Another piece of legislation designed to end Kansas and Missouri’s longstanding economic development “border war” sailed through the Kansas City Council on Thursday. The ordinance, which Mayor Quinton Lucas first introduced in September, limits Kansas City’s power to entice companies across the border with generous tax abatements. For years, Kansas and Missouri spent considerable taxpayer resources to lure companies — and coveted jobs — from each other. Companies pocketed, at times, hefty state incentives to move their operations a few miles across the state line. The two states agreed to halt the widely criticized practice last year. (Read more: KC Star Local News)

Johnson County voters on Tuesday approved a $186 million bond issue for Blue Valley schools that will help fund security improvements, classroom additions and a new elementary school. More than 26,200, or 30%, of voters in the district cast mail-in ballots in the bond referendum, with 73.8% in favor of the new spending, according to unofficial results from the Johnson County Election Office. “It was another outstanding show of support from our community for this bond election. We are blessed to live in a community that strongly supports public education and the Blue Valley school district,” said Mike Slagle, deputy superintendent. [...]

On Tuesday the Kansas Department of Health and Environment announced that a person in Lawrence is being investigated for possible exposure to the virus. Missouri health officials say they have not identified any cases of the virus. Though deaths have been reported in China, most people who get sick from the virus will recover on their own, says the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. People infected usually spread it to other people by coughing or sneezing, or through personal contact — such as touching or shaking hands. (Read more: KC Star Local News)

For the first time in 15 years, something new is rising from the dirt and weeds of the long-vacant site of the former Mission Mall in Johnson County. After years of false starts, construction is well underway at the Mission Gateway development — a $225 million project that’s highly visible for commuters along Shawnee Mission Parkway, just west of Roe Avenue. It will include a massive entertainment complex, food hall, apartments, offices and shops. “It’s been a long time coming, that’s for certain,” Mission Councilman Ken Davis said. “I am glad that we’ve persisted and we’ve kept our relationship with the developer on [...]

A Place for Mom, which helps families connect with nursing homes and other senior care facilities, plans to hire more than 600 employees in a new Overland Park office. The company said the new office will include employees who work in management, finance, human resources and information technology. It will also house local advisers, customer service associates and other support staffers, according to a Tuesday news release. Hiring is already underway. “We are committed to creating a world-class operation in the Kansas City area as we continue to transform our business to best serve our customers,” CEO Larry Kutscher said in the [...]

The Johnson County Citizens Academy allows a handful of residents an up-close chance to see how county works each year. The program is relatively new. Started in 2016 by Aaron Otto, who at the time was an assistant to the county manager, the program’s goals include making citizens better informed about county services and increasing the number of residents who want to be part of local boards and councils. “There can be a disconnect between local government and residents. I think that this works on lessening that gap — that disconnect,” said Kiley Heine, an intern with the county manager’s office. [...]

Olathe has been working for years to attract private development to its downtown — something other than government buildings, the Johnson County Jail and law offices. And finally, the city is poised to get it. But the announcement of the downtown’s so-called “first big redevelopment” has led to a firestorm with neighbors, business owners and members of the 120-year-old Old Settlers group. Indianapolis-based development company Milhaus is proposing two, four-story apartment buildings. One would take the place of the library at 201 E. Park St. The other would take over a city-owned public parking lot at the southwest corner of East [...]

When the $2 billion Brookridge Golf Course redevelopment was first proposed for Overland Park, resident Stephan Glentzer showed up to city meetings with a cardboard sign. It read, “No TIF, no OP taxes.” Five years later, he’s still carrying the same sign. After years of going back to the drawing board, a new iteration of the massive project is crawling through City Hall. And this time, the developer — looking to build luxury apartments, offices and retail northeast of Interstate 435 and Antioch Road — is requesting more than $200 million in TIF money, or tax increment financing, and other tax [...]

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will pay only a fraction of the value of its lease when it relocates two research agencies to downtown Kansas City, a break in the rent made possible by state and local economic incentives. The USDA officially informed employees Thursday of plans to move two research agencies to an office building at 805 Pennsylvania Avenue after considering locations on both sides of the state line. Missouri and Kansas political leaders applauded the announcement as a win for regional cooperation on economic development. The two states submitted a joint bid to bring the Economic Research Service and [...]

It would have been so easy just to tap a fifth-grader for each task. School tour guide? Stylist to display lost-and-found items? News hound to help with daily announcements? You. You. And you. Done. But that’s not the way it happened this fall at Central Elementary School in Olathe. The school’s fifth-graders applied for various part-time “jobs” at the school, wrote resumes and submitted to interviews by the members of the Olathe School District’s human resources staff. (Read more: KC Star Local News)