La Bella Vita is an upscale retail center underway north of the Missouri River in the Briarcliff development. Nearly 200,000 square feet of retail will be developed on the first levels of the spanish-style structures and the upper levels will include luxury apartment units.
The days when Northlanders felt the need to travel south of the Missouri River to find the best retailers are fading fast. As the Northland’s population swells, retailers from across the metro and across the nation are rushing in for a slice of the market.
For the first time in years, new players in Kansas City’s retail market are beginning to consider having a Northland location equally as important as one in Johnson County.
One of the main locations for new retail is along the M-152/Barry Road corridor at I-29. In addition to the relatively new Barry Woods Crossing development and Boardwalk Square, more retail will arrive in the area when The Towers@ZonaRosa is complete. A new Wal-Mart and Lowe’s Home Improvement Ware-house are the newest major additions to the area.
A few miles east on Barry Road at M-169 lies Barry Towne, an 80-acre development featuring Kohl’s, Circuit City and Target. The development is also home to a Dick’s Sporting Goods, Linens ‘N Things, Michaels and a Babies-R-Us. Directly east across M-152 is Metro North Mall, the largest indoor mall in the Northland. With more than 125 shops, services and restaurants, the mall has a very high occupancy rate.
Just north of the mall, the new intersection of M-152 and N. Oak is booming with development including restaurants, a bank and a new Quik Trip that’s nearly
ready to open.
Festival Foods, a 24-hour grocer owned by Fleming, opened in early May at the new Chouteau Crossings at I-35 and Chouteau Trafficway. Target will also anchor the 244,000-square-foot retail center, and other tenants will include an IHOP, Popeye’s Chicken, Subway sandwiches and Blockbuster Video. The development cost an estimated $21.4 million, $4.8 million of which was provided by tax increment financing.
The intersection of M-152 and I-35 near Liberty features a Home Depot and a
Wal-mart with a new Super Target on the way. Numerous restaurants and hotels are springing up throughout the area.
Perhaps the most impressive new retail development planned for the Northland is La Bella Vita, an upscale center in the Briarcliff area just minutes from downtown Kansas City. The center will include a convenience retail area where residents, workers and visitors can walk to pick up their dry cleaning, buy fresh bread or visit with friends. With adjacent parking and the nearby office, hotel and single-family residential elements within walking distance, La Bella Vita will be the area’s first truly pedestrian-oriented retail gathering place since the Country Club Plaza came into being more than 70 years ago.
“We want to address the basic human needs for community and social interaction at this center,” says Kathryn G. Thompson, president and CEO of Briarcliff Development Company. “La Bella Vita will be a lifestyle shopping center—an experience for shoppers to enjoy.”
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Parkville’s shopping district offers a different retail choice. |