Civic Affairs
Barney Allis Plaza Rebuild Proposal Adds 226-Unit Apartment Project
By Kevin Collison The city’s plan for rebuilding a crumbling Barney Allis Plaza has grown into a larger proposal that adds a privately-developed 10-story apartment building that would include affordable housing. The new two-phase approach calls for the estimated $112.5 million reconstruction of the city-owned plaza and underground garage to be paid for publicly, and…
NFL Draft May Make Next Year Busiest in KC Sports History
(Editor’s note: This article originally appeared March 7, 2022) By Kevin Collison Next year may be the busiest in Kansas City sports history including up to 350,000 visitors coming downtown next spring for the 2023 NFL Draft, according to a top local sports official. “Four weeks of collegiate basketball, then we roll into our first…
City Manager Optimistic FAA Will Lift River Market Height Restrictions
By Kevin Collison A cloud that’s overshadowed development in the River Market is expected to be lifted next week when city leaders meet with federal aviation officials about height limits that have been hindering projects there. City Manager Brian Platt is optimistic that what he describes as a high-level meeting with officials from the Federal…
Union Station Named Among ‘Most Beautiful Train Stations’ in the World
By Kevin Collison Union Station, whose $234 million restoration a quarter century ago was a metropolitan labor of love, has been named one of the 37 most beautiful train stations in the world by Architectural Digest, a respected international publication. “I think that’s incredible,” said Steve Rose, who co-chaired the successful bi-state sales tax campaign…
Regional Skate Park, Artworks, Could ‘Enhance’ New Buck O’Neil Bridge
(Editor’s note: This article originally was published Feb. 3) By Kevin Collison Creating a regional skate park beneath the approach ramps to the new Buck O’Neil Bridge is among the ideas in a report prepared by a group tasked to enliven what’s now a bland infrastructure project. Work is well underway on the $220 million…