Over the past 15 months, the county has partnered with Lenexa staff on our efforts to develop a Homeless Services Center.  reStart was brought on earlier this year as the owner/operator to develop this application and address all concerns and questions. We committed to partnership, and through our collaboration, I strongly feel that the application submitted is the right solution at the right time. Therefore, I’m disappointed in the vote of the City of Lenexa Planning Commission and disagree with its rationale.

There has never been this amount of community consensus on the problem of homelessness in Johnson County and the need to address it now, while it is at a manageable level.  I appreciate that the majority of public opinion, as expressed by Lenexa residents, cities, the faith community, and social service providers has been supportive of this innovative approach to fill a much-needed gap in serving unhoused adults.

At this time, the county is weighing all options, which will be discussed among the full board.

I look forward to continued conversations on how our county can fill gaps in the housing continuum and ensure everyone who wants to can have a safe place to live and the support they need to thrive in Johnson County.  I welcome all city partners, including Lenexa, to that table.

The Board of County Commissioners' adopted priorities for 2023-2024 include “convene stakeholders and other partners to improve housing options for the resident needs identified in the Johnson County Housing Continuum” and planning for those experiencing homelessness. As part of that priority, the Board entered a real estate purchase contract for a building to serve as a homeless service center in Johnson County. Read more in this news release and this briefing sheet. Learn more about the county’s efforts to support those with housing and homeless assistance.

On Aug. 21 and 22, Johnson County held informational public meetings. View the meeting agenda and slides.

On July 25, the BOCC took action on an assignment agreement defining the terms and scope of the transfer of ownership to reStart, Inc. when Johnson County Government closes on the real estate contract for the La Quinta property. Today’s board action also authorized the reallocation and expenditure of $3.7 million from the Countywide Support Funds, which originated from federal COVID-19 funding, to reStart for renovations. Since this project is adhering to federal eligible expenses, 10% will go towards early operating costs and capacity building. More information is available here and in this news release.

Also, we have a new Video Gallery where we answer some frequently asked questions and share videos from the community to help educate you on the topic of homelessness in our community.

If you have questions that you didn't find addressed here, please use this page to contact us.