The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan. Board of Commissioners held its regular meeting Thursday evening, tackling housing tax incentives, celebrating statewide recognition for the county’s parks department, and approving a slate of board and commission appointments.
Commission strikes compromise on property tax rebate
The meeting’s most debated item was the renewal of the Neighborhood Revitalization Act (NRA) Plan, a property tax rebate program that expired on Dec. 31, 2025, and must be renewed every five years. The NRA refunds a portion of the increase in property taxes resulting from improvements back to property owners, with the goal of spurring reinvestment and new construction in targeted areas of the county.
The administration’s original proposal called for reducing the rebate on new residential construction from the current 95 down to 50 percent, a significant cut that drew pushback from a realtor and from several commissioners.
Blair Whaley, owner of KeyLink Properties of Shawnee, was the only public speaker at the public hearing. He warned that cutting the incentive in half would chill development on vacant land bank lots. “My biggest fear for that is with changing it to 50 percent is that we’re going to decrease the amount of new builds that are going on the land bank lots,” Whaley said.
He noted that roughly 150 new builds had been completed on such lots over the past five years and argued the costs of building in Wyandotte County are comparable to Johnson County, making incentives essential to keeping builders and first-time homebuyers interested. “If I can pay 260 [thousand] for a house here or I can pay 260 [thousand] for a house that’s in Johnson County or Leavenworth County, why wouldn’t I build it in a new subdivision versus on a land bank lot?” he said.
The conversation among commissioners was wide-ranging. Mayor Christal Watson pressed staff on the full cost of maintaining vacant land bank lots, noting the county forgoes roughly $4 million a year in tax revenue through the program and still spends approximately $1 million annually just on mowing. “I’m not saying we don’t do the rebate because I’m 100 percent behind it,” Watson said. “I just would like to know what is it costing us that our proposed changed percentage could really reflect putting that back into the budget.”
Commissioner Chuck Stites (District 7) emerged as an early advocate for the middle ground. “Maybe the jump is too great from 95 to 50,” he said. “Maybe we look at that 75 and then prove that up.” Commissioner Andrew Davis (District 8) echoed the concern about dampening market appetite, cautioning the board against assuming that application volume would remain constant if the rebate was reduced: “I don’t know if it’s fair for us to assume that the market and the appetite for the program remains the same if we decrease the rebate.”
Commissioner Melissa Bynum (At-Large, District 1) expressed frustration that the county’s legacy tax software, reportedly purchased in the 1980s, cannot automatically apply a tiered or stepped rebate rate, a structure used by some other Kansas cities. Chief Financial Officer Shelley Kneuvean confirmed the county is in the process of procuring a new tax system, at a cost close to $1 million, though a full transition is at least a year away even after a vendor is selected.
Stites ultimately made a motion to set the new construction rebate at 75 percent for ten years, leaving the rebate for rehabilitation at 95 percent as originally proposed. Bynum seconded the motion. Deputy Chief Counsel Wendy Green noted that because the change alters the plan already reviewed by participating school districts, the Unified Government will need to return to those taxing entities for reconfirmation of their agreements. The motion carried unanimously.
Green also noted that the Turner School District had declined to participate in the NRA program, excluding properties within its boundaries from the rebate. Commissioner Phil Lopez (District 6) indicated he has been in contact with Turner school board members and plans to explore whether the district might reconsider if given the opportunity for a new vote.
Parks & Recreation Department honored with six statewide awards
The meeting opened on a celebratory note as Watson recognized the Unified Government’s Parks and Recreation Department for earning six awards at the Kansas Recreation and Parks Association (KRPA) annual conference in Topeka in January out of roughly 140 agencies and 1,500 professionals represented statewide.
Parks Director Angel Ferrara presented the awards and offered a vision of what each recognition means to the community. “In a county that consistently ranks as the unhealthiest in the state, our work is not optional. It is essential. These are not just plaques,” she told the commission. “They are proof of impact.”
