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Resident urges city to address gentrification, questions stalled projects and KDC Missouri site
Summary
At the March 2, 2026 Webster Groves Plan Commission meeting, resident Dave Buck urged officials to take a stance on gentrification in North Webster, asked why some approved projects have not progressed, and said neighbors are upset about the size and tree removal at the KDC Missouri facility on North Rock Hill Road; staff said they would review plans and that inspectors visit the site regularly.
During the public-comment period at the Webster Groves Plan Commission meeting on March 2, 2026, resident Dave Buck urged the commission and the city to clarify their stance on gentrification and on how approved development projects are being executed.
‘‘Gentrification is a nationwide phenomena, but cities have a choice to either embrace it or fight it,’’ Buck said, citing examples in North Webster where large houses and recent developments have changed neighborhood character. He also questioned why the Douglas Hill project (voted down by council in December 2021, he said) appeared to show little progress while the Moody Avenue project moved forward.
Buck raised separate concerns about a KDC Missouri project on North Rock Hill Road, saying the building appears larger and closer to the road than neighbors were led to expect and that trees initially standing as a visual buffer had been removed. ‘‘They think they've been sold a bill of goods,’’ he said, asking the commission or city council to check the approved plans and enforcement status.
Planning director John Wagner responded that staff would review the approved plans and that inspectors routinely visit the site. ‘‘I'd be happy to take a look at the approved plans and see how they kinda match up. We have an inspector out there every day,’’ Wagner said.
The commission did not take formal action on the public-comment items; staff committed to follow up on the concerns raised.
