Frequently Asked Questions

The Lake Quivira spillway is designed in accordance with US Corps of Engineering standards for high-hazard dams.  The life expectancy of the new spillway is more than 100 years.

Yes.  The new spillway structure will terminate very near where the old structure did which will still allow water exiting the late to flow similar as to before over the third highest waterfall in the state of Kansas.  Next year’s Duck Derby will be awesome!

Yes.   A set of stairs was built about six years ago to facilitate better access to the waterfall trail.  Unfortunately, the old spillway began leaking directly down the path of the stairs.  Once the new spillway is complete and the leak stopped, the Natural Resources Committee plans to rehabilitate the stairs and waterfall viewing area using resources gifted to the community from Fred Braun.

After construction is complete, a decorative fence will be installed on both sides to prevent access into the new channel.  The Garden Club and Todd Towery will be involved in the final design. Disturbed dirt will be seeded and rehabilitated.

While it appears the “hole” is substantially larger, the new channel will be essentially the same size as the old one.  The concrete base you see poured is 36’ wide, but the new channel bottom will be only 26’.

In order to form the new concrete channel walls, and since the walls are below grade, it is necessary to remove excess material to provide a safe environment for workers in the trench.  This is called “benching”, which is why it appears the dirt walls are in block layers.  The material will be backfilled once the new walls are complete.

A month ago we felt we would be in a position to open the gate and lower the lake back to normal winter pool.  Then it rained 4” in a weekend and the construction site became a bog, slowing progress.   Once the new base is installed, which we expect to be by mid- December, we hope to re-lower the lake prior to closing the gate again in order to continue pouring the channel bottom and walls.

No.  Water One has had numerous challenges of late in all areas of the community.  Q,Inc. management is aware and is having discussions with Water One, but the spillway and water line breaks are unrelated.

The first yard of concrete was poured into the base on November, 29th.  All told the project calls for over 1,100 cubic yards of concrete, or more than 100 mixer loads.

In order to form the new concrete channel walls, and since the walls are below grade, it is necessary to remove excess material to provide a safe environment for workers in the trench. This is called “benching”, which is why it appears the dirt walls are in block layers. The material will be backfilled once the new walls are complete.

Yes. A set of stairs was built about six years ago to facilitate better access to the waterfall trail. Unfortunately, the old spillway began leaking directly down the path of the stairs. Once the new spillway is complete and the leak stopped, the Natural Resources Committee plans to rehabilitate the stairs and waterfall viewing area using resources gifted to the community from Fred Braun.

The Lake Quivira spillway is designed in accordance with US Corps of Engineering standards for high-hazard dams. The life expectancy of the new spillway is more than 100 years.

After construction is complete, a decorative fence will be installed on both sides to prevent access into the new channel. Disturbed dirt will be seeded and rehabilitated.

Yes. The new spillway structure will terminate very near where the old structure did which will still allow water exiting the lake to flow similar as to before over the third highest waterfall in the state of Kansas. Next year’s Duck Derby will be awesome!

No. Water One has had numerous challenges of late in all areas of the community. Q, Inc. management is aware and is having discussions with Water One, but the spillway and water line breaks are unrelated.

The first yard of concrete was poured into the base on November, 29th. All told the project calls for over 1,100 cubic yards of concrete, or more than 100 mixer loads.

We’ve obviously had a much wetter than normal winter with several significant rain and snow events. After the spillway base was completed, we were in a position to partially open the gate. Water has been flowing now for about a month but the lake remains significantly higher than planned. Once the spillway walls are complete, we hope to fully raise the gate to bring the lake down if it’s still high.

While it appears the “hole” is substantially larger, the new channel will be essentially the same size as the old one. The concrete base you see poured is 36’ wide, but the new channel bottom will be only 26’.

The Spillway Improvement Project is a multi-million-dollar project required by the State to address deterioration of the downstream channel of the west spillway at Lake Quivira. It is a coordinated engineering effort that replaces the existing channel with a long-term solution that meets the community needs well into the future.

The west spillway was built before 1940 so is close to 100 years old. We have seen major deterioration on the north end of the spillway since the early 2000s. Extensive work was performed on the south end (lakeside) over the years but the State requires immediate attention for the north side.

