According to information obtained in a recent Kansas Open Records Act request, Prairie Village taxpayers are paying about $775,000 for four city administrator positions with responsibilities that do not include the police department or Public Works. Those departments are managed by the Police Chief and the Public Works Director.
In the small, landlocked community of just under 23,000 in Johnson County, Prairie Village City Administrator Wesley Jordan made $244,952 last year, and Deputy City Administrator Nicole Lee was paid $192,532. Prairie Village also has two Assistant City Administrators: Timothy Schwartzkopf, who was paid $172,619, and Meghan Buum, who made $164,605 a year.
The complete Prairie Village payroll is posted to KansasOpenGov.org.
The Sentinel asked Jordan why such a small town needs three deputy or assistant city administrators. He replied, “Positions are based on workload,” and provided the organizational chart below.
According to the chart, Lee supervises nine full-time equivalent (FTE) positions, Buum has five FTE and 116 part-time workers under her for the parks and rec department and special events, and Schwarzkopf has 8.5 FTE.
Interestingly, the City of Leawood‘s website says it has just City Administrator Diane Stoddard and Assistant City Administrator Stephen Powell for a larger city of about 33,000 people.
Large property tax hikes in Prairie Village
Prairie Village residents have watched City Council members raise property tax revenue almost four times the combined rates of inflation and population growth, while denying them the opportunity to vote on a $30 million bond to build a new “Municipal Complex,” and spending $23,000 for drones in Ukraine.
As the chart below shows, property tax revenues in the city have increased by 322% since 1997, inflation has increased by 85%, and the mill rate has gone up by 12%—all while the population has decreased by 3%.
The proposed 2026 budget shows Prairie Village administrators want a 5% property tax increase over this year, but the more than $12 million they are budgeting would be a 28% increase over 2023. The General Fund budget includes $16.7 million labeled as Personnel Services, which would be a 21% increase since 2023.
