Measure to sell city park on April ballots

By Joe Jarosz
Northeast News
January 14, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Missouri — Along with deciding on a few names, voters will have a chance to get rid of some park property in the next scheduled election.

The Finance, Governance and Ethics Committee, as well as the City Council, passed a measure calling for the addition of a ballot measure that would allow voters of Kansas City to remove a certain city property devoted to park use from the park system. The property is located at 534 Highland Ave., just north of the Paseo and Independence Boulevard. The 2.44 acres is surrounded by Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences. The Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners also approved and recommended that the park land be removed from the park system.

Voters would vote yes or no for the question: Should the City of Kansas City remove from the park system vacant property located generally at 534 Highland Avenue, which has been determined by the Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners to be no longer necessary or appropriate for park, parkway, or boulevard use?

At the committee meeting, Mark McHenry, Kansas City Parks director, said the parks department made the assumption it was city property, and after some extensive digging, the search proved it was, in fact, city property. McHenry pointed out that the land is critical to the development of KCUMB property expansion.

“We’ve spoken with the folks at KCUMB and went through the bid process,” McHenry said, adding they’ve received a bid for $150,000 from KCUMB to purchase the land from the city. “That’s good and done already.”

To complete the transaction, McHenry said the city has to go to the voters. Kerrie Tyndall, assistant to the city manager, told the committee in conversations with KCUMB, they’re interested in acquiring the property to continue with recent expansions made to the campus as part of their master plan. Tyndall noted that the 2.44 acres is not part of Belvedere Park and is more an island green space, than an actual city park.

“Being able to make this property available to them would help to facilitate their expansion in the Historic Northeast,” Tyndall said.

Wagner pointed out the city has supported KCUMB’s master plan in the past by vacating property near the campus. Vacating the property, Wagner added, would put it to its highest and best use.