About 70 members of the Kansas City, Kansas, Area of Chamber of Commerce and their guests
attended the monthly meeting of the Congressional Forum, a division of the Chamber, to hear
the new County Administrator, David Johnston, speak. He was chosen by a unanimous vote of
the Unified Commission; more than 30 candidates sought the job. He has been on the job for
about two months.
Johnston comes from Covington, Ky., where he was City Manager from 2017 to 2021. Historians
will recall that Covington was the city where Dr. David Lusk was school superintendent before
he came to the Kansas City, Kansas, School District in 1986. Covington is a suburb of Cincinnati.
Johnston told of opportunities and challenges in his new job. He said one of the main
opportunities will be the World Cup soccer competition that will be here in 2026. Village West,
with its soccer stadium and practice fields, will be a prime location for soccer matches and
practices. He said that Wyandotte County has a Hispanic population of about 30 percent and a
Black population of about 20 percent; this should be a strong asset in welcoming soccer fans
from Spanish-speaking countries and Africa.
Johnston said there may also be business opportunities because of Wyandotte County’s
proximity to the Kansas City International Airport. He said that most economic development
opportunities will come from businesses already here.
Johnston said he is looking at the city and county budgets to see what services might be
lessened. The Unified Government faces severe infrastructure needs, particularly in the older
parts of the county. At Covington, he guided the city to an A2 bond rating while successfully
improving and completing major redevelopment efforts.
One of the tasks that Johnston will face will be attracting top-level leaders in the Unified
Government. Some of these leaders have left out of frustration. Clashes have occurred
between Mayor Tyrone Garner and other members of the Unified Commission.
In a question-and-answer session, Johnston was told that high property taxes are a major
reason that there is a limited amount of residential development in Wyandotte County. He said
that it will be important to look at the housing needs of the entire community— from the
homeless to high end housing.
Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press.