Steering committee forwards six Build Kansas Fund applications, accepts one revision for federal review

The Kansas Build Kansas steering committee on April 9 reviewed six applications for state Build Kansas Fund support and accepted one requested adjustment to a previously approved award, advising staff to forward the new and revised applications to the relevant federal grant programs for consideration.

Matthew Volz, executive director of the Kansas Infrastructure Hub, opened the meeting saying, "Our agenda today is gonna focus on Build Kansas Fund, application review. We have 6 of them to review today. We also have 1 modification request, and then we will do some hub updates, towards the end." The items reviewed included three Airport Infrastructure Grant (AIG) applications, one WaterSMART-style water infrastructure request, and two projects tied to FEMA's Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program.

Why it matters: Build Kansas Fund awards are intended to help local applicants meet federal match requirements and unlock federal grant dollars. Committee advice to forward these applications moves them on to federal agencies; final federal awards and use of Build Kansas dollars remain contingent on federal grant decisions.

Key items reviewed

- Wichita Airport Authority — Jabara Airport land acquisition (application id in the packet: "2020Five-zero82"). The request: $51,750 from the Build Kansas Fund; local contribution $5,750 (reported as 5% of the match); applicant contribution $450,000; federal funding unlocked stated as $1,092,500; total project cost $1,600,000. Volz noted the parcel is shown in the…