Marion rejects hearings, approves spending plan
Staff writer
Ruth Herbel thinks taxpayers should get to weigh in on Marion’s capital improvement plan, but she was the lone city council member with that opinion.
Herbel made a motion Tuesday to table a vote on the plan for 60 days so the city could schedule a town hall to hear from residents about the plan.
“I would be opposed to that. Anyone else?” Mayor David Mayfield said. “If we go changing a bunch of stuff around, we’d have to start over.”
Herbel’s motion failed, and the council voted 4-1 to approve the plan without additional input.
Council members didn’t pose any questions about items on their biweekly meeting agenda.
The capital improvement plan includes $469,500 for fresh water supply, $402,000 for the city’s wastewater system, $4,026,000 for city assets including City Hall and the airport and at least $3,821,227 reconstruction and new construction of city streets.
The city will finance projects using a mix of bonds, grants, American Rescue Plan Act funds and public/private partnerships.
Marion will receive $3.8 million from the Kansas Department of Transportation for the most expensive project, the airport’s comprehensive plan.
The council, also established a strategic planning leadership team that will weigh in on capital improvements.
Mayfield appointed Randy Collett, Ryan Edmundson, Jeremiah Lange, Kelsey Metro and Bruce Skiles to that group.
Collett is the city’s former economic development director and city councilman Zach Collett’s father.