‘It’s disrespectful’: KCK mayor feuds with staff over economic development efforts

Several Wyandotte County commissioners were confused — and some critical — about a four-hour economic development presentation made during Thursday’s commission meeting.

Mayor Tyrone Garner and one of his staff members brought in about a dozen people to discuss development projects in Wyandotte County and downtown Kansas City, Kansas.

The presentation however, did not involve anyone within the Unified Government’s economic development department — including Katherine Carttar, the economic development director.

But that did not stop Garner from criticizing her or the staff for not being present at the meeting and saying economic development was “broken” at the UG.

“I do have some concerns myself that nobody from the economic development apparatus from the Unified Government, that I can see, is in this room,” he said. “That should be a problem for this commission, for this community, and more importantly, our administration.”

But the UG’s economic development staff was not invited nor involved in Thursday’s presentation.

Garner’s public criticism of Carttar, who has served as the economic development director for almost four years, did not go unnoticed by commissioners.

“I’m frustrated that staff in our economic development department was purposely excluded from the preparation of this presentation and then derided in public for not being present at the meeting tonight,” said District 6 Commissioner Angela Markley. “It’s rude. It’s disrespectful and it’s offensive.”

Thursday’s presentation from developers and other stakeholders from Kansas City, Kansas, was previously planned for a special session in June.

That was canceled at the last minute because not enough commissioners were able to attend. So the presentation was scheduled for Thursday during a commission meeting.

The discussion was put together by Garner and LaVert Murray, the mayor’s economic development advisor. Murray previously served as Kansas City, Kansas’ economic development director before retiring in 2009. Garner praised Murray, who is on his staff and not on the economic development staff, for organizing Thursday’s meeting with developers.

Interim county administrator Cheryl Harrison-Lee also was not involved in organizing the presentation.

Throughout his mayoral campaign, Garner ran on bringing more development to downtown Kansas City, Kansas, and other areas east of Interstate 635.

But sluggish development in Wyandotte County is not a new issue. Generally, the county has not enjoyed the sort of investments that neighbors in Johnson County or Kansas City, Missouri, have seen in recent years.

For nearly two decades, Wyandotte County has targeted much of its development efforts in the western side of the county — where the Legends Outlets, Village West and the Kansas Speedway draw visitors from across the region.

But that kind of development has not flowed into the city’s urban core and the eastern side of the county.

Developer Willie Lanier Jr. recently proposed a major development near downtown, but faced hurdles with county government.

Lanier’s proposed project would have demolished the now-unused Reardon Convention Center and built an apartment complex at the location. Garner, however, axed the project weeks into his term.

Lanier declined to attend Thursday’s meeting.

Thursday’s presenters spoke on development ideas including apartment complexes and other businesses in downtown Kansas City, Kansas.

But developers still have to go through formal steps in order to see these projects approved and completed.

Andrew Davis, District 8 commissioner, spoke directly to some of the developers about the process.

“We have an economic development department and director that we give policy direction to through our county administrator,” Davis said. “I encourage you to go through that particular process because that’s how we get things done.”