The Shawnee City Council recently approved $1.15 million to purchase land for future development near one of Shawnee’s biggest destinations for out-of-town visitors.
On Dec. 9, the city council voted 6-2 to authorize the city manager to execute the purchase of a little more than 17 acres at 19950 Johnson Dr.
Councilmembers Tony Gillette and Jacklynn Walters were in dissent.
The purchase includes land adjacent to what is referred to locally as the Valley of Champions, a district that includes six youth and amateur sports venues, including the Kansas City Ice Center and Pavilion, Shawnee Mission Beach Volleyball and the Mid-America Sports Complexes.
The land is currently partially zoned for Agriculture and Planned Industrial uses.
Valley of Champions is a tourist destination
The Valley of Champions is Shawnee’s largest recreational hub, attracting over 1.4 million youth and amateur athletes annually, according to city documents.
Despite that, it is lacking in amenities like lodging and dining. The land being purchased could possibly be developed for those purposes in the future, the city says.
“The property under consideration is the largest remaining developable parcel directly adjacent to these key facilities,” city documents state.
If the city did not purchase the land, there was a risk that another use not compatible with the city’s vision for the area — like a storage facility— could be developed there instead, city documents state.
The city has discussed purchasing the land for years
Councilmember Kurt Knappen noted that while the city discussed purchasing the land in 2022, those discussions didn’t have enough of the council’s support to move forward.
In that time, the property has garnered interest from developers. Meanwhile, the city was able to negotiate the price of the purchase, Knappen said.
“A lot of investment has been put in and we don’t want something like storage units or something like that in that area,” he said. “We want to be able to fulfill our vision of an active area that’s a great place to come to and visit and vacation.”
Councilmember Jeanie Murphy agreed that purchasing the land gives the city control to choose a development that would best suit the area near the sports complexes.
“This is not unique to Shawnee. Downtown Omaha saved a piece of land, and it has now been made into a wonderful development because the city was able to control where it was going to go,” she said.
Two councilmembers were in opposition
Councilmembers Gillette and Walters expressed their dissatisfaction with the city trying to control the land.
“This is not the normal function of local government to control properties like this. This should be not be our core values for doing that,” Gillette said.
“We’ve had a couple of very interested parties look at this property in the past. It hasn’t come to fruition. But I think, given the economic growth in our future years, we’ll still see an opportunity for this land to develop organically,” he added.
Walters expressed a similar sentiment.
“I don’t believe that it is our role to step in and do that, despite what (the) possibilities could be,” she said.
What happens next?
With the land purchase, city staff will continue to engage with the governing body to find the best use for the property.
In addition, it will take feedback from the Shawnee Chamber of Commerce, local businesses and other nearby property owners for what they want to see at the site.
The city will also eventually issue a request for proposals to solicit development plans for the site.
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