City of Burns receives grant for new community building
Citizens of Burns will be sweating long after the temperatures tumble to lower levels. Burns is one of three communities in Kansas with plans on the table to build a new community building under a new state program using a combination of volunteer local labor and grant money.
The program, called KAN STEP (the acronym stands for Kansas Small Towns Environment Program), has been in effect since 1998.
Originally it was meant to help small towns improve water and sewer systems using volunteer labor in combination with grant money. On July 1, 2002, the program was expanded to include structures which would improve community life in small Kansas towns.
Fire stations and community buildings have been added to the list of projects that combine the Community Development Block Grant money and volunteer labor. The Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing oversees the KAN STEP program.
In a telephone interview, Marilyn Graham, head of the Community Development Division for the KDOC&H, praised the leadership in Burns for its enthusiasm and wealth of local volunteers.
"The program provides some funding and technical assistance," she said. "The community must demonstrate that local leaders are willing and capable of keeping the work on schedule and seeing that the volunteers and the community remain committed to the project."
"We were impressed at the meeting we had in Burns when we went to discuss the project with them," she added. "Not only did they have a room full of enthusiastic volunteers, but they had a meal! They covered all the bases and did what they needed to do to get people there to ask questions about the program and offer to help."
The Burns community building will house an exercise/play area room, quilt room, meeting room/dining room, senior citizen's room, kitchen, pantry, and storage. The project will cost $609,640 and the building will go up on Washington Street just north of the new bank building.
The city will not have to fund any portion of the project. The CDBG grant is in the amount of $338,381. Burns will receive a credit of $21,814 worth of donations in the form of reduced cost of materials, services, and supplies from area businesses.
"The final $249,445 of the total cost of the project," said Graham, "will come from citizens of Burns and the surrounding townships who will offer the expertise, talent, and "sweat" to complete the city's share of the building."
Graham noted that while Burns and two other communities will be erecting community buildings, there are four towns in Kansas in the KAN STEP program building new fire stations.
More information about the KAN STEP program can be had by contacting Graham at 785-296-4856.
Lt. Governor Gary Sherrer said in a press release last week, "I believe this project can be an inspiration to other small communities. By providing this KAN STEP grant, we support the efforts of these citizens and the commitment they have made to improve their community and make the Burns area an even better place to live."
