Plans for a new apartment and retail development in southern Leawood got the green light Monday night.
The Leawood City Council approved a rezoning request and preliminary plans for Oxford Promenade, a mixed-use project at West 135th Street and Mission Road.
Oxford Promenade entails residential, retail and office space
- The proposal by Kansas City-based Legacy Development and NSPJ Architects includes 294 apartments — which will take up three floors and 365,750 square feet.
- Plans also include roughly 91,000 square feet of retail, 81,000 square feet of office space, two public outdoor “promenade” gathering areas and a two-level parking garage with 449 parking stalls.
- Attorney Greg Musil, the developer’s representative, said the project’s name is a nod to the nearby historic Oxford Schoolhouse, which was in use from the time of Reconstruction until the 1950s.
The plan adds to a growing and disputed part of Leawood
- The site neighbors the future East Village development site off 133rd Street and Pawnee Lane — which many neighboring residents have contested.
- At Monday’s meeting, resident Rachel Rubin — who lives near the East Village site — expressed her excitement about the Oxford Promenade plan and pointed to it as an example of what neighboring residents would have preferred.
- “I’m actually really jealous that this is going to be not right next to us,” she said. “It’s disappointing that such a large tract of land [for East Village] wasn’t used in the best way. I hope we can do better, I hope there’s more projects like this in Leawood.”
The City Council unanimously approved the plan
- The council still needs to approve a final plan for the mixed-use development in the coming months.
- Following that final approval, representatives said the project’s five-phased buildout could begin later this year.
- “I consider this to be true mixed-use, and that’s very important to me,” said Councilmember Mary Larson. “This is a place that I’m excited to go to, and I think it’ll be very well received by the community in this area.”
Go deeper: Leawood reviewing Oxford Promenade retail/housing plan
