Flint Hills regional coalition secures $1.5M Brownfields assessment grant; Junction City joins MOA

Jana Williams of the Flint Hills Regional Council told the Junction City Commission that the region received a Brownfields Coalition Assessment Grant totaling $1,500,000 and asked the city to join a coalition by signing a memorandum of agreement. Williams said the grant covers Phase I and Phase II environmental assessments, underground storage tank removal, and area planning work intended to identify redevelopment opportunities along corridors including Grant Avenue.

Consultants Wendy Van Dyne (Stantec) and Caitlin Willard presented a proposed scope of work that includes community engagement, a market-study update, identification of catalyst sites and an implementation matrix that maps recommendations to funding sources. They described a flexible study area that could extend from Washington and Grant Avenue to the Fort Riley main gate and noted a typical schedule of about six months to complete the area-wide plan if the project kicked off promptly.

Williams emphasized the voluntary, nonregulatory nature of the program and said a Brownfields advisory committee of regional stakeholders will meet quarterly to monitor the work plan. Commissioners asked for clarifications on the study boundary and whether the Grama/Grant Avenue corridor would be the initial focus; consultants said boundaries can be adjusted and that nominations from property owners are welcome. The commission moved and approved the MOA on the record.

Next steps include designating a city representative to the advisory committee and finalizing the scope and schedule with consultants. The coalition's work is intended to make certain properties eligible for remediation funding and to produce planning tools to support grant applications for implementation projects.