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Tonganoxie City Council to determine rezoning fate

By Shawn Linenberger - | Dec 7, 2016

The fate of rezoning an area along U.S. Highway 24-40 near 206th Street will rest with the Tonganoxie City Council.

The Tonganoxie Planning Commission reviewed a request from KC RV Resort to rezone about 32 acres from rural residential to commercial.

Commission members Patricia Gabel, Steve Ashley and John Morgan voted against the rezoning, while fellow members Grant Watson, Jake Dale and Monica Gee voted in favor of it, as member Steve Gumm was absent.

The board voted again, this time with the motion in favor of the rezoning request, but the result was the same, this time Watson, Dale and Gee in favor and Gable, Ashley and Morgan opposed. Because a decision wasn’t made, per city code, the vote now goes to the City Council where a 2/3 majority is required.

Acting City Manager Jamie Shockley said that would require Mayor Jason Ward to vote along with the five-member City Council. That vote is expected at the Dec. 19 meeting.

The rezoning request is part of a larger proposed project of an additional adjacent 122 acres for a luxury RV resort that eventually would be home to 400 custom RV lots.

On Wednesday, Dec. 3, the Tonganoxie Chamber of Commerce and KC RV Resort offered an open house in Council Chambers for residents to get more information about the proposed plans.

Derek Sinclair with KC RV Resort fielded questions and heard concerns from nearby property owners and local residents in general.

“Cousin Eddie doesn’t just roll in with a 72 Winnebago,” Sinclair told residents during the open house.

He said there would be guidelines for what RVs could have lots at the resort. For instance, the RVs would have to be no more than 5-10 years old and meet other criteria.

Many in attendance had concerns that the property would be similar to a KOA Kampground.

Sinclair said that wouldn’t be the case if the facility were built under current specifications.

He said this is his first such resort as a main developer, but he has assisted another developer with some 600 sites across the country with a full spectrum of lots.

There were other concerns of what happens to the resort if it is sold to someone else or went out of business. Sinclair said it would have to adhere to the same city code specifications as the current proposal.

Sinclair did not specifically say what businesses would go in the retail area, but a convenience store/gas station was a good possibility.

The company also would handle improvements of the intersection at 206th Street and U.S. 24-40.


Groundbreaking Tuesday

A groundbreaking ceremony for the Army Reserve Center south of Tonganoxie will be at 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Shockley said the council was welcome to join for the ceremony marking one of a handful of businesses starting up in Tonganoxie.

Farm lease ending

With the city of Tonganoxie handing the deed on the business park land south of Tonganoxie over to the Leavenworth County Port Authority as part of an interlocal agreement, the city is ending a farm lease with Grinter Farms for some of the ground.

More information on mail-in ballot

Shockley said she’s working on educational information for the public with regards to the upcoming 3/4-cent sales tax replacement vote in February.

Information will be mailed to residents about the vote, while a couple informational meetings also will be planned, she said.

Shockley said a business also soon would be breaking ground in that area.

Tonganoxie voters will decide through mail-in ballot by the end of February whether to replace the current Tonganoxie Water Park sales tax with a 20-year sales tax of the same rate to fund a new library and infrastructure projects.