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Topeka residents want the land below next Polk-Quincy Viaduct to be for fun, survey says

Tim Hrenchir
Topeka Capital-Journal
Fun is mostly what Topekans want from the open spaces that will sit beneath the next Polk-Quincy Viaduct, which is to be built to replace the current viaduct, shown here.

Fun is mostly what Topekans want from the open spaces that will sit beneath the next Polk-Quincy Viaduct, according to results of a survey conducted this year by the Polk-Quincy Activation Task Force.

Topeka's mayor and city council heard a presentation at their meeting Tuesday from Rhiannon Friedman, president of Downtown Topeka Inc., one of seven organizations in the group that conducted the survey.

The three most popular potential uses respondents suggested for the land beneath the future viaduct were for "multi-use leisure," "family recreation" and "outdoor play place," she said.

More:Commercial properties in viaduct project's path face unfriendly relocation costs in 'seller's market'

Urban renewal cleared way for viaduct's construction in 1963

The viaduct project is aimed at improving safety by replacing and flattening out Interstate 70's sharp curve near S.E. 3rd Street by moving to the north much of the highway that currently runs to the west of that curve.

The curve was created when KDOT in 1963 built the viaduct, an elevated four-lane segment of I-70 that runs between S.W. Polk and S.E. Quincy streets.

Topeka's city government between 1956 and 1964 forced residents to leave their homes and businesses, many of which were Black-owned, in the area involved.

The city did that by carrying out a federally funded Urban Renewal program through which it bought properties, razed almost all the buildings and sold the land to be used for economic development and as the site of the viaduct.

About 48% of survey respondents were 35 or younger

Roughly "three football fields" worth of land will sit beneath the replacement viaduct after it's built to the north of its current site, Friedman said.

Downtown Topeka Inc., the Greater Topeka Partnership, the city of Topeka, Shawnee County, ArtsConnect, the NOTO Arts District and the Riverfront Advisory Council are all part of the task force that conducted the survey, which asked respondents to pick their three favorite potential uses for that land, she said.

Facebook was the primary tool used to get the word out about the survey, which received 2,620 responses, Friedman said.

"That's huge," she said.

About 48% of respondents were 35 or younger, which was "exciting to see" because it suggests this community's young people want to be engaged in the future of the land beneath the next viaduct, Friedman said.

Their answers indicated the pool of respondents was "well-rounded" in terms of racial and ethnic diversity and in terms of the various parts of the city in which they live, she added.

More:Work has begun to clear away buildings in the future path of the Polk-Quincy Viaduct

What were the top choices?

Friedman showed the mayor and council a graphic showing the number of votes received by each of the 17 potential choices respondents had was:

• 992 for "multi-use leisure."

• 966 for "family recreation."

• 852 for "outdoor play place."

• 782 for "urban eatery."

• 721 for "urban greenspace."

• 668 for "walkable trails."

• 488 for "pet friendly/family fun."

• 449 for "rejuvenate & relax."

• 419 for "urban skate park."

• 394 for "interactive lightning."

• 364 for "arts, murals & more."

• 292 for "travel way/bikes paths."

• 222 for "art installations."

• 179 for "worktime escape."

• 153 for "gathering spot."

• 137 for "setting the 'stage.'"

• 64 for "education stations."

What's next?

The city of Topeka's next step is to apply for grant funding to help finance any steps it may want to take regarding the use of the land that will sit beneath the next Polk-Quincy Viaduct, Friedman said.

She said the city intends to apply for federal "Reconnecting Communities Pilot Grant" funding, adding that the requirements involved appearing to be "almost perfect" in terms of fitting in with what the city is trying to do.

This year's deadline is Oct. 13 to apply for funding from that program, which was established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and is to award $1 billion over the next five years, Friedman said.

Topeka could consequently seek to obtain grant funding in multiple years, Friedman said.

"The program's goal is to reconnect communities that were previously cut off from economic opportunities by transportation infrastructure," said a slide that was part of her PowerPoint presentation. "Funding supports planning grants and capital construction grants, to restore community connectivity through the removal, retrofit, mitigation or replacement of eligible transportation infrastructure facilities."

The grant the city is pursuing could total as much as $800,000, and the city would need to put forth 20% in matching funds to receive it, city manager Stephen Wade told the mayor and council.

If the city's application proves successful, the mayor and council could discuss where the city's matching funds would come from, he said.

Contact Tim Hrenchir at (785) 213-5934 or threnchir@gannett.com.