A new resident group in Prairie Village, ostensibly committed to exposing who is behind PV United, another resident-led group that has been at the heart of the city’s fractious politics in recent years, has officially dissolved only a few weeks after it was officially incorporated.
After coming online in late August with a website and newsletter, Forward Prairie Village — a not-for-profit that officially filed with the Kansas Secretary of State’s Office as Society for Progress — dissolved itself after other residents filed complaints with a state legal body against the group’s leaders.
The Kansas Disciplinary Administrator, an arm of the Kansas court system that reviews and investigates complaints against licensed attorneys, investigated misconduct complaints made against Rae Nicholson and former Prairie Village city councilmember Lauren Wolf, members of Forward Prairie Village’s board of directors.
In a statement to the Post, Wolf said the group’s reasoning for forming and dissolving so quickly were outlined in the group’s mid-September notice of dissolution.
“While concerns about further risk to individual board members remain, we also remain optimistic about the curiosity and diligence of the community as they engage in the political process,” Wolf told the Post.
When reached by the Post, the disciplinary administration office did not confirm or deny complaints against Nicholson or Wolf.
Forward Prairie Village’s brief run happened to coincide with the appearance of new yard signs — a common site in recent years in the suburb of roughly 20,000 people — urging residents to “Stop the Drama” and “Vote No” on a ballot question this November asking residents whether they want to “abandon” the city’s form of government.
It’s not clear who is behind the new signs, but a representative who responded to a Post email sent to an address printed on the sign said they were not involved with the Forward Prairie Village group.
Why was Forward PV formed?
In its first and only email newsletter on Aug. 25, Forward Prairie Village said “it’s time to fight back” against “a small group of alt-right antagonists.”
Forward Prairie Village, in that newsletter, said it was committed to exposing this group that “has been effective at sowing discord and discontent” in the city.
The newsletter itself never names PV United, but the “Get Informed” link at the bottom of the email took readers to Forward Prairie Village’s website. Before it was taken down, the website specifically called out PV United as well as individual members of that group.
PV United, also known as Stop Rezoning Prairie Village, is a group of Prairie Village residents who officially banded together in fall 2022 in opposition to the city’s controversial housing recommendations which aimed to explore ways to make housing more affordable in the wealthy Johnson County suburb, including potentially tweaking residential zoning codes.
Started by former councilmembers Sheila Myers and Brooke Morehead, the latter of whom remains the group’s current president, PV United then led the charge in 2023 to circulate and place on the November ballot three petitions that sought to restrict rezoning laws in the city and change the city’s form of governance.
Only one of those three petitions passed legal muster through the district court and Kansas Court of Appeals. Two years later, that lone petition is now set to appear on the Nov. 4 ballot asking Prairie Village voters whether they want to “abandon” the city’s current form of government.
After battling the city on rezoning and governance and backing six city council candidates in 2023, PV United then turned its focus to the city’s community center idea.
Now that the community center idea is off the table (with the Y recently being sold to the Price Brothers), PV United’s opposition is geared toward the city’s $30 million municipal complex project.
PV United opposes building a new city hall building without a public vote, though the group says it supports a police department renovation.
Forward Prairie Village’s time was short-lived
Nicholson and Wolf (a former Ward 3 councilmember) were the only two members on the board of directors listed on Society for Progress’ articles of incorporation.
Councilmember Greg Shelton is the listed incorporator, and stated during a September city council meeting that his involvement with the group was temporary to help get it established. (Shelton, who is not seeking reelection this year, is the husband of Post Publisher Jay Senter’s sister.)
Within days, the website itself was taken down featuring an “under construction” note. The website is now private.
Leaders dissolved Forward PV after disciplinary complaints
Over the weekend of Sept. 20, Forward Prairie Village announced its dissolution on its now private website, forwardpv.com.
The group cites complaints filed with the Kansas Disciplinary Administrator against Forward PV board members, Nicholson and Wolf, as the reason for dissolution.
While those complaints were dismissed, according to the statement, Forward PV board members were concerned about future backlash.
“We understood that some may be upset by the level of transparency we sought to provide,” the statement read. “However, it’s become clear that the personal risks to our board members now outweigh the benefits we hoped to achieve.”
Forward PV went on to encourage residents “to remain engaged, curious, and diligent” against those “seeking to influence our local elections and government.”
“In times like these, we can’t afford to take political campaigns or movements at face value,” the statement read.
Additionally, following a cease-and-desist letter from an attorney, Forward PV retracted its statement about Bill and Jack Allen’s involvement with PV United and the Northeast Johnson County Conservatives.
Below is a full copy of the group’s Announcement of Dissolution and Retraction.
New signs make calls to “Stop the Drama”
In the past couple of weeks, new yard signs have started popping up across Prairie Village calling on residents to vote against the “abandon” petition on Nov. 4.
The signs, with yellow lettering on a blue field, say “Stop the Drama” and “Vote No.”
The “abandon” petition is a remnant of the three resident-led petitions begun by PV United which sought in 2023 to alter the city’s form of government and limit rezoning in Prairie Village. It was the only petition of the three to pass legal muster after a lengthy court battle that ultimately went all the way to the Kansas Court of Appeals.
No individual or group has come out publicly identifying themselves as the creator of the signs. A person who declined to identify themselves responded to the Post via Stop the Drama’s email address stating that it has no affiliation or overlap with Forward PV.
District court and appellate judges found that only the “abandon” petition is eligible for a ballot measure, while two other resident petitions were dismissed.
No actual change to the city’s form of government comes from approving the “abandon” petition alone, because there is no specific replacement included in the petition language.
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