Sedgwick County should block secretive land deal involving Goddard, Steven brothers | Opinion
Let’s start from the basic, simple premise that whenever someone is slated to get government money to build a private development for profit, the public has a right to know who’s getting the money and what they plan to do with it.
Goddard can’t seem to meet even that minimal standard.
So it will be up to the Sedgwick County Commission to play goaltender on behalf of the public.
Goddard City Hall and the state of Kansas have signed off on a development deal to give $3.5 million via a state incentive plan, called Reinvestment Housing Incentive District, or RHID, to a company called “Goddard Housing LLC,” to build 100 apartments in the suburban city.
So who the heck is Goddard Housing LLC?
Neither the city nor the state will say — although both have committed to giving whomever it is millions of dollars in public funding.
What little we officially know right now is that according to city government records, Goddard Housing LLC is an “affiliated” entity of Goddard Sports LLC, owned by Wichita’s Steven brothers, Rodney and Brandon.
Goddard Sports is the company that owns the land proposed for the apartment project, which is now part of a larger parcel including the Stevens’ sports and hotel complex in eastern Goddard.
The city and state have already invested at least $66 million there through sales tax revenue bonds, better known as STAR bonds, a process in which the government borrows money, gives it to the developer, and pays off the debt using sales tax income generated after the project is built.
The development agreement for the adjacent apartments, which was approved by the council identified a line item of $1.2 million for land acquisition.
That raised the prospect of potential self-dealing, in essence selling land from one LLC to a possible sister LLC and pocketing $1.2 million of public money in the process.
The front man for Goddard Housing LLC is Rodney Steven, who is, as previously noted, the co-owner of Goddard Sports LLC.
For that, I’ll direct your attention to section 7.6 of the development agreement:
“Any notice, demand or other communication required by this Agreement to be given by either Party hereto to the other will be in writing and will be sufficiently given or delivered if dispatched by certified United States first class mail, postage prepaid, or delivered personally,
(a) In the case of Developer, to:
Goddard Housing, LLC
Attn: Rodney Steven
6100 East Central, Building 3, Wichita, Kansas 67208
Email: Rodney@genesishealthclubs.com
Phone: (316) 681-3010”
The address is the same as Goddard Sports and conveniently located at the Steven-owned Genesis Health Club headquarters in East Wichita and the phone number is Genesis’ main number.
I think that makes this pretty clear this is a Steven-sponsored operation, despite everyone’s reluctance to let the public in on what’s really going on.
Now, both Rodney Steven and Goddard’s city administrator, Craig Crossette, are saying that land acquisition costs have been removed from the equation, although the bottom line, a $3.5 million subsidy for the project, remains unchanged.
According to Steven, they’ve found some other “eligible” expenses instead.
There’s a lot of distrust toward Goddard city government among its citizens these days.
And who can blame them?
This is the city that was treated last year to the spectacle of then-City Council member Hunter Larkin’s political maneuvering to get a couple of his hand-picked pals onto the council with him.
That allowed Larkin to reclaim the mayor’s chair he had stepped down from in 2022, after he was caught doing favors for Goddard developers who donated to his campaign for state Legislature.
The first thing he did after re-seizing power was fire Goddard’s experienced and respected city administrator, Brian Silcott.
Facing an angry citizenry that was talking recall, Larkin didn’t seek re-election.
But it seems the council he helped install will remain a handmaiden to development interests.
So what comes next?
Under state law, the Sedgwick County Commission has the authority to block Goddard’s RHID plan.
The commissioners should do so at their earliest opportunity, which will be their Wednesday meeting.
This deal is far too shady to go forward without a lot more information on how the public’s money will be spent and exactly who stands to benefit from it.
