Meadowbrook clubhouse teardown questioned

Plans to tear down the former Meadowbrook Country Club and Golf Course clubhouse in Prairie Village are on hold as Johnson County park officials get more information on whether to restore the building or replace it with something else.

The Johnson County Park & Recreation District board voted on March 16 to remove the clubhouse at 9101 Nall Ave. as part of plans to redevelop roughly 80 acres of the former golf course as Meadowbrook Park.

But during a special meeting on Wednesday night, board Chairman Paul Snider said that decision had “raised some eyebrows” among Prairie Village and county officials. He said they have asked the district to delay demolition of the building and wait until a final plan for the clubhouse has been drafted.

The district’s current plans for developing and opening the park within the next two years do not include money for a new clubhouse or extensive renovations. Past engineering reviews have indicated that making the 1974 building accessible to the public, including disabled visitors, could be expensive.

The land is currently owned by VanTrust Real Estate, which is developing the remaining 45 acres of the golf course into a senior living community and a mix of single-family lots, luxury apartments, twin-home units and a boutique hotel. It is selling the park land to Prairie Village, which is scheduled to hand it over to the park board in May.

Some park board members expressed exasperation at the delay, given that the vote to demolish the building was 7-1.

“It was not a close vote,” Commissioner Leslee Rivarola said. “I’m really struggling with what we are exploring.”

Snider acknowledged the frustration and said someone else ultimately will have to provide the money to build a new clubhouse.

He said he hoped for more clarity when consultants with SFS Architecture release cost estimates for renovating the clubhouse next month.

“(The county) wanted to explore keeping the building open as frugally as possible,” he said. “We’re exploring whether that’s even possible. I would say if it comes back and just to keep it open and accessible to people is north of $1 million, I think that’s kind of a non-starter. But if it’s under that, this board is being asked to give that some consideration.”

This story was originally published March 31, 2016 at 9:59 PM with the headline "Meadowbrook clubhouse teardown questioned."