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Record of Proceedings

Olathe City Council Meeting Summary – August 20, 2024

City Council — Tuesday, August 20, 2024
BodyOlathe, Kansas
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, August 20, 2024
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:01

Good evening.

0:02

Welcome to the Olatha City Council meeting, the regular Olatha City Council meeting for Tuesday, August 20th, 2024.

0:08

The first item on our agenda is the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:10

Would you please stand with me for the pledge?

0:16

I pledge allegiance to the United States of America.

0:35

We've got a couple items under special business tonight.

0:37

Item A is consideration of resolution number 24-1039, appointing new members to the Board of Housing Commissioners.

0:44

Do I hear a motion?

0:49

I'm sorry.

0:51

All right.

0:52

Um Mr.

0:54

Mayor, a motion to approve resolution number 24-1039, appointing new members to the Board of Housing Commissioners.

1:03

Second.

1:03

We have a motion and second with the City Corps.

1:05

Please call the roll.

1:07

Dr.

1:07

Felter.

1:08

Yes.

1:08

Mr.

1:09

Vacus.

1:10

Yes.

1:10

Ms.

1:10

Essex.

1:11

Yes.

1:12

Mr.

1:12

Bacon.

1:13

Yes.

1:13

Ms.

1:13

Vote.

1:14

Yes.

1:14

Mr.

1:15

Gilmar.

1:16

Yes.

1:16

Mr.

1:16

Sconover.

1:17

Yes.

1:17

Motion passes.

1:18

70.

1:20

So the Board of Housing Commissioners oversees our public housing program in Olatha.

1:24

Their work supports our efforts to run a first class program that offers a high quality of life to some of our most vulnerable residents, helping them and our community reach our full potential.

1:35

At this time, I'd like to welcome forward the chair of the Board of Housing Commissioners, Rich Heinick.

1:40

Rich.

1:48

Before I introduce the new board members, I would first like to acknowledge the former Housing Board Chairman, Corey Stoltz.

1:56

She passed away this past December after a five-year battle with cancer.

2:01

Corey was appointed to this board in December of 2007, and she served for 16 years on the housing commission.

2:10

She was the tenant board member, and she began as a resident in the Olatha Housing Program since 1998.

2:18

While the resident, Corey went back to school to get her bachelor's degree in social work and started the transportation program at Johnson County Mental Health.

2:27

She was actively involved in the NARO, the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment.

2:33

While in the organization, she was awarded the Commissioner of the Year.

2:37

Personally, she was a great mentor to me as well as the other board members and led and led the board as chairman the last two years, and even in the face of health health issues.

2:49

Her experience and passion will greatly be missed but forgotten but not forgotten by those who knew her.

2:57

I first would like to introduce our new to fill the tenant position, is Michelle Sakuna.

3:05

She is a native of Leavenworth, Kansas, and she moved to Olatha in 2002.

3:11

She is a mother, but most of all, she's a proud grand grandmother of five.

3:15

She has been a resident in the Olatha Housing Program since 2006 and is very thankful for the housing program.

3:23

And as she quoted, if it had not been for this program, who knows where I would have ended up.

3:28

She recently went back to school and obtained a high school diploma through the step up program and graduated in 2020.

3:36

She is currently employed at PTI as a proctor.

3:57

She and her husband Tom, a 43 years moved to Olatha in 2018 to be close to family, especially three grandkids.

4:07

She is a retired teacher and still currently substitutes.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Land Use Planning█████████████████████████████████████37%
Transportation Safety███████████████15%
Procedural███████████11%
Community Engagement█████████9%
Economic Development████████8%
Affordable Housing██████6%
Engineering And Infrastructure█████5%
Public Engagement███3%
Environmental Protection███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Olathe City Council Meeting – August 20, 2024

