City and county weigh cost-sharing for E. 1st Street upgrades serving airport corridor

Newton and Harvey County officials discussed a proposal to widen and add shoulders to East 1st Street from Spencer Road toward Oliver Road to accommodate industrial development and improve access to the Newton City-County Airport. Newton City Commissioners Rich Stinnet and Kathy Valentine and Newton City Engineer Suzanne Loomis asked the county to consider sharing the cost of contracting an engineering firm to design the project, with the work potentially done in phases (Spencer–Hillside first, then Hillside–Oliver). Loomis said construction on the project "would begin within a year."

Commissioner Becky Reimer said she wants to see a larger plan for all routes to the airport, and County Road & Bridge Superintendent Jim Meier told commissioners he maintains a five-year schedule of projected needs and is reluctant to expand lane-mile inventory without ensuring maintenance capacity. Commissioners expressed support for cooperation with the city and agreed to schedule a future work session to review Road & Bridge projected needs and to consider partnership on design funding. The city noted daily traffic counts exceed 3,400 vehicles east of Spencer and that water and sewer are available along the corridor, which the presentation said makes the area suitable for industrial growth.