Annexed greyhound park leads to lawsuit

? Sedgwick County filed a lawsuit Thursday to prevent Park City’s annexation of county-owned land that includes Wichita Greyhound Park.

The Park City Council voted to annex the land on Dec. 6, despite threats of a lawsuit from the county. City officials said they approved the annexation because it allowed Park City to fill its borders.

Patrick Hughes, a lawyer for the county, said in the lawsuit that Park City lacks the authority to annex county property. While the greyhound park is not owned by Sedgwick County, Hughes said the land is part of the county-owned Kansas Coliseum complex.

Hughes also claims the annexation is unreasonable, that Park City’s service plan is inadequate and that Park City’s meetings did not adhere to rules governing the state’s annexation and open meetings laws.

“Park City … was supposed to conduct the hearing at the land to be annexed, and that’s not what they originally did,” Hughes said.

Park City already provides water and sewer services to the area to be annexed and will now also provide police and street services.

Opponents have said the annexation is merely to allow Park City to collect tax revenue if gambling becomes legal at Wichita Greyhound Park. Officials say the county could receive an estimated $1 million a year if the greyhound park were to host expanded gambling.

Hughes said Park City has 20 days to respond to the county’s lawsuit.