"A question that was brought up in the 2006 plan and again in the most recent Comprehensive Plan was whether empty-nesters and other aging residents might have the opportunity to downsize and remain in the City of Ladue." That sentence comes from an August 2026 memo by Ladue's city planner to the Zoning and Planning Commission. Two decades after the question was first asked, the city is asking it again. The difference this fall is that the one property its zoning code was written to answer it with has just been taken out of play.
For a Ladue homeowner thinking about a smaller home in the next few years, that changes the math on timing. Any new downsized housing inside city limits has to clear a zoning review, a rewritten rulebook and a resident survey that has not been sent yet. Until then, the housing the city has is the housing that exists today.
The city names a few, and sees little room for more
The same memo says "a couple of developments, such as Litzsinger Woods, Conway Close, and Woods of Ladue" offer downsized housing. It then says "additional opportunities for future downsized housing developments in Ladue are seen as limited since there are very few undeveloped properties in Ladue."
Those words come from the city's own working document. Very little land is left to build on, so the supply is small.
Where the plan sends smaller homes
Ladue's comprehensive plan, Ladue Vision 2040, was approved by the Zoning and Planning Commission in December 2021. The planner's memo sums up its position on downsizing this way: "The Vision 2040 Plan determined that downsized housing would be more acceptable in existing commercial areas rather than disrupting existing residential areas." The plan's model was mixed use, with shops on the ground floor and homes above.
That position set the course for everything after it. The city then wrote two tools to carry it out:
- Ordinance 2401, the Planned Development District rules, allowed mixed-use, multifamily, attached single-family and detached single-family housing. One of its stated goals was more high-quality downsized housing. The memo adds that because of the ordinance's size and location limits, "the only known location that this ordinance would apply to is the Rock Hill Quarries property."
- Ordinance 2330, a Planned Mixed-Use Development Overlay, applies in the G2 commercial district near major roads like Lindbergh and I-170. It keeps the commercial zoning but lets homes be added to a commercial project. Its stated goals include "downsized luxury housing" and support for aging in place.
Put together, the plan pointed downsized housing at commercial and industrial ground, and the biggest tool for doing it fit exactly one parcel.
What happened to that parcel this year
The Rock Hill Quarries property sits just north of McKnight Road and Old Warson Road. Stock & Associates asked the city to rezone about 50 acres around the landfill to a Planned Development District. The plan showed 11 single-family homes reached from Old Warson, 31 single-family homes north of Deer Creek, and a mixed-use building with up to 235 apartments and 9,000 square feet of commercial space, according to the city's July 20, 2026 staff report. T-V Acquisitions, L.L.C. was listed as the owner under contract.
Here is what followed, from the city's own records:
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| July 20, 2026 | The City Council denies the general development plan |
| July 22, 2026 | Zoning and Planning takes up a temporary stay on new commercial and industrial PDD applications |
| August 26, 2026 | The Commission puts PDD rule changes and the Comprehensive Plan's mixed-use recommendations on its agenda |
| September 23 and 29, 2026 | Work session and meeting on the PDD rules, the Rock Hill Quarries site and a possible housing survey |
| September 28, 2026 | The Council passes Bill 2420, repealing Ordinance 2401, 6–0 |
KSDK reported that the denial was unanimous. The meeting was moved to the Ladue Horton Watkins High School auditorium to make room for the crowd, and council members also voted to send the development ordinance and the Comprehensive Plan back to the Zoning and Planning Commission. The September 28 minutes record all six council members voting aye on the repeal.
The stay matters for timing. The July draft of the ordinance stopped the city from accepting or processing applications to rezone commercial or industrial property to a PDD or a planned unit development overlay through November 16, 2026, and the council can extend it by majority vote. A revised version went to the council at an August 11 special meeting. In a September 17 memo, the city planner confirmed "there is currently a stay enacted so no PDD development could be processed until the stay is lifted." The draft also noted that no applications of that kind were pending when the stay was proposed.
The site is still an industrial property, and will be for a while
Repealing Ordinance 2401 does not make the site a blank slate. The September 17 memo, from city planner Andrea Sukanek, says the repeal means a 2018 ordinance, Ordinance 2209, "could potentially still be used" for the property. That ordinance allows office, retail and attached residential housing. Most of the land is zoned Industrial, so applications that fit that zoning can be processed under it. The memo also states plainly, "the City of Ladue is not the property owner, so our ability to control the site's use is limited."
The site's history explains how slowly it changes. A quarry opened there in 1925, and the industrial zoning drawn in 1934 appears to match today's industrial district. A 1975 permit allowed the quarry to be filled with demolition waste. According to the city's memo:
- The landfill covers about 27 acres and is proposed to close by 2030. The city understands that Missouri Department of Natural Resources rules prohibit building on the landfill itself.
- McCarthy's former headquarters building has been demolished. Its use of the site to store construction materials and equipment is ongoing and "expected to cease in the next few years." KSDK reported in 2021 that the company was moving its headquarters to 12851 Manchester Road in Des Peres.
- The memo says that before any redevelopment, the construction yard area should be checked for environmental contamination.
The landfill is scheduled to close by 2030, and the construction yard is expected to clear in the next few years. Neither date points to new homes on this land soon.
The survey the city has not sent yet
The Commission's next step is to ask. A September 17 memo titled "Housing diversity in Ladue" says commissioners want community feedback on "housing types that might be missing in Ladue." Their favored approach is a resident survey, ideally mailed to randomized households, possibly with help from a research firm. Draft questions include how long a household has lived in its current home, how likely it is to move in the next five years, and whether the respondent knows anyone who left Ladue because they couldn't find housing that fit.
The housing types shown in the memo are:
- Townhomes
- Low-rise or garden condos, no more than three stories
- Attached villas and duplexes
- Detached villas
- Multistory apartments and condos
- Small-lot detached homes
The August memo frames it the same way: "Changes to the Comprehensive Plan should be based on broad community input." So any change to the plan waits on community input, and the survey that would gather it has not been sent.
What this means for a Ladue owner planning a move
If a smaller home is two or three years away, the realistic choice set is what stands today. Inside Ladue, that means existing developments such as the ones the city names. Beyond the city line, it means nearby options such as Clayton's high-rise condominiums, which work on their own terms of associations, dues and building services.
The sequence matters for the sale too. Downsizers who wait for a new Ladue project before listing an estate home are waiting on a public process with no published end date. Those who decide based on the current inventory can time the sale of the larger home around the market rather than around a council calendar. Anyone who wants a say in what Ladue builds next can watch for the survey, since the Commission's memos describe it as the input that will shape any plan changes.
Common Questions
Can anything be built at Rock Hill Quarries now? According to the city planner's September 17 memo, uses that fit the current Industrial zoning can be processed. New PDD applications cannot be processed while the stay is in effect, and Ordinance 2209 could potentially still be used once it lifts.
Has anything been proposed under the G2 mixed-use overlay? When the stay was drafted in July 2026, the city noted that no applications were pending to rezone commercial or industrial property to a PDD or PUD.
Where can I follow the process? Agendas and minutes for the City Council and the Zoning and Planning Commission are posted on the City of Ladue website, along with a Rock Hill Quarry redevelopment page.
This post is general information about public zoning actions, not legal advice. If you are weighing a property decision against these ordinances, confirm the details with an attorney or the city.
If you are thinking through when to sell a Ladue estate and where you want to live next, Aimee Simpson offers a private consultation to compare current downsizing options and plan the sale of your home around them. Work With Aimee.
