The Fix Is Obvious Kill the middleman.

 The Cesspool: How I Helped Build It, Watched It Rot, and Why I’m Done Watching

Back on September 5, 2003, I signed a letter as “Henry McClure, Developer” right alongside Mayor Harry Felker III, Shawnee County Chairman Vic Miller, Greater Topeka Chamber Chairman Dean Ferrell, and Go Topeka Chairman Kris Robbins. We were formally begging KDOT for a Break-In-Access Study so we could build the SW 49th Street interchange and make the 600-acre Commerce Park (now called Central Crossing) “shovel-ready.”

That letter wasn’t some outsider complaint. I was in the room when the pitch went to the Kiwanis and Rotary Clubs for the original quarter-cent sales tax — later the half-cent — that was supposed to get land ready for jobs and growth. I was one of the original private developers in the public-private partnership. I saw the deals get cut. I saw the same handful of insiders steer the money. And I’ve watched the same ground sit half-empty for two decades while the same organizations rebrand themselves and keep cashing the checks.

That’s not “sour grapes.” That’s the public record.

The Money Shawnee County voters passed the countywide half-cent sales tax in 2004 for “economic development and countywide infrastructure.” It was renewed in 2014 and runs through 2031. JEDO (the Joint Economic Development Organization) was set up to oversee it. Every year, roughly $5 million — now closer to $11 million in recent GO Topeka budgets — goes straight to economic development.

Do the math: 2005 through 2026 is 21+ years. Even at the conservative $5–6 million annual average before the pot grew, we’re north of $125 million in taxpayer dollars funneled through Go Topeka / Greater Topeka Partnership / the Chamber machine. That doesn’t count the citywide half-cent street tax or the TIF districts or the special incentives on top. All sold as the path to a bigger population and a broader tax base.

The Results Topeka proper has been stuck between 122,000–127,000 people since 2000. Shawnee County added a measly ~2,000 residents since 2020. No boom. No transformation. The tax base didn’t explode. The big distribution centers (Target was already breaking ground in 2003, Home Depot, Bimbo, Frito-Lay, Walmart later) landed — good for them — but large tracts at Central Crossing are still being marketed in 2025–2026 flyers as “shovel-ready” with “sites available now.” GO Topeka’s own website and CBRE listings still tout 200+ developable acres and build-to-suit opportunities two decades later.

Some pads are still vacant. Some “shovel-ready” dirt is still waiting for the next consultant study. Meanwhile the Chamber rebranded as the Greater Topeka Partnership and keeps getting the call when a big deal comes in. The mayor’s office doesn’t handle it — they refer it to the Partnership. The same people. The same loop.

The Rigged System This isn’t conspiracy talk. It’s structure.

• The Chamber/Partnership is literally in the commercial real-estate business.
• They control the marketing, the site selection, the incentives, the narrative.
• Public money flows to them. Private developers who play ball get the inside track. Everyone else gets the runaround.

I’ve sat across the table from it as a broker and developer for 25 years. I’ve seen the revolving door between City Hall, the County, JEDO, and the nonprofit economic-development crowd. The system is designed so the same insiders decide who gets the porridge — and how much public money sweetens the deal.

The Fix Is Obvious Kill the middleman. The city and county should keep the $5 million annual economic-development slice in-house. Make every single deal come through them — transparent, deal-by-deal, on the public record. If there’s money left over at year-end, split it and put it into road projects the voters actually voted for. No more blank checks to the Partnership. No more “trust us, we’re the experts.”

New blood. Real competition. Actual accountability. Stop pretending a nonprofit chamber is somehow above the fray when it’s literally brokering the deals with your sales-tax dollars.

I didn’t wake up one morning and decide to run for mayor so I could manufacture complaints. I was there in 2003 signing the letter. I helped sell the tax. I developed the land. I’ve watched the same game for 22 years while some of the loudest critics were still in their parents’ basement.

The cesspool isn’t new. It’s just been rebranded. Time to drain it.

— Henry McClure Topeka developer, taxpayer, and someone who’s been in the fight since the first shovel hit the dirt.

