The City of Wichita’s award-winning Gilbert-Mosley Project has received yet another honor. The innovative pollution clean-up project has received Honorable Mention in the James C. Howland Urban Enrichment Award Program. The award was presented at the National League of Cities Congress of Cities in Los Angeles.
The Howland Award recognizes innovative local government efforts and public-private partnerships that preserve, enrich or promote high-quality, sensible and sustainable development. The 1999 award competition attracted 86 entries from across the United States.
In 1990, a routine test of groundwater detected a polluted plume near Downtown Wichita that was more than four miles long and a mile-and-a-half wide. This contamination posed a considerable economic threat to area property owners and the viability of downtown revitalization. The Gilbert-Mosley Project is an on-going, innovative effort that has enabled downtown development to occur, all while relieving the potential negative effects of Superfund designation.
As part of the award ceremony, the City was presented with a recognition plaque and a check for $500 for a local charity. Mayor Bob Knight and the City Council presented the check to Communities in Schools, a local organization that connects services and resources in the community with the children and families who need them.