This Week at City Hall (April 6 – 10, 2026)

A resolution to expedite permitting for new affordable housing, parking minimums ordinance passes, and new traffic circulation plans for Notre Dame de Sion School in Hyde Park.

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Neighborhood Planning and Development Committee

Tuesday, April 7th at 1:30pm

The Neighborhood Planning and Development Committee is headed by Chairperson Ryana Parks-Shaw, Vice Chair Eric Bunch, and Councilmembers Nathan Willett and Melissa Patterson Hazley. 

Resolution 260322 directed the City Manager to identify property and financing

suitable for the development of an urban youth sports facility capable of hosting

hockey, figure-skating, volleyball, position-specific training for baseball, soccer,

track and golf, including tournament regulation facilities or a reasonable

combination thereof (prioritizing access for students from Kansas City Public

Schools and Hickman Mills School District and reporting back to the City Council

with recommendations within 90 days). Councilwoman Melissa Patterson Hazley presented this item to the Committee.

Councilwoman Patterson Hazley explained that she had introduced this ordinance because while there are several youth sports clubs centered in Kansas City, few if any such facilities exist for these clubs. She went on to say that her daughter plays volleyball, and that at tournaments out of state they often patronize the hotels and businesses surrounding those facilities. She envisions these as being economic drivers, especially for the third city council district, which has few economically productive land uses. The hope with this item, she said, is to begin to change the development pattern in areas such as the third district which have a high number of social service institutions, but lack sufficient market enterprises.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this item. It advanced to the full City Council where it was passed this Thursday.

Resolutions 260323 and 260324 requested approval to appoint Christopher Acquino, Lisa Sprarkman, and Diane Machal as successor directors to the 46th & Wornall Community Improvement District (#1 and #2) in the Plaza Westport neighborhood.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of these items with little deliberation. They advanced to the full City Council where they were passed this Thursday.

Ordinance 250876 requested approval to amend Chapter 88, the Zoning and Development Code, by repealing and replacing Subsection 88-445-06, Residential Signs, for the purposes of allowing digital signs for Institutional and Office Uses in residential districts and adopting new standards for such signs.

This item was previously brought before the City Plan Commission on August 20th, 2025 as CD-CPC-2025-00128 and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

The Committee moved to continue this item to May 5th, ahead of the meeting Tuesday.

Ordinance 260056 requested approval to rezone the site located at the southeast corner of Troost Ave and East 5th St in the Columbus Park neighborhood from UR to B2-2 to allow for an entertainment venue.

This item was previously brought before the City Plan Commission on December 3rd, 2025 as CD-CPC-2025-00160 and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

The Committee moved to continue this item to April 14th, ahead of the meeting Tuesday.

Ordinance 260219 requested approval to amend Chapter 88, the Zoning and Development Code, by repealing and replacing Section 88-420, “Parking and Loading”, for the purpose of updating parking and loading standards to support more walkable development and reduce on-site parking requirements; directing the City Manager to report back to the City Council within one year of passage of this ordinance. Lead Planner Jennifer Reinhardt and Brian Jackson – Wilson & Co., presented this item to the Committee.

This item was previously brought before the City Plan Commission on November 5th, 2025 as CD-CPC-2025-00143 and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog. Coverage of this item also appeared in the February 23rd, March 9th, and April 3rd editions of the blog.

At the most recent hearing for this item, the Committee had requested that Assistant City Manager Binckley and other city staff meet with neighborhood leaders and other stakeholders to talk about the potential impacts of this ordinance. Concerns expressed by stakeholders largely revolved around reduced parking in new developments (which may attract more traffic) having a negative impact on surrounding neighborhoods’ street parking. City staff had discussed tools for addressing these issues, such as parking benefit districts and permitted on-street parking (to guarantee parking for residents). Stakeholders were not against the use of these tools, but were unconvinced of the City’s ability to enforce them.

To the issue of new developments building less-than-adequate levels of parking, Councilman Bunch asserted that residents can still use the development process to arrive at the appropriate amount of parking. Public engagement at meetings has proved effective at amending developers’ plans to meet the needs of the neighborhood, he said, noting the Hickok Homes development at 39th St and Roanoke Rd. 

The Committee requested to add language to the ordinance that would have the City Manager review the impact of the ordinance and make recommendations on parking enforcement for neighborhoods that need it.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this item. It advanced to the full City Council where it was passed this Thursday.

