This Week at City Hall (September 15 – 19, 2025)

Health Department grant approvals, Northland development, and the conclusion of the Hickok Homes case in Volker/Roanoke.

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Neighborhood Planning and Development Committee

Tuesday, September 16th 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.

Ordinance 250794 requested approval of the Third Plat of the KCI Logistics Park, located at the southwest corner of North Winan Road and Highway 92 in the Northland, creating two lots for the purpose of industrial development.

The Committee moved to hold this ordinance for two weeks.

Ordinance 250795 requested approval of the final plat for the Trails at Ambassador commercial development at the southwest corner of North Polo Drive and North Ambassador Drive near the Tiffany Woods neighborhood in the Northland.

This item was on the Committee’s consent agenda, and was recommended for approval with little deliberation. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250796 requested approval of the plat of Chatham Avenue Self Storage located approximately 600 feet north of the intersection of NW 64th St and Chatham Ave near the Tremont Manor neighborhood in the Northland.

The Committee moved to hold this ordinance for two weeks.

Resolution 250715 requested approval to appoint Ryan Hackenmiller, Jessica Rutland and M. Grant Harrison as successor directors to the 51st & Oak Community Improvement District in the South Plaza neighborhood. 

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this resolution with little deliberation. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250784 requested approval of a one-year $190,160.00 grant award with Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services for the City’s Cities Readiness Initiative

Program. Tim Gridley, Division Manager for Communicable Disease and Public Health Preparedness, and epidemiologist Cindy Calendar, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

The program to which these funds were awarded helps the City plan for disease outbreaks and coordinate responses such as providing access to vaccines and medication to the public in such events. 

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this resolution with little deliberation. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250785 requested approval of a one-year $83,850.00 grant amendment with the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to conduct Perinatal Hepatitis

B Case management and surveillance activities in Kansas City, Missouri. Tim Gridley, Division Manager for Communicable Disease and Public Health Preparedness, and epidemiologist Cindy Calendar, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

This grant provides funds to the Health Department to work with pregnant women and their children that have been diagnosed with Hepatitis B during pregnancy.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this resolution with little deliberation. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250788 requested approval of a one-year $130,699.60 grant award with Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to coordinate services for children and

youth with special health care needs. Terry Winbush, Division Manager of Community and Family Health Education with the KC Health Department, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

These funds were awarded to the Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs program which provides access to services and funding for essential care to families with children with qualifying conditions such as Cystic Fibrosis and Congenital Health Disease from birth to age 21. 

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this resolution with little deliberation. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250789 requested approval of a one-year $125,944.00 grant amendment with Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to provide funding for a

comprehensive HIV surveillance program. Tim Gridley, Division Manager for Communicable Disease and Public Health Preparedness, and epidemiologist Cindy Calendar, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

The program to which these funds were awarded allows the Health Department to disperse data collected on HIV transmission in the metro area. This information can help health providers better address HIV cases and help communities understand the disease and limit transmission.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250790 requested approval of a grant award amendment in the amount of

$2,474,669.00 as part of the Ryan White HIV Emergency Relief Part A/Minority AIDS Initiative (MAI) Grant from the Department of Health and Human Services-Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Jenn Sims, the HIV Case Management Program Manager for the City, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

Funds from this grant award provide core medical and support services for low-income individuals living with HIV in the Kansas City Transitional Grant Area, an 11-county region in the KC Metro Area. The KC Health Department makes subcontracts with local community-based organizations, hospitals, and clinics, for many of these services.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250792 requested approval of a one-year $166,690.00 grant award with Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services for the City’s Public Health

Preparedness program. Tim Gridley, Division Manager for Communicable Disease and Public Health Preparedness, and epidemiologist Cindy Calendar, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

The program to which these funds were awarded allows the Health Department to plan for all sorts of health issues, diseases, events, or natural hazards. This year’s funds were cut by 50% by the state of Missouri. Many of the components of this program deal with issues that may be exacerbated by the World Cup in 2026.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250806 requested approval of a one-year $71,149.00 grant award from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to conduct tuberculosis control activities in Kansas City, Missouri. Tim Gridley, Division Manager for Communicable Disease and Public Health Preparedness, and epidemiologist Cindy Calendar, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

