Opponents of Platte County’s Chapel Ridge subdivision lose in court again
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A group of Platte County residents have had some success drumming up opposition to a planned residential subdivision near Parkville but have yet to triumph in court.
A Missouri Court of Appeals decision on Tuesday affirmed a lower court’s decision that favored the developer of a 379-lot subdivision called Chapel Ridge.
Chapel Ridge, a 143-acre project near Tom Watson Parkway and Route K in rural Platte County, became a matter of political intrigue toward the end of 2013. The affair ensnared former Platte County presiding commissioner Jason Brown in controversy, accused of ramming the project through to favor a developer and banks that were behind it.
Chapel Ridge’s developer, Brian Mertz of PC Homes LLC, couldn’t obtain the blessing of the Platte County Planning Commission, which denied his project twice in 2013.
Critics of Chapel Ridge contended that it represented leapfrog development, one that was too dense and out of keeping with its surroundings. It would also lead to too much traffic and trigger stormwater problems, among other concerns.
By the time it reached the Platte County Commission, one commissioner (Duane Soper) had to recuse himself because of his ties to a bank that financed the project. Soper’s recusal left a December 2013 vote up to Beverlee Roper, a 1st District commissioner, and then-presiding commissioner Jason Brown. Roper voted against, and Brown voted for Chapel Ridge; Brown’s position as presiding commissioner effectively broke the tied vote in favor of PC Homes.
A group of more than 40 Platte County residents quickly filed suit, contesting the commission’s decision to change zoning of the 143 acres from rural to planned residential. It claimed that Chapel Ridge’s plan didn’t conform to planned residential voting, that Brown had a conflict of interest with another bank that financed the subdivision and that he made changes to planned residential zoning plan in a nonpublic meeting.
Beyond the litigation, Brown received criticism by opponents of the Chapel Ridge project, who believed that Brown’s insistence on passing Chapel Ridge was a favor to monied interests. Brown, previously a four-term member of the Missouri House, decided in 2014 not to run for another term as Platte County presiding commissioner.
In 2014, a Platte County judge dismissed the lawsuit against the Platte County Commission, largely on procedural grounds. The Missouri Court of Appeals on Tuesday agreed with the lower court’s ruling but did not address the substantive points of the lawsuit against Chapel Ridge.
William Quitmeier, an attorney representing the opponents of Chapel Ridge, was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.
