County counsel says Prairiewood zoning petition dispute heads to Court of Appeals in March

Riley County's legal team told commissioners on Dec. 30 that the Prairiewood zoning matter — a dispute tied to a regulatory amendment concerning agritourism — is set for oral argument before the Kansas Court of Appeals on March 11 at 10 a.m.

Brian Parker, county counselor, introduced the update and said Deputy County Counselor Jacob Hanson has been handling the matter. Hanson told the commission the appeal centers on whether a petition filed against the zoning-related amendment met the procedural 20% threshold of adjoining landowners required to trigger the petition process. Hanson said petitioners secured signatures representing 19.9% of adjoining landowners under the county's calculation, and that the figure is affected by one tract owned in undivided half interest by two co-owners, only one of whom signed the petition.

"Part of the calculation in that was there was a tract of land that was owned in an undivided half interest between two people. One of them signed the petition. The other person did not," Hanson said, summarizing the factual dispute that the Court of Appeals will resolve.

Hanson said the district court previously ruled in the county's favor, but the petitioners appealed. "We'll argue that in March," he said. Parker confirmed the county plans to file a substitution motion so that Hanson will be attorney of record in the appeals court.

County staff advised commissioners that, if the petition were found valid, procedures would follow that could bring the zoning regulation matter back to the commission for consideration. Hanson said one separate issue is whether the petition mechanism even applies to the change at issue; the county intends to defend the district court decision on both procedural and substantive grounds.

The commission did not take further action on the matter at the meeting beyond receiving the update. A live YouTube link for the Court of Appeals oral argument is available, Hanson said, and the county will post or share that link for public viewing when it is finalized.

Why it matters: The Court of Appeals decision could determine whether the petition process is properly triggered in this case and, if so, whether subsequent procedures require the county commission to revisit the zoning regulation at issue. The outcome has implications for local land-use regulation and for neighboring property owners.