Lenexa development could bring new apartments, retail space

LENEXA, Kan. — On Monday, the Lenexa Planning Commission will host a public hearing to get feedback on a proposal to construct 10 new buildings along the northwest corner of K-10 Highway and Ridgeview Road. 

Weston Buckley with LANE4 Property Group, Inc. is requesting roughly 40 acres be rezoned from Agricultural (AG) and Planned Regional Commercial Districts (CP-3) to Residential Planned (High-Density RP-4) and Planned Community Commercial Districts (CP-2).  

The developer plans to create a new commercial and multi-family residential complex. The planning commission will review “The Retreat on the Prairie” project as two separate applications, one for the commercial space and another for the apartment complex.

According to city documents, the property is undeveloped land that was annexed into Lenexa in 1986. 

A preliminary plan submitted to the city includes five apartment buildings with roughly 373 one- and two-bedroom units. 

Each apartment will have resident parking underneath the building with additional surface lots and some carports in front of the complex. The applicant is requesting a deviation to reduce the total number of parking stalls at the complex from 653 spaces to 597 spaces. 

The developer is also requesting a deviation to increase the height of the apartment buildings. Under the proposed RP-4 zoning, buildings are capped at a height of 35 feet.

To take advantage of the sloped terrain, the developer is requesting a deviation to allow buildings within the complex to be built as a four-story, five-story split with a height of 47 feet in the front and 63 feet in the rear. 

The concept plan submitted to the city includes three one-story, retail buildings, a four-story office building and a 130-room hotel. The five buildings contain a total of 144,857 square feet of commercial space.

If approved by the planning commission, the Lenexa City Council is scheduled to review the rezoning, concept plan and preliminary plan on Oct. 19.

Contingent on the approval of the planning commission, the city council will also consider a resolution giving residents notice of a public hearing on Nov. 16, to consider approving plans to use Tax Increment Financing (TIF) for the project.

‘Retreat on the Prairie’ could bring new apartments, retail space to Lenexa