Item Coversheet

City of Topeka
Council Action Form
Council Chambers
214 SE 8th Street
Topeka, Kansas 66603
www.topeka.org
March 18, 2025
DATE:March 18, 2025
CONTACT PERSON:Braxton Copley, Assistant City ManagerDOCUMENT #:
SECOND PARTY/SUBJECT:Lauren's Bay Development AgreementPROJECT #:
CATEGORY/SUBCATEGORY
CIP PROJECT:No
ACTION OF COUNCIL:Discussion 03-11-25.JOURNAL #:
PAGE #:

DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION:

 

DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT between the City of Topeka, Kansas, and LB LOTS, LLC, a Kansas limited liability company, the developer of the district identified as the Lauren’s Bay Development Reinvestment Housing Incentive District. (Public Infrastructure Committee recommended approval on February 18, 2025.)

 

Voting Requirement: Action requires at least six (6) votes of the Governing Body. 

 

(Approval of the Development Agreement would forgive special assessments and establish a Reinvestment Housing Incentive District (RHID) and a Community Improvement District (CID).)

 

VOTING REQUIREMENTS:

Action requires at least six (6) votes of the Governing Body.

POLICY ISSUE:

Whether to accept the proposed Development Agreement regarding 16 lots in Lauren's Bay.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:

Staff recommends the Governing Body move to approve the Development Agreement. 

BACKGROUND:

Shawnee County annually holds a Tax Foreclosure Sale (the “Tax Sale”) and held said sale on September 19, 2024.  In the 2024 Tax Sale, were certain lots in Lauren’s Bay owned by Klaton Real Estate, LLC, 3420 SW Fairlawn, LLC, and LB Lots LLC (“the Lots”).  In advance of the Tax Sale, the City passed Resolution 9586 through which it forgave the past due City assessed specials on the Lots in exchange for full payment of past due ad valorem taxes and a negotiated payment between the Public Infrastructure Committee and the Developer to be approved by the entire Governing Body by December 21, 2024.  Resolution 9586 also waived, by Governing Body action, the requirement in the Resolution No. 9452 that there be no outstanding past due ad valorem taxes or special assessments prior to application for a reinvestment housing incentive district to allow the Developer to submit for the creation of a reinvestment housing incentive district in Lauren’s Bay and committed the City to work with bond counsel and the Developer to decrease the annual yearly special assessments remaining on the Lots through the creation of a community improvement district. The Lots were removed by Shawnee County from the Tax Sale upon payment of the past due ad valorem taxes.

 

Unable to complete negotiations in the timeframe originally provided, the City’s Governing Body passed Resolution 9609 on December 17, 2024 extending the deadline for negotiation to March 31, 2025. If no agreement is reached, following good faith negotiations and approved by the entire Governing Body by March 31 with payment rendered to the City by May 31, 2025, the Lots shall be donated by the Developer to the City’s land bank. The transfer shall occur no later than June 30, 2025.

 

The Developer has negotiated a payment of $2.25 per square foot of land for the Lots in consideration of the forgiven past due special assessments to be placed in escrow under the terms of this Development Agreement.

 

Pursuant to K.S.A. 12-5241 et seq. as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “RHID Act”), the City has the authority to establish a reinvestment housing incentive district and to adopt a plan for development or redevelopment of housing and public facilities in the reinvestment housing incentive district.  The Developer has applied for the creation of a reinvestment housing incentive district for an area within the City in accordance with the RHID Policy.

 

Pursuant to K.S.A. 12-6a26 et seq.as amended and supplemented from time to time (the “CID Act”), the City has the authority to establish a community improvement district.

 

The Developer has applied for a community improvement district to help with certain infrastructure project costs assessed as special assessments on the Lots in the support of economic development and refinancing of such special assessments and prior City bonds that financed such infrastructure project costs. City lots in the land bank are recommended to be joined into that district to be on equal playing field.

 

Upon approval of the requested RHID by the Department of Commerce, the Developer intends to request the use of RHID Increment (as defined herein) within the RHID to finance the eligible costs of the RHID Project subject to the limitations in this Agreement.

This Agreement is contingent upon the approval of both the RHID and CID Districts.

 

The Public Infrastructure was presented with the material deal terms and recommends approval.

BUDGETARY IMPACT:

Receipt of past due specials in the amount of $525K, collection of future specials of approximately $432K via a CID over the next 22 years.  Further provides for the use of RHID to cover portion of the cost of land acquisition, vertical construction costs and utilities.  The amount will be determined after performing the "but for" test and will be limited by a cap rate of 7.5% but currently Developer's estimate for RHID eligible expenses is approximately $1.7M

SOURCE OF FUNDING:
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
Lauren's Bay Development Agreement
PI Committee Report (March 11, 2025)
PI Committee Meeting Minutes Excerpt (March 11, 2025)