At Tuesday’s meeting, the City Commission awarded a contract for demolition of the former Dillons building at 320 N. Main to Dondlinger Construction and approved an agreement with BNSF Railway to share costs for cleanup of the site.
Dondlinger proposes to start the demolition work in mid-October. The project will cost $160,000.
For years the City has been negotiating a reimbursement agreement with BNSF. Soil samples from the site were found in 2016 to be contaminated from a historical fuel spill in the adjacent railyard. By state and federal law, the contaminated soil must be cleaned up before the property can be redeveloped.
Under the agreement, BNSF will reimburse the City for the incremental additional costs associated with disposing of special waste up to 250 tons. The fuel-contaminated soil is classified as “special waste” under Kansas law because it requires special handling and disposal.
The property was purchased by the City in 2015 with the intention of building a new police station. The Commission later decided that the project was too expensive and opted instead to remodel the existing Law Enforcement Center together with Harvey County.
2026 Budget
The Commission adopted a 2026 budget that keeps the property tax rate flat for 2026. The $62.7 million budget includes:
- Increases in wages and benefits for City employees. A recent compensation study recommended that Newton pay its staff at 60% of the market value — just a bit more than the median — to attract and retain high-quality employees.
- An increase in equipment reserves and building maintenance funds for anticipated replacement and maintenance needs.
- Continued funding of external City partners: Newton Area Chamber of Commerce ($30,000), Harvey County Economic Development ($142,275), Health Ministries Clinic ($40,000), and Newton Area Senior Center ($20,000).
- No transfer from the Wastewater Fund to the General Fund for property tax relief. In the past, about $1.14 million was transferred each year from the Water and Wastewater Funds, but in the past couple of years, those transfers were not necessary. Staff are hopeful that trend can continue this year and next year.
- Approved an agreement with PEC for engineering services for the Safe Streets for All (SS4A) grant. The project, which is 100% funded by federal and state grants, will conduct road safety audits, analyze intersections and high crash locations in Newton and Harvey County, and develop an action plan for safety improvements.
- Received plans and specifications for extending a rail line in the Kansas Logistics Park and set a bid date of 11:30 a.m. Sept. 25.
- Added a hotel incentive package to the City’s economic development policy. The framework will allow the City to offer certain incentives, such as property tax abatements, sales tax exemptions, or reduced guest tax rates, for new hotel developments or existing hotel remodel/rebranding.
- Received the Annual Housing Report.
- Proclaimed September as National Recovery Month.
- Approved a request to close West Sixth Street and provide City services for the United Way Chili Cookoff on Sept. 27.
- Adopted the 2025 editions of the Standard Traffic Ordinances and Uniform Public Offense Code.
- Approved a final plat for Prairie View’s expansion.
- Approved a final plat for the final parcel of the Cornelius Gardens Addition at Southeast Second and Pine.
- Tabled an update to the City’s building codes.
For more information, please contact Communications Director Erin McDaniel at 316-284-6055 or emcdaniel@newtonkansas.com.
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