City council poised to terminate latest Mission Gateway deal

Mission_Gateway_Site — A New York-based bank has moved to foreclose its mortgage on the Mission Gateway property. File photo.

The latest version of the long-delayed and much-discussed Mission Gateway project is in clear jeopardy.

City officials announced the Mission City Council will hold a special meeting Monday night to consider terminating the current redevelopment agreement with developers Aryeh Realty, LLC.

Aryeh has failed to pay taxes

Aryeh Realty failed to pay more than $450,000 worth of property taxes, which is an event that can prompt the agreement to be voided, according to city documents.
Developers were notified of default on May 15 and given a 6o-day window to pay the taxes — a deadline that passed on Friday, July 14.
“The developer was given a notice of default on May 15, 2023, for failure to timely pay real estate taxes and assessments, and was given 60 days to cure the default,” Mayor Sollie Flora said in a statement. “With the expiration of the cure period, it is now appropriate that the Council review and discuss all alternatives available to the City under the terms of the redevelopment agreement.”
Developer Matt Valenti of the Cameron Group, of which Aryeh is a subsidiary, could not be reached for comment for this story.

This isn’t the first time developers defaulted on agreement

The developers also defaulted on a previous iteration of the agreement in 2021.
That led to the city and Aryeh coming to terms on the latest version of the plan, which the city council approved in January.
This most recent plan laid out a $270 million redevelopment project for the prominent and long-vacant site of the former Mission City Mall near Johnson Drive and Shawnee Mission Parkway, that includes residential, retail and office components.

Northeast Johnson County 2023 developments — Above, a rendering of the current Mission Gateway project at Johnson Drive and Roe Avenue. File image courtesy city of Mission.

What’s next:

The special city council meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on July 17.
It will be held at city hall, 6090 Woodson Road.
After the last version defaulted, Aryeh came back with an updated plan (the subject of the this latest redevelopment agreement).
The city does not own the Mission Gateway property and cannot unilaterally decide what happens to that site next.

Go deeper: Mission Gateway developers snub city council, angering mayor