An early concept for a new Corinth Library branch at the Prairie Village municipal complex along Mission Road may be more thoroughly vetted.
During a committee meeting on Monday, the Prairie Village City Council signaled support for a memorandum of understanding with Johnson County Library to explore a concept for a new Corinth branch at 7720 Mission Road, a few blocks north of the library’s current site at 8100 Mission Road.
Corinth Library, built in 1963, is the oldest branch in the county library system and is on track for a replacement.
The library has pitched a plan to bring a 30,000-square-foot branch to an area in front of the city’s existing city hall, where a small community center and basketball courts currently stand.
In a 10-0 vote, the city council authorized the mayor to sign the non-binding MOU. Councilmember Inga Selders was absent, and Councilmember Andy Logan, a lawyer outside the city council, recused himself because his firm represents Johnson County Library.
The library board still needs to approve the MOU, but the document allows both parties to vet the “test-fit concept” of a new Corinth branch over the next six months.
How we got here
The current Corinth Library became the oldest building in the Johnson County Library System in 2024, when the historic Antioch Library closed off Shawnee Mission Parkway, just before the Merriam Plaza branch opened to replace it.
Previously, the city and the library worked through an idea to co-locate a new Corinth branch near a new city-owned community center at the site of the former Paul Henson YMCA near the corner of 79th Street and Mission Road.
Plans for that concept were studied and considered as early as 2019.
In October 2024, after the city, the library and the YMCA of Greater Kansas City developed that concept and presented it to the public, the idea to co-locate these two amenities abruptly stopped after the city council voted against moving forward on the project. The city backed out of the plans when the YMCA declined to help pay for a new community center
While the co-location idea was denied by the city council, Johnson County Library still planned to either replace or relocate the aging Corinth branch.
The idea to place a relocate the Corinth branch to 7720 Mission Road first came before the city council in February.
A look at the potential new Corinth location
The early concept presented by library officials calls for a 30,000-square-foot building directly facing Mission Road in front of the current city hall. (A new city hall is being built just to the south.)
As part of the early concept for a new Corinth branch, the library’s early “test fit” pitch included the following amenities:
- A drive-thru lane
- A 20,000-square-foot first floor
- An 11,000-square-foot second floor with a potential green roof
- A lower-level parking garage
This starts a 6-month study of the site
The memorandum of understanding allows the city and the library to continue studying the site, 7720 Mission Road, over the next six months or so.
With the agreement in place, the city and library would be able to discuss necessary items like the relocation of utilities or specific aspects of the project such as a drive-thru lane, landscaping and parking.
The drafted agreement is non-binding, meaning neither the city nor the library are legally obligated to move forward with a Corinth branch at that specific site. It is a 180-day agreement that will expire automatically at the end of that period.
An appraisal will determine the value for a possible land purchase, to be mutually agreed upon by both the city and the library.
Other details of the agreement include the following, as outlined in city documents:
- Both the city and library will explore a pedestrian plaza between the potential Corinth site and the existing police department, along with other landscaping enhancements.
- There is no first responder lane planned for construction as part of this project, as the existing police access will remain intact and usable.
- Library patrons and city visitors will share parking on the existing city property.
- Both the city and the library will pay for shared maintenance needs on the site.
- The city would get right of first refusal if the library decided to sell the building in the future, meaning the city would be offered the chance to match any offer the library receives on the property in order to acquire it.
“This is step one”
Councilmembers on Monday supported the idea to keep the library branch in Prairie Village and move forward with the MOU.
Still, the city council discussed the process to determine the land purchase value for the site, including questions from several councilmembers about how that number will be determined.
Both the city and the library need to complete separate appraisals in order to negotiate the land purchase, Public Works Director Keith Bredehoeft said.
City Administrator Wes Jordan said the MOU “is the first hurdle” to allow city staff to bring back numbers to the city council.
“We’re not making agreements without marching back in here and going, ‘OK here’s the numbers, this is what we’re thinking, this is what they’re thinking,’” Jordan said. “They (the library) have a board too that they answer to, and so this is step one.”
The library board is expected to consider the MOU at its Oct. 8 meeting.
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