KINGMAN — Homegrown Kingman City Manager Tim Walsh is anxious to move forward in 2026, believing he’s settled in at City Hall after his first 20 months on the job.
“There’s still a lot to learn, still a lot to figure out,” Walsh said. “That first year was a pretty good learning curve. Having that behind me, and really a big part of it is knowing my staff a lot better, knowing what things that they do and knowing how to work with all of them.”
A man who has spent all but his college years in Kingman is in position to lead the city through critical junctures in a number of projects key to the community’s future.
“It’s amazing. Growing up here and working here, you always hear about the potential, what Kingman could be and what it could become,” Walsh said. “Seeing the Flying Fortress going in, the potential of the Kingman Crossing coming in and the west Kingman TI going on. It’s exciting to be a part of it.”
Flying Fortress
Walsh said the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) currently projects the Interstate 40 Flying Fortress Traffic Interchange (TI) to be completed and opened in August of this year. It will connect with Louise Avenue to the south, improving access to the Rancho Santa Fe and Vista Bella subdivisions, White Cliffs middle school and the Hualapai Mountain foothills.
“On the north side, ADOT connects up to Grand Canyon I believe, and then from Grand Canyon to Airway and then Airway down to Prospector. We’re actually working on that right now. Our 100% plans just came in, so we’ll be putting that out to bid really soon.”
The City has not yet determined a funding source or the timetable for stretching the roadway to its destination to the north, the Kingman Airport and Industrial Park, at a cost of up to $20-million.
“Our ultimate intent is to connect to the airport,” Walsh said. “It’s really a matter of working with property owners in that area, working on identifying funding within the city and making that happen,” Walsh said. “Coming off of Flying Fortress you’ll have 4 lanes and then right around Grand Canyon it will neck down to 2 and then it’ll be a 2-lane roadway out to the airport for an intermediate time until the demand requires that it go to the 4-lane.”
I-40/US 93 West Kingman Interchange
Construction that began last July is expected to be completed in the summer of 2027 of a $106-million dollar endeavor to provide for free flowing traffic while connecting freeways that provide the main route of travel between Las Vegas and Phoenix.
While this is an ADOT initiative, the City is a heavily impacted and key stakeholder.
The Kingman Crossing
This I-40 interchange project in northeast Kingman has an undefined future. Formerly conceived as a partnership between the City and Kingman Regional Medical Center, the initiative was focused on economic and retail development and providing southern access to city-owned acreage just off the Interstate.
City officials long ago indicated the City/KRMC Development Agreement (DA) for the Kingman Crossing had expired, after lying dormant before, through and after COVID. While it appeared the partnership might be revived after the City Council discussed the matter in executive session a half dozen times last year, the Council last month ultimately directed staff to take whatever steps necessary to formally nullify the DA.
“Starting fresh is the best way for the City going forward,” Walsh said. He said it’s important to keep all options open, including KRMC.
At the same time, he said it is possible that new partners emerge and the project takes new shape. “We’ve got some interest from other parties.”
