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The day before the Lansing City Council was scheduled to meet to hash out its goals for the coming year, the mayor of the city gave a preview of what’s in store for 2012 during the annual Salads and Solutions Friday.
The luncheon involves city staff, council members and community and business leaders eating together. It also involves an address by Mayor Ken Bernard, during which he updates the audience on past, present and future projects.
Bernard said this year the city continued to work on some ongoing efforts. For instance, he said initial design work for the first phase of reconstruction of DeSoto Road into a four-lane road, from Ida Street to Eisenhower Road, has been completed. Now, he said the city continues to look for ways to fund the estimated $8.5 million project. Bernard said the project has been added to the Mid-America Regional Council’s 2015 transportation improvement list, with potential accompanying funding of $5 million. Before that, Bernard said the city will need to acquire right of way and relocate utilities.
“We hope by 2015 we can start building and expanding DeSoto Road,” he said.
The city is also continuing to plan improvements to the Kenneth W. Bernard Community Park. While Bernard said the city has been able to add amenities like a shelter, benches, tables and the Lansing Veterans Memorial, a project completed this year through efforts of members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post in Lansing, one of the next big pieces of building out the park will likely be extending utilities to the area.
“We’re still looking at what else we can do at the park and as funds become available we continue to build,” he said.
Bernard also pointed to the recently completed land-use study of the Kansas Highway 7, a collaborative effort between a number of different entities, as another positive development for the city. Other projects that he said were still in the planning stages were the proposed regional airport, the realignment of Kansas Highway 5 to Interstate 435, the stoplight at Gilman Road and improvements to Gamble Street at ongoing projects.
Looking forward, he said the city has a few tasks ahead of it, including the completion of a wastewater rate study and master plan for 2013; the development of a new comprehensive plan; the possible establishment of a wastewater utility to fund improvements to that infrastructure; and upgrades to Kane Drive to make way for a new assisted living facility.
Also new this year will be a video tour book of the city and a redesigned website, both expected this summer.
But the city will also face challenges in accomplishing its goals, Bernard told the audience, mostly in the form of state budget cuts and potential changes to the state income tax, school finance formula and the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System.
“There’s been a decrease, as well all know, in federal and state assistance to the communities,” he said.
The day before the Lansing City Council was scheduled to meet to hash out its goals for the coming year, the mayor of the city gave a preview of what’s in store for 2012 during the annual Salads and Solutions Friday.
The luncheon involves city staff, council members and community and business leaders eating together. It also involves an address by Mayor Ken Bernard, during which he updates the audience on past, present and future projects.
Bernard said this year the city continued to work on some ongoing efforts. For instance, he said initial design work for the first phase of reconstruction of DeSoto Road into a four-lane road, from Ida Street to Eisenhower Road, has been completed. Now, he said the city continues to look for ways to fund the estimated $8.5 million project. Bernard said the project has been added to the Mid-America Regional Council’s 2015 transportation improvement list, with potential accompanying funding of $5 million. Before that, Bernard said the city will need to acquire right of way and relocate utilities.
“We hope by 2015 we can start building and expanding DeSoto Road,” he said.
The city is also continuing to plan improvements to the Kenneth W. Bernard Community Park. While Bernard said the city has been able to add amenities like a shelter, benches, tables and the Lansing Veterans Memorial, a project completed this year through efforts of members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post in Lansing, one of the next big pieces of building out the park will likely be extending utilities to the area.
“We’re still looking at what else we can do at the park and as funds become available we continue to build,” he said.
Bernard also pointed to the recently completed land-use study of the Kansas Highway 7, a collaborative effort between a number of different entities, as another positive development for the city. Other projects that he said were still in the planning stages were the proposed regional airport, the realignment of Kansas Highway 5 to Interstate 435, the stoplight at Gilman Road and improvements to Gamble Street at ongoing projects.
Looking forward, he said the city has a few tasks ahead of it, including the completion of a wastewater rate study and master plan for 2013; the development of a new comprehensive plan; the possible establishment of a wastewater utility to fund improvements to that infrastructure; and upgrades to Kane Drive to make way for a new assisted living facility.
Also new this year will be a video tour book of the city and a redesigned website, both expected this summer.
But the city will also face challenges in accomplishing its goals, Bernard told the audience, mostly in the form of state budget cuts and potential changes to the state income tax, school finance formula and the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System.
“There’s been a decrease, as well all know, in federal and state assistance to the communities,” he said.
