In the coming months, the city of Mission Hills will take a look at how to use a church property it purchased earlier this year.
After finalizing the purchase of the First Lutheran Church at 6400 State Line Road in August for $3.2 million, Mission Hills city leaders are now working on a “high-level analysis” of what the future of the property could look like and what potential uses it could be put toward.
City Administrator Jennifer Lee said the city has no specific plans for the property in mind yet, but wants to eventually open up a public discussion and get resident feedback.
“We are an inner-ring suburb. There aren’t opportunities for redevelopment often here,” Lee said. “We have 1,300 homes and three country clubs, and we had a church. We don’t know what the future is, but we wanted to be in control of that property.”
The city purchased the church by selling general obligation temporary bonds, or issuing debt, Lee said. Prior to the issuance of debt for this $3.2 million purchase, Lee said the city’s outstanding debt only included a final payment on a streetlight system and an upcoming final payment on underground utilities on 65th and 67th streets.
The church approached the city about buying the building
City Administrator Lee told the Post in an early December interview that city leaders were first approached by church leaders about purchasing the property in January 2024.
Lee said city leaders saw an opportunity to control a piece of land in Mission Hills, which is landlocked with no real room to add green space or amenities.
The city took “careful consideration” before entering purchase agreements and ultimately buying the church for $3.2 million, Lee said.
“We consulted our financial advisers, our legal counsel, lots of discussion at the council level, toured the facility multiple times before we purchased it, had lots of … inspections, all kinds of information we could get to try to make the best decision we could for the city,” Lee said.
Currently, the city is in the middle of a “high-level analysis” of the building and property, Lee said.
This analysis includes estimates for what it would cost to update the building or potentially demolish all or part of it, Lee said. These estimates will be shared with residents during a future public input process, she said.
First Lutheran is still using the church
First Lutheran hosted its first worship service in the building at 6400 State Line Road in 1957.
First Lutheran is now renting the space from the city, after signing an 18-month lease that started in August.
Pastor Samantha Nichols said the congregation is looking at what’s next for their community.
“We’re having conversations about our mission and what we feel like God is calling us to do, and kind of tying that into this search for a new place,” Nichols said.
The current building is too large for First Lutheran, Nichols said, so church’s leaders are touring properties and signaling interest in potentially sharing space with other local congregations.
Nichols said the congregation is excited about finding a new community in other parts of the Kansas City area, but there is still a sense of grief about moving from what has been the church’s home for 68 years.
The church holds memories for important milestones and life events for the congregation, Nichols said, like baptisms, weddings, funerals and holidays.
“It’s an emotional process to find a new home for a congregation, but it’s been really lovely to see people care for each other, check in with each other and really move through this process as a faithful community of people who care about each other,” Nichols said.
City plans public engagement process for site’s future
- Lee said the city is currently conducting high-level studies of the building and the property.
- After that, Lee said the city plans to get public input on the future of the site.
- The city has no firm plans on how to use the property at this time, though Lee said she is interested to hear what the community wants — whether that be an amenity, green space or something else.
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