The main design features of the Spillway include:

• Concrete channel ranging from a height of 10 ft at the bridge end to 6 ft at the spillway end (near the waterfall)
• Utility relocation and enhancement
• ~Evergy – relocate critical (also an eyesore) electrical pole to outside the gate and relocate four utility poles along Renner to the north side of the street
• ~Kansas Gas – relocate gas line from above the channel (also an eyesore) to underground below the channel floor.  Also, Kanas Gas identified, relocated and modernized  a private gas line servicing Q Inc. buildings.
• ~WaterOne – relocate and replace water lines and fire hydrant
• ~AT&T and Spectrum – relocate services on new utility pole
• Stonework repair and replacement on both the north and south sides
• Bridge sandblasting and painting
• Hardscaping between the new channel and stone wall
• Landscaping on the area outside the fence along Renner Road
• Decorative fencing on the channel wall for safety and aesthetic purposes

• Final engineering approval by City Council – 7/10/23
• Plans submitted to State of Kansas – 7/10/23
• Bid process and contractor awarded – 8/4/23 – 8/23/23
• Permit approved by the State – 9/07/23
• Lake lowered to prepare for work – 10/3/23
• Work begins 10/9/23
• Project complete date – substantial completion 2/1/24 with final completion 2/28/24

The General Contractor is Pyramid Contractors Incorporated, a local, reputable contracting company specializing in bridge construction, road/highway structures, and general excavation. Mark Holmes and Gavin Barmby lead the Spillway Project.

Olsson Engineering is a nationally recognized, employee-owned engineering and design firm that has partnered with the City over the years. The engineering team is led by Brett Johnson, Vice President, along with engineers, Grant Luckenbill and Lauren Hudak. Nader Shehata is the onsite engineer providing day-to-day oversight.

There will be minimal traffic disruptions as the majority of the access to the site will be from Renner Road. That being said, there will be utility work inside the gate that could cause minimal delays. The project team will work with contractors to ensure this is kept to a minimum. Electrical and other service relocation will require closure of the north entrance to Terrace Trail West for short time periods.

The lake is typically lowered in late fall to accommodate residents for dock maintenance and sea wall repairs. The lake was initially lowered on 10/3/23 but rains in mid-October necessitated reopening the gate to get lake level back down. The lake will be lowered again mid-November once the initial channel floor has been laid.

The City will pay for this project with a bridge financing plan featuring a temporary note of $2.4M. Financing was arranged through Piper Sandler with bid awarded to RCB, a regional Kansas bank, at an interest rate of 4.73% with no prepayment penalty. Interest payments on the note will be funded through the City operating budget until the note becomes due in December 2025.  At that time, the City will issue a tax-exempt municipal bond for both the Spillway and the 40-acre land purchase.

Beginning with the 2026 tax year,for each $100,000 of home value, you will pay roughly $77.50 more per year inproperty taxes. This 20-year bond will be paid off by the end of 2045. 

While it appears the “hole” is substantially larger, the new channel will be essentially the same size as the old one.  The concrete base you see poured is 36’ wide, but the new channel bottom will be only 26’.

Current Committee Members:  

• Annie Noland, City Council
• Win Zoellner, former City Council
• Pat McAnany, former Mayor and City Council
• Dave McCullagh, City Council

Prior Committee Member:‍

Bill Cole, Foresight Solutions

In order to form the new concrete channel walls, and since the walls are below grade, it is necessary to remove excess material to provide a safe environment for workers in the trench.  This is called “benching”, which is why it appears the dirt walls are in block layers.  The material will be backfilled once the new walls are complete.

A month ago we felt we would be in a position to open the gate and lower the lake back to normal winter pool.  Then it rained 4” in a weekend and the construction site became a bog, slowing progress.   Once the new base is installed, which we expect to be by mid- December, we hope to re-lower the lake prior to closing the gate again in order to continue pouring the channel bottom and walls.

No.  Water One has had numerous challenges of late in all areas of the community.  Q, Inc. management is aware and is having discussions with Water One, but the spillway and water line breaks are unrelated.

The first yard of concrete was poured into the base on November, 29th.  All told the project calls for over 1,100 cubic yards of concrete, or more than 100 mixer loads.