When will KCK get a shelter? Questions linger on how to tackle housing concerns
As winter approaches and as local governments across the metro prepare for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Wyandotte County is still trying to lock down a location for a long-promised, year-round shelter for residents experiencing homelessness.
Should all go to plan, a shelter that offers people who are unhoused a refuge from extreme temperatures, help from local organizations and a meal, could be acquired by July 2026, Mayor Tyrone Garner told The Star on Friday.
“It’s not an ‘if,’ it’s just a matter of ‘when,’” Garner said during a Thursday evening board meeting.
As it stands, Wyandotte County has no year-round shelter. People who are unhoused often rely on area warming centers, such as the Willa Gill Services Center, and local nonprofits, to make it through the year’s coldest days.
Even so, more than 100 people were unsheltered during January 2025, said Alan Howze, assistant county administrator, during a recent board meeting.
And although the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and KCK doesn’t have a shelter, it has more than $3 million in federal funds to make one happen. The local government has not yet signed an agreement on either of the two main locations it’s considering. Garner declined to specify exactly which buildings the city is eyeing, but said one location is in midtown and another, apparently more favorable, option is downtown and near Willa Gill.
Willa Gill’s current facility, at 645 Nebraska Ave. in Kansas City, Kansas, is slated to be the city’s designated warming center this winter, although it’s soon slated to close permanently. A downtown extension to Kansas City, Kansas, Community College is slated to replace Willa Gill’s current building.
Garner said that per the Unified Government’s agreement with KCKCC, Willa Gill will remain intact until the government finds an alternative location to house its services.
They’ve tentatively agreed to try to lock something down by July 2026, which is also when the metro will host a handful of World Cup games, including a quarter-final, that’s expected to bring thousands to the area.
At least one community member during Thursday’s meeting said the timing of government conversations on addressing homelessness locally feels like an attempt to conceal unhoused residents ahead of the World Cup to make KCK more attractive for tourists.
Addressing homelessness
Lacking state funding, federal cuts, a shortage of beds for substance abuse and mental health treatment and limited affordable housing have contributed to challenges in addressing homelessness locally.
The Unified Government was on track to get a homelessness coordinator through the state, although recent clawbacks on federal funding revoked funding for that position, Howze said.
It’s also clear, after a heated public meeting Thursday evening, that members of the Board of Commissioners, law enforcement, and advocates for the unhoused are divided on how to address the complicated matter.
Five hours into Thursday’s meeting, commissioners by a 7-1 vote denied an ordinance that would’ve made outdoor camping in public and private spots — such as bridges, overpasses, bus shelters and more — unlawful.
Now, the mayor’s homelessness task force will meet with advocates and officials to more comprehensively discuss how to address housing issues in Wyandotte County.
Had the item been approved, someone who violated the rule would’ve had to pay up to $200 in fines, serve up to 30 days in jail or participate in between 10 and 40 hours of community service, according to board documents.
District 2 At-Large Commissioner Tom Burroughs introduced the item in committee after numerous business owners told him that people who were unhoused were harming their businesses and making them worried for their personal safety and the safety of their properties.
The ordinance was intended to keep streets, parks and other property sanitary and minimize public health and safety hazards, according to board documents.
“It is not the intent of the Unified Government to punish any citizen based solely upon such individual’s homelessness status, but to enact an ordinance ensuring ready and equal access to public property by the community while preserving the health, safety and welfare of all citizens,” according to the ordinance.
But the idea of policing homelessness didn’t sit well with many community members that attended the meeting. Numerous local advocates and residents told commissioners that the policy directly targets people in KCK who do not have a home.
They urged the board to pursue wraparound services — like housing assistance, increased mental health services and support for people experiencing substance abuse — instead of policing vulnerable people.
Housing and rising bills
Housing availability and affordability are particularly pressing issues in Wyandotte County, which has the lowest median income among people living in the Kansas City metro.
People in public meetings have continually expressed concerns of losing their homes as they grapple with high property tax bills and home values that have rapidly increased in recent years. Given that several local taxing entities adopted budgets that include collecting additional property tax revenues in 2026, residents are preparing to see their bills increase further.
Hundreds of families in Wyandotte County are housing insecure. During the 2023-24 school year, 762 students in Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools; 90 in Turner Unified School District; 27 in Piper Unified School District; and 19 in Bonner Springs-Edwardsville Unified School District qualified for McKinney-Vento services, Howze said.
The McKinney-Vento act offers free enrollment, school supplies and transportation to students in the public school system who are experiencing homelessness.
Government staff, during a presentation ahead of the vote, told commissioners that it costs the local government between $5,000 and $7,000 to clean up a homeless encampment. The Unified Government in 2024 cleared 20 local encampments, and said it so far has conducted six of 10 planned sweeps this year.
