By ROD ZOOK
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The city of Hutchinson and the Kansas State Fair may be on the verge of an agreement that could ease some of the pain the fair sees from the city’s storm water utility fee. The fee, which was revamped in 2016, increased the fair's annual utility rate to more than $51,000. It was such a shock to the fair that legislation was even introduced in Topeka to entertain the idea of moving the fair out of Hutchinson, although it never really gained traction.
During Tuesday’s meeting, the city and the fair looked over a draft to build a detention pond that would not only service the fairgrounds, but a large portion of the city north and west of the fairgrounds. The pond, which would be dry most of the time, would be located on land leased by the city directly behind the city’s RO water treatment plant and north of the State Fair Park. The Fair Board is set to take action on the draft during the September meeting.
Such a move could lower the fair's storm water utility fee by 50%. It will also benefit a large area around the grounds and beyond. The plan is to use the detention area to slow the amount of water running into the Eastside drainage ditch that runs along Severance east of the fairgrounds. The pond would hold the water and release it into the ditch at a more controlled rate.
If all goes as planned, the detention pond could be finished by 2024 or early 2025, although if the Memorandum of Understanding is approved in September, the savings would be recognized at that time.
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