Port KC to Consider Lux Living Riverfront Apartment Plan

By Kevin Collison

The first step in reviewing the proposed Lux Living riverfront apartment project is before the Port KC board today and includes a provision requiring affordable housing to be part of the $56 million development.

The St. Louis developer intends to seek an unspecified property tax abatement and sales tax exemption for what’s described as a 200- to 250 unit apartment project, according to Port KC documents.

If the Lux project moves forward as planned, it would bring the total number of apartments built on the riverfront the past few years to 1,000 units, a huge change in what had been a dormant area for decades.

The Port KC commission is being asked to approve an “inducement” resolution to issue $56 million in bonds for the deal which will be repaid by the developer. This is the first step reviewing the plan, final consideration still must come before the commissioners.

Port KC has been in discussions with Lux Living about the proposal since last fall and has now reached the point where a resolution is in place to finalize its financial framework.

Lux Living plans to set aside 20 percent of its units as affordable housing and is seeking a 25-year property tax exemption to help reach that goal. (Rendering from Hoefer Welker)

The developer is proposing what the agency describes as a seven-story residential structure that will include two levels of structured parking. The project will include amenities such as ground floor retail and a rooftop pool.

“The agreements with the Developer will include obligations to include an affordable housing component for the duration of the public assistance,” according to the resolution.

Victor Alston, CEO of Lux Living, could not be reached for comment.

Last month, Lux Living posted preliminary renderings of its riverfront apartment proposal on its Instagram account.

“The building will have a unique curve to it, bending along the Missouri River,” according to the Instagram post. “There will be a rooftop terrace and 3 separate decks above the parking garage, all jam-packed with amenities that this area has never seen before.”

The Lux apartment project would offer views of the Missouri River. (Rendering from Lux Living Instagram account)

The project is planned for what Port KC describes as describes as Parcel 12B. The site is near the Bar K dog park and café and Northpoint Development’s 348-unit CORE apartment project which is expected to begin accepting residents soon.

The 410-unit Union at Berkley Park apartment project opened in 2018.

The Lux apartment project would be served by the riverfront extension of the streetcar expected to be completed in 2024 as well as a bicycle-pedestrian bridge paralleling the Grand viaduct that’s expected to be completed in 2025.

Lux Living also is developing a 228-unit apartment project on the site of the former Faultless Linen building at 1923 Broadway in the Crossroads, and a 186-unit project that will repurpose the historic Katz Drugstore at Westport and Main as an amenity center.