Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Discuss items in the urban core outside of Downtown as described above. Everything in the core including the east side (18th & Vine area), Northeast, Plaza, Westport, Brookside, Valentine, Waldo, 39th street, & the entire midtown area.
tower
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by tower »

I saw two signs in the Valentine neighborhood as well, but I wasn't able to find any info online.
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FangKC
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by FangKC »

KCFD responds to large fire overnight
The Kansas City Fire Department responded to a large fire at a vacant building at 501 Knickerbocker Place overnight.
...
https://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/kc ... -overnight
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by moderne »

This will give KC Life the cover to knock the Knickerbocker down.
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FangKC
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by FangKC »

KCFD responds to large fire overnight at Knickerbocker Apartments
Firefighters were called to the Knickerbocker Apartments at about 12:30 a.m. Thursday.

41 Action News cameras recorded flames shooting from the roof of the three-story building. An investigator from the fire department said it was most likely homeless people staying in the building who caused the fire.

The 114-year-old building is on Historic KC’s 2019 most endangered list. The group focused on preservation publishes a list of buildings in danger of being demolished every year. The Knickerbocker Apartments have been on the list since 2011.

Jackson County property records show The Kansas City Life Insurance Company owns the property. It has been vacant for years.
...
https://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/kc ... n3yfb6r5zE
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FangKC
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by FangKC »

...
The building is a representative and rare surviving example of the work of L. G. Middaugh. Built in 1906 in the Century Revival style for developer James A. Rose, the Knickerbocker Apartments are located on what remained as one of Kansas City's few private streets until it was deeded to the city in 1958. The elegance and prestige of the Knickerbocker were highly expressed in its design features and its private street status.

In 1966 Knickerbocker Place was purchased from the Charles F. Curry family by Kansas City Life Insurance for future expansion of their facilities. In 1981 an attempt to protect Knickerbocker Place from demolition was made by the Valentine Neighborhood Association and the Landmarks Commission of Kansas City. The owner stated that the cost of saving the buildings would place undue hardship on Kansas City Life and that the addition of a new Computer Center to the company's facilities at Broadway and 36th Street out-weighed the issue of preserving the Knickerbocker apartments. In 1982, the north building (500-530 Knickerbocker Place) was demolished. One-half of the complex still remains.
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chaglang
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by chaglang »

God I wish they would fuck off to JoCo where they belong.
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Re: Renovations of apartment buildings along Armour Blvd.

Post by Riverite »

I’m sure Mac would buy it, just wish KC life would put it on the market
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Re: Renovations of apartment buildings along Armour Blvd.

Post by DaveKCMO »

Knickerbocker today:

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Chris Stritzel
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Re: Renovations of apartment buildings along Armour Blvd.

Post by Chris Stritzel »

^That sucks. I expect nothing more than a grassy strip or a parking lot here for decades to come.
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Re: Renovations of apartment buildings along Armour Blvd.

Post by DaveKCMO »

https://www.thepitchkc.com/wake-held-fo ... emolition/
The building is owned by Kansas City Life Insurance (KCL). On July 8th, KCL notified the Valentine area that as a result of a recent fire, the Knickerbocker Apartments were deemed unsafe for any residents in their current status. The Valentine neighborhood then reached out to KCL asking for a 30-day extension to find a new developer who would be willing to restore the place.

KCL denied their request on July 13th despite locals claiming that several developers had privately expressed interest in the building.
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FangKC
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Re: Renovations of apartment buildings along Armour Blvd.

Post by FangKC »

Kansas City Life has always intended for those buildings to be demolished. Their history in the neighborhood demonstrates that.
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FangKC
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by FangKC »

Wake held for Knickerbocker Hotel amid demolition

https://www.thepitchkc.com/wake-held-f ... emolition/
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FangKC
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by FangKC »

Historic Midtown Apartments Coming Down After 40-Year Neighborhood Fight
...
In his letter to the neighborhood, Bixby said KC Life has no specific plan in place for the Knickerbocker property.

“Moving forward, we hope to breathe new life into this location for future generations to enjoy, while also improving the aesthetics of Knickerbocker Place,” he wrote.
...
https://www.flatlandkc.org/news-issues/ ... ood-fight/

I won't be surprised it the parcel is still vacant 40 years from now.
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TheLastGentleman
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by TheLastGentleman »

Why does KCL pull this crap anyways?
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by flyingember »

TheLastGentleman wrote: Thu Jul 23, 2020 1:25 am Why does KCL pull this crap anyways?
Private property rights in a capitalist society over rule the public good in this area.
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Chris Stritzel
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by Chris Stritzel »

All that's left pf the Knickerbocker Place Apartments. The remainder of the complex will probably be gone in the next week or two. Photos from Saturday morning...
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tower
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by tower »

All traces of the building are gone and the construction fencing was removed. They cut down all the trees, even ones that seemed healthy and not in the way of the demo.

I want to think the trees were cut down to make way for something, but I know that the trees were probably just cut down so that KC Life won't have to maintain them.
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taxi
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by taxi »

Fuck KC Life. When I become mayor, they will all go to jail with no chance for parole. And I will cut down all the trees near their homes.
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TheLastGentleman
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by TheLastGentleman »

If KC Life is ever vanquished, this could be a good candidate for historic replication. Fairly simple design and not particularly large.
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DaveKCMO
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Re: Knickerbocker Place Apartments

Post by DaveKCMO »

Hopefully things will change when the old man dies.
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