The Lenexa Planning Commission has given the green light to an almost 21-acre development that will include about 300 apartments in the western part of the city.
On March 31, the planning commission unanimously voted 9-0 to approve the preliminary plan and rezoning for The Vantage at Lenexa, a planned nine-building development at the northwest corner of Prairie Star Parkway and Monticello Road, just east of Kansas Highway 7.
Wisconsin-based Continental Properties Co., Inc. is the developer. This would be the company’s first development in Kansas, representatives said at the meeting. They currently have about 45,000 apartment units in 20 states in the country.
The land currently contains three houses
The development would be built on three parcels, with Monticello Road to the east, Coon Creek and the Coon Creek Trail to the west and Prairie Star Parkway to the south.
As presented to the city, it would contain nine separate apartment buildings, a clubhouse, pool, pickleball courts and other amenities.
Most of the land The Vantage would be built on is currently undeveloped, but there are three single-family homes on the site. Those homes currently operate as rentals that would be demolished, according to city documents.
The land would be rezoned from AG (Agricultural, R-1) to single-family residential and RP-3, Planned Residential (Medium-High Density) Districts to RP-4, Planned Residential (High Density) District.
Development of the land will be “challenging,” Brett Mozzetti, a development associate with Continental Properties, said at the meeting, because of a 70-foot grade change from the southeast to the northwest corner of the property and easements that don’t allow for any type of development.
“We have uncovered some significant bedrock that will have to be worked through with kind of creative site planning and grading strategies,” he added.
The developer is planning to tear out “extensive tree cover,” except for a portion of trees close to the Coon Creek Trail, according to city documents.
The developer is aiming for young adults, empty nesters
The developer expects about half of its tenants to be in the 20-34 age range, as well as empty nesters who are 50 years and older, Mozzetti said.
“We have a lot of residents who rent by choice, or are empty nesters, or who are just seeking a housing or living style that requires less of them than ownership,” he said.
They are also looking to be good neighbors, Mozzetti added, as they reached out to and met with some homeowners associations located near the proposed site.
“We want to become a part of the community. We want to be a good neighbor,” he said.
Neighbors still oppose development
During the public hearing portion of the meeting, neighbors brought up multiple concerns, including a potential increase in traffic, noise problems and its effect on nature in the area.
Vicki Townsley, an HOA secretary at The Enclave at Manchester Park subdivision, said she had worries about the potential noise that could come from the development.
“(The) excess noise from traffic and the pickleball courts, that’s a concern for the seniors in the development,” she said. “We like to sit out on our patios in the evening and have our little glass of wine, and we don’t want to hear pickleball.”
She also worried about the effect it could have on wildlife on the Coon Creek Trail.
“We don’t want to destroy the wildlife and nature that’s been there, and it’s a little trail that a lot of the seniors do use, as well, to go for walks,” she said.
Other neighbors, like Corey Forte and Colleen Connor, said that there was too much of a difference between the existing single-family home subdivisions and the apartments being proposed.
“This just seems like way too much of a contrast to have single-family homes on one side of the street and then the structures, which are exceeding the height limit, immediately adjacent to that with no barrier in between,” Forte said. “The location doesn’t make sense.”
Planning commission responds
While the planning commission acknowledged residents’ concerns, commissioners also believed it was similar to other recently-approved developments in Lenexa.
“To me, the development proposed is what we envisioned in our comprehensive plan, and they’re doing what we said or what we wanted there, and I think they’re doing a good job,” Commissioner Don Horine said.
He added: “There’s trees that are going to be lost. Wildlife is going to move. It’s the same thing that happens as development moves east, west, north, south. That’s no different than it has been forever. So I’m in favor of the plan.”
Agreeing with Horine, Commissioner Sunny Dharod said he was in favor of it.
“It seems like rezoning to RP-4 is in line with a lot of Lenexa’s past, and what we’ve decided is best for Lenexa’s future,” he said. “I think to the extent there are any concerns traffic, environment, etc., hopefully they will be further considered and looked at in the future as the development is proceeding forward.”
What’s next
The Lenexa City Council will consider the preliminary plan and rezoning for The Vantage at Lenexa at its April 15 meeting.
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