Planning commission rejects rezoning request at 2000 N. L.C. Smith Road after residents urge preservation of agricultural character

The City of Independence Planning Commission voted down a rezoning request for 2000 North L.C. Smith Road at its Jan. 14 meeting, failing the applicant's motion 5-2. The commission considered an application (case 2510001) to rezone the property from Residential Agricultural (RA) to R4 (single-family residential, rural/low density).

The item mattered to neighbors because the property lies within an area designated in the city's comprehensive plan for agricultural and rural-residential uses; residents argued the rezoning would set a precedent for piecemeal conversion of farmland and could strain local infrastructure. Staff described the proposal as enabling a minor subdivision that would create a 3-acre lot and a 7.45-acre lot, and said R4 zoning would allow 75 feet of frontage rather than the 250 feet required under RA. Staff also said the lots meet the three-acre minimum for septic systems and noted MoDOT restrictions on access to U.S. 24 as a driver for the proposed frontage configuration.

Applicant Derek Cronus identified himself as the owner and told the commission the request was intended to allow either construction of a second single-family home for family members or sale of a single lot to a friend. "We would like to either be able to build another home and have one of our parents move into the current house or sell the lot to family friend or whatever to to build one house," Cronus said.

Dozens of neighbors spoke in opposition during the public comment period, saying they bought property in the area specifically for its agricultural, low-density character and raising concerns about traffic on narrow roads, compatibility with existing livestock and farming, and septic impacts on a nearby creek. Dawn Zacco, who said she had lived on North Elsie Smith Road for 32 years, urged denial and cited the city's Imagine Independence Comprehensive Plan 2040. "The Image Independence Comprehensive Plan 2040 ... is available online," she told commissioners, then asked them to deny the rezoning. Brian Edder, a nearby property owner, warned that more septic systems could risk contaminating a protected waterway and lead to costly sewer requirements.

Commissioners questioned whether the requested configuration would allow additional dwelling units given frontage and septic constraints; staff reiterated that, given the applicant's proposed layout and the absence of sewers, only one additional dwelling unit could be created under R4. The commission received clarification that RA typically limits a parcel to a single principal residence and that the applicant's proposal was intended to enable a minor subdivision into two lots.

Commissioner O'Neil moved to approve the rezoning (case 2510001); the motion was seconded. The roll-call vote produced five votes against and two in favor, and the motion failed. Vote record: Commissioner Nesbitt: no; Commissioner Ferguson: no; Commissioner Ashbaugh: no; Commissioner O'Neil: no; Commissioner Torres: yes; Commissioner Young: no; Chairman Wylie: yes. The chair announced the motion failed.

With the vote, the property will remain zoned RA and the minor-subdivision option the applicant sought would not proceed under the requested zoning. The commission did not adopt alternate conditions; the matter concluded with denial of the rezoning request.