Baker University and Kansas Department of Transportation officials have tentatively agreed to an $8.5 million package that would allow the South Lawrence Trafficway to be built through the university's wetlands.
Still unsettled is how much property would be restored to wetlands to compensate for the 65 to 100 acres of wetlands that would be lost if the trafficway were completed along a 32nd Street route.
Baker and transportation officials had been discussing a plan to allow for nearly 700 acres of new wetlands, prairie and wooded areas. But KDOT Chief Counsel Mike Rees said Baker approached the department about restructuring the plan to allow for only 300 acres of new wetlands.
Under the plan, KDOT would budget about $1 million less for land purchases but give the university an extra $1 million for maintenance and administrative costs associated with the area. That would let the university establish a $3 million annuity to perpetually fund wetlands maintenance.
Baker officials said Friday that the revised plan gives them the best chance to create a quality facility despite the smaller acreage.
"The philosophy we took was, we are less interested in the amount of land we receive and more interested in having the resources to maintain it in a quality way in perpetuity," said George Blackwood, general counsel for Baker University. "I think we have what we need now to make it a world-class facility. I absolutely think we can make it a gem."
Old and new plans
The new plan also calls for Louisiana Street south of 31st Street (East 1400 Road) to be moved about a half-mile to the west of its current location. Under either plan, Haskell Avenue south of 31st Street (East 1500 Road) would move about a quarter-mile east of its current location. The plan would allow existing businesses south of 31st and Haskell, including Harris Construction at 3200 Haskell Ave., to remain at its current site, Rees said.
With the new plan, all new wetlands would be created between Haskell and Louisiana Street. Under the original plan, new wetlands would be split by both Haskell and Louisiana, which created some concern among Baker officials.
Ultimately, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will decide which mitigation plan should be used. Rees, though, said KDOT intended to submit both plans to the corps, seeking public comment on them as part of the environmental impact statement process that's already under way.
As in the original plan, the new plan includes a 10,000-square-foot, $1.2 million Cultural and Wetland Study Center to be operated by Baker.
Other features
Other features that would be included in either plan:
A boardwalk to replace the existing one that would be dismantled as part of a 32nd Street route for the trafficway. The boardwalk would be rebuilt in the area near the study center.
$375,000 worth of hike and bike trails. The trails would be designed to easily connect the study center with the city's Prairie Park Nature Center.
A primitive camping area just east of where East 1400 Road intersects with the Wakarusa River. The campground would be located on wooded property created by an oxbow in the river.
Three new parking areas to improve access to the wetlands. One would be located near the campground area, one near where East 1500 Road intersects with the Wakarusa River, and another north of the river.
A $60,000 relocation of a Baldwin water line and a Rural Water District No. 4 water line buried in the wetlands. Both have a history of breaking and are difficult to maintain.
Project engineer Terry Flanagan said maps and details of the two mitigation options should be ready for public review and comment within the next month.
If completed, the trafficway would connect Kansas Highway 10 east of Lawrence with Interstate 70 northwest of Lawrence. The western 9 miles of the road are finished and open, but the eastern third remains in the planning stage.
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