None — Haskell Indian Nations University has hired a pair of out-of-state engineering firms to find out whether any previously rejected South Lawrence Trafficway proposals merit reconsideration.
"Two firms have been hired to evaluate the various reports and studies that have been done over the last 10 years on the trafficway and its impact on the Haskell campus," said Ron Manka, a Kansas City attorney representing the Haskell Board of Regents.
Among routes previously discarded are alignments along 35th Street, 38th Street and south of the Wakarusa River.
"All of these studies have rejected alternative routes for one reason or another," Manka said.
Now, Manka said, the Haskell board wants to know whether any of these past proposals could be made to work.
"The feeling of the Haskell board is that if there's an alternative that does work, then it would be preferred over the one that goes right next to campus," Manka said, referring to the proposed routing along 31st Street, which would cut through the southern portion of the Haskell campus.
"When I say 'work,' I mean giving fair consideration to all relevant factors such as cost, reduction of traffic flow, environmental impact, as well as the spiritual and cultural issues."
The two firms Carter & Burgess of Denver and Connelly & Associates of Compo Reservation in California will share their preliminary findings with the Haskell board during the group's Oct. 12 meeting in Lawrence.
Though the two firms answer to and are under contract with the Haskell board, they are being paid by the Kansas Department of Transportation.
"Haskell didn't have the money to hire them, so the county and the state agreed to handle the reimbursement," Manka said.
Manka said the firms have been involved in controversial highway projects in other parts of the country and are well-known for being "fair-minded and competent," as well as objective.
The firms' meeting with the Haskell board next month will be the first of many, Manka said.
"This is a good start and should in no way be construed as a final assessment," he said.
"This presupposes nothing," he said.
The firms' contract with KDOT calls for their reimbursement "not to exceed $100,000."
The money is part of the KDOT budget set aside each year for work in Douglas County.
"KDOT is writing the check," said Douglas County Administrator Craig Weinaug.
Weinaug said Douglas County supports the evaluation.
"This is all part of the process," he said.
Haskell interim president Karen Swisher declined comment on the study.
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