Soon, Merriam residents and business owners will get the chance to weigh in on the city’s much-discussed plans to transform its downtown.
The Merriam City Council on March 9 took a step forward in its effort to shape the future of the downtown area, unanimously approving a $292,000 contract with Overland Park-based Shockey Consulting to create a downtown master plan.
Over the years, Merriam has significantly invested in reshaping its downtown through a decades-long collaboration with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to shield the area from the flooding from nearby Turkey Creek.
The city has also completed studies, such as its 2040 comprehensive plan and a Merriam Drive connected corridor plan with neighboring cities, that examine the possibilities for the downtown area. Shockey plans to build off those past efforts, according to city documents.
Still, some downtown business owners remain concerned about the city’s plans along Merriam Drive, particularly with any flood mitigation steps that could result in razing buildings and displacing businesses.
The ongoing purchase of downtown properties and plans to remake Merriam Drive itself have also drawn criticism from business owners in the area.
The city plans to kick off its downtown master plan process this spring — and wrap up later this year.
Not “another downtown plan with pretty pictures”
Caitlin Gard, the assistant city administrator, told the city council on March 9 that Shockey Consulting was one of 18 applicants who submitted proposals to the city’s selection committee.
Several councilmembers who sat on the selection committee agreed that the firm’s experience with previous city government work, and downtown plans in particular, made the firm stand out.
Shockey has worked on similar plans with Lee’s Summit, Gladstone and Olivette in Missouri and Leavenworth and Lindsborg in Kansas, according to city documents.
In its statement of qualifications, Shockey acknowledges the city’s history of planning in downtown Merriam — from its comprehensive plan and the Merriam Connected Corridor plan to the ongoing flood mitigation efforts.
“Simply put, Merriam doesn’t need another downtown plan with pretty pictures, it needs an integrated, implementation-ready roadmap that turns prior planning and flood investment into coordinated action, phased capital priorities and community confidence in development,” the statement of qualifications reads.
The public can start chiming in next month
Shockey expects to embark on eight months’ worth of community and stakeholder engagement starting in April, according to a project schedule included in city documents.
Gard told the city council that Shockey has “a deep expertise in community engagement,” which aligns with the city’s intent for the downtown master plan process.
The public engagement portion of Shockey’s project plan is also the most expensive, totaling $109,500 alone.
This will include a statistically significant community survey conducted by the ETC Institute, up to four steering committee work sessions, up to two public workshops and presentations to the governing body, according to city documents.
“We want to make sure that whomever in the community wants to be heard will be heard, and that’s going to take a lot of time and effort from the consultant, and that’s what’s ultimately driving up the price,” Gard said.
The city council at its March 23 meeting unanimously approved the steering committee as recommended for appointment by Mayor Bob Pape, including the mayor himself, three councilmembers and other business owners and residents.
The steering committee will meet in four work sessions to focus on the following, as outlined in city documents:
- Validate existing conditions and places for opportunities
- Test guiding principles and evaluation criteria
- Review tradeoffs and confirm a preferred direction
- Confirm priorities and the plan’s “readiness” for adoption
Ciera White, the city’s communications specialist, told the Post in an email that the public will have multiple opportunities to participate in the downtown master plan process this spring.
The current state of play in downtown Merriam
More than a decade ago, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proffered a plan to build levees and earthen berms to guard downtown Merriam from flooding. In the years since, the Corps has been working on a more specific design concept for that solution.
Separately, civil engineering firm HNTB is developing flood mitigation solutions for the city’s consideration. Those plans propose actually demolishing buildings in order to raise the area out of flood range.
At the same time, the city is looking to completely remake Merriam Drive, the main roadway in all of downtown Merriam, from 55th Street north to 50th Terrace.
Additionally, the city has purchased 15 downtown properties over the past couple of years.
White told the Post in an email that “the City has taken a strategic and long-term approach to purchasing key properties” in downtown.
“These acquisitions help the City to respond to opportunities as they arise and to support future planning efforts,” White said, adding that several of the properties the city has purchased lie within or near the floodplain.
Here’s a list of the downtown properties that the city has purchased in the past couple of years:
- 9224 W. 57th St. for $400,000
- 5713 Kessler Lane for $250,000 (demolished)
- 5015 Merriam Drive for $180,000 (demolished)
- 5005 Merriam Drive for $210,000 (demolished)
- 5017 Merriam Drive for $140,000 (demolished)
- 5726 Merriam Drive for $425,000 (demolished)
- 5718 Merriam Drive for $1 million (demolished)
- 5700 Merriam Drive for $822,360 (demolished)
- 5001 Merriam Drive for $205,000 (demolished)
- 5030 Merriam Drive for $150,000 (to be demolished)
- 5040 Merriam Drive for up to $232,000 (to be demolished)
- KC Strings (four buildings) for up to $3 million
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