Build Guide: The Country Club Plaza
The Country Club Plaza is a 55-acre commercial district in Kansas City, Missouri, in Jackson County, centered on West 47th Street and Broadway between 46th Street and Brush Creek. When people here say they live on the Plaza they mean the residential neighborhoods around it, chiefly Sunset Hill, Southmoreland, West Plaza, and Countryside. Those are Kansas City, Missouri neighborhoods, not a separate city, and there is no legal boundary called the Plaza area.
Faust Construction builds additions, whole-house renovations, and new homes in the Plaza area neighborhoods and across the Missouri side of the Kansas City metro.
What defines the Plaza area
J.C. Nichols planned the Country Club Plaza in 1922 and its first stores opened in 1923. He had hired Edward Buehler Delk in 1920 and sent him to Spain and Latin America, which is why the district reads as Seville rather than as Kansas City. Architectural historians describe it as the nation’s first comprehensively planned, automobile-oriented regional shopping center, which is the accurate version of the claim; Nichols’ own Brookside Shops beat it to market in 1919 as a suburban shopping center.
The neighborhoods that surround it were built for the people who would walk to it. Sunset Hill sits on the bluff above Brush Creek as part of the Country Club District, Southmoreland lies to the northeast, West Plaza to the west, and Countryside on the Kansas line. The housing is largely 1900s through 1930s, in Colonial Revival, Tudor, Prairie, and Craftsman, on lots that are narrow and deep by suburban standards.
It is the densest and most closely watched residential fabric in the metro, and the rules match. Building here is less about what you want the house to be than about what the block already is.
What homeowners should know
Kansas City has no citywide design review for houses, but the Plaza-area neighborhoods carry two rules that behave like one. The requirements below come from the city’s Infill Lot and Building Standards and Demolition Review pages.
The infill rule pins your front setback to the block
Section 88-110-07, effective January 17, 2023, is the sharpest constraint in these neighborhoods. It applies to any residential development on an infill lot with eight or fewer units, whether new construction or a modification to an existing structure. The context area is every lot lying wholly or partly within 200 feet of the property on the same block face.
The front setback must be no less than and no greater than the setback of the existing residential buildings in that context area. Height is 12 feet per story of the greater of the two nearest residential buildings of the same type, with an additional six feet permitted where the roof pitch falls in the range the ordinance sets. Lot coverage is capped at 50 percent and impervious cover at 75 percent, and lot area must fall between 75 and 150 percent of the context area average.
In a Johnson County subdivision you get a numeric setback and a generous envelope. Here your neighbors’ 1920s footprint is the binding constraint.
Southmoreland is a certified local historic district
Southmoreland was certified as a local historic district on February 12, 1985. Inside a local historic district, the Historic Preservation Commission reviews exterior changes visible from the public right of way, and a Certificate of Appropriateness must be issued before the exterior building permit.
That is the only Plaza-area neighborhood we could confirm carries local historic review. Sunset Hill, West Plaza, and Countryside do not appear on the certified local district list, but National Register listing and local listing are different things and the trigger is the Kansas City Register. Check a specific address against the city’s historic property map before assuming either way.
The Commission meets monthly, typically on the last Friday at 9 a.m., and publishes a rolling twelve-month calendar with per-meeting deadlines that are not a fixed number of days ahead. Where a Certificate of Appropriateness is required, it sits in front of everything else on the schedule.
Demolition of anything over 50 years old is reviewed
Under Ordinance 241070, adopted December 19, 2024, Kansas City reviews every proposed demolition of a building over 50 years old for historic eligibility. In these neighborhoods that means effectively every house. An ineligible building is approved administratively after a seven-day notice period; an eligible one goes to the Commission, which may impose a 45-day delay. Inside a local historic district, demolition of a primary building requires full Commission review regardless of age.
The Plaza Bowl Overlay is a commercial rule, not a residential one
Ordinance 190100, adopted February 2019, created the Plaza Bowl Overlay District covering both sides of 47th Street from Madison Avenue to J.C. Nichols Parkway, extending north to 46th Terrace. It controls height on the commercial core, and single-family dwellings in single-purpose residential buildings are prohibited within it.
It is frequently misread as a design rule for Plaza-area houses. It is not. If your project is a house, the infill standards and, in Southmoreland, historic review are what govern.
Zoning, permits, and licensing
The single-family districts set minimum lot area at 7,500 square feet in R-7.5, 6,000 in R-6, and 5,000 in R-5, with minimum lot widths of 50, 50, and 45 feet, a 35-foot maximum height, and a 30 percent minimum open space rather than a maximum lot coverage. Setbacks are expressed as percentages of lot depth and width with caps set out in the city’s zoning information bulletin, and the platted building line governs where it is greater. No more than 40 percent of the front yard and 20 percent of the street side yard may be paved.
