Tweet
WBJ - THE ROAD TO WEST WICHITA'S FUTURE: Hope, hurdles remain for long-discussed major highway project
Sounds like there will be a renewed push for this at local KDOT meetings in Newton and Wichita this fall. I think I read that both SG and KDOT are putting aside $1M a year for land acquisitions, though few/none have taken place since that began. Projected costs now exceed $1B. There is lobbying taking place in D.C. to try and get some federal funding to assist with the project.
If/when this project is completed, it will be a massive boon for west Wichita and the region. The growth of NW Wichita would be expected to grow at a faster rate than it is and would help facilitate more growth in and around the Goddard area as well. I hope they find a way to get this into motion before the 30s, which one individual with KDOT thinks is the earliest it will be budgeted for, but that can change with enough support from the region to get it done. Time will tell if that happens.
After this, we can then look into creating a SE bypass that connects east Wichita/Andover to Derby.
Despite the Kansas Department of Transportation beginning to purchase land for the project in 2006, only one-third of the right-of-way has been bought so far.
That's about where progress stood two years ago.
Meanwhile, estimated construction costs for the Northwest Bypass have more than doubled since the late 2000s to over $1 billion, according to KDOT leadership.
"Everybody agrees it is something that's important, and it's important for our economy, but we just haven't come up with a way to fund it yet," said Sedgwick County commissioner David Dennis, whose district includes west Wichita and western Sedgwick County. He said the highway could yield a 2-to-1 return on investment.
Even though the Northwest Bypass proposal faces financial and other challenges the K-96 expansion did not, there's still optimism that the question is not "if" the project ever breaks ground but "when."
That's about where progress stood two years ago.
Meanwhile, estimated construction costs for the Northwest Bypass have more than doubled since the late 2000s to over $1 billion, according to KDOT leadership.
"Everybody agrees it is something that's important, and it's important for our economy, but we just haven't come up with a way to fund it yet," said Sedgwick County commissioner David Dennis, whose district includes west Wichita and western Sedgwick County. He said the highway could yield a 2-to-1 return on investment.
Even though the Northwest Bypass proposal faces financial and other challenges the K-96 expansion did not, there's still optimism that the question is not "if" the project ever breaks ground but "when."
While northwest Wichita's ascent has continued, one prominent developer said the bypass could be a significant propellant for the southern area of the planned highway.
"I just haven't gotten comfortable with the numbers of people as you go further west toward Goddard for us and the kind of projects that we do," said Vantage Point Properties president Paul Jackson. "And a project like the Northwest Bypass would absolutely help that."
Unruh said even though economic expansion has still occurred in west Wichita, "It could just happen faster and in a more coordinated and a more logical pattern, if we had efficient transportation."
"It's fundamental to our growth," said Unruh, adding he'd like to see the legislative delegation in south-central Kansas work in cohesion on the issue.
"I just haven't gotten comfortable with the numbers of people as you go further west toward Goddard for us and the kind of projects that we do," said Vantage Point Properties president Paul Jackson. "And a project like the Northwest Bypass would absolutely help that."
Unruh said even though economic expansion has still occurred in west Wichita, "It could just happen faster and in a more coordinated and a more logical pattern, if we had efficient transportation."
"It's fundamental to our growth," said Unruh, adding he'd like to see the legislative delegation in south-central Kansas work in cohesion on the issue.
If/when this project is completed, it will be a massive boon for west Wichita and the region. The growth of NW Wichita would be expected to grow at a faster rate than it is and would help facilitate more growth in and around the Goddard area as well. I hope they find a way to get this into motion before the 30s, which one individual with KDOT thinks is the earliest it will be budgeted for, but that can change with enough support from the region to get it done. Time will tell if that happens.
After this, we can then look into creating a SE bypass that connects east Wichita/Andover to Derby.
Comment