resolution No. 6744 –Authority to survey & description of land or interests to be condemned for construction of gravity sanitary sewer lines
12. Ground lease with Kansas Athletics, Inc. for boat house facility in Burcham Park.
13. Use of City streets & waiver of City costs for half marathon & 5K race on Sunday, April 20, 2008.
14. Investment Advisory Agreement with Public Financial Management, Inc.
15. Agreements related to City participation in sale of property & building located 3813 Greenway Dr.
16. City Manager’s Report.
17. Ordinance No. 8138 – 1st read, max assessment, Stoneridge Drive, Overland Dr to 6th St;
18. Ordinance No. 8137 – 1st Read, max assessments for construction of Overland Dr from Queens Rd to Stoneridge Dr.
19. Denial of request for Adult Crossing Guard at Bob Billings Pkwy & George Williams Way.
20. Proposed alignments of South Lawrence Trafficway.