KANSAS CITY, Missouri – The Lenexa Planning Commission on Monday recommended that the city not build a homeless assistance center at the La Quinta Inn at West 95th Street and Interstate 35.
Rachel Henderson/KSHB
The 9-0 vote came after the commission met and heard from city staff and reStart, the organization that applied for the special permit to build the shelter.
City staff on August 22 cited numerous reasons for their denial recommendation, with which some community members agreed.
73 people had registered for a public statement and there were mixed voices in favor of the animal shelter.
“I think it’s important for the community to reach out and offer support to people who need it,” said one resident.
Dozens of people gathered outside the meeting room waiting for the Commission’s decision.
Rachel Henderson/KSHB
Barbara McEver knows the homelessness situation in Lenexa firsthand.
She co-founded Project 1020, the only adult homeless shelter in Johnson County.
It is used as a cold weather shelter from December to April, but McEver says a shelter open 24 hours a day, year-round is long overdue.
Al Miller/KSHB 41
“The need is so great. And people need their basic needs met,” McEver said. “These are people. They are people, and it could be someone’s son, daughter, mother, father or sister.”
McEver met Tim Walker when he needed the services of Project 1020 during his homelessness and now volunteers there.
Walker says he wants people to remember the humanity of the homeless.
Tim Walker
“I looked at that number and thought, ‘Boy, that’s not enough beds,'” Walker said. “There’s a greater need. It’s something, it’s a start. I don’t even know if they’re going to do it.”
Walker is a native of Johnson County and says there is a misconception about homelessness there that he wants to dispel.
“The people who are homeless in Johnson County are mostly from here,” Walker said. “I had a life before I became homeless. I went to graduate school and got a master’s degree in physics.”
Data from the county’s census showed that 250 people were homeless in Johnson County, highlighting the problem of homelessness, according to Mike Kelly, chairman of the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners.
“We continue to support this unique opportunity to address the unmet need for homeless adults in our community and help one of our most vulnerable populations,” Kelly said in a statement on Johnson County’s website. “There is general consensus in the community that homelessness is a growing problem for Johnson County and one that is manageable if addressed now. We have been encouraged by the interest shown by Johnson County cities in participating in a proposed city-county operating fund. We thank the 10 cities that have pledged their support and look forward to welcoming additional partners soon.”
Below are some reasons why the Lenexa Planning Commission recommended denying the project:
- The proposed use contradicts the character of the district, which has been designated by the city as a central redevelopment corridor.
- The proposed use will result in a concentration of negative externalities in this area of the community due to its proximity to the only other homeless shelter for single adults in Johnson County, which will adversely affect surrounding properties.
- Theity’s current law enforcement resources are inadequate for the proposed use and the additional cost to the City of hiring the necessary personnel will impose an undue financial burden on the City, compounded by the loss of tax revenue resulting from converting the subject property to a tax-exempt use.
- That, despite the best intentions of the applicant, the extremely accelerated timeframe within which this project was conceived and developed has resulted in many of the required elements of a mandatory management plan for the use of the shelter being incomplete and/or inadequate, thereby creating significant uncertainty as to important details of the proposed use, its financing, and ultimately the overall viability of the shelter operation.
“We are still reviewing the 540-page City of Lenexa staff report released Thursday evening on reStart’s special use permit application,” Kelly said. “After the initial review, we see opportunities for reStart to work with the City of Lenexa to address many of the challenges identified. We will support these efforts from now until the tentatively scheduled Lenexa City Council meeting on September 17.”
City Community Development Director Scott McCullough was one of the city staff members who explained the city’s rationale.
“The impact on this area is already being felt and employees feel it is too great at this location,” said McCullough.
Stephanie Boyer, executive director of reStart, echoed that sentiment at Monday’s meeting, saying many people’s concerns could be addressed very easily.
“It really offers an opportunity to escape homelessness and get back into permanent, stable housing,” Boyer said.
Regardless of Monday’s decision, it was clear that the Lenexa City Council would address this issue at its Sept. 17 meeting.
If the council approves the planning commission’s recommendation, five votes of council members are required to make the decision final at the council meeting.
If the Council disagrees and wishes to reject the Planning Commission’s recommendation, a qualified majority of six votes in total is required.
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