Fix to dangerous Kansas River weir could cost $2M

Fixing a safety issue along Kansas River weir could cost nearly $2 million.

Don Rankin, Topeka utilities superintendent, on Wednesday presented to the Topeka-Shawnee County four alternatives to update the weir, where three people have drowned near the water treatment plant. The presentation, he said, was an attempt to solicit stakeholder input prior to providing the Topeka City Council with a staff recommendation.

“We’ve had unfortunate incidents in the past that we want to minimize the risk of that happening in the future,” Rankin said. “The river is inherently dangerous, so there has to be a respect for it.”

While the city council ultimately will view all options, the Riverfront Authority board on Wednesday narrowed its recommendations to two, both of which address the hydraulic issue on the south side of the weir.

Rankin agreed with the board’s priority to address the safety issue, noting people still will travel along the south side, regardless of updates or the existing signs telling them not to.

However, as pointed out by David Greene with the Friends of the Kaw River, the rock jetties often force canoes and kayaks to the south side.

The board quickly dismissed the first alternative, which was developed in 2005 and put cost estimates at more than $9 million. It also threw out the second alternative, which only improved the north side of the weir.

The options the board did support ranged in price from $1.4 million to $1.9 million.

The first only addresses the danger zone on the south side. It involves the construction of one large water chute and adding a series of stair-step boulders. The plan also would create a portage route — ramps and a path on land for people to disembark and carry their crafts around the weir.

The second, at $1.9 million, would construct portages and address safety and navigation issues on both the north and south sides of the weir. On the north side, the plan calls for four chutes that lead into pools.

By constructing both projects at the same time, the city would receive an estimated cost savings in the neighborhood of $650,000.

The city council authorized $50,000 toward the design phase of the project. Only a small amount has been spent so far, Rankin said. Once a plan is selected, he estimated it would take about six months to finish design and another nine months to construct.

“I’m always a little too optimistic in the time frames I give,” Rankin conceded. “City processes do move slower than you like sometimes.”