Permits go through CompassKC. Construction must begin within 180 days and the permit must receive at least one inspection in each 180-day period. Kansas City enforces the 2018 International Residential Code and the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code. Missouri has no statewide general contractor license, so a general contractor here needs a business license from the Finance Department, a personal Certificate of Qualification in the trade, and a Contractor License for the business.
| Standard | R-7.5 | R-6 | R-5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum lot area | 7,500 sq. ft. | 6,000 sq. ft. | 5,000 sq. ft. |
| Minimum lot width | 50 ft. | 50 ft. | 45 ft. |
| Maximum height | 35 ft. | 35 ft. | 35 ft. |
| Minimum open space | 30% | 30% | 30% |
| Infill lot coverage cap | 50% | 50% | 50% |
| Infill impervious cap | 75% | 75% | 75% |
Why Plaza-area projects take local experience
Faust Construction has built in the Kansas City metro for more than 25 years, including new construction, additions, and full-home renovations on the Missouri side. The Plaza-area neighborhoods are the hardest place in the metro to design a house in isolation, because the ordinance measures your house against the two nearest ones.
Our pre-construction phase does that measuring first. We establish the context area, work out what front setback and height the block actually permits, confirm whether the address falls inside Southmoreland or any other locally listed property, and build a schedule that carries the demolition review and, where it applies, the Certificate of Appropriateness ahead of the permit rather than alongside it.
Pre-construction
We price the design, evaluate materials and alternatives, and build a schedule that accounts for city review milestones.
Construction
We work with a consistent group of craftsmen and trade partners, with daily on-site presence throughout the build.
Management
We track cost against budget transparently and meet monthly with the architect and homeowner.
What we build in the Plaza area
The Plaza-area neighborhoods are dominated by houses from the 1900s through the 1930s on narrow, deep lots, so the work is mostly renovation and carefully scaled addition.
- Whole-house renovations. Reworking layout, systems, and finishes in a Colonial Revival, Tudor, Prairie, or Craftsman house without changing what the street sees.
- Additions. Expansions kept inside the 50 percent lot coverage and 75 percent impervious caps the infill standards impose, and inside the platted building line.
- Interior renovations. Kitchens, baths, and living space, where plan review is not required for interior remodeling without structural changes and historic review generally does not reach.
- New construction and rebuilds. Infill houses designed to the block-face setback and the height of the two nearest neighbors, planned around demolition review.
Faust Construction has completed new construction, additions, and renovation projects across Kansas City, Missouri. The Plaza-area neighborhoods sit inside our regular service area alongside Brookside and the Ward Parkway corridor on the Missouri side, and Mission Hills, Prairie Village, Leawood, Overland Park, Fairway, and Westwood on the Kansas side.
Recent work
Browse new construction, additions, and full-home renovations from across the Kansas City metro, including projects in established neighborhoods that share this area’s scale and housing stock.
Questions about building here
Answers to what homeowners ask before starting a project in this area.
Is the Country Club Plaza a neighborhood or a shopping district?
The Country Club Plaza itself is a 55-acre commercial district in Kansas City, Missouri, centered on West 47th Street and Broadway. When Kansas Citians say they live on the Plaza they mean the residential neighborhoods around it, chiefly Sunset Hill, Southmoreland, West Plaza, and Countryside. Those are Kansas City, Missouri neighborhoods in Jackson County, not a separate city, and there is no legal boundary called the Plaza area.
When did the Country Club Plaza open?
J.C. Nichols planned it in 1922 and the first stores opened in 1923. He hired architect Edward Buehler Delk in 1920 and sent him to Spain and Latin America, which is why the district reads as Seville. Architectural historians describe it as the nation’s first comprehensively planned, automobile-oriented regional shopping center. Nichols’ own Brookside Shops opened in 1919 and hold the earlier claim as a suburban shopping center.
Does the Plaza Bowl Overlay affect houses?
No. Ordinance 190100, adopted February 2019, created the Plaza Bowl Overlay District covering both sides of 47th Street from Madison Avenue to J.C. Nichols Parkway and extending north to 46th Terrace. It controls height on the commercial core, and single-family dwellings in single-purpose residential buildings are prohibited within it. For a house, the governing rules are the city’s infill standards and, in Southmoreland, historic review.
Do Plaza-area neighborhoods have historic review?
Southmoreland does. It was certified as a local historic district on February 12, 1985, and inside a local historic district the Historic Preservation Commission reviews exterior changes visible from the public right of way, with a Certificate of Appropriateness required before the exterior building permit. Sunset Hill, West Plaza, and Countryside do not appear on the certified local district list. The trigger is the Kansas City Register rather than the National Register, so a specific address should be checked against the city’s historic property map.
How does the infill rule limit a new house near the Plaza?
Section 88-110-07 is the binding constraint in these neighborhoods. The context area is every lot lying wholly or partly within 200 feet on the same block face. The front setback must be no less than and no greater than the setback of the existing residential buildings in that context area. Height is 12 feet per story of the greater of the two nearest same-type buildings. Lot coverage is capped at 50 percent, impervious cover at 75 percent, and lot area must fall between 75 and 150 percent of the context area average.
Does Faust Construction build in the Plaza area of Kansas City?
Yes. Faust Construction has completed new construction, additions, and full-home renovations on the Missouri side of the Kansas City metro, and the Plaza-area neighborhoods sit inside its regular service area alongside Brookside, the Ward Parkway corridor, and the Johnson County cities across the state line. Brian Faust founded the company more than 25 years ago.
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