A proposal to build nearly 700 apartments at the southeastern corner of Quivira Road and 135th Street in Overland Park cleared a major hurdle this week despite neighbor opposition.
The Overland Park Planning Commission on Monday voted 10-0 to recommend approval of a rezoning for the apartment complex proposed by Q135 Development LLC. Commissioner Rob Krewson was absent from the meeting.
Currently, the 35-acre property in question is zoned for single-family residential development, but the developer wants to rezone part of the site for a high-rise apartment building. Another portion of the property would be reserved for smaller, garden-style apartments.
About 700 apartments are proposed in all
- In total, 691 apartments are proposed for the project, which would be divided up across multiple buildings of varying densities.
- The high-rise zoning portion would feature 381 multi-family units in a single four- to five-story building
- The remaining 310 units would be split up over 24 smaller-scale, two- and three-story buildings.
- The complex will have mostly one-bedroom apartments, though there will be a small amount of two-bedroom units, with rents expected to start around $2,000 a month.
Neighbors worry about density, traffic
During public comment for the project Monday, a handful of neighboring residents spoke against the proposal.
The majority of those speakers said they were worried about the project’s impact on traffic, as well as the total number of apartments proposed and the effect such a large-scale development might have on local schools.
One neighbor made allusions to future legal proceedings if the rezoning were approved, seemingly threatening legal action.
Attorney R. Scott Beeler, who represented groups from nearby residential communities, said allowing the project to go forward would be “saying this is a city of apartments.”
He asked the commission to table the development for now.
Beeler also suggested the residents would ultimately submit a protest petition to the city. If validated, such a document would raise the number of votes required at the Overland Park City Council to approve the project from a simple majority to 10.
Commissioners unanimously support the project
Commissioner Jenna Reyes said she felt like the placement of the apartments at the intersection of 135th Street and Quivira Road — two main thoroughfares — made sense.
Reyes added that she didn’t think the property, which is otherwise undeveloped, will ever realistically be used for single-family homes, though she said she is sympathetic to longtime homeowners in the area who might wish it would be.
Additionally, commissioners were broadly complimentary of how the density of the project — that is, the concentration of living units in a certain area — is laid out in the plan. In particular, the taller apartment building that has more units would be screened from the nearby neighborhoods by the shorter, lower-density garden apartment buildings.
“It steps down its density, so that’s appropriate,” Chair Kip Strauss said.
Next steps:
- The rezoning proposal goes to the Overland Park City Council for consideration next.
- It’s scheduled for the Aug. 5 meeting currently.
- Neighbors have 14 days from the planning commission’s vote to submit a protest petition to the city.
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