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Fighting City Hall and Jefferson City Several noted one traditional Northland weakness is improving: relations with larger entities, such as Kansas City or the state of Missouri. “We are getting close to 300,000 people in the two-county area. Any time you get that, you can become extremely popular with the politicians and the elected officials in Jefferson City and Kansas City,” Pete Hall said. Several, however, also suggested better strategies could be employed. “We need to work harder with at-large people in Kansas City,” McCaslin said. “We need to have recognition that we are here and we’re not just land for a tax base. We need to start doing that.” Missouri’s Michael Mills said the area is actually one of the most successful at communicating with Jefferson City. He suggested, however, that better prioritization is important. “Whether you’re talking to your state or federal delegation, having those big projects categorized into priorities is very important. Instead of a dozen people with a dozen issues…the regional leaders should get behind it. It’s simple math.” Pete Fullerton said major progress occurred last fall when Missouri legislators examined state economic development issues such as incentives. “As most of us know in the industry, we don’t compare well at all. They grabbed (that study) and ran. They realized we need improvement and started to work.” Several noted the Northland tends to bring greater clout because, by definition, it involves a multi-county area. Local economic development groups cooperate both formally and informally. “We’re always going to be competing,” Betty Knight said. “But the Northland Chamber is a good example of how we speak with a common voice. The chamber allows us to put our priorities in order and helps us focus on what’s better for the Northland.” Sheila Tracy of the Northland Regional Chamber said much of the progress is simply familiarizing legislators with the area and its needs. “They’re starting to associate us and see that it’s larger than individual communities.” Integrating Buchanan and Clinton counties into this is a challenge, although the diverse areas face different challenges. Tom Leznak noted that St. Joseph and Buchanan County are well on their way and often relate more to the airport than some parts of even Platte County. VanLoh joked that he had even heard the facility renamed “St. Joseph International.” “But there is some separation,” Leznak noted. “There is a perception that we’re up around the Iowa border and only have a population of 23,000.” St. Joseph’s population in fact is now at 73,000 and only 30 minutes north of KCI.
Mark Hoover of Clinton County said that the more rural area is still developing its farmland and small communities, while hoping southern growth overflows into its region. “We’re waiting for you to run out of room,” he joked. Mayor Kathy Dusenbury of Parkville noted that building population is a key, for Clinton County as well as the entire Northland. “There was a long time in Parkville (when) we couldn’t buy anything without driving to Clay County. But as the population grew, we started to get the services. You’ll see that in Clinton County, too.” Jack Cashill noted there are even similar problems in downtown Kansas City, where the area’s growing loft and condo residents are clamoring for more retail. “You have to reach a certain density,” he said. “It’s a very universal problem.” Joe Sweeney noted that in the 20-county area, Clinton is also well positioned for long-term growth. “With what’s going on at KCI and everything going on in the St. Joseph area, coupled with the NAFTA highway, Cameron and Clinton and DeKalb counties are prime for investment.” Platte County Commissioner Tom Pryor noted the potential for the entire Northland is still hard to describe. “Where else can you go and have a belt highway with farmland surrounding it, yet be downtown in 10 minutes? Kansas City is basically landlocked everywhere but out here. It’s been very exciting to watch for the last 10 years.”
Those Devils in Kansas Although it may not go as far back as the 1860s, a “war” with Kansas still rages in some minds. Johnson County, in particular, often is held up as a competitor, although not everyone agrees to what extent. Many have concluded that the competition has changed, if not become obsolete. Tim Kristl said that issue in many ways has been decided. “Maybe we haven’t yet appreciated it, but I think we have turned the corner,” he said. “Ten years ago, relocation people said, ‘Don’t go to Northland; go to Johnson County.’ But if you look at housing starts now, we are eclipsing Johnson County. We are eclipsing areas like Lee’s Summit. We’re getting the executive housing up here. We’re getting the businesses.” Rahul Joshi of Citi noted his company does not hesitate to promote the Northland to new employees relocating to this region. ”As we have people come with us, we tell them to consider north. We have a lot of benefits that are not well-positioned or well-publicized, and that brings a lot of opportunity for us at this table.” Riverside Mayor Burch quipped that the Argosy Casino seems to compete very well in attracting Johnson County visitors. “If I go by Argosy’s parking lot, it’s full of Johnson County license plates,” she said. “However, competition is the name of the game. And we have to be stronger in this area to make that possible. That’s what we’re doing here today.” Others stressed that too much local competition is self-defeating. “There are a lot of things in the metro right now that are going on across county and state lines,” Hall said. “They are our friends and not enemies—we shouldn’t be confused about that. Transportation has been mentioned 10 times now and the only way it’s going to get better is if we work together. Sports teams, the arts and schools are all the same. We have to work together.” Jim Hampton said the most serious competition is elsewhere. “I’ve never felt I’m competing with Johnson County or Clinton County,” Hampton said. “We’re competing with the Indianapolis area or the Atlanta area or the Dallas area. That’s our real competition here.” The international issue is equally important, and international business is something the Northland is well-positioned to exploit. “That’s something multiple counties can do well,” Mike Droge said. “I think people forget how international this area is. We already have a wonderful start, but we need to build on it.”
