KSHB 41 reporter Megan Abundis covers Kansas City, Missouri, including neighborhoods in the southern part of the city. Share your story idea with Megan.
—
A Kansas City, Missouri, Public Schools (KCPS) project planned to transform the vacant DeLano School into a center for homeless youth has halted due to a lack of progress.
KCPS said the project for homeless teens, ages 14-21, would address a significant rise in youth homelessness in Kansas City.
KSHB 41 News first reported on the project in May 2024.
Tuesday, the Neighborhood Planning and Development Committee reviewed Ordinance 250484, a proposal by the Housing Trust Fund Advisory Board to take back the $1,235,999 the city gave the project through its Housing Trust Fund.
The recommendation came due to the project's "inability to proceed with contracting."
In addition to exceeding the Housing and Community Development Department's 12-month contracting policy for awarded projects, the project failed to secure all necessary financing or enter a funding agreement.
Further, the project was granted three 30-day extensions in 2025, but no progress was made toward contracting.
The Neighborhood Planning and Development Committee voted Tuesday to rescind the funding.
Now, Ordinance 250484 will go before the full committee on Thursday, June 26.
"The money can’t be effective just sitting there," said Mayor Pro Tem Ryana Parks-Shaw, who serves as the chair of the Neighborhood Planning and Development Committee.
Shannon Jaax, of Jaax Street Partners, a KCPS partner, has been heavily involved with the project. She spoke at the meeting about the lack of progress.
“We're in the predevelopment phase, so there's some obligations that we weren't able to commit to at this stage," Jaax said.
Going to contract would require KCPS to actually begin the project and be prepared with the funding.
The project was estimated to require $24 million in construction costs and $2 to $5 million in annual operating costs. KCPS said it planned to cover the costs via diverse public and private sources, including philanthropy and tax credits.
Nevertheless, the need for homeless teen help remains.
Jaax said KCPS served over 1,400 homeless students last year, 200 of whom were unaccompanied.
“We want to continue the partnership with the city, and we appreciate the interest and continuing to work with us to find the funding necessary to fulfill the predevelopment stage of this project, and to see us bring these additional units of transitional living and emergency shelter beds to our students,” Jaax said.
Rather than providing another extension, it was decided the project "could apply for funding in a future round when it's further along in the process."
KCPS and reStart previously said only 25% of shelter requests have been met due to limited capacity.
In May 2024, the district's McKinney-Vento liaison emphasized the urgent need for a centrally located resource, as transportation is a major barrier for homeless families accessing services.
The vision behind redeveloping the DeLano School aimed to provide emergency shelter, a transitional living program and a drop-in center.
KCPS planned the site to serve immediate needs, like food and laundry, alongside extensive support services, such as mental health care, job training and case management.
The project was a collaborative effort between multiple city partners and was inspired by the Fannie C. Harris Youth Shelter in Dallas, Texas.
It’s unclear what will happen with the site.
—
