Lansing City Council weighs return of RAGBRAI in 2027, bridge remnant proposal and opening of new bridge in early November
by Joshua Sharpe
At its Tuesday, September 8 meeting delayed by the Labor Day holiday, the Lansing City Council held an extended discussion about whether the community should pursue another opportunity to serve as a RAGBRAI end town in 2027. The council also discussed possible community uses for remnants of the former Black Hawk Bridge, changes that could affect fall large-item pick-up, and the opening of the new bridge in early November.
RAGBRAI RETURN
The council began considering whether the community should pursue another opportunity to serve as a RAGBRAI end town in 2027, with Main Street Lansing representatives presenting information from the city’s 2022 experience and asking council members whether enough interest exists to continue developing a possible bid. Andrew Boddicker, representing Main Street Lansing during the discussion, said the organization had already begun considering whether it wanted to serve as a host organization again but emphasized that cooperation from the city would be necessary before the proposal could advance. The proposal opened a broader discussion about what Lansing would need to resolve before deciding whether to pursue another event of that scale.
Boddicker reviewed Lansing’s 2022 RAGBRAI experience, noting that about 25,000 people came through the community, about 1,200 vehicles were parked across three lots, and roughly 120 volunteers worked through about 20 committees. The presentation also cited about $207,000 in revenue and approximately $97,000 in expenses, leaving roughly $110,000 that was later distributed through a grant application process. Nearly $338,000 in grant requests were reportedly received, with the city receiving nearly $50,000 through the resulting distributions.
COSTS AND LESSONS FROM 2022
While council members acknowledged the potential benefits of bringing RAGBRAI back to Lansing, much of the discussion centered on what would have to change or be established before another bid could move forward. Mayor Mike Verdon summarized his position by saying, “I have truly mixed emotions on this.”
Verdon pointed to additional expenses the city encountered during the 2022 event, including law enforcement and clean-up, while also revisiting previous difficulties surrounding traffic management and the timing of the upcoming Highway 9/Main Street closure. Those concerns come as Lansing approaches the end of the current bridge construction period while also anticipating future reconstruction work on Highway 9. Verdon said organizers and the City would need to establish clear responsibilities and procedures before deciding. “There would have to be an awful lot of structure - very finely, very fully defined structure - to this,” Verdon said.
He proposed gathering input from council members, city departments, law enforcement, and City Clerk Teresa Severson so they could fully identify concerns and incorporate them into a workable plan. The discussion indicated the council could potentially wait until its second meeting in October to decide while still allowing organizers to meet an October 31 application deadline.
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