Details on the settlements, and how much will be repaid, will be worked out over the next 30 days, said city administrator Laura Smith. But the city has unanimously agreed to authorize settlement agreements in two pending lawsuits, ultimately to repay TUF dollars to the Heartland Apartment Association and 10 individual plaintiffs in that case, as well as a class action case brought by Rex Danley. In general, the plaintiffs and the city have agreed to terms in both of the cases.
“The city has taken strong positions all along,” said Mission City Administrator Laura Smith. “We feel like we have strong defenses against repayment and that we aren’t obligated to repay that, but in looking at how it was impacting the council’s ability to look at future capital programming and expenditure of street dollars with the potential of that repayment and the cost of ongoing litigation.”
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)