A sign alerting residents to a proposed 50-home Habitat for Humanity development is seen on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, at the Clear Creek Trail area in Lenexa. Located off Clare Road near 86th Terrace, the site features a walking trail that leads to a small lake and a surrounding wetlands area.
Before Jessica Brooks adopted her daughter, she said the toddler didn’t always have a stable place to live. Now, her family in Lenexa is still learning about and working through the effects that instability had on her.
It’s part of why Brooks stepped up to speak in support of a proposal from Habitat for Humanity Kansas City to build 50 affordable homes on nearly 17 acres of land in western Lenexa. The project uses a community land trust model to preserve the single family homes’ affordability, similar to a recent project in Olathe.
“The project is about stability, dignity and giving people … a fair chance to experience safety and to thrive,” Brooks said. “I urge you to support this project. Our kids need homes. This has an opportunity to change the trajectory for the better.”
Brooks was one of dozens of people who spoke during Monday’s Lenexa Planning Commission to share their support or opposition for the development on the southeast corner of 86th Terrace and Clare Road.
The project saw hours of debate, with more than 50 people sharing their support or concerns — with residents near the proposed development worried about loss of park and wetlands, increased traffic, decreased property values, strained safety and emergency response, and the proposed location not being near enough resources to support an affordable housing project.
Hundreds of residents filled Lenexa City Hall for a Planning Commission discussion around a proposal to build 50 affordable homes by Habitat for Humanity KC. Taylor O’Connor
“We are not against Habitat for Humanity, we are against the location,” Lenexa resident Julie Becker said during the meeting. “Right now Centennial Park is a trail through nature, thousands of neighbors use that trail. It is not idle, it is not unused land, and it will be impacted.”
Despite resident pushback, the Lenexa Planning Commission unanimously approved the project — shortly after a similar project in Olathe welcomed its first homeowner.
“Both sides acknowledged that there was a need for attainable housing,” Commissioner Jermaine Jamison said during the meeting. “I support this plan because I think it makes sense and aligns with the vision of the community and what the people of the … city have asked for.”
The Clear Creek Trail, located off of Clare Road near 86th Terrace in Lenexa, is seen on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. The walking trail leads to a small lake and a wetlands area. There is a proposal before the city for a 50-home Habitat for Humanity development on the land. Tammy Ljungblad [email protected]
The proposal and site history
Referred to as the Clear Creek subdivision, Habitat for Humanity Kansas City proposes to build 50, 1,300 square-foot to 2,000 square-foot homes with five distinct floor plans that will all come with two-car garages, covered front porches, rear patios and decks on each of the different proposed homes on the 17-acre site, CEO Lindsay Hicks told commissioners Monday night.
The homes will be energy efficient, and Habitat also plans to connect the existing trail system, basketball courts, pickleball courts and a playground to serve the site.
“We’re not asking for any waiver of any fees of any sort,” Hicks said. “Just as any other developer, we plan on paying all of the fees that are required. … Totaling more than $1.8 million.”
The City of Lenexa is considering a 50-home Habitat for Humanity project for the area off Clare Road near 86th Terrace, a site located across from this single family neighborhood. The trail area is valued by residents for its walking trail, small lake, and surrounding wetlands. Tammy Ljungblad [email protected]
Prior to Habitat for Humanity’s proposal, the city-owned property sat untouched for years and totals about 127 acres, Community Development Director Scott McCullough said. The city first annexed a portion of the property in 1986 when the land use was primarily agricultural production.
In 1998, the city acquired 30 acres of land to build a 15-acre park site and in 2006, the city purchased an additional 97 acres to create a regional stormwater facility – which led to the wetlands that can be seen in the area today.
“It was understood at that time that this was more property than needed or desired for a park in the stormwater facility, so private development was always a part of the city’s intention with this property,” McCullough said.
By 2018, the property took shape after the construction of the wetlands, park and street planning was completed, and the city decided to issue requests for proposals to gauge interest in developing three parcels of land that would’ve been connected with the trails and park.
However the city never received any formal submissions for the property.
“The concept here actually sought higher density development,” McCullough said. “Even in our informal discussions with other developers, outside of Habitat for Humanity, the housing market tended to veer toward larger lots and homes larger than what the city was seeking in this concept.”
Rising Johnson County housing costs
Since the city first requested proposals seven years ago, Johnson County and Lenexa have seen home prices increase, and homes that are considered “attainable” – which often refer to homes that cost $300,000 or less – decrease.
“Home prices in Lenexa have surged over a five-year period. Between 2019 and 2024, home values in Lenexa rose 53%,” said Kristy Baughman, the executive director for United Community Services of Johnson County, a nonprofit organization that supports cities finding housing solutions. “Median home value went from just over $360,000 to $550,000 in five years.”