The Olathe City Council held a regular meeting on August 20, 2024, beginning at 6:30 PM (live-streamed public session at 7:00 PM). The council approved appointments to two commissions, approved a $23 million industrial revenue bond project with tax phase-in, authorized the 2024-2025 urban deer bow hunting program, annexed 12.11 acres, and approved a large mixed-use rezoning for the Park 169 development. The meeting also included executive sessions for real property acquisition and a development agreement.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved minutes of August 6, 2024. \
  • Renewed various licenses as recommended by the City Clerk. \
  • Authorized travel for the City Manager, Mayor, and four councilmembers to San Antonio, TX (August 22-23). \
  • Approved the consent calendar (routine items) including: an intergovernmental agreement for Black Bob Road improvements, construction contract for Stream Rehabilitation Near 125th Terrace, professional services for Renner Pump Station design, change order for Black Bob Pump Station, purchase of EV chargers, HVAC replacement at City Hall, furniture for Fire Administration, pool painting/repairs, Lexipool wellness app subscriptions, fiber optic installation contract, and additional spending for underground fiber work. All passed with a 7-0 vote.
  • Item P (Urban Deer Management): Removed for separate vote. Approved 5-2 (Councilmembers Vogt and Vakas opposed) allowing bow hunting of deer during the 2024-2025 season within city limits.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Tom Stalnaker (resident of 1908 W. 164th Terrace, 24 years) spoke against the Park 169 rezoning. He argued that the concentration of 1.5 million square feet of M2 industrial adjacent to 700 residential units is unprecedented in Olathe; that M2 allows heavy industrial uses (e.g., chemical manufacturing with tanker trucks) 24 hours a day; that traffic studies do not reflect actual driver behavior; that no meaningful road improvements are planned for initial phases; and that the 167th Street overpass to US 169 may never be built, leaving only one entrance/exit for years. He urged denial.

  • No other public comments were heard for other items.

Special Business

  • Board of Housing Commissioners (Resolution 24-1039): Appointed new members (Michelle Sakuna, Elizabeth Thomas, Jim Guinness). Chair Rich Hynick honored former chair Corey Stoltz who passed away. Approved 7-0. \
  • Human Relations Commission (Resolution 24-1040): Appointed and reappointed members including Ariel Griffin, Jessica Patterson, Gene Cantero, and Shaquille Heather. Chair Hector Silva introduced them. Approved 7-0.

Public Hearing & IRB Resolution 24-1041

  • LECC Building 5, LLC – Industrial Revenue Bonds: Proposed 204,880 sq. ft. light industrial facility on 20 acres at Lone Elm Road and 167th Street. $23 million investment. \
  • Financial Strategy Manager John Page presented: cost-benefit ratio 1.73 for city; 154 new jobs forecast over 10 years; average wage of $38,000 (year 1) to $59,000 (year 10); $58 million in new wages by year 10; $76,000 annual city property tax after abatement. \
  • Councilmember Schoonover questioned the actual average wage, noting applicant data showed $27,000 for 70 of 82 employees, making the average ~$30,000, not $38,000. He expressed concern that $27,000 is not a living wage in Olathe and that the cost-benefit calculation should weight wages more heavily. Page responded that wages are not a major driver in the analysis (property tax is). \
  • Vote on Resolution 24-1041: Approved 5-2 (Schoonover and Vakas opposed).

Discussion Items

  • Annexation (Ordinance 24-31, ANX24-0004): Approved the annexation of 12.11 acres southwest of 159th Street and Mur-Len Road into Olathe city limits. Passed 7-0. The property owner seeks to sell for future development.

