KC rules say rumored ICE site would need special permit. Would moratorium block it?

Newly released documents show that an engineering firm’s unnamed client wanted zoning information from Kansas City about the warehouse property that is reportedly being considered for an ICE detention facility “as quickly as possible.”

The city’s zoning code indicates that the property in question could theoretically be used for a detention center if its owner met certain requirements and then obtained a special use permit, which city officials placed a moratorium on approving last week in an effort to block ICE from operating a mass detention center in city limits.

That said, the possibility of the federal government’s involvement raises questions about the city’s ability to block an ICE detention site, experts told The Star. Depending on how things play out, the moratorium could be challenged in court, and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has vowed to “use all available legal tools to enforce the moratorium” and fight any future facility.

Per local officials and television news footage, federal agents appeared to visit a 920,000-square-foot warehouse at 14901 Botts Rd. in an industrial park last week on Kansas City’s far south side.

That followed the circulation of a spreadsheet screenshot on social media that listed various sites around the country, including in Kansas City, for possible detention centers and the dates and times that government officials would be at them for site visits.

The source of the screenshot is unknown. The Kansas City address listed on it is across the street from 14901 Botts, but the day and time listed on the spreadsheet did correspond to when ICE agents were apparently at the warehouse on Jan. 15.

Jackson County Legislative Chair Manny Abarca has said that he confirmed with Department of Homeland Security agents on site that day that ICE and the DHS are planning to construct a detention center in the industrial building just outside of Grandview and Belton city limits.

Documents now show that the city received a request for information about 14901 Botts Rd., which was built as a speculative industrial facility in 2023, back in November.

A zoning assistant with Partner ESI, a global engineering and consulting firm, requested a zoning compliance letter from the city to provide information about 14901 Botts Rd., including about its zoning status, any special conditions and regulations related to the property, its site plan and any code violations. Zoning lays out what purposes a property can be used for and how it can be developed under city code.

The request says Partner had been “engaged by our client to conduct due diligence research” and prepare a zoning report on the property. Zoning compliance letters are useful tools for real estate and development.

“Our client has asked that we gather this information as quickly as possible, any help will be greatly appreciated,” the November request says. It does not say who the client is.

KC zoning code

The city provided a response in December, noting that the property is zoned for manufacturing: “primarily intended to accommodate manufacturing, warehousing, wholesale, and industrial uses.”

The Kansas City Council has since placed a moratorium on any non-city detention center for five years, including any permits, licenses or zoning changes.

The Botts property is zoned M1-5, an industrial zoning district, which city zoning code says could, as long as other requirements are met, possibly allow for a detention facility.

A city spokesperson confirmed that would require an application for a special use permit. A special use means special approval by either the Board of Zoning Adjustment or the City Council, which would include public engagement and hearings.

But because of the city’s moratorium, any potential application for a special use permit would fail the city’s quality control review process, and the planning department could not process it.

Partner ESI and the zoning assistant who sent the letter did not respond to requests to comment and identify their client.

The rumored ICE facility raises the question of how such a site would be subject to local zoning rules if the federal government is involved and if a private company is the one operating it. One expert said that local governments don’t have the power to regulate the federal government itself, but do have power to regulate facilities that rely on private companies.

Another expert told The Star that if the federal government is determined, the city would likely lose a drawn-out court battle, but delays to the process prompted by the city could make federal officials look elsewhere.

An unknown buyer

The building in question is tied to Platform Ventures, a Kansas City-based development and investment firm that has said it received an “unsolicited offer” to buy “a vacant, industrial warehouse” in October and that “negotiations are complete” but that the company would not engage in speculation about future uses. The offer to purchase the building came about a month before the request for zoning and development information.

Platform Ventures did not disclose who made the unsolicited offer. Jackson County deed records do not yet appear to show a sale of the property.

The warehouse was built on the site of the former Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base. The Port Authority of Kansas City was involved in a project to redevelop the site into an industrial park.

The agency has since said that it has very limited ability to disallow a sale but that under no circumstances would it provide development support to a use that would be inconsistent with its mission to bring industrial and logistics jobs to the community.

This story was originally published January 23, 2026 at 6:55 AM.