by Mary Rupert
The topic Tuesday night was how to improve the K-32 corridor and plan for the future, but one comes away from the meeting with the impression that a lot of residents like their neighborhood.
The K-32 Multimodal Redevelopment public meeting held at the Grinter Place barn Jan. 26 was sometimes more notable for what wasn’t said than what was. The residents often talked more about some tweaks that could be done than about major changes.
Another public meeting on K-32’s future will be held from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. tonight, Jan. 27, at Edwardsville Community Center, 696 S. 3rd St., Edwardsville, Kan. It is open to the public.
Those attending the Jan. 26 meeting did not say they wanted another Legends retail center on K-32, which follows the Kansas River in an east-west direction through Wyandotte County. In fact, they didn’t want one.
“They took all the farmland away out there,” Don Jolley, an area resident, said. “It’s almost an asphalt jungle.”
There was some support for keeping existing open areas and farmland along K-32. Some small businesses might be good, residents agreed, if they could keep the rural feel.
One resident gave a reason for K-32 not being as developed as other areas of town. The resident, who is in the construction field, said some years ago, the word spread through the construction industry that anything south of State was a poverty area and builders didn’t want to construct homes there. Developers wanted nothing to do with it, he said. There were maybe a dozen homes built in 40 years around the Muncie area, according to the residents.
Residents didn’t want a lot of additional multi-family housing along the K-32 corridor. No one wanted apartments, town houses and duplexes. But there was support for more single-family housing.
Yes, they agreed something needed to be done about some businesses that don’t look good, to “clean up” certain areas, but residents said they want the businesses to stay. Maybe the businesses could improve their buildings or facades, some suggested. Especially, they wanted the grocery store to stay in Muncie and not allow the area to become another food desert. They like to eat at a local restaurant, and they wish its building looked better from the outside, a resident said. Maybe some of the buildings should be torn down and replaced, one resident thought.
There were no sidewalks from the neighborhoods to the grocery in the Muncie area, residents pointed out.
Representatives of these businesses, however, did not speak at this meeting. A resident said she called them to let them know about the meeting, and she was told they hadn’t been officially notified about it. Also not making any public comments at this meeting were representatives from the industries located along K-32.
Joe Brentano, curator of Grinter Place, said he would like to see a restaurant near the historic museum at 78th and K-32. He often is asked by visitors to recommend a nearby restaurant, and he would like some small commercial development so that people who visit Grinter Place could eat nearby.
There is a quieting study being done to determine if there should be a “quiet zone” where the trains running along the river could not blow their horns, according to the consultants who are in charge of the study. Some other warning system would be used by the trains. One resident, though, said she liked the trains and liked hearing them.
Many questions were asked by the moderator, Triveece Penelton, who is with a firm that is conducting the public meetings and study, concerning more parks, trails, recreational areas, parkways, transit and development of selected areas.
Given the terrain and the fact that some of the land would be in a flood plain, she suggested that parks and recreational uses might be better for parts of the K-32 corridor.
She asked if the residents would like to see K-32 narrowed and slowing down as it passes through commercial areas in Edwardsville and Bonner Springs. There could be street parking on K-32 in Edwardsville and Bonner Springs if it were narrowed, she said.
Despite feelings that some residents still want the rural or semi-rural feel of the area, there are plans for new industries in a business park along the Turner Diagonal, not far from K-32, planners pointed out. Those industries were intended to be green and clean industries, they added.
Bill Heatherman, UG engineer, said the sorts of comments received at the public meeting were just what the planners wanted.
Dean Zagortz of Kansas City, Kan., spoke in favor of more bike trails, bike lanes on the road, and other trails along K-32, where people often ride bikes on the weekends. According to those present, sometimes they don’t ride on K-32 during the weekdays because of the heavy traffic.
Some residents told planners that increased bus service along K-32 might not be used, as workers in industries would have to walk about a half-hour after they get off the bus to get to their workplaces.
Edwardsville and Bonner Springs development along K-32 also was discussed, and perhaps will be covered in more detail with residents’ comments at the Jan. 27 public meeting in Edwardsville. The Scheidt Lane area development and K-32 through downtown Bonner Springs and Edwardsville are among five questions on the comment forms that were handed out, along with 65th and the Turner Diagonal areas and the K-7 interchange area.
Those who cannot attend the public meetings on K-32 redevelopment may give their comments on a website, answering some short questions, through Feb. 12. The website is at k32.digicate.com.
To see an earlier story about K-32, visit https://wyandotteonline.com/k-32-redevelopment-comment-meetings-scheduled-tonight-and-wednesday/.
