Ark Valley News - Sidewalks dominate city’s plans

Sidewalks dominate city’s plans
By Chris Strunk
Last Updated: August 22, 2013

In the next couple of years, new sidewalks will line some of Valley Center's busiest roads.

The Valley Center City Council on Aug 20 began discussing a capital improvement plan for 2014-15 that addresses one of the city's biggest needs—connecting neighborhoods to schools and parks with a sidewalk system that gets pedestrians off the streets.

"Many of them are long overdue and many of them are needed," said city council member Al Hobson.

The council saw a list of eight capital improvement projects for the next two years, three of which were sidewalks.

They include:

•A five-foot wide sidewalk along Goff, Fieldstone and Clover from Meridian to Meadow in the Valley Meadows neighborhood. The project costs more than $310,000, of which $232,280 will be paid for with a federal grant and the rest will be paid by the city at-large without special assessments to adjacent property owners.

•A 10-foot wide sidewalk along McLaughlin from Fifth to Seventh. The project is estimated to cost about $160,000, but a federal grant will pay $118,700. Like the Valley Meadows project, the city at-large will pay for the rest.

•A 10-foot wide sidewalk in the median along Emporia from Main to Fifth. The project costs about $230,000. A federal grant will pay for $169,520.

The city has talked about improving its sidewalk system for years. The council earlier this year approved a trail and sidewalk master plan, which helped city officials go after the federal money.

The council will vote on the capital improvement plan during its Sept. 3 meeting.

Also on the 2014-15 list are improvements to public buildings and work on the city's sewer system.

The list also includes $68,000 worth of improvements to Arrowhead and McLaughlin parks. The work includes the installation of three pyramid shade shelters and concrete pads in Arrowhead Park, an irrigation system in Arrowhead and the installation of three cantilever shade shelters and concrete pads in McLaughlin Park.

Also on the list is a project to improve Clay Street in the city's Industrial Park. City officials said they will meet with affected business owners in the park to begin discussing special assessments for the project.

The city also intends to renovate the courtroom at the Public Safety Building and make it a storm-safe shelter, if it can secure FEMA money for the project.

In other business Aug. 20, the council:

•Approved an ordinance that alerts property tax payers that the city's 2014 budget is set up to collect more tax revenue than the 2013 budget collected. The city's overall assessed property value increased from 2013 to 2014. The city's mill levy remained the same, but if a property assessed value increased, the property's owner will pay more in taxes in 2014.

•Heard city engineer Mike Kelsey say that the Public Safety Building parking lot should be open next week and that the bid date for water and street work in The Steppes addition will be Sept. 11.

•Hear Hobson say that the grass and weeds in the ditches along Ford and Fifth toward Broadway had gotten tall.