Jo Co Soccer vote - price of land doubled!!

Press Release – Friday, November 3, 2006 – For immediate release

Contact: Wayne Flaherty, Homeowners against Soccer Welfare – (913)-831-2140



Costs for Soccer Land Doubled by Greedy Sellers



The land in question was sold in 2005 as two parcels for a combined total of $18.130 million to a division of Price Brothers knows as Waterford Court Condos, LLC (Same address as Price Brothers.) The parcels were 152.45 acres on the north and 142 acres on the South. The Land Value records are available at the County on a COV, Certificate of Value, or thru an appraiser.



The northern parcel is 152.45 acres.

The southern parcel is 142 acres.

A total of 294.45 acres @ $61,572.42 per acre.



Thus, in 2005, the 142 acres sold for $8.743 million. This southern parcel of 142 acres is the land that Johnson County Parks Director, Mike Meadors, says the taxpayers should now buy for $16.8 million - nearly double the price!!!



($61,572.42 PER ACRE X 142 ACRES = $8.743 million)

Since Price Brothers (as Waterford Court Condos) owns both parcels, and want to develop the northern parcel for the retail mall, they would get their land for free if Johnson County basically covers the whole price for the rocky southern half. And anything they get Overland Park to kick in, for the Wizards stadium, would be gravy.



Every business is entitled to make a reasonable profit on their investments, but it is obviously price gouging when the cost of land that was purchased only a year ago is doubled when trying to sell it to the taxpayers. While it is not illegal, it is unethical to make the taxpayers of Johnson County the target of an artificially bloated selling price for soccer land.



A Johnson County Registrar of Deeds document dated 05/12/05 reveals the details of the sale.


Wayne Flaherty

Homeowners Against Soccer Welfare, W. Flaherty, Treasurer

But, I am still all for the fields and the stadium. It is badly needed and will bring revenue to JoCo. I don't like how they've represented the land use in commercials, but we do need the stadium.

Sure we need the stadium, but at this price? Why not fund it through user fees? The thing that frustrates me about this is all the kids here in NE Jo Co who live a million miles away from this complex. How many are going to drive clear out there to play soccer?

This is clearly a benefit only to the kids who live out there and whose families can afford to pay for this themselves. When I think of all the services our tax dollars should be paying for, soccer fields in an upper middle class neighborhood are not even on the list. And since we are now learning of the true price tag, I can't see any reason to support this.

I have seen these soccer stadiums be incredibly successful in other cities for a multitude of reasons. It will be an econimic boost to OP. We will have one of the finest (roughly) 25,000 seat stadiums in the world, coupled with first class fields and practice facilities for our kids. It will be the premier soccer facility for the Midwest, thereby hosting every major soccer tournament in about a 5-6 state region. These will be an economic boon for OP. I cannot emphasize enough how much money soccer families spend traveling to various tournaments. Millions of out-of-state dollars will pour in from these tournaments. It can be used for vast number of events, outside of soccer, like state football championships, regionals, concerts, exhibition games for US Soccer, training facilities for the NFL, rented to college teams, and much more.

The NE JoCo people will drive "out there" because it will be an incredible facility they will be proud to play in or near. After all, we've been driving all the way out to Arrowhead for football and soccer for years.

I agree that doubling the price in one year sounds very, very shady. Then again, maybe these guys just bought this land at the right time. I can't blame them for trying to get a big return on their investment, but I would be interested to see if they have any ties to the soccer project or plans. If so, that needs to be investigated.

P2B, I don't like the way they've presented it, but I do think the project is worthy of a "yes" vote and I hope that you'll reconsider. This stadium will be a win-win for us all.

Sorry.

Just because it sounds like a good idea is not reason enough. $75 million for how many fields? Now we hear the price on the land doubled. Sorry but this just doesn't smell right.