Olathe has advanced plans for a new apartment complex at 133rd Street and Blackfoot Road.
The Olathe City Council on Jan. 20 unanimously approved plans for an eight-building, 280-unit apartment complex at the 15-acre site.
The project, currently dubbed the Stellar Apartments, will also include parking lots and garages, a clubhouse with an outdoor swimming pool, a dog park and walking trails.
In addition to the preliminary site plans, councilmembers approved rezoning the property from commercial to residential. The land was originally zoned for commercial use in 1988, when it was slated for a retail center that was never built.
The Olathe Planning Commission approved the development 7-0 in December.
No members of the public spoke in opposition to the development at either of the city’s meetings.
Councilmember Kevin Deneault, whose ward encompasses the project site, said the development’s design and location make it a good fit.
“I know with these housing developments a lot of care goes into making sure they look right, feel right, [and the] placement in our city is good,” Deneault said. “I think this is a great example of one that’s going to fit pretty well.”
Traffic was a concern when the project was introduced to the planning commission last month. The intersection of 133rd Street and Black Bob Road, which is only a few blocks from the approved development, doesn’t have a stoplight.
City staff said they would monitor traffic conditions and address them, as needed.
As part of Olathe’s Capital Improvement Plan, the city also plans to extend 133rd Street from Black Bob Road to Greenwood Street — a $10.6 million project that will likely include new stoplights at the intersection.
The site is also about a mile and a half from the I-35 and Santa Fe Corridor Improvements project, a $200 million overhaul of the interchange designed to lessen traffic congestion and increase safety.
