The Kansas City Downtown Streetcar Transportation Development District was formed in 2012 pursuant to the Missouri Transportation Development District Act, §§ 238.200 to 238.280.2 The Streetcar District was formed for the purpose of constructing and operating a streetcar line to run for approximately two miles along Main Street in downtown Kansas City. The construction and operation of the streetcar line is to be funded, in substantial part, by special assessments on real property located within the District, and by a sales tax, not to exceed one percent, on retail sales within the District.
Property owners within the District sued, claiming that the real-property assessments and sales taxes imposed within the District are unlawful.
The circuit court entered judgment granting the Streetcar District’s motion to dismiss. The court held that Appellants’ challenges to the real-property special assessments were “election contests” which were untimely under § 115.577, because Appellants did not bring their claims within thirty days of the certification of the results of the election approving the special assessments. The circuit court also held that Appellants were estopped from asserting any of their claims because they should have raised their challenges in the Formation Lawsuit, prior to the elections which authorized the District’s formation and the imposition of the sales tax and real-property assessments.