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Kanarraville board pulls planning-grant application for Falls entrance; opts to reserve town funds
Summary
After reviewing a $50,000 engineering bid and stormwater timing, the council decided not to submit a planning grant for a Falls entrance redesign and agreed to set aside local funds for a walkway and safety improvements.
Council members on May 13 debated a proposal to fix a hazardous lower parking entrance at the Falls, build a pedestrian path to the kiosk and eventually convert a garage into a small merchandise store, but elected not to submit a planning grant application immediately.
A presenter said Sunrise Engineering’s rebid to redesign the Falls entrance and build a path quoted roughly $50,000 for engineering work; grant program rules discussed during the meeting would cover only part of engineering costs and in some cases exclude structural or construction work. The presenter recommended narrowing the plan to top priorities — primarily making the pedestrian approach safer where RVs and cars share a tight, blind corner.
Council members expressed concern that applying now could lock the town into an expensive engineering contract before the stormwater master plan is finalized. ‘‘Why would they suggest waiting until we get a stormwater master plan?’’ a member asked; colleagues replied that waiting would avoid rebuilding work that stormwater changes might later undo.
Given the consultant’s price and overlapping stormwater work, the council agreed not to file the planning-grant application due the next day and instead to reserve local funds and to re-evaluate after the stormwater plan is further along. Staff said the town could allocate about $25,000 from parks-and-rec revenue to cover limited entrance improvements and still present a revised budget at the June meeting.
If the board later pursues a store project, members noted federal or county grants (including Iron County’s restaurant-tax program) could help pay for ADA upgrades and restroom facilities required by the easement and grant rules. The council emphasized taking ‘‘baby steps’’: address the safety path first, then decide on additional improvements after the stormwater study is complete.
Next steps: staff will notify project leads that the town will not submit the planning grant, set aside budget funds for entrance improvements and return with a costed proposal after the stormwater phases are available.
