Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County

When it comes to the future of the city of Shawnee — and the growth of business and economy — workforce density and government responsiveness were two key elements identified as needs of the business community. About 40 members of the business community in Shawnee met in a business focus group Aug. 20 to talk about the challenges and opportunities of growing and maintaining a business in the city. The focus group is part of the city’s first strategic visioning process, Imagine Shawnee. (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County)

Mayor Eric Mikkelson broke a tie vote at a Prairie Village city council committee meeting on Monday to send a proposed drone ordinance to the governing body for final consideration in the coming weeks. Prairie Village has been looking into whether and how to regulate the use of drones over the city since 2017, when a woman hired a drone pilot to fly a banner over the crowd at the Prairie Village Jazz Festival in hopes of reconnecting with a potential lover interest. That incident, which spooked some in the crowd, combined with a handful of reports about drones of unknown origin [...]

The frame for the new Johnson County Courthouse under construction in downtown Olathe has been completed. Johnson County staff, Olathe city staff and JE Dunn Construction celebrated Tuesday, Aug. 13 with a “topping out” ceremony at the construction site, when crews raised the last steel beam 238 feet to the courthouse’s highest point in its structural framing. When it opens in early 2021, the new courthouse, with 28 courtrooms and approximately 350,000 square feet of space, is expected to address the county’s criminal justice needs for the next 75 years as Johnson County continues to grow. (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post [...]

The Merriam city council has directed city staff to look into the feasibility and costs of saving the 1911 portion of the Irene B. French Community Center. Over the past several months, Merriam city leaders, residents and business owners have been considering options for the century-old historic building at 5701 Merriam Drive. In its final report to the Merriam city council on Monday, the 5701 Merriam Drive Steering Committee recommended saving as much of the 1911 portion of the Irene B. French Community Center as possible. That option would involve tearing down the rest of the center, creating open space and [...]

Should cities continue to give generous tax incentives to big retailers even if it means those businesses will eventually challenge their property valuations, demand several years of tax refunds and leave homeowners and school districts holding the bag? Some Johnson County cities are beginning to say no. As the news has begun to sink in that yet another corporate discounter – Walmart – recently won an appeal of its property values, a few cities are already looking at ways they can protect themselves. And the idea of the day seems to be tax incentive agreements that can rake back some of [...]

After Lenexa residents posed questions on proper usage of golf carts on residential streets, the city council updated city regulations to make them more easily understood and enforceable. Before the city updated the code, golf carts were generally not allowed to operate on city streets. City staff reported receiving numerous questions from residents regarding the use of golf carts on public streets. (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)

Merriam residents had a double celebration on a hot and humid Tuesday night at Waterfall Park. City leaders and staff last night dedicated an area of the 15-acre park to be the new site for playground equipment formerly at Vavra Park. City officials also officially dedicated a new, $95,000 sculpture of a caterpillar and butterfly on the northern side of the park abutting Merriam Drive. The sculpture, “Hmmm…” is designed by Colorado artist Joshua Weiner, who attended the dedication ceremony. The 9-foot tall caterpillar stands next to a 12-foot cairn, stack of granite river boulders, with a butterfly perched on top. [...]

TThe ripples of the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals’ recent ruling in case brought by Walmart alleging that Johnson County had overcharged the retailer millions in property taxes have extended to the Shawnee Mission School District. The so-called “dark store theory” appeals brought by Walmart and other big-box retailers have challenged the method Johnson County appraisers used to value commercial property. Though the issues will likely be tied up in appeals for some time, they’ve caused alarm among local government officials, who are preparing for the possibility of millions in commercial property tax revenue disappearing — and having to pay back [...]

An unexplained lag in sales tax collections and the prospect of losing commercial property tax revenues in a court battle had Overland Park officials on edge as they set the public hearing for the 2020 budget. City Manager Bill Ebel told council members Monday that more bad news on either issue would likely mean spending cuts, even though the latest property valuation estimates are higher than anticipated. Ebel’s comments came in a committee meeting before the council set Aug. 5 as the public hearing date for a 2020 budget that is largely unchanged from the one he recommended in June. The [...]

The city of Shawnee on Monday night conducted the first of three imagineering sessions as part of a visioning process for the city’s first ever strategic plan. Their initial findings: Many residents like the city’s sense of community and amenities, and many others want to see economic development and better infrastructure. Residents filled Transport Brewery in downtown Shawnee and broke off into groups to discuss the city’s strengths, opportunities and what they like about Shawnee, while deliberating on its weaknesses, threats and areas where they would like to see change. (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for [...]