By Jill Draper
An upcoming school bond issue, a major Waldo road project and sidewalk repairs were topics discussed on June 11 at a public meeting for 6th District residents hosted by City Council representatives Andrea Bough and Johnathan Duncan.
School Bond
At the meeting, held at HJ’s Youth & Community Center in Brookside, Derald Davis said Kansas City Public Schools will be asking voters to endorse a bond issue next April. According to Davis, deputy superintendent, the last time voters approved a bond issue for KCPS was in 1967. “We’re the only school district in the area that has not passed a bond issue, or even attempted one, in recent years,” he told the crowd.
Davis noted that inadequate air conditioning at the start of the last school year forced the cancellation of classes when room temperatures in some buildings reached 95 degrees. By next fall these schools will have undergone major AC, roof and window renovations, he said.
Meanwhile, attendance is up as well as starting teacher salaries. The district would like to provide more field trips, STEM labs, sports facilities and classes in band and orchestra, especially at the elementary school level.
The district is working with DLR Consulting to shape the details of the bond issue, which might be split into more than one bond. About $650 million in unfunded repairs must be addressed, Davis said. For details, see www.kcpublicschools.org/bond.
75th & Wornall
Improvements to the intersection at Wornall Road and 75th Street were discussed next by city engineer Nicholas Bosonetto. He apologized for the various lane closures, but stated, “For a project like this, you’ve got to rip off the Band-Aid. You’ve just got to get in there and do it.”
Repavement of Wornall from 73rd Terrace to 75th Street will be finished by the end of July, Bosonetto said. Another section will be completed by November, and other parts must wait until after redevelopment of The Well Bar Grill site; teardown of the bar begins in a few weeks.
Officials noted that some businesses in the construction zone are seeing a 40 percent dip in sales. A cash mob initiative called Waldo Wednesdays will target two businesses at a time, encouraging customers to support them from 5:30-7 pm that day. See Waldokc.org for details.
Sidewalks
In other KCMO news, the budget for sidewalks doubled from $7.5 million last year to $15 million this fiscal year (which began in May). Utility manager Uday Manepalli said city workers are shaving concrete sidewalk joints when the difference in height is less than one inch in order to avoid replacing entire 5 x 5-foot sections. This procedure not only reduces tripping hazards—it saves nearly $600 per section, he said. The department also is experimenting with rubberized sidewalks around tree roots.
In the past, sidewalk repair was the property owner’s responsibility, but in 2017 City Council approved a new sidewalk program funded by GO bonds to address repairs and maintenance.
Councilmembers Duncan and Bough mentioned two ongoing studies. The city is partnering with the Mid-America Regional Council to take a regional look at transit, including the lack of buses south of 75th Street, and leaders have begun a citywide review of economic development policies.