Opinion
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…
Downtown’s Revival Fueled by Youthful Energy
GUEST COMMENTARY By Kevin Klinkenberg About nine years ago, I made a decision to leave Kansas City and move to Savannah, Georgia. It wasn’t an easy decision. With so many personal and professional connections here, I knew I’d be giving up a lot. But, I felt I needed a change of scenery in the depths…
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…
Data Tells Real Downtown Housing Story
GUEST COMMENTARY By Bill Dietrich Maintaining existing affordable housing stock and increasing that inventory are critical for the sustainability and continued growth of greater Downtown Kansas City. We’ve come a long way from the blight of the late 1990’s, but have much work still to do. In greater Downtown Kansas City today – 31st Street…
Arizona Postcard: Riding the Rails in Metro Phoenix and Tucson
By Dave Scott During a spring break to visit family and the Kansas City Royals in Arizona, I got a good sense of how urban Arizonans get around–mainly by barreling down seven-lane arterial roads at 45 mph. This practice killed 10 people in Phoenix during the week we were there, helping Arizona retain its status…
New Year’s Eve Reflection: First Six Months of CityScene KC
By Kevin Collison It’s been six months since I launched CityScene KC and I hope you’ve enjoyed it so far. The plan has been to produce a regular, reliable news source for downtown residents, employees and everyone interested in our city’s heart, a small-town newspaper for a unique, growing urban community. My greatest satisfaction so…
If Historic Tax Credits Go Away, Local and National Redevelopment Will Come to a Crumbling Halt
GUEST COMMENTARY By Elizabeth Rosin Have you noticed how Kansas City has changed over the past decade, how vibrant our urban core has become? It was a gradual process that happened one property at a time. Most of these buildings were transformed using the historic tax credit (HTC), a tool that helps developers leverage private…
Mayor James Slams GOP Tax Proposals as ‘Crippling’ to City Redevelopment Including Downtown
Mayor James came out swinging today against Republican tax reform proposals being considered in Washington, saying they would “cripple” vital city redevelopment and infrastructure efforts including the planned new terminal at KCI. “We need an agenda to revitalize and restore the infrastructure of our cities, not cripple future investment in our urban centers,” James said…
Denver Postcard: Cost of Millennial Utopia, Downtown Apartments Cost Over 50 Percent Above KC
By Kevin Collison During a recent visit to old friends in Denver, I got a kick out of their 20-something son’s T-shirt. On it was an image of the retro-wooden, highway sign you see crossing the border: “Welcome to Colorful Colorado.” Beneath it read “No Vacancy.” It was telling of the huge growth boom going…
Omaha Postcard
By Kevin Collison Port KC rolled out its sketchy concept for the Berkley Riverfront a few weeks ago, but if anyone wants to see a farsighted vision realized, they should drive three hours up I-29 to Omaha. First off, Kansas City and Omaha share a very similar relationship with the Missouri River. Both towns started…
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