The program to which these funds were awarded helps health providers and the City identify people with tuberculosis and provide access to treatment for those individuals. Many of the people who benefit from this program are transient and will have trouble accessing that treatment on a regular basis without the City’s support.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250798 requested approval of a petition to amend the Ambassador Building Community Improvement District (CID) located at the northwest corner of the intersection at NW Cookingham Dr and N Ambassador Dr in the Northland. Chris Frantze of Stinson Law firm, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

The proposed amendment changed the boundaries of the CID to include the adjacent right-of-way on Cookingham Dr, where road improvements are set to occur soon. Included as part of these improvements is a replacement of the stoplight at I-29 and Cookingham to a roundabout. Per Missouri law, CIDs are only permitted to spend money on projects within their boundaries, and as the Ambassador Building CID is acting as a conduit for funding to enact these improvements, a change in their boundaries is needed.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250802 requested approval to rezone a site located at W 13th and Summit Streets in the Westside neighborhood from UR to DX-5, and approval of a development plan for the site to build a school, entertainment venue, and spectator sports facility. Staff Planner Genevieve-Kohn Smith and Brian Hochstein, a representative for the applicant, presented this ordinance to the Committee.

This ordinance was brought before the City Plan Commission as CD-CPC-2025-00060 and CD-CPC-2025-00059 on June 18th and were covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

This rezoning was being requested in order to allow Guadalupe Centers to convert the existing former FBI building on the site into a school with a possible second phase of development for other amenities nearby.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250803 requested approval to rezone the site located at the southeast corner of E 29th St and Holmes St in the Longfellow neighborhood from B4-5 and R-2.5 to DR-1. Staff Planner Larisa Chambi presented this ordinance to the Committee.

This ordinance was brought before the City Plan Commission as CD-CPC-2025-00106 on August 20th and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

The applicants were seeking to rezone these properties for the purpose of constructing five single-family dwellings on the associated lots. These lots have been vacant for several years.

 The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Ordinance 250804 requested approval to rezone the site located at 3200 and 3201 Troost Ave in the Hyde Park and Center City neighborhoods from B4-5 and B3-2 to MPD, and approval of an associated development plan to allow for the construction of a multi-unit building on each site.

This ordinance was brought before the City Plan Commission as CD-CPC-2025-00075 on August 20th and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

The Committee moved to hold this ordinance for two weeks.

Ordinance 250805 requested approval to vacate approximately 1.07 acres of public right-of-way located at Colorado Ave north of Highway 150 in the Richards-Gebaur area of South KC. Staff Planner Justin Smith presented this ordinance to the Committee.

This ordinance was brought before the City Plan Commission as CD-ROW-2025-00010 on August 20th and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

This site is part of the Honeywell East Campus. The applicants were seeking to build over the remainder of Colorado Ave, which is a dead-end road on the property. In order to do this, they need the City to vacate the land which that section of Colorado Ave is on. 

The Committee moved to recommend approval of this ordinance. It was later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Resolution 250536 and Ordinance 250537 requested approval of an amendment to the Midtown/Plaza Area Plan for the site located at 3809 Roanoke Rd in the Volker and Roanoke neighborhoods, changing the recommended land use from residential low density and mixed use neighborhood to only mixed use neighborhood. In addition, these items requested approval to rezone the subject site from B3-2 and R-5 to B3-3, and to approve a related development plan for a multi-unit residential/commercial building built by Hickok Homes. Staff Planner Genevieve Kohn-Smith and Kurt Peterson, a representative for the applicant, presented these items to the Committee.

These cases were brought before the City Plan Commission as CD-CPC-2025-00055, CD-CPC-2025-00054, and CD-CPC-2025-00056 on June 4th and were covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

Mr. Peterson detailed the changes made to the development plan that had been negotiated with the Volker and Roanoke neighborhood associations. These included:

• A change to the rear setback of the property to 30 feet.
• Planting of evergreen trees in the space/buffer created by the new rear setback.
• Changing the north side (rear) balconies to juliet balconies.
• Reduction of density – 69 units maximum for this property.

Any modifications to the development plan once passed by City Council would require due process of a Major Amendment. This process would end in a vote of City Council, and would allow for public testimony throughout. This mechanism prevents changes previously agreed-upon in the development plan from being retracted once passed by Council.

