Creative Planning pursuing a move to a new office building Overland Park

With the old CenturyLink building in Overland Park at Interstate 435 and Nall Avenue set to implode this weekend, a plan for a new office building at that site for wealth management firm Creative Planning has emerged.

The Overland Park Finance and Economic Development Committee on Wednesday night recommended approval of tax abatements on a 125,000-square-foot building at the southeast corner of Interstate 435 and Nall Avenue that would be occupied Creative Planning.

The wealth management firm now has its offices in Leawood, where it has 206 employees with high-paying jobs.

In documents filed at Overland Park City Hall, Creative Planning has indicated that its workforce could reach more than 600 in the next 10 years. The firm’s total investment in the project exceeds $44 million when building, personal property and land costs are taken into account.

Creative Planning is led by its president and chief investment officer Peter Mallouk, who was not immediately available for comment Thursday. Mallouk co-authored a new book, “Unshakeable,” with best-selling business and finance writer Tony Robbins, who also sits on Creative Planning’s advisory board.

Others with positions on Creative Planning’s advisory board are Chris Cox, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Jonathan Clements, former personal finance columnist at The Wall Street Journal.

The firm launched in 1982 and now reports annual revenues of more than $200 million.

The land at I-435 and Nall is owned by an affiliate of VanTrust Real Estate, which purchased the property from CenturyLink after it relocated its employees to new office space in New Century. VanTrust in November brought plans before Overland Park to build as many as three new office buildings at the site.

Earlier in January, Overland Park approved plans to issue economic development revenue bonds for each of the three planned office buildings, which would give the developer a sales tax exemption on construction-related materials.

According to plans filed with the city, Creative Planning and its affiliated tax planning and legal businesses would buy the building from VanTrust.

Creative Planning and Overland Park staffers worked out an incentive plan. It would give the company a 25 percent property tax abatement on the initial capital investment on the building based on its existing 206 local employees who have an average salary of $103,690. The firm has 118 additional employees nationally.

That abatement rate would increase to 40 percent if the company grew to more than 400 full-time employees. Creative Planning would lose the abatement if employment fell below 200 or if the average salary fell below $75,000.

Wednesday’s vote does not commit Overland Park to the abatement; the full City Council is expected to hold a public hearing and consider the incentive at its meeting Monday.

This story was originally published January 19, 2017 at 4:51 PM with the headline "Creative Planning pursuing a move to a new office building Overland Park."