KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel.
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Joan Thomas has lived along 115th Street in Wyandotte County for 26 years and has watched the area change rapidly since she arrived.
She has mixed feelings about the latest wave of development coming to her neighborhood.
"We love it here. It's quiet and peaceful," Thomas said. “There's so much that's been going on, my gosh.”
Thomas has watched major projects come and go in western Wyandotte County, including the Kansas Speedway and the American Royal.
"When the speedway came here, we were all excited," Thomas said.
She's no stranger to the uncertainty that comes with development, particularly STAR bond projects.
"It's scary that things go belly up, but something else comes around," Thomas said.
Now, two new neighbors are setting up shop nearby: the Mattel Adventure Park and the Kansas City Chiefs.
"We were excited to have the Chiefs, then I'm like, 'Aw man, maybe this is all bad now,'" Thomas said.
Thomas said the prospect of losing land and privacy is a growing concern.
"And now the Chiefs and we're like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is great,' but now you know they're talking about taking land and our privacy, and I'm like, ‘Oh no, don't do that,'" Thomas said.
The uncertainty has her and her neighbors weighing their options.
"We think every day, 'Should we move? Should we not move?'" Thomas said. "Change is not good sometimes, and we don't want to move.”
Her main concerns are taxes and traffic.
She says the roads in the area are already a challenge.
"Just with these two lanes, it's a concern when I cross the street and go over there," Thomas said.
On taxes, Thomas has been direct.
"Taxes here in Wyandotte County are just crazy," Thomas said.
She continued, "If they could help us out and lower taxes, and we don't have to pay for a lot of this, that would be great, but it just keeps going up and going up. If someone would come around and lower our taxes, we'd all be happy.”
Thomas said she'd rather the development find somewhere else to land.
"Just leave us alone here. Go find some other land elsewhere," Thomas said.
Still, she acknowledges there could be some upside.
"I don't want to leave, but if you've got a bunch of apartments over there and hotels and restaurants, maybe cross the street and get something to eat, I don't know," Thomas said.
For now, she's holding on to what she loves about the area — including the view.
"It's just so pretty to sit out here and see things and see little farmland, and yeah, it's all going to change," Thomas said. “It’s just fun seeing the cows over there and things like that, I just love that," Thomas said.
Developers are already bracing for the Chiefs' arrival.
Megan Gilliland, Bonner Springs' economic development manager, says the developer behind the "Destination KCK" adventure park, EMAP KC, LLC, is adjusting accordingly.
KSHB 41's Isabella Ledonne spoke with Gilliland on Monday.
Gilliland was clear that the Mattel Adventure Park is not a traditional theme park.
"It's not a theme park like what you see when you go to Worlds of Fun,” Gilliland said. “Yes, there are a few attractions and some rides, but it's really an entertainment district that is made up of restaurants, shopping, activities, and things like that for you to do.”
The developer will still operate on the 180 acres that the Mattel Adventure Park owns, but some of what was planned for that land is changing.
"Once he found out that the Chief Stadium was going to be his next-door neighbor on the north, he pulled back some of his plans,” Gilliland said. “He had plans to develop an RV park, for example, and he said, 'Well, now with the Chiefs being my new next-door neighbor, RV park probably isn't the best thing that I can use this land for.' So he's in the process of doing some redevelopment and retooling of what he'll have on his 180 acres.”
The restaurants and other commercial elements are expected to remain.
"He's not changing the commercial necessarily, not changing the restaurants," Gilliland said.
The area where the RV park was planned will be reimagined, but will remain part of the broader project.
"Specifically, where the RV park was is going to change into something a little different, but I'll still be part of the destination, KCK, the overall STAR bond project," Gilliland said.
Gilliland says the redevelopment will likely include something with a more commercial component.
"Something that's got some sort of a commercial component of retail, possibly lodging, and things like that. So I think that it'll fall in that area," Gilliland said.
More details on the updated plans are expected later this month.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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