Ordinance 260283 requested approval of an Historic Overlay designation (H/O Overlay) for Leonard Smith Hall to the Kansas City Register of Historic Places, located immediately adjacent to Independence Boulevard between The Paseo and Maple Boulevard in the Pendleton Heights and Independence Plaza neighborhoods.

This item was previously brought before the City Plan Commission as CD-CPC-2026-00003 on March 4th and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog. Coverage of this item also appeared in the April 3rd edition of the blog.

At the last hearing for this item, the Committee had asked KCU and the Pendleton Heights Neighborhood Association to meet and try to compromise on this issue. While progress was reportedly made on how the two entities can move forward in the future, they were unable to reach a consensus about the future of Smith Hall.

Councilwoman Patterson Hazley noted that while there were several issues following the potential preservation of this structure (what it may be used for, how it could be feasibly renovated, etc.) it did appear to meet the criteria to be added to the local historic register.

Councilman Bunch agreed, but added that he believed this may be the wrong tool to influence preservation. Buildings on the local historic register may not be demolished for a period of three years upon being added. However, Bunch noted, several developers are still willing to “wait out the clock”, leaving their property vacant in the meantime. He noted the Jeserich Building, formerly at 31st and Main St, as an example of this.

Bunch indicated that he himself was conflicted about this ordinance, but also recognized that there may be a split in opinions among the Committee. For that reason he suggested the Committee give no formal recommendation, but move the ordinance to City Council for a final vote, to which the other Committee members agreed.

The Committee moved to advance this item to the full City Council without a recommendation, where it then failed to pass this Thursday.

Resolution 260306 directed the City Manager to require expedited permit approval in housing construction, with priority processing for projects meeting defined affordable housing eligibility metrics and structure in order to waive permit fees for qualifying affordable housing projects (88-810-058); and to designate an Affordable Housing Permit Navigator to assist qualifying applicants. Catherine Nace, Policy Director for the Mayor, presented this item to the Committee.

Ms. Nace explained that the city faces a shortage of about 64,000 affordable housing units. The length of City processes can add unanticipated costs that slow housing production. Regulatory barriers are a key obstacle to this, identified in the Anti-Displacement Plan.

The goal, therefore, of this resolution is to accelerate the production of new affordable housing by creating clear development process timelines and lowering costs for qualifying affordable housing projects through fee waivers.

Ms. Nace went on to outline the proposed permitting deadlines. They are as follows:

For qualifying affordable housing projects:

• The City would need to review the application and request information within 5 days.
• A permit would need to be approved, denied, or noticed within 30 days.

All other residential projects:

• Would be reviewed and information would need to be requested within 20 days.
• A final decision would need to be made within 60 days.

Ms. Nace noted that City Staff are already meeting many of these deadlines regularly but that this approach will set clear guidelines and expectations.

This resolution also introduces an Affordable Housing Permit Navigator. This would act as a single point of contact for applicants and would be staffed from the existing Development Concierge group. It would track applications statuses and flag applications that are nearing deadlines.

The resolution also asked the City Planning and Development (CP&D) Department to develop a tiered permit fee waiver structure. This would determine the eligibility of developments to have fees waived based on a scoring system. Ms. Nace presented some criteria which this system could use:

• Depth of affordability (30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, or 70% AMI)
• Percentage of units in the project that are affordable
• Length of affordability restriction period
• Development on parcels vacant for 10 or more years
• Conversion of vacant schools or commercial buildings to residential

The waiving of these fees would require a minimum affordability restriction period. This prevents developers from taking advantage of the waived-fee incentives to build affordable units, only to start charging market rate for them after they’re built. They would need to be kept affordable for a minimum period of time.

Finally, this resolution requested input from the City Manager about additional housing strategies, including:

• Promoting the recently adopted pre-approved housing design plans
• Permit timeline transparency
• Self-permitting pathways for licensed contractors
• Vacant Land Activation Initiative
• Increased density along transit corridors
• Single-stair building code reform
• Inventorying and appraising City-owned properties
• Establishing a “bridge financing” program (provides funds for developers to acquire eligible properties)

The Committee discussed several elements of the proposals in this item, which were changed in the final draft presented to the full council.

First, Committee members requested that the resolution be amended to request the City Manager to investigate what may be necessary to expedite all residential properties. As written, the resolution set different permitting timelines for affordable and all other housing projects. Ms. Nace explained that this had been included as a way to prioritize affordable housing development.

