Developers to pitch plan for $74M residential redevelopment in downtown KCK

A development group is set to present a plan next week for a massive $73.8 million redevelopment in downtown Kansas City, Kansas.

The Unified Government of Kansas City, Kansas, and Wyandotte County’s Economic Development and Finance Committee is set to review the first details of the proposal at a meeting next Monday, April 29.

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The plan calls for mixed-use redevelopment of properties near the intersection of 4th Street and Minnesota Avenue in KCK.

The developers, Flaherty & Collins, envision a 12-story residential tower with a mix of 248 studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments. The tower would be built as part of phase 1 of the project, which would also include first-floor commercial space, indoor amenity space and 30,000 square feet of outdoor green space.

The first phase proposal would reconnect 4th Street between Minnesota Avenue and State Avenue, with the residential tower built east of the reconnected 4th Street, which is currently a surface parking lot.

Developers envision the re-connected 4th Street to serve pedestrian uses and become a walkable market.

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“The vision for this project is to develop a statement piece for downtown KCK where people can live, shop, dine and be entertained,” Flaherty & Collins developer David Wingerson said in a press release Wednesday. “The development of 4th and Minnesota will be a catalyst for additional growth downtown, and we are excited about the opportunity to deliver such an impactful project to the downtown KCK community.”

A second phase would include a 5- and 7-story low-rise residential tower, concealed parking garage and additional public green space that would be built on the west side of N. 4th Street between State Avenue and Minnesota Avenue.

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If the project receives final approval from the UG’s Board of Commissioners, developers are hopeful of beginning construction in April 2025, with the first residential units coming online in October 2026 and the competition of phase one in April 2027.

In documents submitted to the UG for review, the developers say public incentives “will be necessary.”

The developer envisions covering 72% of the project cost, or roughly $53 million, with the remaining $21 million coming from a collection of incentives including tax increment financing, tax abatements and “other creative incentive tools to help close the financial gap.”

The UG issued a request for proposals for redevelopment of the area last fall, with proposals due earlier this year in February.

“This redevelopment proposal illustrates the initial success of the RFQ/RFP process to redefine community development in KCK,” UG Director of Planning and Urban Design Gunnar Hand said Wednesday. “From the new sidewalk and trails connections to the Kansas River, reintroducing the historic street grid, creating a semi-permanent location for the farmer’s market and a new privately-owned public open space, the project delivers on identified public improvements.”

The UG says public participation in hammering out the details of the project will be forthcoming after the April 29 meeting.

The developers behind the proposal might be familiar with residents in Kansas City, Missouri, with a proposed residential building at 5th and Main in the River Market, set for completion in 2025, as well as The Yards development on both sides of the state line in the West Bottoms.

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