Arts & Entertainment
Garment District Grooves Concert Series Starts Fifth Season
The Garment District Grooves Series has tuned up for another season, returning at a time its namesake park at Eighth and Broadway is receiving renewed attention. The lunchtime music series is presented the third Wednesday of each month through October by the Kansas City Parks & Recreation Department, the Downtown Council, Downtown Neighborhood Association and…
NFL Draft Showtime at Union Station Brings Civic Pride
By Kevin Collison It’s showtime at Union Station with the upcoming NFL Draft and its top executive George Guastello is ecstatic millions of television viewers from around the nation will see Kansas City’s most beloved landmark. “When you talk to the NFL, they have never done a draft this size in front of a historic…
UMKC Considers Arena as Part of Streetcar Stop Redevelopment
By Kevin Collison UMKC may build a small arena for events, concerts and athletics as part of a redevelopment project it’s planning near the south terminus of the streetcar extension. The proposal was mentioned in a State of the University speech given by Chancellor Mauli Agawal Monday. “We have real proof of what we are…
Two South Loop Link Concepts Presented, Each Close Street
By Kevin Collison Two alternative concepts for the proposed four-block park above the South Loop freeway, one calling for the closure of Baltimore Avenue, the other Walnut Street, were presented at a public meeting Tuesday. The proposed South Loop Link would cover the freeway from Wyandotte to Grand, and designers with OJB Architecture said a…
Tin Roof Expands to Old Riot Room Space, Site of Westport Tragedy
By Kevin Collison The Westport building heavily damaged in the December 2021 tragedy where three people died in an accident has been rebuilt to house an expanded Tin Roof music club. The new venue opened last weekend and is located where the old Riot Room operated at 4048 Broadway. That well-known music club closed in…
Beer Garden to Join Streetcar and Soccer at Downtown Riverfront
By Kevin Collison First it was the streetcar extension, then the new KC Current professional soccer stadium and now a big beer garden is in store for a downtown riverfront that up until the past decade was a pretty sleepy place. The KC Port board approved a development agreement Monday with The Thrash Group of…
Puttery, ‘Uniquely Themed’ Miniature Golf, Rolling into Plaza
(Editor’s note: This article originally was published March 14, 2022. Construction has begun on the project and a Fall opening is anticipated.) By Kevin Collison Puttery, an “immersive” entertainment concept that adds cocktails, technology and food to the classic miniature golf game is coming to the Country Club Plaza, a much-needed addition to the Plaza…
H&R Block Contributes $10M to South Loop Link Plan; Cost Now $200M
em>By Kevin Collison Backers of the proposed South Loop Link downtown park hope a $10 million donation from H&R Block and affiliated foundations will spark other private donors to help pay for what’s now an estimated $200 million project. As press conference announcing the donation today, Mayor Quinton Lucas praised the contribution and said the…
Iconic Katz Cat to Grin Again in Downtown KC
(Editor’s note: This article originally was published Aug. 31, 2022) By Kevin Collison The Katz Drug Store sign, a one-time iconic streetscape fixture in Kansas City and beyond with its happy cat sporting a bow tie, has a new life thanks to LUMI, a museum dedicated to neon signs. A 10-foot tall replica of the…
Ziplines, Aerial Park Envisioned for Hy-Vee Arena ‘Space Frame’
By Kevin Collison When Helmut Jahn designed the unique, external framework supporting the roof at the former Kemper Arena 50 years ago, it’s doubtful he imagined it hosting an aerial park someday. But that’s just what Brad McDonald has in mind for the renowned German architect’s “space frame” at what’s now the Hy-Vee Arena. “We…