Last year marked a time of changes for the City of Lenexa, from a new police chief to freshman city councilmembers, alongside new developments being approved by the Lenexa City Council.
On the eve of the city council’s vote on the hotly-debated Habitat for Humanity project (over which six residents have sued the city), Mayor Julie Sayers celebrated the city’s progress in her third State of the City address on Tuesday.
Here are five takeaways from her speech, given at the Hyatt Place Hotel and Lenexa Conference Center:
Lenexa has a couple of new leaders
In 2025, the Lenexa Police Department received new leadeship as Eric Schmitz, a 27-year veteran with Lenexa Police, was appointed as its new police chief.
In December, Lenexa Police Chief Dawn Layman announced she was retiring from the police department after 32 years of service, including five as the city’s top cop.
Layman retired after a rocky year with the department, including the fatal shooting of a 25-year-old man from Grandview, Missouri, on June 22, 2025, which Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe later determined was justified. Layman was also involved in a controversial incident where Lenexa Police had asked then-Lenexa City Councilmember Melanie Arroyo to prove her citizenship following an anonymous call to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation that questioned her immigration status.
In her speech, Sayers praised Schmitz’s history with the department and his leadership skills to help continue what she said is a strong relationship with the public.
“With extensive experience, strong values and a commitment to community trust, Chief Schmitz is well positioned to lead the department into its next chapter and has named professional development of our team as one of his top priorities,” she said.
In addition, the city council also welcomed a new member, with Avery Bell replacing Melanie Arroyo in Ward 3.
Lengthy projects were completed
After being discussed for years, several big projects in Lenexa were completed and opened to the public.
Chief among them was the opening of AdventHealth’s Lenexa City Center facility, which opened on July 15.
The facility features health care and emergency services starting with 44 beds in its initial phase. It is both the centerpiece and the first stage of plans for a large wellness campus in Lenexa City Center.
In addition, Lenexa also saw the renovation and re-opening of its Old Town Activity Center in June. The expanded facility features new additions, including an outdoor recreation area, new activity rooms and improvements to its gymnasium.
It also features the city’s first publicly commissioned mural, “Meet Me In Lenexa” by artist Doodle Dood.
“It’s a place designed not just for programs, but for people — and for the connections that make a community feel like home,” Sayers said.
Other big city projects are underway
On Memorial Day weekend, the newly rebuilt Ad Astra Pool will reopen with expanded, modern amenities, including a new pool equipment building, bath house and lifeguard and concession buildings.
The project has been underway for the past two years.
“(It) will reopen as a modern, community-designed facility — a place where families can make memories and enjoy the summer season in Lenexa,” Sayers said.
Lenexa’s old City Hall will also become the new Fire Station 6 for the Lenexa Fire Department.
The project will include demolishing the old city hall and building a new permanent fire station and city IT headquarters on the grounds of the site along 87th Street Parkway.
Designs for the projects are expected to be introduced to the governing body later this year, Sayers said.
“The investment in Fire Station 6 means faster response times, improved outcomes in emergencies and a modern space that supports the firefighters who care for our community every day,” she said.
Lenexa City Center continues to expand
Lenexa City Center will continue to grow and evolve over the next several years.
In 2025, Lenexa saw several new additions to its Restaurant Row, including Mediterranean eatery Zhoug, Southern-inspired eatery Tupelo Honey and Mexican restaurant Cactus Grill.
“I constantly receive compliments from residents and visitors alike that they love all of the new restaurant destinations we’ve created,” she said.
In addition, the city council approved projects that will add to City Center’s diversity and population, like The Rise, an 11-story project projected to be the tallest development in Lenexa City Center that will serve an active adult community, with residents required to be 55 or older.
While some residents have vocalized worries about how expansion of Lenexa City Center will impact parking, developers like REAL Property Group, who are behind the creation of The Rise, believe it will meet the area’s needs.
“We think we’re adequately parked. Would we like to have 300 spaces? Yeah, we’d like to have 300 spaces. We don’t think it’s necessary. We’re comfortable that we have enough,” Hal Shapiro, REAL Property Group founder, said at a city council meeting in October 2025.
Lenexa is getting ready for the World Cup
Lenexa will have a hand in World Cup festivities this summer.
In November, the city and Overland Park both agreed to use tourism tax dollars to help fund a new, temporary bus service that will connect the two cities to Kansas City International Airport during this summer’s World Cup.
If it’s successful, then the cities could explore whether transit service connecting to the airport has long-term viability.
“(It) will more importantly test if those types of transit routes will be useful for longer term in Johnson County,” she said.
The bus service is in addition to Lenexa’s other World Cup plans, like the collaborative group Pitch Lenexa‘s three planned events for when the tournament comes to town.
The event will be a great time to show Johnson County and its cities’ ability to work together for the greater community, Sayers said.
“It’s a powerful example of the collaboration our region is known for — and our willingness to embrace the opportunities and responsibilities of a global event,” she said.
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