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Opinion column
by Murrel Bland
Despite the coronavirus pandemic, Wyandotte County continues to attract new and expanded development. That was the message that Katherine Carttar and Greg Kindle brought to the annual meeting of Business West via Zoom on Wednesday, Oct. 21.
Carttar is director of economic development for the Unified Government and Kindle is president of the Wyandotte Economic Development Council. They said that so far this year Wyandotte County has attracted $849 million in development. They told of the following projects:
Old Dominion Freight Line. This truck terminal will be at K-7 and Speaker Road in Bonner Springs and will have 300 employees with more than 154,000 square feet of floor space. It will be a $45 million project and include cross-dock and office space. There will also be space on the 11 acres for related retail and commercial development.
Urban Outfitters. This will be on the southeast corner of 118th Street and State Avenue on Kansas Speedway property that NASCAR will sell. The company will have 880,000 square feet of floor space and employee 2,000 persons. Childcare and internships will be available. This will be a $403 million project.
Homefield. This will be at the Schlitterbahn site and offer a youth softball and baseball complex and a synthetic turf training field. Retail and a hotel are planned. The estimated cost would be $330 million.
Woodlands redevelopment. This former horse and dog track will become a development of Scannell Properties. The initial project is estimated to cost $110 million and employ 1,000 persons. It will be a warehouse and fulfillment center. Amazon is committed as the first tenant..
Turner Logistics Center. This company expects to have two of five buildings operational by the end of the year; the cost of the project will be $32 million. It will have more than 590,000 square feet of floor space. Space will be used for warehouse and fulfillment purposes. Construction on the divergent diamond interchange on the Turner Diagonal is also expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Community College Housing. Kansas City Kansas Community College will build 100,000 square feet of student housing which will be part of a larger college master plan. The estimated cost will be $20 million.
Scavuzzo’s Food Service. This is to be built in four phases and will include 266,000 square feet of floor space. Other retail and commercial development is planned. This will be a $115 million project and be built on the former Indian Springs Shopping Center site.
American Royal. This is to include 164,000 square feet of floor space for a livestock expo arena, 250,000 square feet of floor space for a livestock exhibition hall, 5,000 square feet of office floor space and 6,500 square feet of floor space for an Agriculture Education Center. This would be a $200 million investment. This would be in Village West, just west of Legends Outlet.
Bonner Crossing. This would include an e-sports stadium, an amphitheater and retail and residential development. The estimated cost would be $500 million; it would be at the southwest corner of 118th Street and State Avenue.
Kindle said all of this development does not include anything from two traditional sources — General Motors and the University of Kansas Medical Center.
Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is executive director of Business West.
