City looks to bring Kearney Street redevelopment plan back to forefront

The city of Springfield is looking to reinvigorate the Kearney Street redevelopment plan that's been on hold since 2023.

Feedback for the plan – which previously offered real property tax abatements for redevelopment projects along a 3.5-mile stretch of Kearney – is being sought at a public meeting scheduled for 6 p.m. on June 24 at Doling Park Northview Center, 305 W. Talmage St., according to a news release.

“Our primary objective is to reestablish the redevelopment plan so we can remove barriers toward accessing incentives to encourage development along the Kearney Street corridor," said Matt Schaefer, senior city planner, in the release. "We are also using this as an opportunity to update the plan, aligning it with the community-driven goals of the Forward SGF comprehensive plan and the new development code going into effect next year."

Springfield Director of Workforce & Economic Vitality Amanda Ohlensehlen said the goal is to get an ordinance that would amend the plan before City Council in September.

"As we implement our updated development codes in the coming year, this is good timing to take a fresh look at how we incentivize redevelopment, especially along this particular corridor," she said in the release.

The Kearney Street corridor redevelopment plan, which was started in 2018, expired in 2023 due to sunset provisions that require council to green light it every five years. In August 2024, the city pointed to plans to revisit the initiative, according to past reporting.

The redevelopment area spans along Kearney from North Albertha Avenue just west of Kansas Expressway Avenue to a point approximately 900 feet east of North Glenstone Avenue.

The city pointed to the following seven projects that have been completed using Chapter 99 real property tax abatement incentives in the Kearney Street corridor:
• Glendalough Convention Center, 2431 N. Glenstone Ave.
• Retail center at former Buckingham’s site, 2415 N. Glenstone Ave.
• BigShots Golf, 1930 E. Kearney St.
• Long Drive Center adjacent to BigShots, 1845 E. Turner St.
• Chick-fil-A, 2355 N. Glenstone Ave.
• Whataburger, 2337 N. Glenstone Ave.
• MMC Fencing & Railing, 1900 W. Kearney St.

Additionally, city officials said in the release that Workforce & Economic Vitality staff are working on an update to its blight report that's required under Springfield’s Workable Program. The program sets up a plan for dealing with blighted areas and evaluating redevelopment proposals involving real property tax abatement.