The NAIA will build its new facilities in the Cedar Creek Corporate Park on the western edge of Olathe. Plans call for the construction of a 12,000-sf office building and 20,000-sf Character in Sport Center for conferences. The NAIA has purchased seven acres in the business park.
A sports museum will also be constructed in Olathe, although a site has yet to be determined. One possible location is a parcel at 119th Street and Renner Road that is being proposed by Myriad Development Co., based in Topeka, KS.
Myriad is currently negotiating with the city to purchase the 27-acre parcel, with plans to build an 8,000-sf arena, as well as an exhibit hall, office building and at least one restaurant. Projected development costs for the site are estimated to be about $40 million.
The NAIA has said that it will bring Division I men's basketball tournament back to Municipal Auditorium in Downtown Kansas City, but that it would also attempt to bring at least one national championship to the area each fall, winter and spring.
"There are certainly venues in Olathe and throughout the Kansas City area that could more than suffice for any of our championships," says NAIA President Steve Baker.
The move has been laced with incentives, with a dollar value of at least $2.5 million. The NAIA will receive $1 million per year over 10 years from a 2% increase in the Olathe hotel tax. It was given a $1-million discount on the land in Cedar Creek. Also, $500,000 of construction work has been pledged and there was an oral agreement to help the organization raise more than $5 million from the private sector.
Olathe was chosen over St. Charles, MO and Fort Wayne, IN. Until the facilities for the organization are built, the NAIA will be housed in rent-free space in the Honeywell Corp. office park.
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