Plans approved for condominiums

A new residential-commercial development for west Lawrence received partial approval Friday afternoon from the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission.

Commissioners approved the residential portions — developer Mike Keeney said condominiums were planned for the site — but delayed action on commercial rezoning until March, so that conditions of the zoning can be refined.

The site is north of Clinton Parkway and east of Kansas Highway 10, overlooking Clinton Reservoir.

“What it does have is the best view in the city of Lawrence, and that’s what we’re trying to capitalize on,” Keeney said.

Floodplain discussion to wait until March

Consideration of rural floodplain development regulations by Lawrence-Douglas County planning commissioners was delayed Friday until March.

“We need to talk it out,” Commissioner Myles Schachter said.

Commissioners made the decision after hearing concerns about how the regulations would affect the construction of buildings in areas zoned for agriculture and the difficulty of amending floodplain maps.

The commission will reconvene at 7:30 a.m. Feb. 11 to discuss zoning codes and commission bylaws. The meeting will be at City Hall, Sixth and Massachusetts streets.

Apartment plans win board’s conditional OK

Initial plans for a 236-apartment development at Sixth Street and Wakarusa Drive received approval Friday from the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission.

Members of the West Lawrence Neighborhood Assn. opposed the project, saying it would create too much traffic for the area. They noted the landowner is 6Wak Land Investments, the same partnership that owns adjoining property that is the site of a proposed Wal-Mart. The city’s refusal to allow that Wal-Mart is the subject of several lawsuits.

“I think until that matter is settled in the courts, it’s not appropriate to go ahead with such a large development so close to the big-box store they’re trying to force on us,” said Alan Cowles, a member of the neighborhood association.

Planning commissioners disagreed. But they did condition approval of the plan on the creation of a traffic-calming plan if a city engineer determines the additional traffic would burden the neighborhood.