In Lenexa, the average sale price for a home was $556,713 in 2024, an increase from $349,913 in 2018, according to Johnson County appraisal data.
“In a 10-year period, between 2013 and 2023, Lenexa added 27% more housing units, but over that period of time you saw your percentage of homeowners drop by 5%,” Baughman said. “So you’re adding homes, but you’re still seeing people struggle to actually afford to become homeowners.”
Baughman said she supported this project because it brings attainable, single-family homes that will remain affordable over time.
“At UCS, we see every day how housing stability shapes health, education and economic opportunity,” she said. “Habitat’s development is the kind of thoughtful, community-centered solution that Lenexa needs.”
How will the project remain affordable?
Affordability can remain in place because the homes will be built on a community land trust, Hicks said.
“How it works is that the homeowner owns the structure, however the land trust owns the land, and we do a 99-year ground lease with the homebuyers that allows us to create the affordability factor for our families when they’re purchasing their home,” she said.
Habitat for Humanity is the lender on their homes as well, using a 30-year mortgage loan with 0% interest and mortgage payments are no more than 30% of an individual’s monthly income, Hicks said.
“Right now, we currently oversee a $14 million loan portfolio, and that’s continuing to grow. We also service loan portfolios for other Habitat affiliates across the region, so it’s actually more than that $14 million,” Hicks said.
When homeowners are ready to move, they get 100% of their equity, but Habitat caps market appreciation they gain at 25% — which is what allows the nonprofit to sell the home to a family in the future, she said.
A sign alerts residents to a hearing for a proposed 50-home Habitat for Humanity development near 86th Terrace and Clare Road in Lenexa. Tammy Ljungblad [email protected]
Who can live in the neighborhood?
Incoming homeowners will have to follow a strict set of guidelines before they can purchase a property in the Lenexa neighborhood.
Since Habitat receives federal funding, interested families have to meet with a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development counselor who works with them for three to six months prior to their purchase. At that time, the nonprofit learns about the family’s income levels and if they’re able to maintain payments to a mortgage. The project is aimed at families making between 50-80% of the area median income.
Households will need to fall within qualifying incomes as set by HUD, which for a family of four in Johnson County would be between $55,700 and $89,100 a year.
Additionally, the counselors make sure they have access to work and access to transportation from the proposed neighborhood, she said.
Habitat also requires one year of good rental history, two years of verifiable income, less than $1,000 in non-medical collections, two years since completion of a bankruptcy or foreclosure, and zero unpaid judgements. Applicants must pass a background check and sex offender check, and they have to be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
The land trust acts as a homeowners association and will collect a fee from the homebuyers that’s escrowed into their mortgage to maintain the land and trails in the neighborhood along with a set of rules homeowners have to follow, Hicks said.
A community group banner hangs on a fence near the Clear Creek Trail on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, as the city considers a 50-home Habitat for Humanity development in Lenexa. Located off Clare Road near 86th Terrace, the proposed site includes a walking trail that leads to a small lake and a surrounding wetlands area. Tammy Ljungblad [email protected]
What about the park?
During the hours-long public comment period Monday night, many residents in nearby neighborhoods expressed concerns about losing trail access and a park in the wetlands that have grown in the area.
“This was originally purchased with park funds, it has been used as a park for decades and is beloved by the entire community,” resident Lynette Day said in a written public comment. “It was used by the city of Lenexa to promote the ⅜ cent sales tax for parks.”
Last spring, Lenexa voters passed a 20-year extension of the city’s sales tax that takes three-eighths of one percent of purchases (38 cents in a $100 purchase) within the city limits. Funding goes toward road and sidewalk improvements, stormwater facilities, street lighting and the development and maintenance of parks and recreation facilities.
“As a City of Lenexa council I hope that you would be excited to create an incredible park west of highway 7 similar to Sar Co Park and Black Hoof Park,” Day said. “This entire piece of land is your chance to create something special and leave a legacy for the residents of Lenexa.”
Day was not alone in her comments around the sales tax. In response, Community Development Director McCullough said that the city is still planning on building a 40-acre park in the area and that plans for development in the remaining areas have been discussed for years.
“The property was an active farm prior to the city’s purchase in 2006,” McCullough said. “The property has been idle as areas around it developed.”
While commissioners acknowledged the growing pains of added development in historically rural areas, the project met the city’s planning requirements and addressed the growing need of affordable housing in Johnson County.
“I live in a developed part of Lenexa, my home was built in 1971… Within a mile from me are quadplexes, apartments,” Commissioner Mike Burson said during the meeting. “There are people from all walks of life, there are restaurants, day cares — all of that stuff used was once farmland that I happily call home.”
However, this isn’t the last time that Lenexa officials will weigh in, and the City Council will have final approval on a later date.
This story was originally published February 3, 2026 at 12:19 PM.
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