The Bellmont Promenade developers are revising a portion of the project to comply with neighbors’ requests after they organized and submitted a protest petition.
Neighbors who live on Bell Road — adjacent to the project site at the southwest corner of Shawnee Mission Parkway and Maurer Road — have repeatedly shared concerns with the developers, Legacy Development and Bach Homes LLC.
Last month, the Shawnee planning commission agreed in a 7-4 vote to recommend the council approve a rezoning request for nearly 7.5 acres of the project for construction of the mixed-use residential and retail/office building.
The area of rezoning also includes open space and a pool area at the west end of the development, according to a Jan. 14 city memo by community development director Doug Allmon. The proposal consists of 249 apartment units and about 14,300 square feet of retail/office space in a five-story 247,649-square-foot building.
After the planning commission’s December meeting, the Bell Road neighbors submitted a valid protest petition on the project, citing concerns with the project’s proximity to their homes (and height in relation to that proximity) as well as residential population density.
Greg Musil, the developers’ attorney, said they are revising the project to meet the neighbors’ request by relocating the western “leg” of the apartments to the center of the site and away from the Bell Road neighbors.
The Shawnee council approved in a 7-0 vote the request to send the rezoning item back to the planning commission for consideration. The planning commission will consider the revised architectural design and reconsider the rezoning request in its Feb. 4 meeting.
The planning commission earlier this month approved the developers’ most recent version of the project plan. Meanwhile, the city is also planning to renegotiate the public financing of the project.