Secondly, Councilwoman Patterson Hazley noted how several affordable projects might “stack” incentives, and requested that the resolution be changed to occlude the affordability system for those developments that already meet the requirements laid out in the Affordable Housing Set Aside ordinance (which requires developers to “set aside” 20% of units as affordable for projects receiving tax breaks, or to pay an in-lieu fee). 

The minimum affordability period was also called into question. As presented at the NPD, that period would be for two years. Councilwoman Patterson Hazley and Mayor Pro Tem Parks Shaw both took issue with this, asserting that timeline was too short. Patterson Hazley referred to this as a “flip timeline”, meaning developers may be willing to charge affordable rates for two years so long as they could raise them after that period. However, Councilman Bunch noted that whatever is adopted needs to strike a balance between creating lasting affordability and presenting an opportunity that developers may actually want to take advantage of. Locking in affordable pricing for a decade or longer, for example, may not be worth it to a developer if all they’d receive in return is a waived permit fee. Ultimately, this language was changed to simply ask the City Manager to make a recommendation about the ideal period.

The Committee also asked Ms. Nace to include requests to the City Manager to investigate the financial  impact of waiving all permit fees on projects using the City’s new Preapproved Housing Plans, as well as to engage financial stakeholders, like developers, on the potential impacts of this resolution.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this item. It advanced to the full City Council where it was passed this Thursday.

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Board of Zoning Adjustment

Wednesday, April 8th at 9am

The Board of Zoning Adjustment was attended this week by  Chairman Mark Ebbitts and Members Randi Mixdorf, Michael Meiers, and Gonzalo Venture.  

CD-SUP-2025-00044 requested approval of a major amendment to a special use permit for extra parking and a building addition for the Notre Dame De Sion school located at the northeast corner of Locust St and Harrison Pkwy in the Hyde Park neighborhood. Staff Planner Larisa Chambi along with members of the applicant team, Alicia Kotarba – School President, Brian Hill – MKEC Engineering, and Harriet Grendel – MultiStudio, presented this item to the Board.

This item was previously brought before the City Plan Commission on April 1st and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

Site plan for new building additions.

Elevations of the proposed building additions.

The proposed plans create both building additions to the existing school and additions to vehicle facilities (driveways and parking lots). 

Included in these plans were new proposed circulation for parents picking and dropping off students. The new plans separate Pre-K and K-8 pickup and dropoff. K-8 circulation will now continue to be on the south side of the building, while Pre-K traffic will circulate around the west side and exit back out to the street at Locust and 38th. 

There have previously been issues with vehicles queuing on Locust St and the applicants explained that these new circulation patterns and exit points for different grade levels will help improve congestion. Per their documentation, these improvements would result in a 57% decrease in the duration of cars stacking on Locust St. They would also result in a 55% parking increase and a 51% onsite stacking increase (offsetting cars stacking on the public street).

Proposed Conditions and Pick-up/Dropoff Traffic Patterns.

Community members gave public testimony on this item. Sentiments were largely concerned with traffic impacts from the construction. Residents expressed that many parents picking up or dropping off students do not follow signage. In particular, they expressed concern over the proposed exit points for cars (at 38th and Locust as well as onto Harrison Parkway). Both exits, but especially the Locust exit, spill out onto narrow streets with lots of nearby conflict points for pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers. 

The applicants reiterated the points made in their presentation, that these plans were estimated to improve traffic circulation and reduce stacking of cars on the public street. They added that administrators would be posted outside to help enforce new signage. In addition, they would be continuing to keep an open channel of communication with the neighborhood regarding the impact of this development and improvements that could be made.

The Board moved to approve this item.

CD-SUP-2026-00012 requested approval of a special use permit to allow for a general motor vehicle repair use in a B3-1 zoning district located at 4250 St. John Ave in the Indian Mound neighborhood.

In addition to applying for the special use permit, this property had previously applied and was approved for a rezoning and area plan amendment to support the automotive use. These components were heard by the City Plan Commission as CD-CPC-2025-00119 and CD-CPC-2025-00118 on September 3rd, 2025 and were covered in that week’s edition of the blog. The special use permit was previously heard by the City Plan Commission on April 1st, 2026 and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2025-00169 requested approval of a variance to permit a shorter setback for a detached garage in an R-6 zoning district located at 101 E 36th St in the Old Hyde Park neighborhood.

