Westport Overlay District

Thursday, June 15th, 2023 marked the successful outcome of an over seven-year effort by HKC and our partners.

The City Council has officially adopted the Westport Special Character Overlay District. The Westport Overlay District will have an impact by making sure that the things we all love about Westport are maintained through the implementation and enforcement of consistent, clear standards for new development fronting on Westport Road and Pennsylvania Avenue, addressing building height, setbacks, facade design, and land use.

We commend the steering committee, property owners, stakeholders, Westport Regional Business League, the City, and Multistudio for their work leading to this outcome. Our thanks again to City Councilwoman Katheryn Shields who helped bring this about!

HKC is pleased to have participated in this major step forward for Westport. HKC’s involvement in Westport is proactive planning to influence preservation in our city.

What steps led to the Westport Overlay District? Get the Westport backstory HERE.

Public Process

Historic Kansas City and our partners, the Westport Regional Business League, the City, and Multistudio, led the effort to develop the Westport District Master Plan. The top priorities of the Plan included the adoption of a Special Character Overlay District for the commercial corridors of Westport Road and Pennsylvania, which would allow Westport to evolve in a way that is sensitive to the existing context and consistent in character, the creation of local register districts in adjacent residential neighborhoods, and targeted downzoning.

Why Are We Creating an Overlay District?

The City of Kansas City, Missouri adopted the Westport District Master Plan in 2019. One of the recommendations of this plan was to establish a zoning overlay district for properties fronting on Westport Road and Pennsylvania Avenue in the district. This overlay district would create more consistent standards for future development, managing issues like land use, height, setbacks, and facade design.

Learn more about the process HERE.