Olathe City Council Meeting - January 7, 2025: Approvals for CID Sales Tax, Special Use Permit, and The District Rezoning
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Olathe City Council Meeting - January 7, 2025
The Olathe City Council met on January 7, 2025, at 7:00 PM in the Council Chamber. The meeting included a proclamation for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, public hearings for two community improvement district (CID) sales taxes, approval of a consent agenda, and three new business items. Council also heard public comments and recognized city staff for snowstorm response. The most significant actions were the approval of a special use permit for golf cart sales (with a 6-1 vote) and a rezoning for the massive "The District" development, amended to allow a convenience store with gas sales.
Consent Calendar
- Approved the December 17, 2024 council minutes, renewal licenses, a travel request for the City Manager, the consent calendar, and a bid award for water/wastewater pump repair. All passed 7-0.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Martin Peters, Olathe resident, thanked city leaders for recognizing historical and cultural treasures and urged continued support for those sites.
- Claire Reagan, Olathe resident, thanked city staff for snow removal efforts.
Discussion Items
- Proclamation for MLK Jr. Day (Item 4A): Mayor Bacon proclaimed January 20, 2025, as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Tim Dannenberg, Human Relations Commission liaison, accepted and noted the 24th year of the essay contest, sponsored by Garmin, with winners to be announced on January 18 at Olathe Northwest High School.
- Public Hearings – CID Sales Tax (Items 5A & 5B): Two public hearings were held for ordinances creating CIDs for Pizza 51 Project and 3rd Street Social Project. No public comments were received. Both hearings were closed and ordinances approved unanimously (7-0).
- New Business A – Special Use Permit for Icon Midwest (G25-4834): The applicant sought approval for a special use permit to sell golf and utility carts at 1301 E. Santa Fe Street, formerly Tint World. The Planning Commission recommended 8-0 approval with a stipulation limiting display to 10 carts along Santa Fe (compromise from staff’s 5 and applicant’s 15). Council debated: Councilmember Gilmore supported the 10-cart display, emphasizing business friendliness; Councilmember Vogt and Essex expressed concerns about clutter and precedent but ultimately supported the two-year permit to test the concept. Councilmember Schoonover voted no. Motion to approve with Planning Commission stipulations passed 6-1.
- New Business B – The District Rezoning (G25-4829): A rezoning amendment for a 50.48-acre site at 119th and Renner Boulevard, including an arena (5,500 capacity), an ultra-accessible theme park, a 160-room hotel, and commercial pads. The main debate was over a proposed convenience store with gas sales. Staff and Planning Commission recommended prohibiting it, but the applicant argued it was essential for market viability. After extensive discussion, Councilmember Vogt moved to amend the ordinance to remove the prohibition on convenience stores with gas sales, limit to one on site, and require the final site plan to come back to council for approval. Councilmember Vakas emphasized the desire for a high-quality, unique design. The motion passed 7-0. The underlying rezoning ordinance was then approved 7-0.
- New Business C – Annexation (G25-4825): Ordinance to annex 1.32 acres at 16040 S. Black Bob Road and 6.25 acres at 16090 S. Black Bob Road for Heritage Christian Academy church recreational activities. Approved unanimously 7-0.
Key Outcomes
- Approved (7-0): Ordinance No. 25-01 (Pizza 51 CID) and Ordinance No. 25-02 (3rd Street Social CID).
- Approved (7-0): Consent agenda items.
- Approved (6-1, Schoonover no): Resolution No. 25-1001 for Special Use Permit SU24-0003 (Icon Midwest) with Planning Commission stipulations (10 carts along Santa Fe).
- Approved (7-0): Ordinance No. 25-03 (RZ24-0016) for The District, amended to allow one convenience store with gas sales, subject to future council approval of the site plan.
- Approved (7-0): Ordinance No. 25-04 for annexation of Black Bob Road properties.
- Council also: Accepted multiple reports on capital improvement projects, street preservation, and engineering projects (Items 11A1-14).
- Mayor announced: 119th Street extension project is underway, part of Gary Haller Trail closed until early 2027; Olathe Mayor’s Children’s Fund raised over $162,000; snow crews cleared 1,400 lane miles and 1,600 cul-de-sacs during the winter storm.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening. Welcome to the regular session of the Olatha City Council for Tuesday, January 7th, 2025. First item on our agenda is the Pledge of Allegiance. Would you please stand with me for the pledge? I pledge allegiance to the fly of the United States of America. One nation under God. In the visible liberty, before we get started, I wanted to recognize our infrastructure staff for their outstanding work they've been doing over the past several days to respond to this winter storm. This is one of the largest storms, event, snowstorms that Olatha has ever seen. We've had crews on the roads 24 hours a day since it began. We have almost 1,400 lane miles to clear in Olatha, and that includes about 1,600 cul-de-sacs. I didn't know that. We had that many cul-de-sacs in Olatha. So thank you to everyone who's put in all the hours and sacrifice their time away from families so that we can all be safe. We know that there's still work to be done. If residents or businesses have questions or concerns about the snow response, we recommend submitting those comments through Olatha Connect. And if you haven't done that before, there's a link on our website, the city's website. So we've got some more cold weather on the way and potentially a little more snow. So everyone, please stay warm and stay safe. With that, we'll move on to special business. Item A is a proclamation recognizing January 20th, 2025 as Mark Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Day. Once again, this year, the city's city's Olatha Human Relations Commission and Library is partnering with the school district to host the Dark Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Essay Contest and Contest Celebration Event. We wouldn't be able to do this without the sponsor of this year's event, Garmin. So joining us today is Human Relations Commission staff liaison, Tim Daneberg, to accept the proclamation so and to tell you a little bit more about this event next week. So Tim, would you join me up here? Okay. How are you doing? So I'll read the proclamation and then you're welcome to say a few comments. So whereas 55 years after his death, the life and legacy of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. continue to inspire our nation in a steadfast pursuit of a better future for all. And whereas Dr. King's fight for freedom and equality are reflected within the CWA's commitment to a high quality of life for all residents, as laid out in the Olatha 2040 future ready strategic plan. And whereas the theme of the 2025 Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. contest is belief in humanity, encouraging participants to stay committed to the pursuit of equality and to making the world a better place. And whereas the City of Olatha is proud to join our community partners in celebrating Dr. King's life, including the Olatha Human Relations Commission, Olatha Public Schools, Garmin, and the NAACP. Now, therefore, I John Bacon, mayor of the City of Olatha, do hereby proclaim January 20, 2025, Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Day in Olatha, encouraging all residents to join us in our annual Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. contest celebration on Saturday, January 18th at 11 a.m. at Olatha Northwest High School. Furthermore, we urge all each Olathean to rededicate oneself to upholding equal rights and justice for all. So I'll get this to go. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I appreciate it very much. Commissioner Hillman sends his regrets.
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