This item was previously brought before the Board on March 11th, and was covered in that week’s editions of the blog. This item was also brought before the board on January 14th and March 25th, but did not receive blog coverage those weeks.

The Board moved to dismiss this item, ahead of the meeting Wednesday.

CD-BZA-2026-00029 requested approval of a variance to permit excessive pavement in the front yard of the site located at 420 Lawndale Ave in the Indian Mound neighborhood.

The Board moved to continue this case to May 13th, ahead of the meeting Wednesday.

CD-BZA-2026-00036 requested approval of a variance to the Ground Floor Commercial Floor Size requirements of Section 88-120 of the Zoning and Development Code to allow for a smaller commercial space on the site located 140 feet south of W Linwood Blvd on the west side of Main St in the Old Hyde Park neighborhood.

The Board moved to continue this case to April 22nd, after losing their quorum.

CD-BZA-2026-00038 requested approval of a variance to the residential infill standards to permit a front loading garage in an R-6 zoning district located at 313 NW Briarcliff Cir near the Claymont neighborhood of the Northland (southwest of Gladstone).

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-SUP-2026-00004 requested approval of a renewal of a special use permit to allow the continued temporary use (by the Park Hill School District) of two modular classrooms in an R-6 and R-80 zoning district on about 94 acres and located at the southwest corner of NW Barry Rd and N Congress Ave near the Old Tiffany Springs, Barrybrooke Village, and North Lakes neighborhoods of the Northland.

This item was previously brought before the City Plan Commission on April 1st and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

As stated, the subject site contains two modular buildings that are temporarily being used as classrooms for Park Hill High School. They were originally approved for a special use permit in 2024. A permanent expansion of the school is planned for completion in August of 2028.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2026-00032 requested approval of a variance to the accessory use standards to permit a carport in the front yard of the site located at 7010 NE 52nd St in the Maple Park neighborhood of the Northland.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, ahead of the meeting Wednesday.

CD-BZA-2025-00103 requested appeal of a Notice of Violation related to an outdoor vehicle sales use (without a special use permit) located at 7730 N Oak Trfy near the Bridgepointe neighborhood of the Northland.

This item was previously brought before the Board on September 10th, October 22nd, and December 10th, 2025 as well as March 11th, 2026 and was covered in those weeks’ editions of the blog.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-SUP-2025-00040 requested approval of a special use permit to allow for the expansion of a Culver’s drive-through on the site located at 7953 State Line Rd in the Ward Parkway Plaza neighborhood.

This item was previously brought before the City Plan Commission on March 18th and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2026-00031 requested approval to rehear case CD-BZA-2025-00177 (zoning violation related to an unpermitted use) for the site located at 8510 Troost Ave near the Santa Fe Hills and Waldo Tower neighborhoods.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2026-00019 requested approval of a special exception to the maximum height of a fence on a residential corner lot located at 5 E 70th Ter in the Armour Hills and Waldo Tower neighborhoods.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2026-00024 requested approval of a variance to the maximum percentage of pavement in the front yard of the subject site located at 2524 Brighton Ave in the East 23rd St PAC and Blue Valley neighborhoods.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, ahead of the meeting Wednesday.

CD-BZA-2026-00023 requested approval of a special exception to permit a fence height greater than 4 feet on a corner lot located at 2540 Topping Ave in the Blue Valley neighborhood. 

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2026-00028 requested approval of a variance to the maximum allowed floor area (25,000 square feet) of an industrial use in a B4 zoning district located at 6655 Troost Ave in the Neighbors United for Action, Tri-Blenheim, and Armour Hills neighborhoods.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2026-00037 requested approval of a variance to the accessory use standards to allow for an accessory building in the front yard in an R-80 zoning district located at 12516 Frost Rd near the Silvertooth Fahey Farm and Unity Ridge neighborhoods in South KC (east of Raytown).

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

CD-BZA-2026-00033 requested approval of a variance to monument signage code requirements for the site located at 4800 NW 88th St near the Tiffany Woods neighborhood of the Northland.

The Board moved to continue this item to April 22nd, after losing a quorum at 10am.

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Ben Robinson is the author of This Week at City Hall, and an Urban Planning and Design Student at UMKC. He is a Kansas City native, having lived on both sides of the state line. From a young age, Ben has been interested in neighborhoods, communities, and the built environment, but only discovered the field of Urban Planning in college. He is now committed to a career in the profession, and is excited about using his education to support and grow the city he grew up in.