KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Miami County Board of County Commissioners entered executive session during last week's meeting.
The result was a motion to eliminate the economic development director position in the county.
Janet McRae, nearly a two-decade veteran in the county, held the position.
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Following the closed session, Commissioner Tyler Vaughan made a motion to eliminate the position, and Commissioner Paul Scruggs followed with a second to that motion.
"Taking this opportunity as a reset is good for us to be able to grapple [with] what that looks like and give us an opportunity to redefine how the Commission wants to participate in economic development," Vaughan told his colleagues.
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He went on to add projects like the Hillsdale EMS development, along with the Bucyrus and Osawatomie sewer projects, which were commission-led projects.
"These are examples that are commissioner-led economic development projects," Vaughan said. "I see that as directive moving forward, and eliminating this position allows us to streamline that directly to the Commission."
Presiding Commissioner George Pretz told his colleagues he "has concerns" pertaining to projects the staff is currently working on and the need for day-to-day guidance in the department.
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"I got a lot of questions at this time," Pretz said.
Ryan Gamboa, KSHB 41's Miami County reporter, contacted McRae for comment upon her immediate departure. She declined.
KSHB 41 has covered development in Miami County, particularly in individual municipalities, including the Osawatomie water plant project, My Father's House affordable housing expansion, and rural World Cup preparations championed by McRae.
Earlier this year, McRae also helped get 4,000 Miami County homes greater access to broadband internet in a Comcast expansion project.
"With the higher-speed internet comes a lot of economic opportunities," McRae told KSHB 41 in June. "With World Cup coming next year, our businesses are going to be able to reach that world market in a way that they previously couldn't do. With some online shopping opportunities, but they may not have been able to have the connectivity and the reliability that they needed to be able to do that."
Commissioner Scruggs told members of the commission eliminating the economic development director position would hold the board more accountable for projects.
In September, KSHB 41 reported on a discussion to regulate short-term rentals in Miami County ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Much of the language in the September Miami County Planning and Zoning Commission meeting revolved around the "rural character" of the area.
Gamboa reached out to the county with a list of questions regarding the future of economic development in the county, if this decision was made to protect rural integrity, and for an official statement.
Miami County declined to comment.
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KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Miami County in Kansas and Cass County in Missouri. He also covers agricultural topics. Share your story idea with Ryan.
