Housing
Flatland covers stories about affordable housing, evictions and tenant rights in the Kansas City metro and surrounding area.
Designing and Building a Better Kansas City for the Future
GUEST COMMENTARY By Kevin Klinkenberg Coming back to Kansas City has left me excited about the recent changes. The ship has turned, and there’s a strong sense of optimism in the air. But as I noted before, the work is far from done. In fact, we have a long, tough mission ahead of us. The…
Super-Green Apartments ‘Leaping Out of Ground’ in River Market
By Kevin Collison Work has resumed on the 276-unit Second and Delaware apartment development after a lengthy shutdown, its energy-efficient, concrete walls rapidly rising beneath a tower crane visible throughout the River Market. Construction on the $71 million project resumed in November following an 16-month shutdown caused by a contractor dispute. Now, Crossland Construction has…
Next Kansas City Mayor Needs to Keep the Line Moving Downtown
COMMENTARY After decades of neglect, downtown is relevant again to the metro and that’s vital not only for the well-being of our city as it competes nationally for talent and investment, but for its nearby neighborhoods as well, particularly the East Side. Back in 2002, when The Kansas City Star, did an important series on downtown…
Copaken Brooks Starts Work on Crossroads Apartment Tower
Construction of a 14-story apartment tower called REVERB at 18th and Walnut kicked off Monday, according to a release from Copaken Brooks. The $40 million project, first reported last June by CityScene KC, is expected to be completed in the summer of 2020. Copaken Brooks said local engineering firm Burns & McDonnell will partner to…
City Manager Praises Downtown Development Ripple Effect, Says Potential Ballpark Cost Now $800M
By Kevin Collison City Manager Troy Schulte was unapologetic about reinvestment along Troost and the city’s support for luxury downtown residential projects during a wide-ranging talk Wednesday that also included the latest on a potential new ballpark. In a luncheon speech to the Downtowners group, Schulte said the city’s investment in revitalizing downtown over the…
City Survey Reveals Rising Worries About Affordable Housing
By Kevin Collison The number of Kansas City residents concerned about the availability of affordable housing rose slightly last year, according to new city data, with the greater downtown area reporting the greatest increase. The analysis prepared by KCStat revealed that citywide, 55 percent of the respondents to the latest Resident Survey conducted last spring…
Downtown Rings out 2018 with Surge in Apartments and Hotel Rooms, Promise of New Office
By Kevin Collison Downtown Kansas City ends 2018 on a strong note with new apartment and hotel projects seemingly announced every other week and finally, after much talk, a couple of significant office developments, notably a 25-story project planned for the Power & Light District. It also saw a growing street scene of new retailers,…
Troost Developers Deserve Support, Not Criticism
GUEST COMMENTARY By John Hoffman, principal and co-founder of UC-B Properties The recent editorial in The Kansas City Star entitled “Stop the Denverization of Kansas City. Troost doesn’t need to be hipster-friendly” sparked an interest worth responding to by someone who has been developing along Troost for the last 10 years. Whoever was responsible for…
Downtown Dazzle Urban Homes Tour This Saturday
By Kevin Collison The Downtown Dazzle Urban Homes Tour returns Saturday and this year current and prospective downtown residents should find a robust, competitive market. “Right now, things are running well, but you can see there are a lot of incentives,” said Christina Boveri of Boveri Realty Group. “We have a lot of great product…
Hyatt House Hotel Wins Incentive Approval, Work to Begin This Spring
By Kevin Collison Construction of a 13-story Hyatt House hotel on a parking lot at Ninth and Broadway is expected to begin this spring after its Colorado developer was approved for incentives last week–but not before a two-hour debate by the development agency involved. Boulder-based Pedersen Development won approval for a 15-year property tax break,…