DOWNTOWN KANSAS CITY CONTINUES TO EXCEED EXPECTATIONS, EVEN IN AN ECONOMY THAT LEAVES MUCH TO BE DESIRED.

 

Although several projects have been delayed or postponed indefinitely, significant development continues to occur in nearly every one of Downtown Kansas City’s separate districts. From one of that area’s largest new residential developments in the City Market, to one of the region’s many medical developments in Midtown, Kansas City’s urban core is exhibiting considerable health. Even in terms of
raw numbers, the list of major projects Downtown has grown following an initial dip in 2007. Current construction totals approximately $1.6 billion and exceeds that for the previous two years—combined.

While the nation’s economy and regional demographics are factors, the environment of individual districts and other local market factors are often overlooked. This variety is important in other ways as well. A new restaurant is a notable accomplishment, even a significant trend for the West Bottoms, while it would be just one of several inside the Downtown Loop.

The Loop is probably the place to start. Effectively an island surrounded by interstate freeways, this Downtown core—officially the Central Business District—is the area’s heavyweight champion. With “sub-districts” such as the Power & Light Entertainment, Convention, Financial and Government districts, it’s almost a world unto itself. Each of these sub-areas also has distinct charms. At some level, Quality Hill, the Library and the Garment districts feel worlds away from much of the Loop.

In one of the biggest stories still under way, this complexity is likely to become greater with recent progress on the Loop’s newest area: East Village. Although key portions of this 12-block area are complete or under construction, a major anchor moved forward with a December endorsement to locate a federal office building there. Although final budget approval and other crucial steps remain, formal support of the East Village location by the Kansas City Council appears to have eliminated competing sites and set the stage for focused work on the building. With a $175 million cost and up to 1,200 workers, the addition is significant.

The Loop is not without other progress. Although it may seem an unfair comparison, considerable importance can be placed on new businesses such as the Cosentino’s grocery in the Entertainment District. Although obviously smaller than a federal office, it’s difficult to underestimate the grocery’s enhancement to the quality of life in nearly every neighboring district by virtue of being the first such business in the area.

The Loop’s immediate neighbors are seeing progress as well. Because they are so compact, the City Market and adjacent Columbus Park are the most developed—or redeveloped—districts of all Downtown. Even with this track record, River Market this year saw opening of one of the first newly constructed residential developments in Downtown, and one of the largest in decades: the Market Station Apartments.

South of the Loop, the Crossroads Arts District may be among the most dynamic. Construction of the $405 million Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts is the most visible example, but a combination of relatively affordable real estate and strategic location continue to bring important new developments for this area and its Freighthouse sub-district. Few areas in the city can boast the health mix of banks, offices, galleries, theaters and restaurants that have opened in Crossroads in just the past few years.

Downtown districts to the east suffer somewhat from isolation because of Interstate 35 and Bruce R. Watkins Drive. No visible, obvious connection exists between the Loop and the Northeast District, or Crossroads with the 18th and Vine Jazz District. Such divides are not insurmountable: new bridges and Bartle Hall between the Loop and Crossroads successfully spanned I-670. Completion of East Village, which would bring redevelopment to the eastern border of the Loop, will improve that.

These eastern districts are also somewhat confusing. Northeast, often called “The Old Northeast,” is the largest. Some maps even show it as encompassing neighborhoods as far east as Sheffield. For Downtown relevance, the key blocks surround Independence Avenue and extend east of Paseo Boulevard. With business residents such as the dynamic Kansas City University of Medicine and Bioscience, and some of the most aggressive neighborhood redevelopment in the city, the Northeast is looking up.

To the south, the Paseo West District is largely a mix of light industrial and warehouse buildings, with some residential along Paseo Boulevard. Further to the south, the 18th and Vine Jazz District may suffer from an inconvenient physical separation because of I-70 and Watkins Drive. However, the Jazz District is also beginning to realize its authentic world-class potential with new business tenants, a solid residential mix and increasing marketing attention.

The other side of Crossroads, the West Side and West Bottoms districts, could not be more different. Though separated by I-35, the West Side makes its enclave environment a strength, while the West Bottoms is starting to exploit its relatively affordable real estate in the form of empty or under-utilized industrial property.

Both the Crown Center and, especially, the Midtown districts are more accurately envisioned as several areas combined. The area to the south of Union Station has in recent years added a large public component with the IRS Regional Headquarters and the Federal Reserve Bank as well as the remodeled Liberty Memorial and World War I Museum. Nearby, Hospital Hill is one of the area’s highest concentrations of medical services in the region, while Grand Avenue north of Crown Center contains a short but valuable stretch of office and hotel development.

Stretching south to the Plaza, Midtown includes lively entertainment areas in Westport and along 39th Street, but is rapidly becoming an outlet for growth from Crown Center and surrounding Downtown districts. Midtown also includes several of Kansas City’s best examples of redevelopment neighborhoods, such as Hyde Park.