The Kansas CW | Casino Annexation Suit Heard by Kansas Court of Appeals
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By Kim Hynes (SUMNER COUNTY, Kan.)
The casino annexation issue between the City of Mulvane and Sumner County is back in court. Wednesday the Kansas Court of Appeals heard the matter. Both sides presented their case and the court took the matter under advisement. You may remember during the first casino process in 2008, Sumner County voted against endorsing casino projects at the Mulvane exit of the turnpike. In order for the Harrah's project to be considered by the state, Mulvane pieced together strips of property to connect the casino site with city limits. Sumner County then sued the city saying the annexation was illegal. The Lottery Review Board later voted to give Harrah's the Sumner County casino contract. A short time later, Harrah's pulled out saying it could no longer afford the project because of the economy. However the lawsuit continued and in January a Sumner County judge ruled the annexation was illegal. Mulvane filed an appeal which is now being heard in court. The Court of Appeals has four to six weeks to issue a ruling. The ruling has no bearing on the current casino project because Sumner County endorsed it. Chisholm Creek is the only proposal at the Mulvane exit of the turnpike. The Lottery Review Board is supposed to vote December 2nd on whether to allow that project to move forward.
