Plans for a new subdivision dubbed Stone Ridge North will move ahead on the rapidly-growing west side of Lenexa.
On Tuesday, the Lenexa City Council unanimously approved the project plan, located north of 83rd Street and Cedar Niles Road near the border with Shawnee.
The rezoning request, which converts the property from mostly agricultural and office uses to residential uses, was also authorized without opposition.
Stone Ridge North plan calls for homes and duplexes
- When built out, the 168-acre Arise Homes development will have more than 380 ranch-style homes and 50 duplex buildings, totaling roughly 490 housing units in all.
- Construction will take a few years, starting with the duplexes and a handful of single-family homes in the southeast corner, Austin Chamberlin, from Arise Homes, told the council.
- Nearby is the 44-acre, 103-home Stone Ridge South neighborhood, also from Arise Homes, that came through the city planning process in 2021.
- Developers pegged the proposed price point for these new homes at between $350,000 and $600,00, which some councilmembers noted was not as affordable as they had hoped.
Plan currently includes community storm shelters
- The city council had several questions about the use of community storm shelters instead of having basements or external storm shelters on each proposed property.
- The Stone Ridge North plan currently includes seven group shelters throughout the neighborhood.
- Lenexa has long required shelters in residential areas, but that has left a loophole allowing community storm shelters instead of shelters on each individual property, said Scott McCullough, the city’s community development director.
- Mayor Mike Boehm said he felt a little uncomfortable with “running ahead” without knowing what the code for residential properties and storm shelters will be when the developer starts turning dirt.
The developer could change plans around shelter issue
- Next week, the city building code board of appeals plans to study the rules tied to storm shelters, McCullough said.
- This could lead to the city banning community storm shelters in future developments.
- Arise Homes officials said they have a backup plan to add shelters on each property.
- In that case, lots that had previously been designated for those group shelters would then become additional homes in the development, Chamberlin said.
Dig deeper: Read the Lenexa building code board of appeals agenda with the storm shelters issue. (Storm shelter section begins on Pg. 7).
