Your Lenexa Mayor and City Council election primer

Early voting in Johnson County is in full swing and Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 7, is upon us.

As Johnson County residents head to the polls and mail in ballots, we’ve put together election primers for each of the local races in the Post’s coverage area to give readers and residents in those communities an easy way to find out more about the candidates and where they stand on the issues important to you.

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See who the candidates are

Mayor

• Business owner and current City Councilmember Julie Sayers
• Consultant and current City Councilmember Joe Karlin

Ward 1

• Educator and current Johnson County Library Board Chair Bethany Griffith
• Teacher and incumbent Councilmember Courtney Eiterich

Ward 2

• HR consultant Jermaine Jamison
• Architect and general contractor Mark Charlton

Ward 3

• Attorney Chelsea Williamson
• Retired executive and incumbent Councilmember Dan Roh

Ward 4

• Property manager Christopher Herron
• Real estate appraisal firm owner Michael Elliott

Read what candidates say on key issues

• Property taxes
• “Missing middle” housing/affordability
• Lenexa City Center
• Old Town’s future
• Comprehensive plan

Watch the Post’s candidate forums

The Post hosted forums for Lenexa mayoral and city council candidates on Tuesday, Oct. 3, at Lenexa City Center Library.

Immediately following the embedded video are the questions each candidate answered during the forum.

Timestamps are included in bold to help navigate through the forum video.

Mayoral forum

1. Candidate’s opening statements. [4:37]
2. If elected, what would be your biggest priorities immediately coming into office? [6:43]
3. Regardless of who wins between the two of you, Lenexa will have its first new mayor in two decades with Michael Boehm opting not to run for reelection. In what ways do you see yourself similar to Boehm and where are you most different? [10:35]
   
4. Reader Question: With the economy in its current condition, all candidates in all cities should be talking about how they’ll reduce spending, lower the city budget and lower homeowners’ property taxes. On the other hand, another reader asks what are there plans for fully funding city initiatives. Where do they fall on that spectrum between those two questions? Which do they prioritize more?  [14:29]
   
5. Lenexa is cutting its mill levy for 2024. Do you think the city should consider cutting it more? What would they be comfortable with? Do they want to see it cut down to the revenue neutral rate? [17:45]
   
6. For seniors and people that have owned their homes for decades and feel like they can’t sell or move out, what can they do as mayor to help relieve this particular group of people? [20:02]
   
7. Families are being priced out of the market in Lenexa and they’re moving to surrounding cities. If elected mayor, what would be in their power to attract developers who could possibly afford to construct more affordable options? How do you prioritize affordable options? [22:43]
8. Where do renters fit into this conversation? [25:29]
9. Outside of City Center, are there plans to develop other areas of Lenexa? [27:23]
10. What is your position on aquatics? Do you support the Ad Astra pool staying open? [30:33]
11. What makes you qualified as mayor over your opponent? [32:23]
    
12. Would you consider mental health part of public safety? [34:35]
13. How will make Lenexa more walkable? [37:30]
14. Beyond taxes, how do you take of Lenexa’s seniors? [39:39]
15. How do you improve decaying areas, especially shopping centers particularly between 79th and 87th Streets? [41:31]
16. What do you think will be the most challenging aspect of being mayor and what are you most excited about? [43:04]
17. Closing statements. [45:50]

Lenexa City Council forum

1. Candidate opening statements. [1:16]
   
2. If elected, what do you see as your biggest priority going into office? [10:55]
   
3. The city spent a lot of money on storm cleanup this summer. The city was capable of doing that because there was a surplus in the budget. How does the city provide those types of services and reduce taxes? Is that possible? [23:40]
   
4. Lenexa will cut its mill rate slightly next year. Do you think it needs to go down more and do you think it needs to go down to the revenue neutral rate? [36:55]
   
5. What is your plan for addressing housing affordability in Lenexa? [45:47]
   
6. Where do you see the biggest opportunities for future development and where do you see the biggest obstacles? [59:23]
   
7. In your race, what makes you most qualified to be elected to city council? [1:08:43]
   
8. Closing statements. [1:17:40]