Healthy cafe near Kansas River levee ‘a dream’ for returning Lawrence chef

Plans have been filed with the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Department to remodel a small building at 239 Elm St. into a cafe that will serve the North Lawrence community and particularly users of the nearby river levee trail. This photo shows the 239 Elm St. property as seen from the levee, where the levee trail is currently closed to access.

A proposed North Lawrence cafe, catering to those using the Kansas River levee trail, gained zoning and parking approvals this week, pushing it another step closer to its anticipated March or April opening.

The aptly named Levee Café is the brainchild of Mary Holt, who grew up in Lawrence and recently moved back after 21 years away.

Holt, 43, said the café would offer healthy and simple fare and include vegetarian and gluten-free options. She said she’s talked with growers in North Lawrence about getting fresh, local produce from them daily.

“We want to have some grab-and-go stuff for people who are using the levee, runners and bikers, and keep it very healthy and simple,” Holt said. “We’re not going to have a fryer.”

The café is planned for a now-vacant building at 239 Elm St. owned by Lawrence businessman Jon Davis. Holt will rent the property.

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The City Commission on Tuesday unanimously approved changing the zoning of the property from industrial to commercial to allow for the café.

On Thursday, the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals voted to allow the café to have only 10 parking spaces in a proposed parking lot north of the building, on property that Davis also owns. Under city code, the size of the café mandates 13 spaces.

Ted Boyle, president of the North Lawrence Improvement Association, has previously written to the city asking that plans for the restaurant not be approved without the added parking lot. He was concerned customers of the cafe would use on-street parking in the residential neighborhood just to the east.

He said Thursday that with the 10 spaces approved, the association could endorse the plans.

The board did not grant approval for developers to use gravel in the parking lot. Board members said that once developers have another pervious material in mind, such as recycled asphalt, they could come back and would likely be granted approval to use it. Pervious means that water would be able to pass through the material.

Next, developers must submit to the city a site plan application.

Holt said the current building at 239 Elm St. would be renovated and a patio with outdoor seating constructed on the building’s east side.

Holt’s husband, Evan Holt, told the Board of Zoning Appeals on Thursday that the building, at approximately 800 square feet, would contain several four-top tables.

The Holts’ plan is to start with limited hours — 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. — and then determine whether there’s a demand for dinner service.

Mary Holt, now working at Basil Leaf Café, graduated from culinary school and worked in restaurants wherever the family was sent during her husband’s years in the U.S. Marine Corps.

Now that he’s retired from the military and they’re back in Lawrence, it’s time to realize a dream, she said.

“We wanted to go back home,” she said. “It was always kind of a dream of mine to run my own place, to own my own place.”

When searching for a location for a restaurant, Evan Holt said the spot near the levee “was perfect.” He described North Lawrence as “under-served and understated.”

Nate Clark, a resident on North Lawrence’s Oak Street, agreed that the neighborhood and those using the levee trail need an amenity such as the café.

“Having something to serve that community, we would love to see that succeed,” Clark said. “We would love to have this in our neighborhood.”