Mattel Adventure Park may not open in Bonner Springs until 2031

BONNER SPRINGS, Kan. (KCTV) - At Monday’s meeting, the Bonner Springs City Council unanimously approved a development agreement between the city and the developer behind the Mattel Adventure Park.

In it, the timeline for the park has been pushed back. Vertical construction has to start by October 2027 with the project substantially completed by October 2030.

The agreement goes on to say the park must be open no later than May 2031.

“There were just a lot of decisions that had to be made,” said Megan Gilliland, the Economic Development Manager for the City of Bonner Springs, on discussions between city staff and the developer. “I know the developer has said that there have been things including tariffs and things like that that are going to affect the project. The construction materials and things like that. They had to get some of those things worked out. We just wanted to make sure that the city had the incentives in place, and we knew what we were being asked for specifically.”

Back in April 2024, the Bonner Springs City Council adopted an ordinance creating the 118th and State STAR Bond District. Over the last several months, the City of Bonner Springs legal counsel and the development team have been working to complete a Development Agreement that sets the terms for the future STAR Bonds project.

The terms in the Development Agreement lay out the project timelines, financial obligations, public infrastructure improvements, and legal framework to guarantee the project is constructed and completed.

In a presentation to the council, developers outlined the preliminary budget for the park, which totaled nearly $540 million. Preliminary sales projections estimate over $191 million in annual sales. The also highlighted the requested incentives, including $175 million in STAR Bonds.

The agreement also provided insight into what the future park could look like.

In the definition of amusement park in the agreement, it’s stated “to include approximately 150,000 square feet of indoor space and approximately 15 acres of outdoor ride area, which will feature approximately 750-foot dual zip lines, an approximately 10-acre man-made lake, and lakefront boat rentals.”

Developers not only highlighted retail, restaurant, and office space in their presentation, but also noted a year-round holiday attraction and rainforest attraction would be part of the development.

They said there would be room for growth on the property they will soon acquire. Now that the development agreement has been passed, the developer will have up to 45 days to start the process to acquire the land.