OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Among the list of STAR bond projects is the Bluhawk development near 159th and U.S. 69 Highway. They’ve been working on this land for decades. Early phases of Bluhawk came with various housing developments, the AdventHealth hospital, and part of the retail area, but there’s more to come.
Twenty years after developers with Price Brothers purchased the Bluhawk land, they’re almost ready to open the main event: The AdventHealth Sports Park. Since 2004, concepts for Bluhawk have looked like a lot of things. According to PB Development Vice President, Bart Lowen, one idea has stayed the same - the marriage of sports and retail.
The sports park will be a 420,000 square foot facility with a focus on youth sports. There will be full-size basketball and volleyball courts that can be turned into a soccer field, plus a hockey arena. Lowen called it the anchor of the whole area.
It was built using star bonds. He says the economic activity that the sports park creates will help pay for other phases of development. Phases like the retail side that exists today, plus the retail space they just announced.
“Similar to the bounds of a playing surface that the athletes play on inside the sports facility, The Boundary at Bluhawk is the playing field for the retailer to perform the shopping and the dining experience,” said Bart Lowen, PB Development vice president.
The new retail area will be called The Boundary. It’ll be right across the street from the sports park and filled with 200,000 square feet of shopping, food and green spaces. Lowen hopes this space will give visitors plenty to do within walking distance of the arena.
“What doesn't exist in Bluhawk today is what's coming with The Boundary. Three outdoor areas that provide that place to just come hang out on a Saturday or come hang out between events,” Lowen said. “This experience that we're creating here that no longer is just sports and what do you do between games? This full experience is an experience that the consumer is looking for.”
The next phase to open at Bluhawk is the sports park, which they expect to be complete in October 2024. After that will be The Boundary in spring of 2026. Lowen said they expect the project to be paid off before the STAR bond term ends, so they’re still looking at what may come next for the development at Bluhawk.
