Lee's Summit hosts joint workshop on building-design standards; consultant to draft options

A joint session of the Lee's Summit City Council and Planning Commission on Dec. 16 focused on draft approaches to updating the city's Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) architecture requirements, a multi-phase effort tied to the Ignite comprehensive plan.

Christopher Shires, principal with Confluence, summarized public engagement and presented a framework that prioritizes five building-design considerations: exterior materials, window and door openings, wall and roof articulation, overhangs/awnings, and scale and proportion. "We're not looking to require a specific architectural style," Shires said, "we want quality design".

Shires said the update will primarily target multifamily, commercial mixed-use, office and industrial buildings rather than downtown-specific standards. He emphasized long-term, low-maintenance materials and proper installation to avoid durability problems: "It's not just the material; it's the installation and the wall assembly," he told commissioners.

Commissioners and council members split over how prescriptive the code should be. Council member Shields urged flexibility: "I think we should have as much flexibility as possible," she said, arguing against rules that would make certain building types illegal. Others, including Council member Lovell and Commissioner Crafton, asked for stronger standards or overlays in targeted activity centers — places where incentives or master planning make higher design standards feasible.

The discussion covered several recurring issues:

- Materials vs. cost: Participants debated allowing modern, synthetic products such as fiber cement panels or EIFS on upper stories while preserving heavier base materials where visible. - Fenestration and energy/performance trade-offs: Shires noted minimum window percentages can raise costs and create energy penalties for some building uses, recommending use-based standards rather than a one-size-fits-all percentage. - Four-sided architecture and overlays: Several speakers supported overlay districts for corridors or new activity centers (including the south PRI land and north Struthers area) where the city could require higher design standards without imposing them citywide. - Administrative flexibility: The consultant recommended a stricter baseline with an administratively managed variance process for projects that meet intent or present practical hardships, reducing the need for frequent formal variances. - Signage, parking layout and walkability: Council members stressed that sign quality, parking placement, and small plazas or "intimate gathering spaces" help create walkable, marketable development.

Shires said the consultant team will draft code options (base code tables, overlay frameworks, building-type standards) and return for stakeholder review and another workshop. Interim Director of Development Amy Nassif confirmed other code updates (landscape and tree-preservation changes) are already scheduled to return to council in early 2025.

Why it matters: The UDO changes will guide how large tracts of planned land and future activity centers develop in Lee's Summit; decisions about materials, windows, and overlay districts affect construction costs, long-term durability and the city's appearance along major corridors.

Next steps: The consultant will prepare draft code language and options for overlay boundaries, material lists and administrative variance procedures, then reconvene staff, the technical advisory committee, and stakeholders before returning to the commission and council for review and possible ordinance introduction.