By Anne Scheck
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT: Airport Area Plan Unveiled
A development concept for vacant land around the Independence State Airport was presented Tuesday night to the city council – with a list of business options that range from industrial manufacturing east of the airpark to smaller operations west of the airport runway.
The power-point presentation, called a “Targeted Industry Analysis,” was given at the meeting by consultant Todd Chase of FCS, a firm based in the Seattle area. It was the “draft-final report” – a document that will return to the city council for official approval.
The effort to study the issue involved several airpark residents and local pilots, who had volunteered to work with city staff and the consultant to help decide the best potential development for land around the airport and airpark. None of the members of that volunteer group attended the city council meeting. Local airpark resident David Ullman, an appointed member of the advisory group, said he wasn’t notified of it; The president of the Independence Airpark Homeowners Association, Gary Van Horn, said he wasn’t told about it, either.
Shawn Irvine, the city’s economic development director, said he didn’t consider it essential to personally inform any of the residents who had contributed to the volunteer group. City Councilor Michael Hicks, a neighbor of Mr. Van Horn, said the same thing. “I am open to answering questions when someone has them,” Councilor Hicks said.
Though the original aim of the report was to provide an overview of what might be suitable for land west of the airport, it also included the possibility for more manufacturing in the heavy industrial zone across Stryker Road. That zone is a “state-certified industrial site with rail access,” according to Mr. Chase’s presentation.
Wetland mapping may be needed for the western parcels, Mr. Chase said. Wetland areas often “end up being a bottleneck for many cities,” Mr. Irvine noted, adding that it may be necessary to determine the “scope of the problem.”
The draft-final report wasn’t in the agenda packet or posted on the city’s website at the time of the meeting. The item on the city council agenda that referred to the report was listed “FCS Group: Targeted Industry Analysis.”
*A request was made that the draft-final document be posted on the city website. See editorial note at end of Linking Letter for an opinion on this topic.
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT: Airport Area Plan Unveiled
A development concept for vacant land around the Independence State Airport was presented Tuesday night to the city council – with a list of business options that range from industrial manufacturing east of the airpark to smaller operations west of the airport runway.
The power-point presentation, called a “Targeted Industry Analysis,” was given at the meeting by consultant Todd Chase of FCS, a firm based in the Seattle area. It was the “draft-final report” – a document that will return to the city council for official approval.
The effort to study the issue involved several airpark residents and local pilots, who had volunteered to work with city staff and the consultant to help decide the best potential development for land around the airport and airpark. None of the members of that volunteer group attended the city council meeting. Local airpark resident David Ullman, an appointed member of the advisory group, said he wasn’t notified of it; The president of the Independence Airpark Homeowners Association, Gary Van Horn, said he wasn’t told about it, either.
Shawn Irvine, the city’s economic development director, said he didn’t consider it essential to personally inform any of the residents who had contributed to the volunteer group. City Councilor Michael Hicks, a neighbor of Mr. Van Horn, said the same thing. “I am open to answering questions when someone has them,” Councilor Hicks said.
Though the original aim of the report was to provide an overview of what might be suitable for land west of the airport, it also included the possibility for more manufacturing in the heavy industrial zone across Stryker Road. That zone is a “state-certified industrial site with rail access,” according to Mr. Chase’s presentation.
Wetland mapping may be needed for the western parcels, Mr. Chase said. Wetland areas often “end up being a bottleneck for many cities,” Mr. Irvine noted, adding that it may be necessary to determine the “scope of the problem.”
The draft-final report wasn’t in the agenda packet or posted on the city’s website at the time of the meeting. The item on the city council agenda that referred to the report was listed “FCS Group: Targeted Industry Analysis.”
*A request was made that the draft-final document be posted on the city website. See editorial note at end of Linking Letter for an opinion on this topic.
KAYAK COMPANY FOR RIVERVIEW CITY PARK
A one-year contract is being extended to a kayak and paddleboard company for placement of a trailer in Riverview Park, where the river-faring equipment can be rented. The company, Woodward Surf, will pay 5% of its gross profits to the city in exchange for doing business at the spot. The cost to the company was “deliberately kept low to encourage early profitability,” according to the memorandum on the contract.
The council approved the proposal, with one dissenting vote. Safety concerns about a water-craft enterprise on city property without more information prompted Councilor Jennifer Ranstrom-Smith to vote against it, she said.
A one-year contract is being extended to a kayak and paddleboard company for placement of a trailer in Riverview Park, where the river-faring equipment can be rented. The company, Woodward Surf, will pay 5% of its gross profits to the city in exchange for doing business at the spot. The cost to the company was “deliberately kept low to encourage early profitability,” according to the memorandum on the contract.
The council approved the proposal, with one dissenting vote. Safety concerns about a water-craft enterprise on city property without more information prompted Councilor Jennifer Ranstrom-Smith to vote against it, she said.
COMING UP
A new pipeline to spray water recycled from the city’s wastewater lagoons will be installed between the Independence State Airport and Rogers Road. The new effluent system, which will spread the water on fields, will cost about $726,000. That’s $500,000 dollars under the original engineering estimate, said Kie Cottam, the city’s public works director. The city’s capacity for wastewater storage frequently is reached – and exceeded – during the summer months, he explained. This system, which will be 10,000 feet long, can help reduce the volume in the lagoons, he said.
A new pipeline to spray water recycled from the city’s wastewater lagoons will be installed between the Independence State Airport and Rogers Road. The new effluent system, which will spread the water on fields, will cost about $726,000. That’s $500,000 dollars under the original engineering estimate, said Kie Cottam, the city’s public works director. The city’s capacity for wastewater storage frequently is reached – and exceeded – during the summer months, he explained. This system, which will be 10,000 feet long, can help reduce the volume in the lagoons, he said.
EDITORIAL NOTE
I live at the airpark, and, though I'm so terrified of planes that that it takes a big dose of liquid spirits to get me on a commercial flight, I am proud of my local airport. It makes money for the state. It brings visibility to the town. It offers many family-oriented events, from hot-air balloon launches to the Young Eagles program, which acquaints youth with aircraft. I don’t have any interest in flying. In fact, my house has no direct access to the taxiways here – just an easement. But here is what I do have: participatory neighbors. I believe they deserve more heads-up from the city than a five-word title on the city council agenda about an analysis in which some were asked to contribute. I believe all of our citizens deserve good communication, and I hope the city can provide it.
I live at the airpark, and, though I'm so terrified of planes that that it takes a big dose of liquid spirits to get me on a commercial flight, I am proud of my local airport. It makes money for the state. It brings visibility to the town. It offers many family-oriented events, from hot-air balloon launches to the Young Eagles program, which acquaints youth with aircraft. I don’t have any interest in flying. In fact, my house has no direct access to the taxiways here – just an easement. But here is what I do have: participatory neighbors. I believe they deserve more heads-up from the city than a five-word title on the city council agenda about an analysis in which some were asked to contribute. I believe all of our citizens deserve good communication, and I hope the city can provide it.
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