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A visit to Kansas City
DOWNTOWN
Downtown Kansas City continues to change every day. Lofts, the lazy urban developer's raison d'etre, are sprouting up in every undeveloped building throughout town. The only differences between KC's downtown development when compared to Austin's is that the lofts will mostly be built in existing structures and affordable - in the $500 a month range, where in Austin new skyscrapers are being built for friends of Lance
Armstrong starting out at $250,000 a whack.
Besides the development of lofts everywhere, the long proposed KC Power and Light District is taking shape. Encompassing about sixteen city blocks in the center of town, its main tenant will be a new sports arena, surrounded by themed restaurants, a renovated theater (for movies), and offices, like the egg shaped HR Block building. Of course, when the district was first proposed years ago, one of its drafts caused one of the biggest crimes of redevelopment when the greatest bar in the world - the Ship - was torn down.
Of course the KCPL district didn't even end up being built there, instead, a drive thru bank sits on its property. |
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But still, with as much activity and money pouring into the notoriously dead downtown, it'll be interesting to watch just what happens. With the revitalized Crossroads art district already a yuppie success story, I hope the old bones and ghosts of downtown aren't brushed aside just so some jackass in a Lexus and a $90,000 a year job can sip his latte at 10th and McGee while chatting on a cell phone at midnight.
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 |  | | THE KC POWER AND LIGHT DISTRICT: |
The new (and open) HR Block building |  | 
The finished KC Star building |  |  |
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