KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Miami County in Kansas and Cass County in Missouri. He also covers agricultural topics. Over the past year, Harrisonville residents expressed interest in the future of the old Walmart building. Ryan followed up. Share your story idea with Ryan.
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At Monday night's Harrisonville, Missouri, Board of Alderman meeting, the council voted unanimously to administer a Special Use Permit to JBQ Meats in the old Walmart building.
JBQ Meats is the umbrella company associated with beloved Kansas City BBQ restaurants, Fiorella's Jack Stack BBQ.
According to board documents, the special use permit would change zoning regulations for a packaging, processing, and warehouse facility.
"Harrisonville is definitely open for business and is growing," said Executive Director Bing Schimmelpfenning of the Harrisonville Chamber of Commerce. "They’re going to take a blighted property which is the old Walmart as people know it in town, as well as Bizarre Bizarre, and make it a USDA certified processing facility. Then they’ll ship food out there to other big name businesses."
Schimmelpfenning has a beat on the business community in Harrisonville . He's in favor of an $18 million investment would help re-purpose a dilapidated building.
"Just kind of clean up that old eyesore that's been there for over a decade," he said.
The old Walmart with the Bizarre Bizzare written on the front of the building was formerly in the Del Dunmire estate.
"It's sort of a love-hate relationship for us in Harrisonville," Schimmelpfenning said. "I called it 'Del's Garage.''
It was used as a storage facility for Dunmire's odds and end items.
Del Dunmire was an infamous bank robber, whose dream was to turn Harrisonville's downtown district into a destination, which never fully came to fruition. Click here to read his obituary in the Kansas City Star.
"The investment he made in a lot of our buildings is the reason they're still standing," said Schimmelpfenning.
Now, a new investment is on the horizon. It's one Schimmelpfenning says could bring upwards of 70 jobs, a lot for a small town.
"It’s not just the number of employees, it’s the amount of people that comes with those employees, usually four to six more people," he said. "So any amount is a great amount."
A Jack Stack BBQ spokesperson was unable to provide specifics into its plan to redevelop the building.
A company email stated, "Our JBQ Meats team is always exploring ways to strengthen production capabilities and continue meeting the high standards our customers expect. The zoning application is one of several steps in that broader planning process that is only just beginning."
Language in the special use permit states it would last 30 years and the distance from North Commercial street has space for potential retail lots. The Chamber of Commerce is hopeful a brick and mortar restaurant could be in the town's future.
Additionally, the property is location on Missouri Route 291 TDD, known as a Transportation Development District. It collects an additional 1% sales tax to fund public transportation improvements within the area.
"They have a great reputation and we’re excited to have them as a partner in the area," added Schimmelpfenning.
The project is expected to be completed in 2027.
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