Project awards
- Administration Branch Marketing Award – Korean-Vietnam War Memorial Project
- Outstanding New or Innovative Wellness Program – Path to Wellness Trail Project (St. Margaret’s, Klamm, Kensington, WYCO, Clopper, and Pierson parks)
- Outstanding New or Innovative Sports Program – A Court for the Community (Broderick Crawford Court)
Professional awards
- Outstanding Recreation Branch Professional – Shaya Lockett
- Outstanding Park & Natural Resources Professional – Justin Ukena
- Distinguished Board or Commission Member – Dr. Jane Winkler Philbrook
Ferrara recognized Dr. Winkler Philbrook, who serves on both the parks board and the parks foundation, for her leadership and fundraising efforts, and thanked marketing coordinator Ethan Haynes for helping bring the memorial project story to a wider audience.
Commissioners were effusive in their praise. Commissioner Jermaine Howard (District 1) recalled working alongside the parks team with community organizations. “The first thing that you all did is you welcomed us in and you said, ‘Hey, what are some ideas that you have? What do you want to see happen in the community?’ And that’s what you all do. You all focus on the community. You listen to the community.”
Davis took the moment to highlight a larger budgetary point: prior to recent investment, the Unified Government had cut parks funding following the 2008 recession and never restored it, accumulating over $60 million in underinvestment over more than a decade. “We haven’t made up that lack of investment, but we have made significant strides,” he said, urging the parks team to continue advocating at budget time. “Now you can say you all have the hardware to back it up.”
Board appointments and community grants approved
As part of the regular consent agenda, approved unanimously, the commission confirmed several board and commission appointments. Commissioner Carlos Pacheco’s (District 5) appointment of Jacques Barber to the Housing Authority Advisory Board was approved for a term running through December 2029. Commissioner Howard secured the reappointment of Dr. Nozella Brown to the Housing Authority Advisory Board, the reappointment of Gordon Criswell to the Economic Redevelopment Advisory Board, the reappointment of Kori Hall to the WyCo Library Board through August 2030, and the reappointment of Karen Jones to the Board of Zoning Appeals and Planning Commission. Commissioner Andrew Kump’s (At-Large, District 2) appointment of former commissioner Mike Kane to the Golf Board was also approved.
Also on the consent agenda, the commission adopted the 2025 recommendations of the Community Benefits Advisory Board, directing a total of $435 thousand from the Community Benefits Fund.
The single largest allocation goes to the Parks and Recreation Department, $255 thousand for basketball court improvements at Shawnee Park, a project that dovetails with the department’s KRPA-award-winning “Court for the Community” initiative recognized earlier in the evening.
An additional $65 thousand was directed to Parks and Recreation for the installation of security cameras at various locations. On the housing side, $75 thousand was awarded to the KCK Homes for Generations Program, an initiative administered by the UG Clerk’s office that provides legal services to residents whose properties are tied up in probate or ownership disputes.
The remaining $40 thousand went to the Upper Story Housing Development Reimbursement Fund, which aims to expand the supply of rental housing by adding residential units above commercial storefronts along KCK corridors.
Local Priority Plan presented for information
County Administrator David Johnston and Assistant County Administrator Alan Howze presented an early version of the Unified Government’s first Local Priority Plan, which is a framework designed to align the priorities of the mayor, commissioners, administrative staff, standing committees, and appointed boards and commissions around concrete goals achievable within a calendar year.
Howze described the plan as an effort to improve coordination across the many bodies working on behalf of residents. “We want to make sure that the left hand and right hand are coordinated,” he said.
Davis, who was involved in developing the concept through the Administration and Human Services standing committee, framed it as a tool for strategic focus: “This is really trying to get us to be strategic and for us to really think through what could we accomplish year by year by year.” The commission is scheduled to hold a strategic planning session and aims to formally adopt the plan in March.
The commission also briefly convened as the Land Bank Board of Trustees, approving options for 35 single-family homes, two yard extensions, four garden plots, and property transfers for stormwater management projects tied to the county’s federally mandated Consent Decree.
Commissioners Andrew Kump (At-Large, District 2) and Christian Ramirez (District 3) were absent from the meeting.