After the city of Shawnee moved to use eminent domain to plan for the conversion of a piece of private property into a new building for a parks and recreation facility, the property owner has filed a countering petition against the city, urging the Johnson County District Court to enter a restraining order and prohibit the city from pursuing its claim.
The private property being contested in Johnson County District Court is located at 18570 Johnson Drive in western Shawnee and is owned by Wayne Developers LLC. Wayne Developers, which is affiliated with Republic Services Inc., a provider of solid waste collection, purchased the land in August 2018, intending to develop the site as a multimillion-dollar transportation facility for collections vehicles.
The city is claiming it must acquire the property, which is adjacent to the city’s public works facility, by eminent domain in order to build a parks and recreation facility. Melissa Hoag Sherman, an attorney with Spencer Fane LLP who represents Republic Services and Wayne Developers, said the city of Shawnee knew that the private property was for sale last year and could have purchased it then.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County)