The Committee moved to recommend approval of these items. They were later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

Resolution 250668 and Ordinance 250674 requested approval to amend the Shoal Creek Valley Area Plan, rezone, and approve a development plan for the area located at the northeast corner of N.E. Shoal Creek Pkwy and Maplewoods Pkwy near the Staley Hills neighborhood in the Northland. Staff Planner Olofu Agbaji and members of the applicant team including Jacob Hudson from Olsson and Aaron Schmidt from Hunt Midwest presented these items to the Committee.

These cases were brought before the City Plan Commission as CD-CPC-2025-00079, CD-CPC-2025-00077 and CD-CPC-2025-00076 on July 16th and were covered in that week’s edition of the blog.

Working with the surrounding neighborhood and Councilmember Willett, the developers had agreed to amend the plans to build a ten-foot path for students to walk to school, instead of a more narrow six-foot path, and to change the right-most lane on NE Shoal Creek Pkwy (heading west) into a right-turn only lane.

With these amendments, The Committee moved to recommend approval of these items. They were later passed at the City Council this Thursday.

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City Plan Commission

Wednesday, September 17th at 9am

The City Plan Commission was attended this week by Chairman Coby Crowl and Commissioners Sean Arkin, Forestine Beasley, Tyler Enders, Todd Forbes, Matt Hasek. 

CLD-FnPlat-2025-00026 requested approval of a Final Plat on the site located at the southwest corner of N Line Creek Pkwy and NW Old Stagecoach Rd near the Robincrest Village neighborhood in the Northland, creating 3 lots and 8 tracts to allow for the construction of a multi-unit residential development to be known as Hill Creek Commons.

This item was on the Commission’s consent agenda, and was recommended for approval with little deliberation.

CD-CPC-2025-00103 requested to approve text amendments to the City’s Chapter 88, Zoning and Development Code, Section 88-354, regarding Marijuana Hospitality Businesses, aka Marijuana Lounges. Councilmember Wes Rogers presented this case to the Commission.

This case was brought before the City Plan Commission on September 3rd, and was covered in that week’s edition of the blog. In that meeting, the Commission moved to continue the case to September 17th, which was covered this week.

Marijuana Lounges refers to an establishment, licensed under the provisions of chapter 11, that includes a consumption area where individuals are permitted to consume marijuana. This definition, licensing, application process, and inspections would be added to Chapter 11 of the City Code. In addition, the amendments to Chapter 88 would include a new use category and separation requirements. Before the City Plan Commission was the section of this change regarding Chapter 88, the Zoning and Development Code.

The existing Marijuana Uses under Section 88-354 delineate between exactly what is being done at a given Marijuana facility. These include retail sales (dispensaries), manufacturing, and cultivation (marijuana crop agriculture). 

The proposed amendment would create a new marijuana use known as Marijuana Lounge, which would fall under the same regulations as Taverns or Nightclubs. In addition, it would require a separation from other specific uses like schools, churches, daycares, and other marijuana dispensing facilities. These are laid out in the chart below:

Councilmember Rogers clarified to the Commission the nature of the new use. Marijuana lounges would not be permitted to sell alcohol, he said. This is a chance to allow local small business owners to take advantage of Missouri legalization of marijuana, and also to regulate the spaces where marijuana may be consumed. The sale of marijuana at these locations would also be prohibited. Patrons would bring their own to consume, and lounges would make money mostly through selling food or charging covers. Smoking outdoors at these establishments would also be prohibited.

The Commission moved to recommend approval of this case.

CD-CPC-2025-00140 and CD-CPC-2025-00124 requested approval to amend the Martin City Area Plan and approval of a rezoning of the area located at the northwest corner of E 135th St and Oak St in the near the Village Glen and Newcastle neighborhoods in Martin City. Staff Planner Matthew Barnes and Mario Rios, a representative for the applicant team, presented this case to the Commission.

The applicants for this case were seeking to amend the related area plan by changing the future land use for the northern portion of their property to Commercial. They were seeking to rezone the area from B2-2 to MPD (Master Planned Development) and were seeking approval of a related development plan to build a commercial and storage facility on the property, to be known as Martin City Flexcaves.

The applicants were seeking to build four buildings. The flexcaves, as noted in their title, are storage facilities marketed towards higher-end collectors, while another building known as shopcaves, will allow storefront business components along with storage. These would front E 135th St. 

