Neighbors share concerns over luxury condo community proposed for 115th & Holmes

By Don Bradley

On consecutive nights in late October, a Kansas City developer tried to win over a neighborhood with plans for a luxury condo community on Holmes Road. Nearby residents, however, didn’t appear sold on the project described as “urban flair in a rural setting” by IronDoor project manager Patrick Joyce.

Some of them want something more in line with the existing neighborhood.

“If you just did single-family houses, they’d sell faster,” a woman told Joyce.

Bedrooms on the third floor? What about seniors, someone else asked.

IronDoor’s plan calls for 50 buildings and 174 living units on Holmes Road between 115th and 117th streets. The project extends to Campbell Street, making it two full city blocks with carve outs for two property owners who have refused to sell.

The neighborhood knows that something has to be built on the site, which for now is largely a lot of boarded up houses.

But longtime resident Peggy Calhoun said later the worry is that IronDoor won’t be able to sell the units and they could turn into rentals. The company has said the target demographic is younger buyers.

“The problem with going after 30-year-olds is they have to come up with a $400,000 mortgage,” Calhoun said.

Residents did like the plan’s widening of Holmes Road and adding a left turn lane ending at 117th Street to accommodate new condo dwellers.

In the two meetings, one being the mandatory community engagement and the other voluntary before the Center Planning & Development Council, neighbors raised issues of traffic, parking, landscaping, water runoff, lighting and overall design.

Someone asked why perfectly fine existing houses must be razed if the new project includes new single-family homes. Another asked about the removal of old trees.

Joyce told the Center gathering that all he could do is take concerns back to IronDoor management. But as for the old trees, “They are in the way,” Joyce said, adding that the company would comply with the city’s tree ordinance.

Neighborhood approval is not a requirement, but developers always want it because it makes for smoother sailing with the Kansas City Council, which has the final say. As of Nov. 4, Center Planning & Zoning, an umbrella organization of neighborhood groups in southwest Kansas City, had not been asked to take a position by the neighborhood group closest to the IronDoor project.

Joe Nastasi, a co-president of the Center group, said he did like that the plan does not call for any tax abatements.

In response to a comment about the need for housing for senior citizens in the area, Joyce said the Holmes project is aimed more at a younger demographic — thus bedrooms on the top floor.

The single-family houses along Campbell Street will be approximately 2,100 square feet and list for about $400,000

Prices for condo units are still undetermined, but would fall below $400,000.

At a November 6 hearing, the City Plan Commission approved IronDoor’s rezoning request, changing the plan from Residential Low Density to Residential Medium Density After a presentation from IronDoor, neighbors brought up concerns around curbs, stormwater management, traffic, tree removal and other topics, which were addressed by IronDoor using project maps and plans.

The project will next go before the City’s Neighborhood Planning and Development Committee.

Note: This story was updated from its original publication in our November 7 edition.