By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
When the project to pave 8th Street between Grant Street and McKinley Street started in 2018, Great Bend had to acquire half an acre of land to accommodate the curved finish of the road to line up with 8th Street on the west side of McKinley.
With the street work completed, there is now a sliver of land near 8th and McKinley that is unused. Clara Barton Hospital is constructing their new clinic nearby and asked the City of Great Bend if they would be interested in sodding the strip of land to match their property.
City Administrator Kendal Francis proposed deeding the city’s land
over to Clara Barton to manage. The city council questioned giving up a prime
piece of real estate, albeit small, near the business corridor of 10th Street and
along the connecting street between Dillons and Walmart.
"I truly can't see it as an economic property," said Francis. "We felt it would be better to give it over to Clara Barton to take care of. If they are willing to sod it and make it look better, we thought that might be the best way to go about it."
Francis said the “tear-drop shaped” land is 7,831 square feet and at its widest
point is nearly 65 feet long. No decision was made on deeding the land over to
Clara Barton. Currently, city crews maintain the parcel for mowing purposes.
The cost for the new street, sanitary sewer and water improvements was
$865,000.