The Commission expressed desire to see planting and green infrastructure paired with a retention basin that’s also part of the development plan. This was added as a condition, and the Commission moved to recommend approval of the requested items.

CD-CPC-2025-00099 requested approval of an amendment to a previously approved MPD Plan for lots 3 and 4 on the site located at 9790 and 9806 N Oak Tfwy near the New Mark neighborhood in the Northland. Staff Planner Genevieve Kohn-Smith and Patricia Jensen, a representative for the applicant team, presented this case to the Commission.

The applicants were proposing to build a vehicle repair facility with 30 parking spaces and seven service bays on lot 3 of this site. Lot 4 does not have an associated master plan as of yet, and was only seeking a rezoning to MPD to allow for one in the future.

The Commission moved to recommend approval of this case.

CD-ROW-2025-00023 requested approval of a vacation of an alley located 150 feet east of Lydia Ave, between E 10th St and E 11th St in the Paseo West neighborhood. 

The Commission moved to continue this case without fee to October 1st.

CD-CPC-2025-00121 and CD-CPC-2025-00122 requested approval of a rezoning and a development plan for the site located on the east side of North Oak Tfwy at NE Hill St near Waterworks Park in the Northland to allow for the construction of a multi-unit residential development to be known as North Oak Apartments. Staff Planner Genevieve Kohn-Smith (on behalf of Matthew Barnes) and Rachel Barth, a representative for the applicant team, presented this case to the Commission.

The requested rezoning for this property would change the designation for the site from B3-2 to B3-4. Both of these designations indicate commercial uses, but B3-4 allows for the creation of the residential building at the height the applicant was seeking to construct it.

The associated development plan accounts for 167 residential units with 255 parking spaces. Amenities will include a dog park and gathering spaces. 

The Commission moved to recommend approval of this case.

CD-CPC-2025-00108 requested approval of an amendment to a previously approved development plan for the area located west of I-29 and north of NW Barry Rd at the commercial center known as Zona Rosa in the Northland. Staff Planner Genevieve Kohn-Smith and Scott Zigler, a representative for the applicant team, presented this case to the Commission.

This amendment would modify the permitted uses on the site, allowing the property owners more flexibility in choosing tenants for their commercial structures. Previously, uses were limited to restaurant and retail. The amendment would now allow for all permitted uses under B3 zoning, except for a list of prohibited uses drafted by the applicant team, displayed below:

The Commission moved to recommend approval of this case.

CD-CPC-2025-00101 requested approval of a rezoning from MPD to O for the site located at the northwest corner of NW 88th St and N Baltimore Ave, north of Metro North Drive in the Northland. Staff Planner Olofu Agbaji and Jacob Hodson, a representative for the applicant team, presented this case to the Commission.

The requested rezoning would allow residential uses, public/civic uses, limited light commercial and office (including medical office) uses.

The Commission moved to recommend approval of this case.

CD-CPC-2025-00141 requested approval of amendments to Section 88-354 regarding hours of operation for dispensary facilities.

The Commission moved to continue this case without fee to October 1st ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.

CD-CPC-2025-00116 requested approval of a rezoning from R-6 to R-1.5 for the site located at 724 NE 79th Ter near the Bridgepointe neighborhood in the Northland to allow for the conversion of an existing structure into a multi-unit building.

The Commission moved to continue this case off-docket with fee ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.

CD-CPC-2025-00125 requested approval of an MPD Final Plan to allow for the construction of a residential development with 39 buildings and a total of 174 units located at the southeast corner of Holmes Rd and E 115th St in the Red Bridge neighborhood in South KC.

The Commission moved to continue this case without fee to October 1st ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.

CD-CPC-2025-00133 requested approval of an amendment to a UR (Urban Redevelopment) Plan to allow for outdoor storage for the site located on Corporate Dr, just north of the intersection with N Cambridge Ave at 6830 Corporate Dr in the Northeast Industrial District. 

The Commission moved to continue this case without fee to October 1st ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.

CD-CPC-2025-00111 requested approval of a de-annexation of approximately 4.5 acres located at 2800 N Church Rd, in the Northland, to be subsequently annexed by the City of Liberty, Missouri.

The Commission moved to continue this case without fee to October 1st ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.

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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.