Why This Matters for Topeka, Westridge Mall, and Crony Capitalism Concerns

Industrial Revenue Bonds (IRBs) and Their Tax Exemptions: A Deep Dive into Kansas Law, Mechanics, and Real-World Application

Industrial Revenue Bonds (IRBs) are a long-standing economic development tool in Kansas, authorized since 1961 for cities and 1981 for counties under K.S.A. 12-1740 et seq. On paper, they let local governments issue bonds to finance land, buildings, equipment, or renovations for private businesses in sectors like manufacturing, commercial, industrial, agricultural, hospital, or recreational development. In practice—especially for taxable IRBs like the $48 million Shawnee County issued in August 2025 for Westridge Mall’s redevelopment by Dream Big Partners LLC (tied to Advisors Excel)—they function primarily as a vehicle for targeted tax exemptions rather than traditional public borrowing. The government acts as a passive legal conduit; the private company repays everything and bears all risk.

How the Structure Actually Works (It’s Not What Most People Think)

1. A company (the “Tenant”) approaches a city or county (the “Issuer,” here Shawnee County).
2. The Issuer adopts a resolution of intent and later a bond ordinance/resolution.
3. The Issuer issues the bonds (often taxable, sold via private placement directly to the company itself).
4. Bond proceeds go into a trustee account and are used by the company to buy, build, renovate, or equip the facility.
5. The Issuer temporarily holds legal title to the financed portion of the property and leases it back to the company on a triple-net lease (company pays all taxes, insurance, maintenance).
6. Lease payments from the company exactly cover the bond principal + interest (plus fees). At the end of the term (often 10–15+ years), title transfers to the company for a nominal amount (e.g., $100).
7. The Issuer and taxpayers have zero financial liability—the bonds are not backed by general tax revenue. If the company defaults, bondholders go after the company’s assets, not the county.

This is why officials repeatedly emphasize “no taxpayer money is at risk” in the Westridge case. It’s self-financed by Advisors Excel/Dream Big Partners, who essentially buy their own bonds. The real value isn’t the “financing” (they could borrow conventionally); it’s the automatic eligibility for tax breaks that come with the IRB wrapper.

The Core Tax Exemptions (The Real Prize)

Kansas law layers three main benefits on top of the bond issuance. These apply to both taxable and (qualifying) tax-exempt IRBs:

• Sales Tax Exemption (K.S.A. 79-3606) This is the primary benefit Advisors Excel is getting on the Westridge project. Any building materials, labor, machinery, equipment, furniture, or fixtures purchased with IRB proceeds are exempt from state and local sales tax (currently ~6.5–8.5% depending on location, including Topeka’s add-ons).
  • A sales tax exemption certificate must be obtained from the Kansas Department of Revenue before spending the money.
  • On a $48 million renovation (HVAC, electrical, plumbing, reconfiguration for office space, etc.), this can save millions in upfront costs.
  • It applies even to commercial/retail redevelopment projects that don’t qualify for federal tax-exempt interest.
• Property Tax Abatement / Exemption (IRBX under K.S.A. 79-201a) The financed property can be fully or partially exempt from ad valorem (real estate) property taxes for up to 10 years, starting the year after issuance.
  • Local governments decide the percentage (0–100%) and duration.
  • Critical limitation: All commercial retail properties are ineligible for property tax abatement. Agricultural properties are also often excluded.
  • Many jurisdictions negotiate “payments in lieu of taxes” (PILOTs) so schools and other taxing districts still get some revenue.
  • In the Westridge Mall case, public records focus exclusively on the sales tax benefit; property tax abatement appears unavailable or not pursued for the retail/mixed-use portions.
• Interest Income Tax Exemption Interest paid on all Kansas IRBs is exempt from Kansas state income tax.
  • For qualifying manufacturing or certain nonprofit projects, interest can also be federally tax-exempt (lowering borrowing costs by ~2–2.5%).
  • Most commercial deals (like Westridge) use taxable bonds, so federal taxes apply—but the state exemption and sales tax break still deliver real savings.

Process typically takes 60+ days: inducement resolution → public hearing → bond documents → closing. The company must be creditworthy; the bonds are only as good as the tenant’s promise to pay.

Scale and Real-World Use in Kansas

• From 2005–2020, roughly 640 property tax abatements (IRBXs) were granted statewide, reducing local property tax collections by an estimated $1.2–1.5 billion total (~$100 million per year). Over half were in just three counties (Johnson, Sedgwick, Wyandotte).
• Sales tax exemptions are even harder to track but represent additional forgone revenue on every IRB project.
• Shawnee County has used them repeatedly—e.g., the same principals behind the AT&T building redevelopment also received IRB treatment. In February 2026 alone, the county authorized over $72 million more in IRBs for other projects.

