By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post
Representatives from Thomas More Prep-Marian High School have expressed their dissatisfaction with the turnaround built on Victory Road, said Superintendent Dean Katt at Tuesdays’ USD 489’s work session Tuesday.
Katt said the complaint comes from motorists who have noticed the turnaround does not have a big enough radius for large vehicles.
“A car can turn, a minivan is … questionable, and an SUV, none of those vehicles can turn,” said Katt.
Instead, Katt said, the drivers of the vehicles must make a three-point turn in order to exit the turnaround and drive back onto to Victory Road.
Katt said he has “started the conversation” with TMP and will be working through the redesign and see what can be done to make the turnaround functional for larger vehicles.
The turnaround was built by USD 489 as a temporary solution to joint use of Victory Road by TMP and O’Loughlin Elementary School.
Victory Road is owned by Capuchin Province of Mid-America and is used by hundreds of parents each day to drop off and pick up students at O’Loughlin.
TMP spokesman Jeff Brull said Thursday that he has not heard complaints about the turnaround from anyone at TMP.
“None whatsoever,” he said. “We have made a lot of changes so O’Loughlin could use the road during drop-off and pickup times exclusively.”
Brull said he has been happy with the cooperation between TMP and USD 489.
“In past years, I know there were some disagreements,” he said, but said now he considers the “cooperation to be phenomenal.”
“It is wonderful to see level headed people doing what is best for the kids,” he said, specifically pointing out USD 489’s help in allowing TMP basketball games to be played at Hays High School.
A problem arose last summer when administrators said the road was in need of repairs, leading to a closure of the road to USD 489 traffic. Administrators from TMP and USD 489 then began working on a long-term solution for road repairs.
The cement for the turnaround was poured a few weeks ago, and other repairs to the road are planned for the future.
According to district spokeswoman Elizabeth Jaeger, the district spent $9,470 on the turnaround.