Architects working on the new justice center and public safety complex in Lenexa unveiled conceptual design ideas this week to city leaders.
In a presentation to the Lenexa City Council on Tuesday, representatives on the project shared two different conceptual ideas of the project, which will be located on the southwest corner of Prairie Star Parkway and Britton Street.
The $73 million facility, once complete, will become the new home of the Lenexa Police Department as well as the city’s municipal court.
“We wanted to reinforce tonight that this is super preliminary; this is what we call our pre-design touch point,” said Deputy City Manager Todd Pelham. “Again, this is just a touch point with you guys to see some of the work that we’ve been doing behind the scenes. And I know that we want to involve you in that and get as much feedback tonight as we can.”
Pelham noted that the design images presented to the city council look highly defined, but are intended only to serve as inspiration to solicit feedback from city leaders on the direction of design early on in the process.
Below is an overall site plan layout for the justice center.
Here are conceptual designs for one look for the justice center.
Here are conceptual designs for a second look for the justice center (including the image at the top of this story).
Architectural cost increase
In addition to reviewing the design concepts and providing feedback, the Lenexa City Council unanimously approved a project cost increase for architectural services through Finkle + Williams Architects.
The roughly $433,000 increase accommodates the city’s push for additional programming and square footage on the site, as well as adding sustainability and energy design elements, according to city documents.
City staff noted that the additional increase in architectural services is built into the overall project budget.
That comes on top of an $8 million increase in the project’s proposed budget, which was approved by the city council late last year, bringing the prospective total to roughly $73 million.
That cost increase was due, in part, to supply chain issues exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, city officials said at the time.
Site’s natural grade inspiring facility layout
Pelham said the design and layout of the building also takes inspiration from the hilly topography, which slopes downhill away from the key intersection.
The hill will allow a ground-level entrance in the front for the public as well as a ground-level entrance in the back for police officers.
“We are extremely excited about the programming of this building, and the flow,” Pelham added. “One of the main things that doesn’t work for us today is how the officer [currently] interacts with the building, and the flow of it, and how people interact, how we process evidence, how we store things, how we train. All of that is disjointed now.
“We really love the building the way it’s flowing. This two-story idea of a building allows all those functions to really have that first-floor access.”
Next steps
Architects and city staff will continue working through the design phase, with plans to provide a preliminary development plan for the city council’s review May 16.
Construction could begin as early as Sept. 12, and project completion is slated for March 13, 2024.