The 2022 Legislative Post Audit: What the Numbers Actually Show

A Kansas Legislative Division of Post Audit review of eight representative IRBXs (property tax side only) found:

• Economic activity was generally positive: 7 of 8 projects generated more than $1 of broader economic output per $1 of taxes exempted (e.g., $5+ in some manufacturing cases).
• Tax revenues did not offset the cost: None generated enough new income/sales/property taxes to cover the forgone revenue (net losses in most modeled scenarios).
• Major data problems: Pre-project job and tax estimates submitted to the Board of Tax Appeals were often wildly inaccurate; no systematic tracking of actual outcomes after approval; statute sets no measurable goals or benchmarks for success.
• Conclusion: IRBXs produce some spillover benefits, but the fiscal return to taxpayers is negative in most cases. The audit recommended the Legislature add clear goals and success metrics.

The sales tax exemption was not part of that audit, but it works the same way: immediate, certain cost to the public treasury with uncertain, long-term economic payoff.

Why This Matters for Topeka, Westridge Mall, and Crony Capitalism Concerns

Advisors Excel/Dream Big Partners is a highly successful, profitable company. They bought a distressed mall at a market discount in 2023. The $48 million taxable IRB doesn’t “finance” anything they couldn’t do themselves—it simply wipes out sales tax on renovation costs while the county lends its name to make it legal. No new jobs are magically created that wouldn’t have happened anyway; the company already employs hundreds locally and was expanding. Retail redevelopment is exactly the kind of project that gets property tax abatement denied under statute, yet still qualifies for the sales tax carve-out.

Critics (including voices like yours) argue this is textbook cronyism: a connected, deep-pocketed player gets a special deal the mom-and-pop renovating a storefront or the average homeowner never sees. Defenders point to jobs, revitalized property values, and “no direct cost.” The audit data suggests the fiscal math is usually a net loss for public coffers, even before you factor in the sales tax exemption. The “good deeds elsewhere” defense doesn’t change the incentive structure—it just normalizes picking winners with taxpayer-backed tax breaks.

If you’re writing the essay, the pedophile-priest analogy is indeed too inflammatory (and risks alienating readers unnecessarily). A cleaner one: It’s like the city giving your wealthy neighbor a property-tax holiday to remodel his mansion while you pay full freight on your kitchen remodel. The mansion looks nicer, sure—but the rest of the block subsidized the upgrade.

This tool has been around for 60+ years and isn’t going away. Whether it’s “saving” Topeka or simply letting successful insiders upgrade their real estate portfolio on discounted terms is the real debate. The mechanics above show exactly how the exemptions flow—and why they’re not the free lunch they’re sometimes sold as.

The next time you hear the cheers for West Ridge’s “revitalization,” ask yourself: Who’s really being saved? And at whose expense?

 Westridge Mall and the Myth of the Corporate Savior

Topeka’s West Ridge Mall stands as a monument to retail’s slow death. Once a bustling shopping hub, it became a cavernous, mostly vacant shell—another casualty of online giants, shifting habits, and big-box sprawl that hollowed out middle America’s malls. In 2023, a very successful local company, Advisors Excel, stepped in and bought the property through their real estate arm, Dream Big Partners. Their plan? Convert a huge chunk (around 400,000 square feet) into their new corporate headquarters while keeping the rest as mixed-use retail, dining, and event space. Sounds like a win for a dying mall, right?

Not so fast. This isn’t some heroic rescue mission. Advisors Excel—co-founded by Cody Foster and David Callanan—is already a powerhouse in Topeka’s financial services world. They employ hundreds (maybe over a thousand when the HQ move is done), generate massive economic activity, and partner with giants like Security Benefit. They didn’t need to “reinvent” anything here. They spotted a bargain: a struggling, half-empty mall they could pick up cheap in a soft market. Now they’re pouring money into renovations, but they’re not doing it out of the goodness of their hearts. They’re doing it because it makes business sense for them.

Here’s where it stops being fair and starts smelling like classic crony capitalism. In August 2025, Shawnee County approved $48 million in industrial revenue bonds (IRBs) for the project. What does that really mean for everyday Topekans? It means Advisors Excel gets a sales tax exemption on all the new construction materials and labor. The rest of us pay full freight at the hardware store or when we fix up our own homes or businesses. The county issues the bonds as a legal conduit—no direct taxpayer risk, they say, because the company “repays” them through lease payments. But the real gift is the tax break: money that would have gone into public coffers is forgiven so a profitable private company can upgrade its real estate portfolio on the cheap.

This isn’t their first rodeo. The same principals were behind the earlier redevelopment of the old AT&T building downtown, which also scored IRB tax relief. Pattern recognized.

