The Shawnee Mission School District has agreed to sell the former Westwood View Elementary property to the city of Westwood, setting up a much-anticipated remaking of the site along Rainbow Boulevard.
On Monday, the Shawnee Mission school board voted 6-0 to approve a purchase agreement with the city to sell the property at 2511 W. 50th St. for $2.65 million.
The school property will be transferred to the city in January, and the city will lease back the existing building to the district for $1 annually through July 2024, as it’s still in use as a temporary school for students from Rushton Elementary, which is in the process of being rebuilt.
Plans for Westwood View site are not final
Leslie Herring, Westwood’s City Administrator, told the school board Monday that the agreement will be reviewed by the Westwood City Council at its June 8th meeting.
She said there were no definitive plans yet for the site, but that the nearly five-acre space would likely feature a park and green space.
A concept plan presented to the city council in March envisioned a public park on the former school grounds.
“We’re not sure what all amenities it would include,” Herring told the board. “We will be beginning the public engagement process soon, and it will be ongoing over the next several months.”
Project includes site of former Westwood Christian Church
The park would be a part of a larger redevelopment project for Westwood.
The city already owns property just to the east of the school, and west of Rainbow Boulevard, between 50th and 51st streets, where the Westwood Christian Church once stood.
Westwood has been contemplating potential uses for the site for years, going back to 2015.
Last fall, Westwood asked residents to participate in an online survey to provide input on the future of the property.
At that time, Mayor David Waters outlined four scenarios for the site, along with details on the future needs of city facilities not far away.
In his letter than, the mayor said an assessment found that repairs to the current city hall — a few blocks north on Rainbow — would cost at least $4-5 million. One scenario for the Westwood View site and its adjacent lots imagines building a new city hall at 50th and Rainbow.
Herring said Monday that there are no final designs at the moment for anything on the property, including the park and green space, but Westwood has begun working with a private developer, Karbanks Real Estate Company, toward designing a mixed-use development that consists of four separate office buildings that would sit along Rainbow Boulevard.
There would be no apartment complex on the property, but some residential units would be permitted, as well as a limited retail footprint. An underground parking structure would also be created.
The Westwood City Council approved a funding arrangement in March that allows the city to modify plans with Karbank without being committed to any final development.
The former Westwood View is Rushton’s temporary home
The new Westwood View Elementary opened last fall and is located nearby at 4935 Belinder Avenue, the site of the former Entercom radio studios.
Shawnee Mission Superintendent Michelle Hubbard on Monday stressed that the school district may not need the old school building through July of next year.
When the district does relinquish their lease, Westwood plans to greenlight the process to have Karbank demolish the building.
