Kevin Collison
Publisher
Flatland contributor Kevin Collison is the founder of CityScene KC, an online source for downtown news and issues.
Stories by Kevin Collison
Nighthawk Lands at Hotel Kansas City
By Kevin Collison The new Hotel Kansas City, which has picked up great reviews for its design and support for local artists, is serving up more style by opening a music-focused cellar bar called Nighthawk later this month. The space originally had been penciled for a concept called “El Gold” when the hotel opened at…
Spokes Rolls Into Crown Center
By Kevin Collison Spokes Cafe & Cyclery is rolling into its third downtown location at Crown Center, proof to its owner the welcoming reputation it established more than four years ago at its first operation in Quality Hill has paid off. “We feel like we run an ultra-local shop,” said Dan Walsh, managing partner. “We…
Work on $57M Fashionbilt Lofts May Start Next Spring
By Kevin Collison The developer of the proposed 222-unit Fashionbilt Lofts near Quality Hill is wrapping up his application for historic tax credits and anticipates starting work on the $57 million project this spring. Gary Hassenflu of MW Development plans to renovate the historic Barton Brothers Shoe Co. Building at 423 W. Eighth St., build…
Lazia Reopens at Crossroads Hotel with New Chef and Menu
Lazia has returned to the Crossroads Hotel after a long, Covid-layoff, and the restaurant reopened last week with a new chef and menu still steeped in Italian cuisine. Chef Justin Kent, who over the past decade has worked at some of the city’s top restaurants including Classic Cup and The American, is serving what’s described…
Gondola Linking Downtowns KCK and KCMO Pitched by UG Official
By Kevin Collison The idea of using gondolas for mass transit in Kansas City is back, but this time it’s being floated by a senior government official in Wyandotte County, not perennial petitioner Clay Chastain. The concept calls for a two-mile gondola line above the West Bottoms that would link the downtowns of the two…
Peacock to Add Culinary Color to Westport Corridor
By Kevin Collison Chef Brian Mehl wants Peacock, his latest culinary creation, to resonate with the spirit of the original Plate restaurant he opened in Brookside in 2015, destroyed two years later by a fire. “I like the vibe here,” Mehl said of his new place at 301 Westport Rd. “I like little restaurants like…
Mayor ‘Bullish’ About Federal Grant for South Loop Link Proposal
By Kevin Collison A recent trip to Washington has left Mayor Quinton Lucas “bullish” that federal funding to help start building a long-sought deck and park covering the South Loop freeway may be announced before the end of the year. The mayor said Tuesday his confidence is based on conversations he had with senior officials…
Mayor ‘Bullish’ About Federal Grant for South Loop Link Proposal
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas is “bullish” that federal funding to help start building a long-sought deck and park covering the South Loop freeway may be announced before the end of the year.
Holiday Pop-Ups Returning to Downtown
The holiday spirits are returning to downtown with the opening of two, festive pop-up bars, one in the Power & Light District, the other at the Boulevard Beer Hall. Power & Light will be the new location this year for “Miracle” beginning Nov. 26 through the holiday season. The pop-up concept, which originated in New…
Streetcar Track-Laying Plan Calls for Segments Moving South on Main
By Kevin Collison After what has seemed an eternity of preliminary infrastructure work, the first rails for the streetcar Main Street extension will start being laid early next year beginning at Union Station and building south. Plans call for the track-laying work to be completed in one-half mile segments at a time, approximately three- to…