An Overland Park City Council committee voted Wednesday to guarantee some funding for the Bluhawk development project‘s second phase after developers asked for the provision in case some city or state bond funding doesn’t come through.
As part of the request, Price Brothers asked the city for access to $6.9 million in Community Improvement District reimbursements, which is required to fund retail development under the development agreement.
Why it matters: Developers say securing a portion of public financing for the next phase of construction on the project will help guarantee work running on time.
Developers are preparing to begin the first phase of work on Bluhawk’s centerpiece: a 435,0000-square foot multi-sport complex, which is set to include ice rinks, an indoor turf field, batting cages and athletic courts.
“What that will allow us to do is not have to wait or slow down to build the Phase 2 retail that we need to issue the Phase 2 bonds,” said representative Aaron March this week.
The second phase of the project also includes continuing the buildout of Bluhawk’s retail component, including retail shops and hotels.
Where the committee landed: Committee members generally supported granting the request for a measure of guaranteed funding. .
Councilmember Holly Grummert said she saw the deal as a “safety net” to help the project progress as much as it can in the face of potential challenges with distributing the bonds for it.
“I could see where there’d be some concern about state and city bond issues,” Grummert said. “And we all can see the benefit of having this part of the city enhanced with this facility and this retail and really growing what was not anything before. So that’s why it’s important to remember with these (public-private) partnerships that we don’t know it would happen without it.”
But Councilmember Jeff Cox argued the amendment places more of a burden on taxpayers, who are already paying roughly $154 million toward the project through tax abatements.
He said the burden should primarily be on the developer of the project.
“My opinion is that if we want to develop things, if private developers want to develop things in our community, it’s up to them to come up with the capital to do it or the money to do it,” Cox said.
The committee approved the measure on a 5 to 1 vote, with Cox opposing it.
