Are we sure the drainage base on which Kasold Drive will be rebuilt is the best target for cutting the cost of replacing Kasold from Bob Billings Parkway to 22nd Street?

One of the main reasons given a year ago for needing to rebuild this stretch of street is that the road’s base had begun to deteriorate.

Now, the bids for the project, which was predicted to cost $5.2 million, have come in about $1.2 million over that estimate. In an effort to reduce the costs, Lawrence city commissioners agreed Tuesday night to rebid the project with minor changes, including changes to the drainage base below the road. Public Works Director Chuck Soules said the changes weren’t enough to cut $1.2 million off the project’s price tag, but it will delay the start of the project by 30 days. New bids will be received April 25, with construction set to start by June 1.

In the big scheme of things, the timing delay isn’t crucial, given that the project is expected to run through October 2007. But any action that would compromise the long-term integrity of this road certainly is cause for concern.

It’s worth noting that, a year ago, the cost estimate for rebuilding this section of Kasold stood at $3.7 million. After that, city commissioners approved pricier plans that include an 11-foot-wide sidewalk and expensive work to shave off a portion of a hill on the road, reducing the grade but raising the price tag to $5.2 million. The latter move also will include the need to build large retaining walls along much of the road.

The question commissioners should be asking is whether it’s more important to have an 11-foot sidewalk and a reduced grade on the Kasold or to have the road built on high quality subgrade material that could extend its useful life. Making the Kasold hill less steep may be desirable, but it’s a matter of priorities. The Kasold hill certainly isn’t the steepest street in Lawrence. People who drive or ride bicycles on any of the city’s many hills need to use some common sense.

Maybe the cost of leveling the hill, adding the wide sidewalk and building the unsightly retaining walls is justified, but keeping those aspects of the road while agreeing to cut corners on the drainage base below the street doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense.