Johnson County city worries Kansas’ Chiefs deal would hinder future development
As Kansas eyes creating a massive incentive district to help publicly fund the construction of a new Kansas City Chiefs stadium and supporting facilities, at least one Johnson County city is worried about how the deal could hinder other development opportunities in the coming decades.
Kansas law currently states that project areas for developments funded by sales tax and revenue bonds, or STAR bonds, cannot overlap with one another — meaning that any cities within the proposed sweeping Chiefs stadium bond district could not use STAR bonds for any future developments of their own for several decades.
Officials in Shawnee say they’re not ok with that.
“While the city does not currently have a STAR Bond–eligible project underway, there are specific locations within Shawnee that could be attractive for a future attraction-based development,” Shawnee City Manager Paul Kramer told The Star in an email. “For that reason, it is important that Shawnee retain access to the STAR Bond tool that has been used successfully by other cities across Kansas.”
Now, Shawnee officials are working with state leaders to find a way they could modify the agreement with the Chiefs to be able to take advantage of the state funding tool in the future. The preliminary map of the incentive district currently encompasses the whole city.
No local buy-in required
In late December, state officials unveiled plans for Kansas to publicly finance up to $2.8 billion of construction costs for a new domed stadium in Wyandotte County and a new training facility and headquarters in Olathe using STAR bonds.
STAR bonds have been used in Kansas since 1999 to fund a portion of construction costs for major development projects aimed to attract tourism. State sales tax revenue generated at the site and surrounding district area are then used to pay back the bond amount over several decades.
The tool helped fund construction of the Kansas Speedway in Wyandotte County — touted as one of the most successful uses of the program — and Prairiefire in Overland Park, which defaulted on its bonds in 2023 after not generating enough money to pay back the debt.
However, the proposed $2.8 billion bond deal with the Chiefs is more than twice the amount of Kansas’ 23 other STAR bond projects combined, thanks to a special supercharged version of the bonds that state lawmakers approved in 2024 for professional sports stadiums.
Unlike regular STAR bonds — which require local buy-in — the stadium bonds give cities the option to keep their local sales tax revenue from within the bond district or to vote to redirect that local money to help pay for the stadium.
So far in Johnson County, only Olathe has said that the City Council will hold a public hearing and vote on an ordinance that would pledge all local incremental sales tax within the city to pay off stadium debt. The council has until Feb. 20 to make its decision.
The supercharged stadium bond law also gave state officials more discretion over the size of the district that will help pay back the bonds and more control in terms of the deal. A preliminary map from the Kansas Department of Commerce shows the district encompasses all of Wyandotte and a large chunk of Johnson County — including all of Shawnee and Lenexa.
Shawnee wants a carve-out
Like Shawnee, Lenexa doesn’t currently have any existing STAR bond projects approved or in the works, and both cities have said that they will not pledge local revenue to help pay off the Chiefs stadium debt.
Lenexa spokesperson Denise Rendina said that the city is “comfortable being included in the STAR bond district,” but Shawnee doesn’t feel the same.
“Shawnee has key areas of undeveloped land with significant potential but unique geographic and infrastructure challenges that may benefit from the type of investment a STAR Bond can support,”City Manager Kramer said.
“We have the kind of highway access that could be attractive to a high-traffic project and we’d like to maximize that property,” he said. “A broad STAR Bond district established for a development outside Shawnee could unintentionally limit the City’s ability to use this tool in the future.”
The city is now working with the state to “identify reasonable carve-outs” within Shawnee as details of the proposed Chiefs deal are finalized, “ensuring an equitable outcome that preserves Shawnee’s long-term development options,” he said.
Details around the negotiations are unclear as they take place behind closed doors. Documentation related to the project — like drafts or the terms of any paperwork — can remain confidential until the parties execute a final agreement.
The Star directed questions related to conversations between the state and Shawnee to the Department of Commerce, which did not respond prior to publication.
This story was originally published January 23, 2026 at 6:28 AM.