Largest Annexation in Recent History
On August 18, 2026 the City Commission voted on the largest annexation and rezoning request our community has seen in decades, and the development of this area will permanently shape our community going forward. This is a major, rare opportunity to build residential neighborhoods and commercial areas from scratch that align with the City’s planning policies and our community’s long-term needs.
The development is proposed for west of the South Lawrence Trafficway, and the developer is requested 127 acres of commercial development, 111 acres of residential, and 51 acres of open space. You can read more about the proposal in this LJWorld article.
Rezoning is one of the most important processes in determining how our community will grow in the upcoming years. Once an area is zoned, its owner has the right to develop it with any use permitted in that zone. Therefore, if the City and the community want an area to be developed in a specific way, we need to ask for it when the area is being rezoned.
Coalition Analysis of Annexation and Rezoning
Because of the long-term significance of this proposed annexation on our community, our coalition has been monitoring and analyzing this project for months. Based on our analysis, we submitted a report to the Commission asking them to consider some modifications to the developer's proposal. The Commission did not make any of our recommended amendments and the developer’s requests were all approved, but some of the Commissioners did vote against parts of the project based on these and other arguments.
Here are the highlights of what we suggested:
1. Convert some of the proposed commercial area to mixed-use zoning, which would allow for commercial and residential development together like we have downtown. The City's planning guidelines encourage mixed-use development, and this change would support the City's goals of
providing more affordable housing,
increasing density and building walkable neighborhoods,
increasing property tax revenue for making the City more financially sustainable,
maximizing infrastructure investment, and
reducing detrimental environmental impacts of urbanization.
2. Convert some of the proposed low-density housing area to medium-density to increase the amount and affordability of new single-family housing this area could provide. Denser neighborhoods can also generate more property taxes so the City can more sustainably provide their infrastructure and services.
3. Encourage the developer to offer homeownership options that are attainable for middle-income residentsand to provide affordable rental and homeownership options, such as condominiums or owner-controlled apartments, for low-income residents.
4. Collaborate with the developer for the best long-term outcomes for our community.
Read our full report to learn more about how density and mixed-use development are more financially and environmentally sustainable for our community!
