Four prospective Johnson County projects aimed at building greener, more pedestrian- and bike-friendly infrastructure are in the running to get funding from the Mid-America Regional Council — and residents have a chance to weigh in on which projects they’d like to see supported.
What’s going on? MARC’s “Planning Sustainable Places” program aims to help fund local transportation and infrastructure-related developments that support “vibrant, connected and green places,” according to MARC’s website.
- MARC’s funding for the program comes from the Federal Highway Administration’s Surface Transportation Block Grants program.
The upshot: There are 23 projects on MARC’s list that are being considered for funding in 2023. The public has until July 31 at 11:59 p.m. to provide their input as to why certain projects should be funded.
- Four of the 23 projects were submitted by Johnson County cities.
- One in Mission, two in Overland Park and one in Westwood.
- Comments can be submitted on each individual project online here through midnight Sunday.
The context: MARC puts out a call each year for local projects that may be eligible for PSP funds, and Johnson County cities have been awarded grants in the past.
- Merriam got a grant in 2021 to study various transportation options, including bike- and pedestrian-friendly modes of travel, and the city also earned a separate PSP grant for the Merriam Connected Corridor plan, which is looking at transportation and street design across four cities from 51st Street to Southwest Boulevard.
Below is a look in more detail at each Johnson County project that’s in the running this year:
Rock Creek corridor improvements — Mission
The city of Mission is asking for $80,000 to improve the Rock Creek Trail and adjacent areas between Woodson Street and Roeland Drive.
- Located in the heart of downtown Mission, the goal of this project is to beautify the trail and implement green infrastructure, according to the project description.
- This might look like placing electric vehicle charging stations near commercial corridors and connecting parking lots to pedestrian and bike trails, according to the project description.
79th Street corridor study — Overland Park
Overland Park wants $100,000 to study “the relationship between land use and transportation” along 79th Street from Frontage Road to Lamar Avenue.
- The goal is to develop recommendations about “internal mobility enhancements and multimodal opportunities” along 79th Street.
- It should also create “a plan to connect key community assets” — like transit stops, elementary schools and parks along the corridor — as well as multimodal solutions, according to the project description.
College and Metcalf overlay district — Overland Park
The second Overland Park request is for $50,000 to implement a new zoning overlay, which would “provide a more flexible mixed-use zoning code” intended to help the city’s “attempt to spur reinvestment” in the area, according to the project description.
- The focus area is College Boulevard from Metcalf to Nall Avenues, from Interstate 435 to as far south as 119th Street.
- Overland Park sees this project as a way to address “the lack of density, livability and walkability” along College Boulevard.
- This project would include a public engagement piece, a data collection and analysis piece, as well as a zoning overlay piece, according to the project scope.
Rainbow Boulevard, 7th Street and Highway 169 — Westwood
The cities of Westwood and Mission Woods have joined with the University of Kansas Health System in an ask for $118,500 to review existing studies and plans to work on “pedestrian safety, accessibility and mobility along the Rainbow Boulevard corridor,” according to the MARC project description.
- This would emphasize intersections at Shawnee Mission Parkway, 47th Street, 39th Street and Southwest Boulevard.
- The goal, according to the project description, is to engage in a conversation about the future of the corridor with a focus on multi-modal transportation.
