City gears up to rebuild Kasold Drive

Reconstruction schedule

Schedule for reconstruction projects to be financed by proceeds from a 0.3-percent sales tax approved by Lawrence voters in November, as outlined in a schedule up for review Tuesday by Lawrence city commissioners:

  • 2010: Kasold Drive, Clinton Parkway to 31st Street
  • 2012: Wakarusa Drive, Bob Billings Parkway to 18th Street
  • 2013: 19th Street, Iowa Street to Naismith Drive
  • 2015: Kasold, Harvard Road to Bob Billings Parkway
  • 2016: Wakarusa, Bob Billings to Legends Drive
  • 2018: Bob Billings, Crestline Drive to Kasold
  • 2019: Bob Billings, Iowa to Crestline

* City officials caution that these final years of the program may not have sufficient funds to complete the projects.

Planning on an estimated $6 million reconstruction of Kasold Drive in southwest Lawrence soon could be on the fast track.

Tuesday night, Lawrence city commissioners will consider scheduling the project for engineering this year and construction in 2010.

Chuck Soules, the city’s director of public works, is pushing to get the project’s engineering work under way in February or March. The work would begin even before the city starts collecting proceeds from a citywide sales tax lined up to finance Kasold and other reconstruction projects during the coming decade.

The tax goes into effect April 1.

Soules suggests setting aside $400,000 for the engineering work, which would design a reconstruction of Kasold from Clinton Parkway to 31st Street. The project would include a concrete surface measuring 11 inches thick, atop a specially treated foundation designed to help put off pothole and cracking problems that are plaguing the 38-year-old road.

Also in the plans would be completion of sidewalks around the curve that connects Kasold and 31st.

The Kansas Department of Transportation has committed up to $1 million for construction of the Kasold project, Soules said.