Meadowbrook clubhouse in Prairie Village gets demolition reprieve — for now

The clubhouse of the former Meadowbrook Country Club and Golf Course in Prairie Village has received a reprieve through at least late summer as Johnson County park officials revisit its fate.

During a special meeting Monday, the Johnson County Park & Recreation District board voted 4-3 to put on hold its March 16 decision to tear down the building at 9101 Nall Ave. The board will now decide what to do with the clubhouse 90 days after the district takes possession of the property, currently scheduled for May or June.

The clubhouse is part of the more than 80 acres of the former golf course that the city of Prairie Village is planning to buy and hand over to the district for a future Meadowbrook Park.

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.

Monday’s vote came after officials with Prairie Village and the county informally raised concerns about the board’s decision to tear down the clubhouse, which they hope could play a role in the new park.

Proponents of the delay said it would provide more time to work out a long-term plan for the building and its location in the northwest corner of the property. For example, the district could decide to completely renovate the 1974-era building, make minor alterations to meet modern building codes and accessibility requirements, replace it with a new building or knock it down and use it for additional recreation space.

“It is a final deal when we tear it down,” said County Commissioner Steven Klika, who is also a board member. “We have not come up with any type of definitive idea of what we want, if anything, to substitute for that building down the line. I would err for patience on this one.”

Board member Nancy Wallerstein said she wanted to see more options and felt the March 16 vote had been “premature.”

“We don’t even own the building yet,” she said.

A new study commissioned by district staff from SFS Architecture said the minimal amount of work necessary to make the building usable would cost taxpayers $528,082 with an additional $187,731 in optional work to improve the look of the building.

Cliff Middleton, the district’s planning and development manager, said the work would extend the life of the building three to five years.

That was a much lower figure than the $1.4 million-$1.6 million price tag given by consultants last fall for more extensive short-term repairs or the $4 million cost they gave to extend the clubhouse’s life by a decade.

Opponents of the delay complained that the board has had plenty of time to discuss the future of the clubhouse, and that they should abide by the March 16 decision and move on to a permanent solution.

“I think the notion of spending $700,000 to put a Band-aid on an old building just so in two years we can spend it on a new building? That’s just absurd to me,” said board member Michael Pirner.

Fellow board member Leslee Rivarola said she objected to the new study, which was commissioned in direct opposition to the board’s earlier decision.

“I would like to understand under what legal authority have we as a board been examining alternative options to (building accessibility),” Rivarola said.

The board chose to discuss the issue of staff’s work on the study in an executive session closed to the public, but the board came out of the executive session and adjourned the meeting without further discussion or voting on any decisions.

In other business, the board approved a number of park development agreements with Prairie Village and the Meadowbrook developer, VanTrust Real Estate, but delayed voting on a plan for street lights and other exterior lighting on the property until they receive cost estimates next week.

Some board members were also disappointed when told that lighting for such things as walking trails in the park is not covered in the initial phase of construction.

This story was originally published April 12, 2016 at 5:01 PM with the headline "Meadowbrook clubhouse in Prairie Village gets demolition reprieve — for now."