Meet the 7 candidates running for 4 seats on the Lenexa City Council
The upcoming elections for the Lenexa City Council will see two incumbents facing a challenger and a former council member looking for a comeback.
Fast-growing Lenexa has gained nearly 20,000 new residents in the past 25 years as officials consider how the city will fill in west of Interstate 435 while maintaining the older parts of the city to the east.
One seat in each of Lenexa’s four wards are up for election on Nov. 4. Voters will elect a representative for the ward they live in. Early voting begins Oct. 25.
In Ward 1, covering northwest Lenexa, incumbent John Michael Handley faces challenger Joe Shull. In Ward 2, covering southwest Lenexa, incumbent Bill Nicks faces challenger Nicole Wasson.
Avery Bell and Corey Hunt are running in Ward 3, covering northeast Lenexa. Incumbent Melanie Arroyo is not running for reelection.
In Ward 4, covering southeast Lenexa, incumbent Craig Denny is running unopposed.
City council races are technically nonpartisan, but local political parties have recommended candidates. The Democratic Party of Johnson County has recommended Handley, Wasson and Bell, while the Republican Party of Johnson County has recommended Nicks, Hunt and Denny.
Johnson County’s website lists all candidates running for election this year, and voters can see sample ballots on the Kansas Secretary of State’s website. Find more coverage of the 2025 local elections at kansascity.com, or sign up for a free newsletter with news for Johnson County.
Ward 1
John Michael Handley (incumbent)
Handley grew up in Onaga and attended the University of Kansas for degrees in chemical engineering and civil engineering. He is now pursuing a business degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He and his husband moved to Lenexa in 2019.
Handley works as a project development manager in data infrastructure and renewable energy. He began serving on the planning commission in 2020 and was appointed to the city council in January to fill a vacant seat after the death of Joe Karlin. He has also volunteered on the comprehensive plan steering committee.
He said during a candidate forum that his goal to continue giving back to the community and making sure that Lenexa stays a place that welcomes others just as it welcomed him while continuing a standard of excellence and maintain a budget that’s friendly for all Lenexans.
He says that the city’s future must include a diverse mix of housing, including examining barriers and opportunities for single-family housing and ensuring multi-family housing goes where it’s appropriate, according to his campaign website. He told the Johnson County Post that he hopes to enable “missing middle” housing like rowhouses and duplexes.
Handley said his priorities will include smart development, including in western Lenexa and with contextually-appropriate infill development; budget excellence as the city lowered the levy rate for eight years in a row; and public safety.
He said it will be important to follow the city’s comprehensive plan, which guides future development, to be predictable to businesses while maintaining the ability to pivot and investing in infrastructure before it becomes stressed.
Handley said he will be steady, thoughtful and measured and won’t give in to hype and fear-mongering.
Joe Shull
Shull has lived in Lenexa for most of his life, attending Shawnee Mission schools, and now lives in Ward 1 with his wife and two sons. He has degrees in accounting and law from the University of Kansas and is an attorney and small business owner with a trial firm.
He said during a candidate forum that he is running because the city needs to get back to serving its residents, rather than the other way around.
Shull said his top three priorities will be “property taxes, property taxes and property taxes,” saying that they are out of control and reaching a breaking point for residents; smart development, saying Lenexa has enough apartments and should focus on pursuing and incentivizing affordable single-family homes that will attract young families who will stay in the city; and public safety.
He says on his campaign website that he would oppose any additional homeless shelter plans in Lenexa. Shull says he has watched Lenexa transform from farmland into one of the most sought-after cities in Kansas and is committed to ensuring it remains a place where small businesses can thrive.
He also said that Lenexans often see their property taxes rise faster than income growth and that the council can use tools, like the mill rate and optimizing sales tax, to relieve the pressure. Shull said that he’ll fight to make sure the property tax system supports residents, not burden them. He said during that forum that the city should look at expanding the property tax rebate program.
Ward 2
Bill Nicks (incumbent)
Nicks was first elected to the city council in 2017 and served as the parks and recreation director for 29 years. He has degrees from Washburn University and the University of Kansas and served in the Army, retiring as a sergeant. He and his wife raised their three children in Lenexa.
Nicks has served on several boards and performs live historic reenactments around the state.
He said during a candidate forum that his top three goals are public safety; balancing residential and commercial development while preserving open space; and building community and pulling together in the face of the temptation to be divided. Nicks said on his campaign website that Lenexa has reached its saturation point with high-density apartments.
He also wrote that he will strive to keep city government transparent and its services strong and responsive. He said during the forum that the city should seek to broaden its property tax rebate program. He told the Johnson County Post that the city should look at moderate infill development that would fit the neighborhood and support a diverse range of housing options that encourages people to put down roots.
Nicks said that the city should continue to follow its comprehensive plan and reinvest in established parts of Lenexa and that the city needs to be mindful of surrounding properties when doing rezoning. When negotiating incentives, he said during the forum that the city should make sure projects contribute to a diverse economy, create jobs and include benchmarks.
