Housing
Flatland covers stories about affordable housing, evictions and tenant rights in the Kansas City metro and surrounding area.
Sex, pregnancy and foster care
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, teen pregnancy costs taxpayers more than $9 billion a year in health care and other costs. Ironically enough, those other costs include foster care. The irony lies with the fact that foster kids themselves are often the ones responsible for teen pregnancies. According to a…
Two Kids And A Job: Former Foster Youth Struggles To Fit In Education
Kierra Kinton began living with her grandmother at the age of 3. When Kinton was about 13, her grandmother decided she couldn’t manage the teen any longer, and Kinton began her path through Missouri institutions. Her grandmother sought help through a handful of behavioral health organizations, including Crittenton Children’s Center and Synergy Services, both of…
West Bottoms Flats Starting Soon, First Major Renovation Project in Historic Warehouse District
By Kevin Collison Construction is expected to begin soon on the $68 million West Bottoms Flats apartment development, the first major renovation project in the downtown warehouse district that fueled Kansas City’s economic growth in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. MCM Company plans to renovate three historic buildings on the north side of…
Moving Out But Struggling to Move On
When it comes to education and work, many foster kids are already at a disadvantage when they enter the system, often coming from families beset by generational poverty. Unfortunately, their circumstances are not much improved once they “age out” of foster care, according to findings in a national survey by the organization Child Trends. The…
Former Mayor Kay Barnes, Downtown Champion, Honored for Legacy
By Kevin Collison Former Mayor Kay Barnes now has the Convention Center Grand Ballroom named after her, but her lasting legacy was on display beyond the windows of the ballroom lobby where the event was held last week. From its vantage point above the South Loop freeway, the Sprint Center, H&R Block office tower and…
From the Frying Pan of Foster Care to the Fire of Adulthood
Finally becoming old enough to drink legally is often accompanied by a night out on the town, but the experience can be quite different for foster kids in Missouri. “We’ve heard stories of kids who were dropped off at City Union Mission by their social worker because it’s the kid’s 21st birthday,” said Nathan Ross,…
Looking Up in the Crossroads, a Dramatic 14-Story Apartment Proposal
By Kevin Collison Copaken Brooks is proposing a 14-story apartment tower at 18th and Walnut, a striking addition to the skyline that would replace a crumbling Crossroads parking lot with 132 residences. The $40- to $50 million project would be the second residential tower developed by the firm in the Crossroads Arts District, the other…
Affordable Apartment Project Proposed for Downtown Riverfront
By Kevin Collison An Omaha developer is proposing a 60-unit apartment project near Berkley Riverfront Park that’s intended to help meet the demand for affordable housing downtown. Cornerstone Associates, which recently opened the 531 Grand market-rate apartment project in the River Market, is requesting federal tax credits administered by the Missouri Housing Development Commission to…
Spring Urban Homes Tour Includes Three New Downtown Projects
The Downtown Neighborhood Association is sponsoring its Spring Urban Homes Tour Saturday (June 9), and this year’s event will include three just-completed apartment projects: Two Light, The Union and 531 Grand. Jared Campbell, the president of the DNA, said this is the second year his group has sponsored the event, which he described as a…
Three Light Incentives Gain Qualified Support from Advisory Board
By Kevin Collison The planned Three Light luxury apartment project got a rough reception from an advisory board reviewing its proposed incentives Wednesday, echoing criticism the deal endured from the Kansas City Council two months ago. Members of the Chapter 353 board narrowly endorsed tax incentives for the 300-unit project planned by the Cordish Co….