7 minute read
Building a Better Leawood
Economic Development Council puts its efforts into the growth of the city.
By Kari Williams
Photos by Kevin Anderson
Though Leawood was established 75 years ago, it wasn’t until the past decade that an economic development council was established.
“Leawood wasn’t the size of city that we thought needed economic development at the time,” says Greg Peppes, who is in his fourth nonconsecutive term as chair of the city’s Economic Development Council. “But what we’ve found out is that all the other communities around us had them, and we were losing businesses to those areas.”
When incorporated in 1948, the city had fewer than 2,000 residents. It now boasts roughly 34,000 people, according to the most recent U.S. Census data.
The Leawood Chamber of Commerce ultimately “spoke up,” established the EDC in 2015, and selected about 10 board members, including city leaders who were in the market for economic development, Peppes says.
The council, according to Peppes, actively pursues business retention, speaking with business owners to see what’s working for them, and what the EDC can do to ensure the companies stay in the community. The other aspect, he says, is bringing businesses “that really belong here” to Leawood.
Among the established Leawood businesses is KC Aerial Arts, located in Town Center Plaza. Daniel Parks took ownership of the company in 2016.
“We found that being in Town Center creates a credibility for our business,” Parks says. “It creates, especially us being a circus school, that instant level of association (that) is helpful.”
KC Aerial Arts’ main business is conducting classes out of its Leawood facility, along with offering summer camps.
“Really what we’re doing is creating positive opportunities for growth, to empower individuals … (People) often come to us with hesitation or trepidation if they can really do this,” Parks says. “We’re here to set it up to make them successful from their first day.”
Parks joined the Leawood Chamber of Commerce less than a year ago and says he’s “particularly excited” about the networking events because he wants to increase exposure for KC Aerial Arts.
Plus, KC Aerial Arts, according to Parks, likely has been a beneficiary of the EDC’s efforts without knowing.
“Especially with all the [development that has] happened in recent years,” Parks says.
As the city continues to grow, Parks says he would like to create a brick-and-mortar, family friendly entertainment location.
“We go places all the time,” Parks says. “We’re hired to perform at events. There’s not a lot of opportunities right now for circus entertainment programming geared toward families that is a regular, ongoing opportunity. It’s all special events. That’s something we’re looking to develop.”
EDC Not ‘All about Commercial Development’
When Peppes—a dentist and businessman by profession— joined the EDC, he says 135th and 119th streets still needed to be developed.
“We want to encourage retail, commercial, and, not only that, residential growth too,” says Peppes, a former city council member. “The EDC is not all about commercial development. Residential also. The problem is we have a limited amount of space.”
One project Peppes says he is most proud of over the past decade is the mixed-use development at 135th and State Line Road.
“It took a long time to procure,” Peppes says of the Oddo Development project known as the East Village of Leawood. “The relationship the EDC had with the developer helped with compromising with the neighbors, the city government with getting it passed through government and making the developer happy … We kind of had to change our way of thinking to get this thing passed.”
The East Village of Leawood is expected to have nearly 850 houses and apartments, more than 100,000 square feet of retail space, and more than 250,000 square feet of office space, according to Oddo Development.
If the relationship with the EDC didn’t exist, Peppes says it would have been a “horrible outcome.”
“This is nothing that happens overnight,” Peppes says. “So it took a while, and I think everybody’s happy. The city passed it, the developer’s digging holes in the ground, building structures.”
Relationships, Resources Are Key
Overall, the EDC, according to Peppes, is all about relationships.
“Mainly relationships with developers, our people in that field. Specialists in that field … helping city government understand market values,” Peppes says. “A lot of the times we pass laws that we think are in a certain parameter and do well. But as time goes on the market changes. We used to build shopping centers. We don’t do malls anymore … we do mixed use.”
Elisa Waldman, Johnson County Community College’s vice president of workforce development and continuing education, says one of JCCC’s missions is strengthening communities and being involved with the EDC is “key to accomplishing the mission.”
“We really consider what we do to be part of the economic development engine,” Waldman says.
The college, which is an EDC sponsor, also partners with industry to provide workforce training and development. Waldman says JCCC is a member of every chamber of commerce and EDC in the county.
“We’re very involved in world of economic development … (It’s) much more than dollars,” Waldman says. “It’s connecting our resources at the college to industry and to the city and to the county.”
Liz Albers, JCCC’s business liaison consultant, has represented the college on the EDC for the past year. The council’s role, she says, is to serve the community.
“If a new business is coming to Leawood, we make sure they’re aware we have all kinds of programs and training available to them,” Albers says.
When companies interested in relocating to Leawood conduct site visits, JCCC is “almost always at the table,” Waldman says.
“They want to come to a place that has strong assets that way,” Waldman says. “Also, those companies look at how education is funded and supported at the local, regional, and state level because that’s an indication to them of strength of the community.”
Albers says the EDC’s work is significant for the average community member because the council is “very thoughtful
about development,” bringing in businesses that would be a great fit and serve the community well.
Because there’s “not a ton of room for growth,” according to Albers, the EDC wants to be thoughtful of what’s coming to town. That includes ensuring they’re bringing in a diverse array of businesses, as well as listening to what residents are interested in.
Peppes says the EDC holds a golf tournament every year—traditionally a nine-hole match, but 18 this year—to highlight small businesses.
This year’s event, which sold out in about a week’s time, had sponsors for every hole.
“It’s not a fundraiser for the EDC, but an opportunity for EDC members to specifically have an audience of businesses to talk to on the golf course,” Peppes says.
Contact the Leawood EDC 13451 Briar, Suite 201 Leawood, KS 66209 913-498-1514 (office); 913-491-0134 (fax) www.leawoodedc.org
Email: kevinj@leawoodchamber.org
An Aerial Celebration
KC Aerial Arts will be among the businesses involved with Leawood’s 75th anniversary celebration. Owner Daniel Parks says they will be conducting workshops and doing community outreach.
“What we’re wanting ... are opportunities to do outreach with underserved communities,” Parks says.
For more information on KC Aerial Arts, visit www.kansascityaerialarts.com.