He emphasizes his experience, willingness to engage with residents and other stakeholders and his willingness to study a question and speak with his own mind.
Nicole Wasson
Wasson was born and raised in the Lenexa and Shawnee area. She graduated from the University of Kansas and worked for the university after college. She had a 20-year career in corporate consulting, specializing in software implementation and project management. Wasson is now a small business owner in Lenexa, according to the Johnson County Post.
Wasson says father and grandfather both served in their communities and believes strongly in civil duty. After her father’s death, she became an election worker and become a supervising judge for a polling location. Wasson said during a candidate forum that she knows in her heart that she can do more for Lenexa and has looked for more ways to serve, prompting her to run for city council.
Her focuses will include financial responsibility; being a voice for residents and bringing the community together to meet the goals for the future; and growth and development that make sense for Lenexa while meeting new challenges head on.
Wasson said she would support better targeting the property tax rebate program and taking a new look at tax abatements, including looking at targeting businesses that want to be in Lenexa and would bring in growth without asking for reductions. She told the Post that the city needs to get creative on housing and not just focus on single-family and apartments.
She emphasizes her decades of experiencing working with large companies to solve their challenges and says her skills can give Lenexa a fresh outlook as the city looks toward the future.
Ward 3
Incumbent Melanie Arroyo is not running for reelection.
Avery Bell
Bell was born and raised in Kansas and moved to Lenexa in 2015. He has a degree in communications from Michigan State University, where he served in student government and a business degree from the University of Kansas. Bell has been the North America sales manager for the data center division at Kohler and a regional director at Henderson Building Solutions. He is currently a global account executive with Siemens.
He has been a member of advocacy groups and volunteers for various community programs and says on his campaign website that he has always been a voice for the people and believes that government is a place for everyone, starting with local government.
Bell said during a candidate forum that he is running because of his wife, who is a teacher at a Title I elementary school where she is able to give back to the community every day, and he wants to do the same. He said he wants to make sure tax dollars are spent responsibly and efficiently and that he doesn’t have an ace to grind with the city.
Bell’s top three priorities would be investing in core infrastructure needs, including the ones that are “invisible”; identifying appropriate and affordable housing options so people can build equity; and making sure Lenexa has a diverse revenue stream so the economy thrives.
He said the city should consider redevelopment over development, making sure that infrastructure and establishments Lenexa has today put the city toward growth, and not strictly focus on new development, which should not come at the expense of what the city already has.
He told the Johnson County Post that he and his wife may not be able to afford the house they were in today based on current appraisals and interest rates, which should not be the case, and he would like to see housing options that allow people to build equity at a lower price point.
Bell emphasizes that his entire career has been in infrastructure, including design, contracts and construction, and has worked for several businesses in Lenexa.
Corey Hunt
Hunt previously served on the city council from 2017 to 2021. He retired from the Navy as a senior chief after 23 years and has degrees from Park University, Emporia University and the University of Arkansas. He graduated from seven Navy schools.
He told the Johnson County Post that he has held positions for 15 years leading men and women to achieve personal goals while managing diminishing resources and has launched a third career helping veterans as the national training officer for the Veterans of Foreign Wars, based in Kansas City.
He said during a candidate forum that he would like to bring his experience back to a council that has lost a lot of institutional knowledge and that he would be ready on day one.
Hunt’s priorities would include maintaining public safety and allocating resource to uphold the city’s Vision 2040 plan. He said on his website that he consistently supports smart growth and business development and that strong economic policies attract and retain businesses, create jobs and keep the city competitive as economic success works hand-in-hand with inviting places and vibrant neighborhoods.
He said he supports development that enhances the character of Lenexa, promotes community events and improves the quality of life for families. Hunt also said that he supports thoughtful investment in roads, public transit and technology that will connect neighborhoods and reduce congestion. He told The Post that the city should look at incentivizing redevelopment in areas that could use a fresh start as the city looks to create attainable housing.
Hunt also said he will prioritize revitalizing Old Lenexa and transparency as an elected official.
Ward 4
Incumbent Craig Denny is running unopposed. He was first elected in 2021.
Denny is an Army veteran and holds degrees in civil engineering from Iowa State University and a PhD from the University of Kansas.
According to his city bio, he joined the Terracon engineering consulting firm in 1973 and moved from Iowa to Lenexa to be a chief engineer in the company’s Lenexa office in 1985. He retired as a senior principal and senior engineering consultant in 2020.
Denny has served on and led several community organizations and was inducted into the Lenexa Volunteer Hall of Fame in 1994. He has served as chair of the parks and recreation board and on the Shawnee Mission school board.
He spearheaded Lenexa’s 100th anniversary celebration in 2005 and co-chaired the city’s Vision 2030 campaign in 2007. He has also been an active member of the Lenexa Chamber of Commerce.