The Legislative Committee of the Kansas City, Kansas, Area Chamber of Commerce is looking ahead to January 2021 when the Kansas Legislature will be back in session. Committee members, who met Friday, Sept. 11, via Zoom, expressed their views on various issues that the Legislature will face.
Mike Smallwood, the Legislative Committee chairman, said he is concerned about the restrictions business owners face because of the coronavirus pandemic. He told of a bowling alley in Lawrence that is struggling to stay open.
Cathy Harding, a member of the Legislative Committee, said it is important that restrictions are followed so the country can get past this pandemic. She is the president of the Wyandotte Health Foundation.
Greg Kindle, the president of the Wyandotte Economic Development Council, said the Legislature needs to look at early childhood education. He said affordable child care is a serious issue facing employees in many Wyandotte County businesses.
Smallwood said that a couple of issues he expects legislators to face are the online sales tax and encouraging state and local government to buy from local suppliers. He said he was surprised that state revenues for August were unexpectedly high.
Committee members were briefed on various federal stimulus proposals that would be contingent on the State Finance Council approving a state of emergency because of the coronavirus pandemic. The council did approve the state of emergency. However, a provision of the approval was that Gov. Laura Kelly would not close any business because of the pandemic.
Gov. Kelly recently announced that four Kansas cities, including Kansas City, Kansas, have submitted proposals vying for the U.S. Space Command; the other Kansas cities are Wichita, Derby and Leavenworth.
Daniel Silva, the president of the Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber is hoping to sponsor debates for candidates running for the Third District, U.S. Representative and U.S. Senate. Business West will sponsor candidates’ forums for those running for the Kansas House and Kansas Senate.
Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is the executive director of Business West.
Several highway construction and maintenance projects are currently taking place in Wyandotte County. (KDOT map)
Several highway projects are new or ongoing in Wyandotte County, according to the Kansas Department of Transportation.
The right lane will be closed on eastbound K-32 between Lake of the Forest and 122nd Street from 9 a.m. to 3 pm. Tuesday, Sept. 15, according to KDOT. It will be a culvert replacement project.
Guardrail maintenance will take place on a closed ramp on westbound I-70 to southbound I-635 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, according to KDOT.
Pavement repair will take place with the left two lanes closed on westbound I-70 from Quarry Road Bridge to 61st Street from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16, according to KDOT.
Some other KDOT construction projects in Wyandotte County:
I-635 pavement patching project
An I-635 pavement patching and overlay project will affect northbound and southbound I-635 traffic, restricting it to one lane using a nightly lane drop between Foster Street and the VNSF railroad bridge, and from 43rd Street bridge to K-5 junction.
The closures will be from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. Monday to Friday and 7 p.m. to 8 a.m. Saturday to Sunday, according to KDOT.
Ramps will be closed intermittently throughout the project with a 3-day advance notice for their closures. Work began on June 15 and the completion date is Nov. 20.
Nightly ramp closures from 10 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14, to 5 a.m. Monday, Oct. 5, include:
• Southbound and northbound I-635 at Leavenworth Road, • Southbound and northbound I-635 at 38th Street, • Southbound and northbound I-635 at Parallel Parkway, • Southbound and northbound I-635 at K-5.
Nightly ramp closures, 10 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14, to 5 a.m. Monday, Oct. 5. • Southbound and northbound I-635 at I-35, • Southbound and northbound I-635 at Merriam Drive, • Southbound and northbound I-635 at Swartz Road, • Southbound and northbound I- 635 at Shawnee Drive, • Southbound and northbound I-635 at Metropolitan Avenue. • Ramps will be open during the day.
Resurfacing of northbound and southbound I-435 in Wyandotte County
• Intermittent single and double lane closures, northbound and southbound I-435 from Leavenworth Road to the Kansas River, Monday, Sept. 14, to Saturday, Sept. 26. • Work hours will be 7 p.m. to 5 a.m., Monday through Friday and 7 p.m. Saturday to 8 a.m. Sunday, for asphalt patching and overlay. • Up to five miles, inside and center lanes will be closed as needed.
Reconfiguration of the Turner Diagonal interchange in Wyandotte County
A new diverging diamond interchange has been built, scheduled to reopen November.
• Pavement sawing for removal, westbound I-70, right lane closed from 72nd Street to 78th Street, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 16.
• Eastbound I-70 truck staging area is open to trucks, while the westbound I-70 truck staging area is closed.
Lewis and Clark Viaduct bridge replacement
Westbound I-70 will be closed past Broadway Blvd (in Missouri northwest corner of the downtown loop) to 3rd St in Kansas City, Kansas, for bridge replacement.
• Ramps closed – eastbound I-70 on ramps at Washington Avenue, Minnesota Avenue and Fairfax Trafficway. • Ramps from 5th St, Beardsley Rd, Independence Ave. at Delaware Ave. and I-35 to Westbound I-70 (in Missouri) will be closed. • Ramps from westbound I-70 to Minnesota Ave, Washington Blvd, and Fairfax Trafficway will be closed. o Due to severe weather in 2019, these closures will continue into 2020. A new completion estimate will be made pending pier construction progress which is subject to high water conditions.
43rd St. bridge repair
Northbound and southbound I-635 traffic will be restricted to 2 lanes at 43rd St. for bridge repairs.
• Concrete barrier will be used across the bridge for the duration of this project. Work began on June 19 and the completion date for this project is expected to be Nov. 20.
• Northbound on-ramp from westbound State Ave. will be closed for the duration of the project.
Railyard bridge repair
Northbound and southbound I-635 traffic will be restricted to two lanes at the railyard bridges just south of K-32 (Kansas Ave.).
• Concrete barrier will be used across the north abutments of the bridges for the duration of the project.
• Work began on July 6, and the completion date is expected to be Nov. 20. Northbound off-ramp to K-32 (Kansas Ave.) and southbound on-ramp from K-32 (Kansas Ave.) will both be closed for the duration of the project.
KDOT urged all motorists to be alert and obey the warning signs when approaching and driving through a highway work zone, according to a spokesman. To stay aware of all road construction projects across Kansas go to www.kandrive.org or call 5-1-1. The spokesman urged motorists to drive safely and always wear their seat belts.
Today and Wednesday, temperatures will be in the 80s with calm weather, according to the National Weather Service.
Temperatures may drop to the mid-70s on Thursday, with a cold front pushing through the area, with lower humidity, the weather service said.
The fall-like weather will remain through the weekend, according to the weather service.
The chances for rain are very small during the next seven days, the weather service said. No hazardous weather is expected.
There is also a possibility of periods of haze or smoke from western fires during the sunny day, according to the weather service.
Today, it will be sunny with a high near 83 and a calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon, the weather service said.
Tonight, it will be partly cloudy, with a low around 59 and a south southeast wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening, according to the weather service.
Wednesday, it will be mostly sunny, ith a high near 85 and a light and variable wind, the weather service said.
Wednesday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 59, according to the weather service. A calm wind will become north northeast around 6 mph after midnight.
Thursday, it will be sunny, with a high near 76 and a northeast wind of 6 to 8 mph, the weather service said.
Thursday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 53, according to the weather service.
Friday, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 53, the weather service said.
Friday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 54, according to the weather service.
Saturday, it will be sunny, with a high near 76, the weather service said.
Saturday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 55, according to the weather service.
Sunday, it will be sunny, with a high near 79, the weather service said.
Sunday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 58, according to the weather service.
Monday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 81, the weather service.
