Since the passage of the GO Bonds in April 2017, there has been considerable discussion about where and how the $7.5 million being allocated annually for sidewalk repairs are being spent. Last Tuesday, we got our first look at the progress that has been made, via KC STAT.
There were some bright spots, including:
– 75% of the full block inspections have been completed and categorized as either in need of spot repair or full block replacement, and
– 117 projects involving ramped corners have been completed as of March 2018 and another 120 of those projects were launched in August.
While these statistics demonstrate the City is working to improve sidewalks for pedestrians, it doesn’t come without some concerns for BikeWalkKC. For example, while close to 80 spot repair projects have been undertaken in the core of the city, no such projects have been launched north of the river or south of 85th Street. Additionally, while there is a map to show where the projects are taking place, the explanations on how they were chosen to be repaired remains unclear.
The bottom line is this: As the City works to identify and repair its sidewalks, sufficient consideration needs to be given to how we can make the process more transparent when it comes to deciding which projects will be repaired and when.
Keep an eye out for further updates on the GO Bond, including details on other projects, how it is keeping inline with the Complete Streets ordinance, and other major developments.