Kansas committee hears plan to fund master plan for Quindaro Ruins; ownership, acreage and coordination remain disputed

A House committee opened a hearing on House Bill 23‑98 on Feb. 27 to provide $600,000 from the state general fund for planning and initial implementation work at the Quindaro Ruins Archaeological Park in Wyandotte County, Kansas.

Jennifer Light, fiscal analyst with the Kansas Legislative Research Department, told the committee the bill would require at least $250,000 of the appropriation “be used to issue a project scope statement, plan the necessary work to be accomplished, and issue an RFP for a master plan.” Light said the remainder of the $600,000 would be available to “implement phase 1 of the renovation plans for the park.” She also said the State Historical Society indicated it would use part of the appropriation to hire a 0.5 full‑time equivalent staff position to manage plan development and implementation. The bill’s effective date was stated as July 1, 2025.

Mayor Tyrone Garner of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, testified as a proponent and described Quindaro as “one of the only underground‑railroad locations you’ll find in our great nation” with significance to Black, Indigenous and abolitionist histories. Garner said the unified…