Huge KCK building has gathered dust for years. A new development just got another shot

A long-stalled downtown Kansas City, Kansas, revitalization plan for the defunct Jack Reardon Convention Center has another nine months to get off the ground.

The publicly owned community building, centered in an area eyed for major reinvestment, is boarded up and collecting dust. Developer Willie Lanier Jr. wants to tear it down and replace it with shops, a smaller convention hall and up to 100 apartments.

Lanier first received approval from the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas for a different version of the redevelopment in 2020. But then Mayor Tyrone Garner, elected in 2021, blocked the project for several months, citing concerns about downtown losing its larger conference space.

But another development agreement for the center, 510 Minnesota Ave., was inked one year ago. Garner, who has been on medical leave since early February, said at the time he was “extremely excited” for the project to move forward.

Since then, an automatic termination date for that deal lapsed in January. Commissioners called a special meeting Thursday evening to discuss extending the agreement — now in its seventh iteration — and voted 6-1 in favor.

Speaking to commissioners Thursday, Lanier said the last remaining piece on his end is private financing for the $25 million project, which will receive tax incentives under the agreement. Passage of a renewed development agreement, he said, will help with lenders — and another nine months will offer “more than enough time” to get there.

Development of the site as a gateway to downtown has been a key issue for commissioners. And proponents of Lanier’s project have long expressed frustration over its delays.

Commissioner Christian Ramirez, 3rd District, said the stymied process sends a bad signal to would-be developers. He emphatically apologized to Lanier for “every hoop that we have had to put you through.”

“I am ready to finally dot the i’s and cross the t’s, and give Mr. Lanier the chance that he deserves. And stop the stall tactics and the games,” Ramirez said. “And I want to tell developers out there, do not be afraid to come to Wyandotte County. …

“We support an economic development future and vision. So, please come and help us grow our community.”

Gayle Townsend, 1st District, also referenced the long road behind. She counted the struggles around development during COVID-19, inflated costs over recent years and a languished process before the commission among the reasons why Lanier should have another shot.

“No one had come before or since” to redevelop the site, Townsend said, adding: “It’s unfair to put this on him.”

Downtown businesses have also supported the redevelopment. During a separate hearing last month, several representatives of the nearby Merc Co+op grocery store said they desperately need customers to stay afloat.

Under the current construction plan, between 85 and 100 market-rate apartments would be built across two buildings. A first-floor space spanning 7,000 square feet would be dedicated to retail and commercial use.

The new convention hall will carry the Reardon name — named for the former KCK mayor. It will be 7,500 square feet, with capacity for about 325 people, a fraction of 30,000-square-foot ballroom in the old center. Under the agreement, the Unified Government would pay $1 million out of a maintenance fund for the building to have access to the new convention hall for at least 10 events per year, and receive a 50% rental discount for additional events.

Terms of the new deal largely mirror the last one passed by commissioners in 2023, said Todd LaSala, an economic development lawyer for the Unified Government. Outside of extending the agreement, a new provision was added to allow recoup of legal fees the Unified Government has carried.

Incentives for Lanier’s project total roughly $9.5 million, LaSala said, or 38% of the estimated cost, to be paid out over 20 years.

Absent from Thursday’s meeting was newly elected Commissioner Bill Burns, 2nd District, who unsuccessfully asked colleagues to hold off on a decision as he recovers from knee surgery. The Reardon Center falls within his district.

Commissioner Phil Lopez, 6th District, also new on the commission, cast the lone no vote, concerned about moving forward in Burns’ absence as well as a decision not to allow public comment.

In other business Thursday, commissioners approved incentives for a planned apartment complex that developers say will bring 152 housing units near North 78th Street and Armstrong Avenue.

Indianapolis-based developer TWG wants to build a complex using federal low-income housing tax credits meant to add more affordable housing. The apartments would have one to three bedrooms, and range in rent from around $800 to $1,600 per month.

Commissioners passed a resolution of intent to offer $43 million in industrial revenue bonds so TWG can get a sales tax exemption on construction costs. Also approved was a 10-year property tax abatement.