photo by: City of Lawrence

A proposed site plan for Dutch Bros. Coffee Shop.

Facing concerns from neighbors, city leaders have rejected a request to rezone two residential lots as part of a plan to build a new drive-thru coffee shop on 23rd Street.

As part of its meeting Tuesday, the Lawrence City Commission voted 3-2, with Amber Sellers and Brad Finkeldei in favor, to reject a request to rezone 0.52 acres on the south side of West 22nd Terrace from single-family residential to commercial to accommodate a new coffee shop. Though Vice Mayor Lisa Larsen and Commissioner Bart Littlejohn voted against the rezoning, they both said they saw the benefits of the project and would be interested in a potential compromise.

Larsen said she saw the merits of the design, which attempts to mitigate impact on the neighborhood, but also understood the concerns of the neighbors.

“Just looking at the full picture, right now I’m inclined not to approve it,” Larsen said.

The area, which consists of lots on 803 and 809 W. 22nd Terrace, borders two commercially zoned lots along 23rd Street and a residential street, and the four-lot area is the proposed site for a Dutch Bros Coffee Shop. Currently, the two commercial lots contain a CBD store and a title loan business, and the two residential lots include a house and a parking lot.

The commission heard from a dozen neighbors opposed to the rezoning, several of whom spoke against the encroachment of commercial activity into the neighborhood. Residents expressed concerns about noise, light and exhaust from the drive-thru traffic, and submitted a valid protest petition against the rezoning.

Plans call for a 950-square-foot building and a two-lane drive-thru that could accommodate up to 30 cars. To create a buffer between the business and the neighborhood, plans call for separating the drive-thru lanes from the neighborhood by a masonry buffer wall and landscaped area. Matt Gough, an attorney for the developer, said the area would have the look and feel of a pocket park.

Finkeldei, who was previously on the Planning Commission, said that infill projects always require compromise, and that he saw both sides of the issue.

“I was on the Planning Commission for six years and I never saw an infill development project that was easy,” Finkeldei said.

Planning staff recommended approval of the rezoning, but the Planning Commission voted 3-3 on the matter, so the rezoning was forwarded to the City Commission without a recommendation. Because of the protest petition, the rezoning would have required a supermajority, or four votes from the commission, to move forward.

•In other business, the commission:

•Voted 5-0 to donate 4.64 acres of land at the southeast corner of Kansas Highway 10 and Bob Billings Parkway to Tenants to Homeowners for an affordable housing project that will include 122 apartments, row homes and duplexes. The land is valued at $374,430, and if the project moves forward, TTH anticipates requesting additional city support.

•Discussed a proposal to form a work group to review and recommend changes to how the city handles complaints against police. That agenda item had not been completed by the Journal-World’s print deadline.