| Kansas City’s Downtown has come a long way in the past five years. Until then, the Sprint arena was essentially wishful thinking, and the ink was barely dry on agreements bringing H&R Block and the Entertainment District. These projects can now be credited with helping to put the city’s Downtown turnaround on the map. While loft conversions and projects such as the Kansas City Library or boutique hotel renovation were important, it is doubtful that by themselves they would have sustained the renaissance that has occurred here. What assured a dramatic and widespread downtown rebirth are the large projects now coming on line. Yet in some ways, Downtown is entering an important, second phase of redevelopment. If successful, this stage will bring further growth generated by the first series of projects and how large that is will in some ways be determined by the real-world success of the current projects. While the current round of openings has been expected for years, the full impact will not be tangible until they are complete and open. Round One The $276 million Sprint Center arena is a good starting point, but even with its positive early reviews the arena is only one of several major downtown developments. Now somewhat overshadowed, the Kansas City Convention Center earlier opened its new 46,450-square-foot ball-room, while work was completed on several nearby I-670 bridges. Near the Sprint Center, the NAIA headquarters and the College Basketball Experience have both opened. Seeing all of these—and much more—up and running will make 2008 an interesting year. The biggest development will be the Power and Light Entertainment District. In the last few months of 2007, nearly a dozen individual businesses unlocked their doors, some spurred by the healthy crowds attending early Sprint Center events. The scope of the $850 million Power and Light can be difficult to grasp without walking the nine square blocks between Bartle Hall and Sprint Center. It’s obvious this is not your father’s strip center. Creative landscaping, outdoor seating for restaurants, and a permanent performance stage are unlike anything previously seen down-town. After sundown, high-tech light displays will add to the atmosphere. A significant residential component will also be part of this blend, along with retail development such as long-awaited grocery stores and offices. The phrase “city within a city” is overused, but the Power and Light District may deserve the description. The entertainment focus will include blocks of upscale after-hour locations, restaurants and more. Additional shops will include a health store, candy shop and dry cleaning. This range of businesses will help increase the viability of downtown’s “live, work, play.” Entertainment district businesses that were announced or opened in late 2007 also reveal the exciting environment that is being envisioned there. One of the new businesses is a two- story Italian bistro at Main and 14th Street. Targeting an upscale clientele, the bistro features a private dining mezzanine and an outdoor deck with views of the water and fire display in the nearby European square. Other recent announcements include a cell phone retail store, two restaurants and a Caribbean-themed nightclub. A restaurant called the Living Room will feature seasonal outdoor seating along with heaters and fire pits. Throughout the district, nearly two dozen coffee shops, cafes, grills and restaurants will provide enough variety for almost any taste. When it’s finished, the Power and Light District will total approximately 450,000 square feet of retail and entertainment, along with 1,200 residential units. There will also be 1.2 million square feet of office space and 400 hotel rooms. Hidden Jewels While the nearby Sprint Arena is considered the entertainment anchor for the district, two older venues are significant. The historic Midland Theatre is expected to reopen in mid-2008 after a $28 million makeover. With a dramatic, five-level rock bar and other highlights, it will be a first for the Kansas City area. AEG Live, also the entertainment operator for the Sprint Center, will manage the Midland’s operations. AEG Live Midwest also operates venues from Minneapolis to Dallas, and the parent company works in London and Berlin. The Empire Theatre has been re-named the Main Street Theatre as part of its transformation into a major AMC movie theater. Following a $26 million renovation, the Main Street will feature six screens with state-of-the-art digital projection equipment. In many ways, Power and Light is an experiment. It has been built from the ground up to create a vitality that, at least in Kansas City, has occurred in only a handful of smaller locations. It will be among one of only a handful of sites in the nation with permits for outdoor drinking. The architecture and tenant base is targeting creation of something like a Midwestern Bourbon Street—a locale that should provide a first-class attraction for younger, creative audiences that have some-times shunned Kansas City. With the existing success of nearby Crossroads District, this seems like a good bet. Though the focus is primarily on restaurants and retail, the entertainment district will also bring customers to the area by including hospitality and residential development. The most recent proposal calls for a 35-story combination hotel and condominium tower within the entertainment district. The tower would include 350 residential condos and a 150- to 200-room luxury hotel. Another large residential project is nearby with an interesting twist. The Power and Light District took its name from the nearby office building that once housed the utility company by the same name. Now, a $157-million redevelopment will turn that former energy company headquarters into condominiums. The effort will involve demolishing the former Old Republic Title Co. building to make way for a parking lot. Although the condo market has been impacted by the residential downturn, the building’s location overlooking the growing entertainment district may be a good example of how location can trump market issues. The largest development still evolving is the nearly $400 million East Village redevelopment. To be located just east of the City Hall urban plaza, this 12-block redevelopment will replace empty parking lots and vacant buildings with new offices, shops, apartments and homes. It will be anchored by a new J.E. Dunn Construction headquarters and contain