Local leaders and boosters treat these guys like saviors—ribbon-cuttings, glowing press releases, renderings of shiny new entrances and outdoor plazas. “Look what they’re doing for Topeka!” But let’s be honest: they’re not buying your groceries, paying your mortgage, or fixing the potholes on your street. They’re enriching themselves by leveraging public incentives on a property they already got at a discount. The jobs and economic activity they bring are great—nobody’s arguing against that—but those would likely happen anyway without handing them a special tax holiday the little guy never gets.

Anytime someone like me points this out, the pushback is predictable: “But they employ people! They do good things! Why be negative?” Fair question. Here’s a better way to think about it, without dragging religion into it: Imagine your neighbor is a wealthy, well-connected guy who already owns half the block. He buys the rundown house next door for pennies because the market tanked. Then the city gives him a tax break to fix it up, while you and every other working stiff pay full price to repair your own roof. Sure, he might host a block party now and then. But does that mean the rest of us should subsidize his property empire? Of course not. Good deeds in one column don’t erase special favors in the taxpayer column.

This is exactly how crony capitalism works: the powerful get the breaks, the connected get the deals, and the average citizen is told to cheer because “jobs.” Topeka deserves better than corporate welfare disguised as economic development. If a company wants to invest here, great—let the free market decide. But stop pretending that handing out tax exemptions to already-successful players is some noble public service. It’s not. It’s just another way the big guys keep getting bigger on our dime.

The next time you hear the cheers for West Ridge’s “revitalization,” ask yourself: Who’s really being saved? And at whose expense?

Good luck with the budget........

 Alright, let's cut the corporate PR fluff and call this what it is: a textbook Topeka taxpayer-funded boondoggle with a fresh coat of "innovation" paint.

You had the historic Wolfe’s Camera Shop—97 years of local legacy—snapped up in 2021 by BioRealty Inc. (that California outfit via their Astra IC Partners shell) for a shiny ASTRA Innovation Center. Wet labs, coworking, the whole Plug and Play Animal Health fairy tale. GO Topeka (Molly Howey and Stephanie Moran front and center) hyped it hard. JEDO rubber-stamped $14.5 million in incentives. BioRealty grabs the three buildings for $1.15 million, and then... Shawnee County taxpayers start cutting checks. Over 40 payments totaling more than $1 million for "pre-development," asbestos, historic credits, the usual. Years of tours, phased plans, "we're almost there" updates. Construction? Never happened. Pre-leasing? Crickets. Tax credits? Fell short. By summer 2024, BioRealty ghosts the deal, lists the properties for $2.85 million (nice little markup on public sweat), and bounces. Classic: public money primes the pump, private developer walks with the upside, Topeka gets the bill and an empty promise.

Enter Innovation Center 2.0—the "pivot" nobody asked for. Same GO Topeka crew, same bioscience dreams, now in the old AT&T building at 220 SE 6th (owned lock, stock, and barrel by Aim Strategies LLC—local downtown revitalization pros behind the Cyrus Hotel, etc.). GO Topeka becomes the 10-year master lease holder, builds out labs and pitch rooms, opens sometime early 2026. Sounds efficient, right? Except the price tag. While the city's staring down a $15 million operations shortfall, GO Topeka/JEDO is reportedly gifting Aim Strategies $9.5 million in public commitments for this sequel. Not a million-dollar "rent" like the first flop—nine and a half million straight to the same circle of connected players for a project that's basically the Wolf Camera rerun in a bigger, pricier wrapper.

Same script, different address: endless delays, funding gymnastics, taxpayer dollars flowing while "strategic importance" gets invoked like a get-out-of-failure-free card. Stephanie Moran spins it as "getting labs online sooner." Molly Howey's organization keeps the wheel spinning. And Aim Strategies? They get a sweet long-term lease on a building they already own, with public money covering the heavy lifting.

This isn't economic development—it's the same insiders recycling the same failed formula, just with a higher body count on the invoice. Wolf Camera proved it doesn't work. The AT&T version? Spoiler: it won't either. Topeka's innovation district keeps "innovating" new ways to burn public cash while the real problems (budget holes, actual jobs that stick) get ignored. If history's any guide, we'll be right back here in a couple years with "Innovation Center 3.0" and another sob story about why it almost worked this time.

Straight-up corruption? Maybe not the envelope-under-the-table kind. But when the same folks keep winning contracts, the same consultants keep advising, and the same taxpayers keep footing the bill for zero results... call it what you want. Crony capitalism. Elite capture. Whatever. It's Topeka's money, and it's gone. Again.

