What happened to the KCI project on Thursday? Five things to know
The Kansas City Council voted 9-4 on Thursday to reject an agreement officials struck with Edgemoor, the company that the city selected to build the new KCI terminal. The document, called a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), was a preliminary, non-binding accord intended to get things started.
Wasn’t this all a done deal?
It was easy to get that impression, given all the hoopla over the huge election victory for the KCI ballot question last month. But billion-dollar public-private construction projects are complicated propositions, with many political, financial and regulatory hurdles to clear. Even if this memorandum had passed, two other development agreements between the city and Edgemoor remained to be negotiated by attorneys and approved by the council next year.
Will there still be a new airport terminal?
Most likely, yes. But Thursday’s vote almost certainly delays the process, possibly for an extended period. Until Thursday, plans called for demolition of Terminal A and construction to begin next fall, with a new facility in place by late 2021. That timetable is clearly at risk.
Will the city turn to a new developer?
Edgemoor is still in the picture, but hanging by a thread. The company offered to sit down and talk about changes to the MOU, but it’s not clear that will happen. A resolution to completely cut ties with the company will go to a council committee for discussion and debate next week.
Why did this happen?
Depends whom you ask. A group of council members had always favored AECOM, the company initially ranked first by the city’s selection committee before being passed over for Edgemoor.
They were frustrated by what they saw as Edgemoor’s unwillingness to sufficiently fund a package of community benefits the council had asked for. This was money intended to help low-income communities benefit from the project by providing transportation to the work site, child care and other supports. It also included cash and in-kind contributions to several community programs. The total value of the package was about $10 million, but council members wanted more.
There were other concerns: a lack of specificity in Edgemoor’s plans to pay for the project, and a clause that required the city to reimburse the company for up to $30 million in certain out-of-pocket costs if the city and company failed to reach a final development agreement next year. In return the city would keep Edgemoor’s “work product,” meaning designs and other materials. These issues all eventually combined to erode support for Edgemoor.
What now?
Truly anybody’s guess. If the council votes to terminate discussions with Edgemoor, the city could turn to AECOM and begin to negotiate a new MOU. It could also decide to start all over again and solicit new proposals, which would open the door for Burns and McDonnell, the “Hometown Team” that was Mayor Sly James’ choice for a no-bid contract to do the job.
This story was originally published December 15, 2017 at 10:35 AM with the headline "What happened to the KCI project on Thursday? Five things to know."