PRAIRIE VILLAGE, Kan. — People living in Prairie Village, Kansas, can provide feedback on how the city should or should not change its housing rules in the future. The city will host a forum Thursday to both educate the public about what’s on the table and take recommendations about how to move forward.
The forum takes place from 4 to 7 p.m. at the clubhouse at Meadowbrook Park, located at 9101 Nall Avenue. The meeting is an open house where people can come and go throughout the three hours. There is no formal presentation. City staff will be on site.
“It is important for the city to hear back from residents about what they want to see in the future of the community and get their input,” said Nickie Lee, a deputy city administrator for the city. ”It’s an essential part of the process.”
Lee attended a previous forum on this topic last month. She said it was useful.
“People walked in with all kinds of opinions, but I really think most people left the meeting with more information that maybe they didn’t walk in knowing,” she said. “It was a really positive-feeling meeting where it felt like there was some genuine conversation happening.”
Since the city first proposed making changes to its housing rules last year, residents have organized into grassroots groups supporting and opposing the ideas. As a result, the city has modified the scope of its recommendations. It is no longer currently exploring changes to single family neighborhoods. Conversations about allowing accessory dwelling units in those neighborhoods is also on hold.
Current conversations focus on how to allow more apartment, duplex, or other multi-unit options throughout the city’s commercial and mixed-use areas, as well in areas where the city currently allows apartments. Lee says the goal is to offer more diversified housing so people interested in living in Prairie Village can have more options in price, size and style within the city.
