TOPEKA (KSNT) – The City of Topeka has released new information about a proposal that’s been in the works for years to build a Kansas Turnpike Authority interchange in southeast Topeka. The city’s Public Infrastructure committee received an update on the proposal at its regular meeting Tuesday.
At the request of Topeka City Manager Robert Perez, the consulting firm Development Strategies put together a cost benefit analysis of a potential I-470 interchange at 29th and California. The same firm recently helped the city identify address housing, retail and hospitality needs for its Downtown Master Plan.
Construction on the proposed interchange would start in 2030. It currently has projected cost of $19 million. Development Strategies Principal Andy Pfister outlined his company’s analysis to the committee. His firm projected the affected area’s development over the next 25 years with and without the interchange.
“We really tried to think through and if the interchange goes here, how would it impact particularly adjacent sites,” Pfister said. “And we kind of tried to marry this physical site analysis with a market scan of what we know today about different market pressures in Topeka that could be could influence development potential and thus the impact areas.”
Pfister said analysts identified impact areas around the proposed interchange where commercial sites would benefit from a traffic increase. While topography and land ownership would ultimately determine what is possible, Pfister said they also took into consideration future nearby development sites and various market pressures that could impact future housing demand.
“We think there will continued to be demand for housing, particularly new and reinvested housing. The hospitality and office markets are kind of challenged right now and that could change over time. We’re talking like ten, 15, 20 years down the road,” Pfister said.
The firm considered ways increased traffic from the interchange could shape future business and housing developments in the area. He said the interchange could open up the opportunity for more housing and possibly a hotel.
With the predicted construction of new housing, retail, office and hospitality space, Development Strategies believes the potential market value impact on the area would be significant. If the interchange were built today, over the next 25 years the firm estimates it would potentially increase the area’s net market value by $63 million. Each year, it estimates an increase of $1.7 million in property tax revenue and $1.8 million in sales tax revenue.
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In addition to infrastructure improvements, Pfister said the project construction would support hundreds of jobs which would have a direct impact on the local economy.
“The interchange would generate about $27 million in total impact in that construction year, support over 100 jobs. The development program, if it were finished today, that’s $63 million, would generate a total of $100 million almost into the local economy, $32 million in wages and almost 500 jobs,” Pfister said.
After considering multiple options, Copley said city planners decided the intersection of 29th and California would be best for this project. It lets them take advantage of existing streets and the KTA’s recent conversion to cashless tolling.
“We were able to reduce the overall construction cost because we no longer had to have very long roads leading to it to stack the vehicles on, because the actual tolling is done on the road,” Copley said.
After expressing concerns over funding a multi-million dollar project in light of current budget issues, Councilman Jim Dobler asked Perez for his recommendation.
“I think the beauty of this project is that it’s not programed until 2030,” Perez said. “So we have some time to go out and try to look to see what businesses might be interested in something like this. I think that if we get the right portfolio of retail housing, etc., I think that there’s opportunities for partnership, whether it be with KTA, whether it be Shawnee County… if we get the right portfolio of businesses and housing opportunities.”
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