Questions Answered About Proposed STAR Bond Project at former Leavenworth Plaza Site
Dec. 2, 2025
What are STAR bonds? What is the “STAR bonds project”?
STAR bonds stands for "Sales Tax And Revenue." It is an economic development tool authorized by the Kansas State Legislature to encourage economic growth in Kansas. STAR bonds allow for Cities to establish a district in which state sales tax collected on properties developed within the district are paid back to the developer. STAR bonds have been used successfully throughout the state of Kansas, such as the Legends and the Kansas Speedway.
The Leavenworth STAR bonds project will seek to redevelop the old Leavenworth Plaza location at 4th and Idaho streets, as well as its surrounding properties and the Abeles Field location at 4th and Poplar streets. The district will also include Ray Miller Park at 4th Street and Muncie Road. Ray Miller Park will require significantly more work to develop because of state and federal restrictions and will likely be a future phase of the STAR bonds project. At all three sites the project will be a mixed-used development with possibilities to include: restaurants and dining, all sizes of retail, entertainment, museums and attractions, hotel, and possibly some multi-family residential.
What are the next steps in the STAR Bond approval process?
1. Feasibility and Tourism Studies, which are independent analyses required by the Kansas Department of Commerce to verify market viability, tourism potential, traffic impacts and financial feasibility.
2. Commerce then reviews all studies and the full application to determine whether the project meets statutory requirements.
3. If the Department of Commerce authorizes the project to proceed, the City will schedule public hearings in which residents can review the findings and provide input.
4. The City Commission will then consider a STAR Bond Project Plan and final Development Agreement in a public meeting before any final approvals are made. This ensures the public has multiple opportunities to review, comment and follow the project as it develops.
The Leavenworth Mall and Abeles Field have been vacant for so long, why is it only now being redeveloped?
State Senator Jeff Klemp lobbied for a budget proviso in recent legislation in Topeka that broadened the scope of which projects could be eligible for STAR bonds. Previously, STAR bonds were only available to the larger communities in Kansas, or projects that had significant capital investment well beyond the scope of the Leavenworth Plaza site. Thanks to Senator Klemp’s efforts in Topeka, the Leavenworth Plaza has only been eligible for STAR bonds within the last year, making it a very attractive space for a developer where it once was not.
Why is the City Commission supporting issuing STAR bonds to the developer?
Both the Leavenworth Plaza and Abeles Field properties are a significant source of blight along the City’s Fourth Street/Kansas Highway 7 travel corridor. They also pose very expensive infrastructure and land preparation costs for anyone looking to redevelop them. As such, it is the belief of City staff and the City Commission that these properties are unlikely to be redeveloped without significant financial incentive to the developer. STAR bonds are a powerful economic development tool that the developer can use to capture sales tax from commerce that takes place within the district to pay back the costs of the development. The Leavenworth community benefits by having blighted sites redeveloped into exciting new restaurants, retail and entertainment that will attract visitors from outside the area to come and spend their time and money in Leavenworth. The developer gets the benefit of having a large portion of their costs of development repaid to them.
Why won’t the City announce what businesses are coming?
The short answer to this is that City staff and elected officials don’t know which businesses are officially attached to the project yet. But, the developer does keep us informed with whom they are having discussions. The long answer is STAR bonds haven’t been approved by the Kansas Department of Commerce, so no prospective businesses will sign letters of intent until the bonds are approved and the project is cleared to proceed. However, the developer has had many conversations with retail, restaurant, and destination establishments, and they have decided to proceed with the application with the belief that they have a significant amount of interest from the companies and organizations with whom they’ve spoken. When or if the STAR Bonds are approved, you can expect to hear which businesses and attractions will be coming to Leavenworth.
Will there be museums or other family-oriented attractions?
Yes there will be; but again, nothing has been finalized so far. Under Kansas STAR Bond law, projects must include at least one major tourism attraction capable of drawing visitors from outside the immediate area. As part of the required feasibility and market studies, the State evaluates whether the project can attract:
(1) roughly 20% of visitors from more than 100 miles away, and
(2) a meaningful share of visitors from outside the region. Examples of eligible attractions include museums, cultural or historical exhibits, entertainment venues and other destination features that go beyond standard retail or dining. These tourism anchors allow retail, restaurant and hotel components of the project to move forward. So, you can be assured that there will be exciting new places to take your family as part of this project, because the restaurants and retail won’t be allowed to build without them.
I saw news reports that the Steamboat Arabia museum is coming to Leavenworth. Is that true?
The City of Leavenworth has not had any meaningful conversations with the owners of the Steamboat Arabia museum. We understand there have been some conversations with some of our development partners on the possibility, but at this time we have no reason to believe that Steamboat Arabia is likely to land in Leavenworth. A project of this magnitude is always fluid, however, and we will be sure to provide updates to the public if the situation changes in any significant way.
Will this STAR Bonds project increase my property taxes?
No. STAR bonds work through collected sales tax revenue in the district alone; meaning the residents of Leavenworth will not be on the hook to pay for the redevelopment of the blighted sites. Additional incentive packages that the City Commission may discuss in the future will also not increase the burden on property owners outside of the STAR bonds district. Also, the City and the developer have signed a pre-development agreement. This agreement requires the developer to pay for the City’s costs to our legal and financial consultants who will work on this project.
Why wasn’t there more public information about this project prior to the City Commission vote on Nov. 12?
It certainly is not our intent or desire to be “secretive.” We are, in fact, very excited about this project and would love to tell everyone everything we know about it! However, there are several reasons why we must maintain confidentiality regarding certain aspects of the project.
First, prospective businesses generally do not want to have their presence in the area announced until a contract has been signed, guaranteeing they will be opening a location. Businesses do not want their competitors to try to undermine their efforts. If word got out that a particular restaurant or retail chain was interested in an area, their direct competitors might try to find a way to get in before them or otherwise cut them out of the market. Businesses also do not want to deal with the potential public relations fallout of having a location announced prematurely, only to have that location not end up opening.
Second, the developer is still in active negotiations with property owners of various parcels involved in the STAR bonds district. We do not want to release information into the public that could have undue influence on the property negotiations or harm the rights of the affected property owners in the area.
Finally, the STAR bonds have not yet been approved by the Kansas Department of Commerce. We want to make sure everyone understands that there is still a long way to go for this project to see walls going up, and the project is likely to change significantly before we see it in its final form.
Who is the developer? Who is Leavenworth Destination Development, LLC?
Leavenworth Destination Development, LLC, is the company established by the development team specifically for the proposed Leavenworth STAR bonds district. The team is spearheaded by Rick Worner, and his financial partner is Dave Murfin. Worner came to a City Commission special meeting to discuss the project. You can watch that meeting here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tA8SQxRDck if you’d like to get to know Worner and the project better.
Will I have a chance to provide my input on this project?
Absolutely! Nothing has been finalized on this project, and the City has not committed any financial support or incentives at this time to the project. The City Commission only just approved a resolution of support to go with the initial application to the Department of Commerce. There is still a long way to go for this project, and there will be several opportunities for public input, including public hearings. The City does not have any specific hearing dates to provide at this time, but stay tuned to our website and Facebook page for updates on this project and to find out when opportunities for public input are announced.