The evolution of issues like Bi-State and cross-border cooperation were seen as critical in several areas. Mike Mills of DED said Jefferson City was watching this area’s success and failure with state-line issues. “You do face unique issues,” he said. “The state line here is unique. We don’t have this in St. Louis.” Pete Fullerton cited positive changes such as Wayne Cauthen’s administration and new priorities that are reflected in the KCI studies. “When you’re com-peting for greatness you’re competing with yourself,” he said. “Our challenge is how to unleash our greatness.” One point of competition drew a humorous comment. Wyandotte County’s success in attracting what is now Kansas Speedway involved fierce competition with areas such as Platte County. “We’re not bitter over not getting the speedway,” Knight said. “My husband is bitter, but I’m not, although I wouldn’t want to lose anything else!” Others stressed that avoiding mistakes such as Johnson County’s I-35 traffic are the pressing issues. “We have to work on that (with) a proactive approach,” Mayor Rudi said. “We can’t wait and have someone say, ‘Why didn’t we do that?’” In other ways, Missouri areas such as the Northland need tools that have been used effectively in Kansas. Tim Kristl said those advantages are often significant. ”One of the advantages that Kansas counties have, that Missouri counties don’t have, is the ability to go in and build three legs of the stool in a logical fashion,” he said. “You’ve got water, sewer and roads. Johnson County has done that. We don’t have that. In Missouri, we have just the opposite, and it’s a problem with the way the statutes are written. We just don’t have the ability to do that logical step.” That enabling legislation and aggressive use of planning is the most significant Kansas advantage, others noted. “Johnson County has been a leader of going in to plan an entire section, building utilities and arterial streets. Then the developers come in,” said Commissioner Pryor. “There are some tools on the state level, besides incentives, that would help.” Fullerton noted Platte County taxpayers are attempting to make up some of this disadvantage. Local transportation and recreation taxes in Platte County represent major efforts to make up these gaps in infrastructure funding. “The taxpayers here are double or triple taxing themselves because they don’t believe the state of Kansas would ever do that.”
New Horizons One area most saw as a distinct advantage involves the Northland’s quality of life and overall environment. Good planning is underway to keep it that way in the face of continued growth. “More greenways are being included along with a trail system, sewer lines and other steps,” Samborski said. Both Clay and Platte counties are aggressive in reviewing zoning laws to promote greenways and foster development that avoid historic problems, including a lack of citizen involvement. Mayor Rudi cited Gladstone’s recent experience with citizens who requested additional services and even were willing to approve taxes to fund them. “The important thing now is to keep them involved,” she said, “and to keep that plan updated.” The group was somewhat split on the Northland’s next great opportunity, although several quipped that the lack of a “next great thing” was because there are several of nearly equal standing. Jim Hampton cited development around Liberty, including the Liberty Triangle, South Liberty Parkway and the growing Clay County Regional Airport. Mark VanLoh, with a nod to business development around KCI, said the “next big thing would be our first anchor tenant for a 640-acre park,” an announcement he predicted would not be far off. Rosemary Salerno noted Zona Rosa’s success, a development that is impacting the region. “We have retailers and restaurants who are looking at us to put their first store in the region and that’s pretty exciting.” She noted the center would open 20-25 shops in the next few months and will begin Phase 2 which will nearly double the center’s current size. Development of air cargo business at KCI is another opportunity. While it represents only a small fraction of airline traffic, it represents the bulk of airline cash flow. “That’s a huge market we can tap,” McKenna said. Fullerton noted an upcoming report, which calls for major business development at the airport. Samborski cited North Kansas City’s new fiber optic network. “We’re planning to equip every business and every resident in the city. There’s nothing like it in the area and we’re one of few in the nation.” Mehaffy cautioned that new growth must be balanced with redevelopment of older areas. “Even though we have green space, there are older areas. I think how we handle them is our next opportunity here.” Commissioner Larry Larson of Clay County said many of these opportunities involve challenge, including state and local financing. “We have a tremendous appetite for expansion and the sooner we can fund it the better.” Leznak agreed, but said the Northland is in the enviable position of controlling many of its options. “Unlike some areas of the country, we really have our destination in our own hands,” he said. “But as some people said today, we need to speak with one voice.” Betty Knight concluded by noting the most important advantage may be that the area is “the Northland,” not separate counties. “I think that’s a wonderful opportunity to be a force. Everyone will know us and know we do work together. We are leaving a legacy for the next generation.”
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Learning from Mistakes
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