Transportation
Mac Bets Big on Main in Response to Housing Demand and Streetcar
By Kevin Collison Mac Properties’ plan for a 325-unit, mid-rise apartment project at Main and Armour is all about responding to increasing population growth in a Midtown that will soon benefit from streetcar access, its developer said Wednesday. “We’re going to get you a great place for a restaurant, some other goods and services, and…
Apartment Tower with Affordable Units Proposed for Crossroads
By Kevin Collison Copaken Brooks is pursuing a 14-story apartment project at 1818 Main that is expected to include affordable units, according to a neighbor briefed on the plan. The proposed development, which would be located on the streetcar line, was mentioned in a blog post in early October by Jon Copaken, principal with the…
Prospects ‘Bleak’ for Converting Old Buck O’Neil Bridge to Park
By Kevin Collison The prospect of the old Buck O’Neil Bridge being converted to a linear park is “bleak” according to a feasibility study that determined the proposal would cost $100 million, double the original estimate. The report also found that even if funding can be identified, significant parts of the 65 year-old span over…
South Loop Link Backers Seek $60M ‘Mega-Grant’ From Feds
By Kevin Collison Backers of the plan to deck the South Loop freeway with a four-block park are making a big ask from Washington, seeking a “mega-grant” that would greatly assure construction of the project. “We have applied for a $60 million mega-grant from the feds that’s part of the federal infrastructure program, Rebuilding America,”…
Mac Properties Revives Big Armour and Main Project Without Incentives
(Editor’s note: Mac did not seek city incentives, but it did seek incentives from the KC Area Transportation Authority and its request was turned down Feb. 22, 2023) By Kevin Collison Mac Properties has revived its big residential development plan at Main and Armour, and this time won’t seek the incentives that prompted the City…
VanTrust Real Estate Joins Streetcar Land Rush on Main
By Kevin Collison VanTrust Real Estate, a major developer in the metro and nationwide, has joined the land rush along the planned streetcar extension, buying a two-acre property near Linwood and Main. The developer recently purchased the McGilley’s Funeral Home property at 21 W. Linwood, and while VanTrust has no immediate plans, a company representative…
Big Waldo Apartment Project Proposed, Revives Streetcar Extension Idea
By Kevin Collison A 300-unit apartment project that would transform the scale and nature of the Waldo entertainment area received preliminary support from a transit-oriented development agency Wednesday. EPC Real Estate Group is cooperating with the Lewellen family, the owner of The Well at 7421 Broadway, on the $90 million plan called Waldo74Broadway. The proposal…
Port KC Takes New Role Steering $160M South Loop Link Park Plan
By Kevin Collison Planning for the proposed South Loop Link, an ambitious proposal to deck four blocks of the disruptive downtown freeway with a park, is taking a big step forward with Port KC assuming a lead role in implementing the project. The public agency has issued a request for qualifications (RFQ) to hire a…
Kaw Makeover Including New Park, Bike Trails, Opening in October
(Editor’s note: This article was originally published Oct. 29, 2021) 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…
Regional Skate Park, Artworks, Could ‘Enhance’ New Buck O’Neil Bridge
(Editor’s note: This article originally was published Feb. 3) By Kevin Collison Creating a regional skate park beneath the approach ramps to the new Buck O’Neil Bridge is among the ideas in a report prepared by a group tasked to enliven what’s now a bland infrastructure project. Work is well underway on the $220 million…