In Rogers & Hammerstein’s musical Oklahoma!, the character “Curly” sings “Everything’s up to date in Kansas City. They gone about as fer as they can go.”

It is a song that most Kansas Citians have come to rue, because they knew the first part was far from the truth and the second part was, well, looking more and more truthful all the time.

Well, Curly, hitch up ’yer britches; you ain’t seen a nothin’ yet!

Within the next three to four years, $3.4 billion worth of renovation and construction will take place in Downtown Kansas City, which stretches from the Missouri River to 31st Street and from the State Line to the Bruce R. Watkins (71 Highway). Some of the more noteworthy projects include the Sprint Center, Kansas City Live! entertainment district, the renovation and expansion of the Bartle Hall Convention Center, the H&R Block world headquarters, the renovation of Union Station to host the new main Post Office, the IRS Regional Service Center, and the new Federal Reserve Bank building.

But thousands of smaller retail and office locations, plus thousands of residential units, ranging from upper-bracket lofts, apartments and condominiums to mid price-range residential units, will transform Downtown into a fresh, vibrant, 24/7 destination.

Kansas City appears to be returning to “up to date.” The Sprint Center, designed by a congregation of some of the best sports facilities architects in the world will be state-of-the-art. It will be the site of the National Association of Basketball Coaches offices and the College Basketball Experience, within it the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. The Anschutz Entertainment Group is betting $50 million that it will soon house a new or transplanted National Hockey League or National Basketball Association franchise.

Out the front door of the Sprint Center will be the new entertainment district, with more than 425,000 square feet of retail and entertainment venues.That has spawned a $60 million initiative from Kansas City-based AMC Entertainment to reinvigorate the Empire Theater and the Midland Theatre Complex. The Performing Arts Center, located across the highway from the expanded Convention Center, or at the current Lyric Opera site, will be state-of-the-art as well.

The Federal Reserve Bank and the IRS Center will combine to office more than 7,000 employees on the southern edge of Downtown. The 500,000-square-foot H&R Block world headquarters will house 1,450 employees.

Some of the less-flashy but equally impressive organic growth has taken place in the Crossroads, Freighthouse and River Market districts. Through private investment, countless buildings are being purchased and renovated into offices, restaurants, galleries and residences. Nearly 4,000 new residences have been completed in the last three years or are now under construction, which will impact the life of the city significantly after business hours.

Even if someone had made a visit to Kansas City in 2000, by the time the current construction is completed in 2008, it still would look like an entirely new city. And with the “ripple effect” causing new announcements to happen all the time, there’s no telling when the redevelopment and momentum will stop.

 

Rebuilding Downtown & The Urban Core

 

Entertainment & Lifestyle