Habitat for Humanity wants to buy land from the city of Lenexa to create a neighborhood of affordable houses.
In December 2025, Habitat for Humanity of Kansas City announced it had submitted a proposal to the city to purchase a 17-acre parcel of land in Clear Creek, along Clare Road at 87th Street in the western part of the city, to build 50 single-family homes that could hit the market at $250,000.
“This would be a catalytic project for our organization,” Lindsay Hicks, CEO for Habitat for Humanity of Kansas City, told the Johnson County Post.
The project clears several roadblocks that affordable housing projects often face in Johnson County, including land availability and cost.
If approved, the homes would be available for purchase by individuals and families who meet income requirements and demonstrate the ability to make payments on their mortgages. They would also be required to complete financial education courses and contribute a minimum of 100 partner hours by working alongside Habitat staff and volunteers.
The proposal will be taken up by the Lenexa Planning Commission at its meeting at 7 p.m. on Feb. 2.
The city has owned the property since 1998
In 1998, Lenexa purchased about 30 acres of property at 91st Street and Sinclair.
In 2006, the city purchased an additional 100 acres of land nearby, intending to turn it into a regional lake, similar to Black Hoof Lake, City Manager Beccy Yocham said.
In 2015, the city nixed the regional lake plan and instead created regional BMPs (Best Management Practices) stormwater management projects like wetlands and a stormwater management facility. The city also created a trail system around the wetlands, and there are still plans to build a future park there, dubbed Centennial Park.
“We decided that a less expensive, but actually, more effective way of handling storm water in this region (was) … to construct this regional stormwater facility, keep about 40 acres for a future park, and then sell the remaining property,” Yocham said.
The remaining property is three parcels of land for sale around the wetlands and trails, one of which Habitat for Humanity of KC is looking to purchase.
The housing development would not affect the existing wetlands or trails, Yocham said.
The city has had trouble with selling the parcels
Since 2015, the city has been trying to sell the land in the area so they could recoup the cost of purchasing the land. But interest from developers didn’t move past the discussion phase, Yocham said.
“Since that time, we have talked to a variety of potential developers about buying it, but none of those have ever come to fruition,” she said.
The city has tried ways of drumming up interest in the property, like issuing a Request for Proposals, a document that outlines a project’s needs and invites qualified vendors or contractors to submit detailed proposals for the property, in 2018. Still, the interest wasn’t there.
“The long story short is: nobody proposed on it at that time,” Yocham said.
A fully copy of the 2018 RFP document is below.
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Open in new tab Habitat has shown interest in the property
In spring 2025, a home builder for Habitat for Humanity KC contacted the city about the 17-acre parcel. Shortly after, representatives for the organization and the city started having informal talks.
“As in any development process, we’ve been working with them on their proposal to do a subdivision at this location since then,” Yocham said. “There haven’t been formal conversations. It’s all informal. It’s, ‘Here’s what we’re thinking’, ‘What do you think of this?'”
In fall 2025, the organization submitted an application to purchase the property, which will be taken up by the governing body in February.
The project addresses housing gap in the area
The proposed plan is exactly what Habitat for Humanity KC and Johnson County need when it comes to affordable housing, Hicks said.
“As the affordability gap continues to grow and to grow and to grow, we have to provide more solutions and more housing for families in the entire metro, and that includes Johnson County,” she said. “Being able to do this would be incredibly meaningful for our organization, but most importantly for the hundreds and hundreds of people who reach out to us for housing solutions.”
The homes will be constructed by professional home builders, with the assistance of Habitat for Humanity volunteers.
“They’re all going to have two-car garages. They’re all going to have basements. They’re going to be Johnson County homes,” Yocham said.
Currently, Habitat for Humanity KC has been working on its 14-home project in Olathe, which Hicks said it has received more than 500 inquiries from prospective homebuyers.
“When you look at everything that’s new and coming online, there’s very few opportunities that are around $250,000 for home ownership,” Hicks said. “Then, when you look at the 40% of renters that are cost-burdened, they’re paying $1,500 a month for rent when they could be homeowners through our program for a much more affordable mortgage payment.”
In Lenexa, affordable housing is a goal that’s included in its Vision 2040 plan. This project directly addresses that, Yocham said.
“That’s one of the things over the last 10-plus years, probably, that we’ve heard at the city more than anything: We need affordable housing in Johnson County, affordable housing in Lenexa … (the) constant feedback from the community (is) that affordable housing is needed,” she said.
The project comes with guidelines
If approved, the project would have a number of requirements for prospective home buyers.
The buyer would need at least two years of steady, verifiable income and a minimum income that operates on a scale, depending on the size of the family wanting to move into the home.
For example, a single person moving into a home at Clear Creek would need to make between $51,550 and $62,400, while a family of four would need to make between $55,700 and $89,100 per year.
Other requirements include:
- Having a need for housing (as in, they’re currently living in a home that’s unaffordable, overcrowded or unsafe)
- Ability to afford a mortgage payment that is 30% of gross monthly income
- One year of good rental history
- Less than $1,000 in non-medical collection debt
- Two years since the completion of a bankruptcy or foreclosure
- Zero unpaid judgments
- Ability to pass a criminal background and sex offender check
- Ability to pay a minimum of $1,200 for closing costs
- Proof of U.S. citizenship or permanent residency status
The homes will be part of a Community Land Trust, a nonprofit organization consisting of a board of residents and public representatives aimed at creating permanent, affordable housing solutions.
Homes in a Community Land Trust will not have an effect on home values for surrounding properties because they cannot be used for an appraisal comparison for real estate transactions outside of the trust.
Some people are against the project
As the project heads to Lenexa’s governing body for discussion next month, a contingent of residents in the area has already expressed their opposition.
“This proposed new construction development project to build 50 homes on park land surrounded by existing residential neighborhoods with homes (3 to 5 times) the appraised value of the homes proposed, well away from essential services, does not make sense and differs from my understanding of the work that Habitat for Humanity does,” Steve Berndsen, a Lenexa resident, wrote in an email to the Johnson County Post.
On Facebook, a group called “Is YOUR Park Next?” has detailed their problems with the project, including concerns that the development will get rid of the Clear Creek wetlands. They have also created a Change.org petition that has gathered more than 1,300 signatures.
Lenexa Mayor Julie Sayers and Lenexa city staff have received emails from concerned residents about the project and have tried to calm concerns and set the record straight, Yocham said.
“We’re not getting rid of the park and wetlands. The mayor responded to that and tried to clarify that, but (there) still continues to be a great deal of concerns that we’re hearing,” she said.
Hicks said Habitat for Humanity KC faced similar concerns with the Olathe project.
“The (Olathe) project is well underway, and we’re having our first homeowner move in in January. We haven’t really seen any negative effects, and … That energy didn’t carry into our project,” she said. “Now, I can’t promise that’s going to be the same with Lenexa, but if anything, the studies show that affordable housing does not hurt people’s property values.”
Habitat for Humanity is standing by the project and views it as a positive addition to the city and the area.
“We are positive about the project, like I said, and being able to understand the city and their future use and the future park that’s going to be there, as well as the amenities that we plan on, including in this development, we’re just positive that those things would have a good impact on the community,” Hicks said.
Go deeper: In Johnson County, cost and land availability can be roadblocks to housing projects
