News & Issues
Stories from around the Kansas City Metro area on a variety of topics.
Nick’s Picks | Vaccines for Children, Mask Mandates and Funding Fights
Nick Haines offers a look at the week ahead in Kansas City. The COVID fight continues. The Kansas City Police Department seeks more funding. And the holiday season is ramping up.
Kansas City Pursues Massive Solar Farm at KCI
Kansas City is considering putting a massive 2,000-acre solar farm on city land at Kansas City International Airport, creating one of the largest solar power installations in the nation.
Kaw Makeover Including New Park, Bike Trails, Opening Next October
By Kevin Collison After decades of being a scraggly backwater, the Kaw River in the West Bottoms will be transformed with a new park and bicycle trail a year from now following action by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County. The UG commissioners approved an agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers earlier this…
Houseless Solution Update: KC Leaders Reveal Extreme Weather Plan
Kansas City officials have announced a new extreme weather plan designed to address the lingering gaps in aid for unhoused people as winter approaches.
Historic Oglesby Hotel Being Restored as Affordable Housing on Troost
By Kevin Collison The historic Oglesby Hotel near 39th and Troost is being preserved and renovated as an affordable apartment project thanks to its good neighbor, St. James Catholic Church. The 130 year-old, Queen Anne-style mansion will find new life providing 25, one-bedroom apartments renting for $650 per month. Eight units will be eligible for…
How a Meatpacking Plant Changed One Kansas Town 40 Years Ago and Left a Colorado Community Behind
Four decades ago, a town in Kansas and a town in Colorado competed to become home to a giant meatpacking plant that, at the time, was the largest of its kind in the world. Here’s what has happened to them since.
Riverfront Soccer Stadium Planned, Includes ‘Massive’ Bar Overlooking Water
By Kevin Collison A $70 million, privately-funded women’s professional soccer stadium planned for the riverfront should spur more intensive residential development and quicken the pace of streetcar expansion. “I view this more as a gem you build the verticality around,” said Jon Stephens, Port KC president and CEO. “We’re still committed to millions of square feet…
Riverfront Soccer Stadium Planned, Big Step Up for Future Port KC Projects
A $70 million, privately funded women’s professional soccer stadium planned for the riverfront should spur future housing projects and quicken streetcar expansion.
Building at 17th and Washington Slated to Become Foodie Destination
(Editor’s note: CityScene is taking some time off for a vacation, this article originally appeared on July 28.) By Kevin Collison The former Screenland property at 17th and Washington is about to become a foodie oasis, its parking lot replaced with a landscaped courtyard and stage, and the surrounding level hosting a restaurant, bar and…
‘What Do We Tell Our Customers?’: Labor Shortage, Material Delays Hamper Home Construction
Demand for housing has skyrocketed during the pandemic, but homebuilders and remodelers haven’t caught up because of labor shortages and long wait times for raw materials, tripling the timeline of some housing projects.