up to 800 new residential units, retail and commercial development. The most exciting features could involve two large office buildings as well as retail space and a 200-room hotel. Along with prices to be paid for parking lots, the biggest question mark surrounding East Village is a tug of war over a new federal office to house some 1,600 workers. East Village is vying with a site near Berkley Riverfront Park to host this 680,000-square-foot building. A decision was expected late in 2007. With or without the federal office building, East Village is a significant addition to Downtown, redeveloping the last large area of empty parking lots and under-utilized blocks. The Dunn headquarters alone will be significant. The new 185,000-square-foot headquarters will complete the enclosure of the civic mall and serve as an anchor for surrounding East Village neighborhoods. Unveiled earlier, the design will honor and compliment the existing architecture of nearby City Hall, the Federal Courthouse, and the Department of Transportation. Major Momentum The most exciting aspect of down-town development is not one or two individual projects, even those as large as Power and Light or East Village. Nearly the entire area from River Market to Crown Center is seeing so much development that major announcements are almost continuous. Many of these are not part of the planned focus on entertainment, office or residential construction. One of the largest examples was the recent unveiling of a massive expansion by Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics. Illustrating both the strength of the 110-year-old hospital and down-town diversity, Children’s Mercy in late 2007 announced what will be their largest ever expansion. Although the work will be at locations throughout the metro area, most of the $800 million effort will be downtown. The three-phase project will add new outpatient clinics, offices and clinical lab space. It will also add 216 inpatient beds to the Hospital Hill campus, for a total of 476. The work is expected to take from 12 to 15 years. Children’s Mercy will also more than triple the size of its research space, a good example of the regional efforts in life sciences. Initially, however, the hospital will focus more on immediate needs, including expansion of the emergency department at the main hospital. Children’s Mercy expects to hire an additional 125 physicians over the next five years, adding to their existing staff of some 4,000 at all of its locations. While Children’s Mercy is beginning their work, the nearby, $200-million Federal Reserve Bank is nearly finished. In 2008, the agency will open its dramatic 12-story office tower atop a two-story base. Adjacent to Liberty Memorial, the federal banking center will have public exhibits and other open areas on the ground level. The second floor will have a conference center, training area and employee dining room. An employee-parking garage with 925 spaces will be part of the complex as well. One of the most exciting downtown developments illustrates the area’s momentum in other ways. The $326 million Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts still faces fundraising needs, but work is under way on the prominent hill just south of Bartle Hall. Prior to the site selection and groundbreaking, the popular Downtown addition had trouble finding a home and faced several delays. Now, the world-class facility is under construction, creating a location for the Kansas City Symphony, Kansas City Bal-let, Lyric Opera, and several other art organizations. The arching glass dome design will contain a 1,800-seat ballet and opera hall, a symphonic concert hall, and a smaller Celebration Hall. In many ways the project is symbolic of down-town: a rough road followed by what should become a gleaming finale. Performing art is involved in other downtown projects as well. The Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity will invest $26 million at the old Union Station powerhouse to refurbish 60,000 square feet as a permanent home. The result answers the dance center’s long-term search for a home and could help generate traffic at nearby Union Station. Infrastructure projects are also a major component in downtown growth. Although not the top of anyone’s popularity list—especially since they usually involve legions of orange cones—local, state and federal projects are increasingly prevalent. The $250 million Paseo Bridge replacement will be preceded by up to four years of traffic disruption on that critical route, but its recent announcement is a big step toward a long-term solution for a key traffic artery, and creation of a landmark not just for Kansas City but the region. Similar impact will involve nearly $70 million being invested at the Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport. With its nearby location and emphasis on corporate aircraft, major work there directly impacts downtown. The upcoming program will increase corporate and executive services and even create a destination restaurant. A smaller footprint will be left by the $35 million Riverfront Heritage Trail, but one that also has downtown impact. The trail is planned as a major regional attraction with historic ties and a connection to Riverfront Park, which is also slated for redevelopment. Promises Fulfilled Although new announcements take center stage, one of the best things about downtown today is that so much is opened or nearing completion. Major openings of only two years ago, such as the Kansas City Library, IRS Center and Bartle Hall expansion, are now part of the skyline. If current and proposed projects come about, downtown Kansas City will have seen some $6.5 billion in expansion since 2000. Although that includes some $2.3 billion still in the planning, most is work either complete or under construction. This growing list of job- and traffic-generating development clearly spurs further growth. The $157 million Bartle Ballroom expansion is already helping to increase Kansas City’s convention profile. That’s also a major reason for the increasing call for a major downtown convention hotel. Nearly as important, quality-related projects from street beautification to the increasingly visible Community Improvement effort are helping ensure downtown is attractive and inviting. Although early results may be optimistic, the downtown whole may in fact be greater than the sum of the parts.
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