The Shawnee County Board of County Commissioners on Nov. 24 approved a resolution expressing the county's intent to issue taxable multifamily housing revenue bonds for a proposed 176-unit development known as Johnson Bettis Meadows.

Bob Perry, bond counsel, told commissioners the applicant — Johnson Bettis Meadows LP, a special-purpose entity created through a cooperation that the counsel described as involving 'SCNT, the Topeka Housing Authority, and Mesner Hop Development' — seeks authorization that would enable the project to obtain a sales-tax exemption from the State of Kansas to facilitate construction. Perry said the site is at Southeast 31st Street and Southeast Fremont Street at the northeast corner of that intersection.

The board opened a public hearing as required, gave the public opportunity to speak and received no comments. Chair Aaron Mays moved to close the hearing and approve the resolution; the motion was seconded and passed 3-0.

Perry described the bonds as taxable and confirmed the special-purpose entity would purchase the bonds itself. No commissioner raised substantive policy objections during the meeting. Commissioners indicated the administrative record and required hearings were complete and that the resolution was limited to expressing the county's intent to issue the bonds and enter related lease-purchase documents.

What happens next: the county's action was an expression of intent; issuing the bonds and finalizing the base-lease and lease-purchase agreements will require completion of subsequent documents and any state approvals tied to the sales-tax exemption.

Provenance: Transcript discussion begins at SEG 115 with bond-counsel introduction and concludes at SEG 177 with the motion to close the hearing and approve the resolution.