  • Rezoning for Park 169 (Ordinance 24-32, RZ24-0005): Rezoning of 247.15 acres northeast of 167th Street and US 169 Highway from County PEC-3 (light industrial) to R-1, R-2, R-3, and M-2 districts, plus preliminary site development plan. Planning Commission recommended 7–1.
    Senior Planner Jessica Schuller detailed: 13 industrial buildings (62k–264k sq. ft.), 282 apartment/condo units (R3), 118 townhomes (R3), 188 two-family units (R2), 113 single-family lots (R1); phasing with requirements for road improvements (Barker Road, 159th Street, 167th Street, US 169 turn lanes) tied to phases; traffic signal at 159th/Barker; 167th overpass to US 169 in city CIP for 2028–2029; tree preservation, landscape berms, use restrictions to prohibit outdoor storage and heavy manufacturing.
    Chief Dev. Engineer Charlie Love explained traffic study details: US 169 intersection currently LOS C (AM) and D (PM); developer must fund improvements; added turn lanes at 159th/US 169; Barker Road will be a three-lane collector shared by residential and industrial traffic.
    Councilmember Essex questioned truck restrictions, BNSF railroad crossing, and whether units would be rentals vs. for-sale. Applicant Kurt Petersen (Blue Springs Safety Storage South) indicated most multi-family and townhomes are likely rentals, but single-family lots are typically sold; he also offered a potential cost-share for 159th Street improvements.
    Councilmember Felter noted the design intentionally avoids connecting residential streets to existing neighborhoods to prevent cut-through traffic.
    Councilmember Schoonover asked about school district capacity (both Olathe and Spring Hill were consulted and have no capacity concerns).
    Mayor Bacon inquired about the protest petition: City Attorney Shaver stated the HOA petition from Heather Ridge was invalid because the HOA president did not provide documentation of board authorization to sign.
    Resident Tom Stalnaker (detailed above) spoke in opposition.
    Vote on Ordinance 24-32: Approved 7-0.

Key Outcomes

  • Appointments approved: 7-0 for Housing Commission (24-1039) and Human Relations Commission (24-1040). \
  • IRB for LECC Building 5 approved: 5-2 (Schoonover and Vakas dissenting). Final ordinance will be considered later. \
  • Deer hunting program approved: 5-2; bow and arrow allowed for 2024-2025 season. \
  • Annexation approved: 7-0 (12.11 acres at 159th/Mur-Len). \
  • Park 169 rezoning and site plan approved: 7-0 with stipulations tying road improvements to phasing. Traffic studies required per phase. \
  • City Council also accepted various reports (e.g., Industrial Revenue Bond report for Blue Springs Safety Storage South (1,549,955 sq. ft. on 139 acres) and presentation on the Annual State of the Neighborhoods). \
  • Next steps: Budget public hearing on August 27, 2024 at 5:30 PM; Olathe Live concert on September 13, 2024. The council will review economic development policies after budget season.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening. Welcome to the Olatha City Council meeting, the regular Olatha City Council meeting for Tuesday, August 20th, 2024. The first item on our agenda is the Pledge of Allegiance. Would you please stand with me for the pledge? I pledge allegiance to the United States of America. We've got a couple items under special business tonight. Item A is consideration of resolution number 24-1039, appointing new members to the Board of Housing Commissioners. Do I hear a motion? I'm sorry. All right. Um Mr. Mayor, a motion to approve resolution number 24-1039, appointing new members to the Board of Housing Commissioners. Second. We have a motion and second with the City Corps. Please call the roll. Dr. Felter. Yes. Mr. Vacus. Yes. Ms. Essex. Yes. Mr. Bacon. Yes. Ms. Vote. Yes. Mr. Gilmar. Yes. Mr. Sconover. Yes. Motion passes. 70. So the Board of Housing Commissioners oversees our public housing program in Olatha. Their work supports our efforts to run a first class program that offers a high quality of life to some of our most vulnerable residents, helping them and our community reach our full potential. At this time, I'd like to welcome forward the chair of the Board of Housing Commissioners, Rich Heinick. Rich. Before I introduce the new board members, I would first like to acknowledge the former Housing Board Chairman, Corey Stoltz. She passed away this past December after a five-year battle with cancer. Corey was appointed to this board in December of 2007, and she served for 16 years on the housing commission. She was the tenant board member, and she began as a resident in the Olatha Housing Program since 1998. While the resident, Corey went back to school to get her bachelor's degree in social work and started the transportation program at Johnson County Mental Health. She was actively involved in the NARO, the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment. While in the organization, she was awarded the Commissioner of the Year. Personally, she was a great mentor to me as well as the other board members and led and led the board as chairman the last two years, and even in the face of health health issues.

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