Thanks Trudy

Kevin, 

I was looking back and Trudy remined me about Laurens Bay ===

H 

K.S.A. 79-2801 is the key Kansas statute that governs judicial tax foreclosure for delinquent real estate taxes. It directly addresses the exact issue raised in the "More Help" letter: who is legally responsible for moving forward on properties like those in Lauren Bay Estates once they have gone unpaid long enough.

Official Full Text (Current Version)

Here is the complete, verbatim text from the official Kansas Revisor of Statutes website (ksrevisor.gov), which is the authoritative source. (No amendments appear after 2001; this remains the current law as of 2025–2026.)

(a) Except as provided by K.S.A. 79-2811, and amendments thereto, whenever real estate has been or shall be sold and bid in by the county at any delinquent tax sale and remains unredeemed on September 1 of the second year after the sale, or any extension thereof as provided by subsection (b) of K.S.A. 79-2401a, and amendments thereto, or whenever real estate described by subsection (a)(2) of K.S.A. 79-2401a, and amendments thereto, has been or shall be sold and bid in by the county at any delinquent tax sale and remains unredeemed on September 1 of the first year after the sale, the board of county commissioners shall order the county attorney or county counselor and it shall be the duty of the county attorney or county counselor to institute an action in the district court, in the name of the board of county commissioners, against the owners or supposed owners of the real estate and all persons having or claiming to have any interest therein or thereto, by filing a petition with the clerk of the court. ...

(The petition must describe each property, list taxes/interest/penalties, name owners and interested parties, and ask the court to declare the taxes a first-priority lien and order a public sale.)

A summons shall be issued and personally served or publication made as provided in other cases under the code of civil procedure. ...

Any member of the board of county commissioners, county attorney or county counselor who fails to perform the duties required by this section shall forfeit the office held by the officer. Any person may secure enforcement of the provisions of this act through mandamus. Such proceeding shall be initiated by filing a petition in a court of competent jurisdiction.

(b) Cities may provide legal/financial assistance to speed up foreclosures (and get reimbursed from sale proceeds).

(c) If the county still hasn't acted after three additional years of delinquency on city property, the city itself can step in and file the foreclosure using its own attorney — the county officers must still cooperate.

History: Originally from 1901; last major update effective July 1, 2001 (L. 2001, ch. 214, § 2).

How the Process Works (Timeline & Responsibilities)

1. Tax sale & bid-off: Delinquent real estate is sold at the annual tax sale and "bid off" to the county if no one else buys it.
2. Redemption period (K.S.A. 79-2401a cross-reference):
• Normal properties → 2 years.
• Certain abandoned/vacant properties → 1 year.
• Homesteads can have partial-payment extensions.
3. Trigger date: If still unredeemed by September 1 of the final redemption year, the process must start.
4. Mandatory action:
• Board of County Commissioners shall order the County Attorney or County Counselor to file suit in district court.
• It is explicitly "the duty" of the County Counselor (in counties that have one, like Shawnee) to file the petition.
5. Exceptions (discretionary only):
• Mineral interests severed from the surface.
• Very small cases: aggregate assessed value < $300,000 or total delinquent taxes/special assessments < $10,000.
6. Enforcement teeth (stronger than the letter writer noted):
• Officials who fail to act shall forfeit the office.
• Any person (you, a taxpayer, the anonymous writer, etc.) can file a mandamus lawsuit to force them to do their job.

Connection to Shawnee County & Your Situation

• Shawnee County's own website (and the Judicial Tax Foreclosure Sale page you already have screenshots of) correctly cites K.S.A. 79-2801 et seq. and states: "The Shawnee County Counselor is required by statute to institute an action in District Court..."
• This matches exactly what the anonymous letter pointed out.
• The statute does not have a built-in criminal penalty, which is why the letter suggested the Office of the Disciplinary Administrator route (since the Counselor is a licensed attorney). However, the statute itself creates a civil enforcement mechanism (mandamus + office forfeiture) that is potentially even stronger.

Practical Takeaways for "Doing Something Good"

• You now have the exact statutory language + official county webpage confirming the Counselor's mandatory role.
• The "bull-shit story" you received about the office being "too busy" has no basis in the statute — the duty is non-discretionary except in tiny cases.
• If you want to keep pressure on without drama, a short public video/blog could simply quote the statute, show the county's own site, and note the mandatory timeline. No need to attack anyone personally.

Would you like me to draft a short, clean video script or social-media post that uses this statute language? Or pull the exact redemption timelines from the related statute (79-2401a) next? Just say the word — happy to keep this moving in whatever direction helps the most.