photo by: Rochelle Valverde

A section of Queens Road is pictured on Jan. 20, 2022.

This spring could finally see construction begin on a long-delayed city road project that has been tied up in litigation for years.

The Lawrence City Commission approved two special taxing districts in December 2018 to fund the reconstruction of Queens Road and the installation of a stoplight, and a lawsuit was subsequently filed in January 2019. Two courts have now dismissed the lawsuit, and while the individual who filed the lawsuit has again appealed, the city is moving forward with preparations for the project and tentatively plans to begin construction later this year.

Kurt Schaake initially filed the lawsuit against the city in Douglas County District Court in January 2019, claiming that the taxing districts the city set up to fund the project were arbitrary and capricious and therefore out of line with state law. A judge dismissed that lawsuit prior to trial for legal representation issues, but Schaake filed an appeal with the Kansas Court of Appeals in February 2020. The Kansas Court of Appeals dismissed the case in May 2021, and Schaake appealed that decision to the Kansas Supreme Court.

The legal owner of the property within the taxing districts and official plaintiff in the case is a family trust, and the appeals center on whether Schaake, who is a co-trustee and who no longer has an attorney, can legally represent the trust as a nonlawyer. In its dismissal, the Kansas Court of Appeals concluded that Schaake did not have the standing to appeal in his role as a co-trustee, his role as one of several trust beneficiaries or as an individual. Schaake argues in part that he does have a personal and vested interest in the case and should be able to represent himself in the interest of fairness and justice. Schaake filed a petition for review in June, which remains pending before the Kansas Supreme Court.

In October 2021, the city sent out a letter to property owners in the taxing districts noting that the project had been on hold due to litigation and stating that the city planned to resume the easement acquisition process and utility relocation for the project this fall or winter. The letter states construction is slated to begin in spring of 2022, with completion planned for late 2022 or early 2023.

The city had been voluntarily putting the Queens Road reconstruction project on hold until the district court case was resolved, and told the Journal-World in February 2020 that though the city had begun the process of acquiring necessary right-of-way and easements, it would analyze the court’s approach to the appeal before proceeding further.

City Engineer David Cronin told the Journal-World Thursday that the city has resumed easement acquisition and utility relocation for the Queens Road project and that construction is now planned to begin in late spring or summer. However, Cronin said that should the Kansas Supreme Court accept review of the case, then the city would have to assess the risk of continuing with construction of the project.

Queens Road, which is in northwestern Lawrence, was formerly a rural road but is now surrounded by newer apartment complexes, townhouses and homes. The taxing districts contain both commercial and residential properties, and they were contentious with homeowners.

Schaake’s lawsuit argued that the city’s taxing districts are out of line with state law because the city didn’t determine what special benefit accrued to properties within the districts; that the city improperly excluded properties; and that the properties within the districts were not benefited in equal relation to the financial burden imposed. The city denied those claims, arguing that the city provided reasons for why each area was included, including direct and indirect access to Queens Road and whether each area had previously been included in a district for another street in the area.

The Queens Road street project is estimated to cost about $4.83 million, of which the city will contribute about $640,000. There are about 400 properties in the Queens Road taxing district that will contribute toward the remaining $4.2 million, according to city documents. The Queens Road intersection project is estimated to cost about $450,000, all of which will be assessed to properties in the taxing district. There are about 515 properties in the intersection district, which includes the 400 from the street project district. Cronin said the city was in the process of updating the cost estimate for the project, which includes a standard 10% construction contingency.

Kansas Judicial Branch spokesperson Lisa Taylor said the Kansas Supreme Court has not ruled on the petition for review and did not have an estimate for how soon a decision would be made.