Much of Olathe falls within the district where growth in state sales-tax collections will help finance the Kansas City Chiefs’ new stadium and training complex for up to 30 years. Overland Park and Leawood are outside its boundaries.
The reason is geography, according to the state. Patrick Lowry, spokesperson for the Kansas Department of Commerce, said the district covers the areas "surrounding and in between" the planned stadium in western Wyandotte County and the Chiefs' future headquarters and training facility in Olathe.
"Proximity to the project itself – or lack thereof – determined which cities were included," Lowry told The Kansas City Star.
Lt. Gov. David Toland, who also serves as secretary of commerce, published the final district boundaries on Tuesday, Oct. 13. The district includes Olathe, Lenexa, Shawnee, Bonner Springs, Edwardsville and Kansas City, Kansas, according to a Kansas Department of Commerce news release.
Overland Park, Leawood and Prairie Village, all in eastern Johnson County, were left out.
The Sales Tax and Revenue (STAR) bond program works by setting a baseline of existing state sales-tax collections within the district. Revenue above that baseline gets redirected to help pay off the project's bonds, which are purchased by private investors. The baseline has not been set yet. Lowry said it will be established in a revenue study and finalized once the bonds are issued, the Kansas Reflector reported.
The does not affect local revenue pledges, the state's news release said.
The $4 billion project includes a $3 billion domed stadium in Wyandotte County, plus the Chiefs headquarters and training facility in Olathe and surrounding mixed-use development. The state says the stadium will be owned by the people of Kansas and leased to the team. The Chiefs are expected to begin playing there in 2031.
Three areas were carved out of the district. The University of Kansas Medical Center complex and surrounding land were excluded, along with existing STAR bond districts tied to other projects. A mostly vacant section of Shawnee near Interstate 435 and Shawnee Mission Parkway, roughly 500 acres according to the Kansas City Star, was also left out. Doug Donahoo, spokesperson for the city of Shawnee, said that parcel was excluded at the city's request to "provide the city with flexibility for any future projects."
Denise Rendina, spokeswoman for Lenexa, told the Kansas Reflector the final map looks much like it did when the district was first proposed. She said the STAR bonds will not affect Lenexa's local sales tax or impose any new tax on Lenexa residents.
Meanwhile, the deal faces a legal challenge. Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, filed a lawsuit in Wyandotte District Court asking a judge to block implementation of the Kansas Sports Facilities Authority Act, the 2026 law creating the state authority overseeing the stadium project, the Kansas Reflector reported. The governments allege the law strips local control over taxing, zoning and utility service for the project.
Lowry said the department does not comment on pending litigation but added the project is on schedule for a 2031 opening.
