Union Hill Development

[smh]

I feel like Collison knows he has fanboys on KCRag and included those last two paragraphs as catnip to keep us talking. Other folks not as interested in or aware of Crown Center's long-term ideas probably just passed right over that last part.

[chrizow]

i didn't see any reference to the single-family homes being built on the empty lots in the interior of union hill? is that part of a different development?

nice article, regardless.

[KCtoBrooklyn]

Nice to see the article and one rendering, but there are still a number remaining questions I have about this development (in addition to the single family infill).

From the rendering you can see that building looks to have first floor retail (which matches up with the other reports and kiva), but there was no mention of mixed use/retail in the article. Will any of the other buildings be mixed use?

I would guess that the two "loft-style" with 112 units are the ones going on Gillham and might have retail, while the three "platinum lifestyles" with 69 units are going on 30th St. and would only be residential.

[kboish]

Union Hill is starting a major redevelopment project in about a week or so. Pretty much every vacant piece of land in the neighborhood will be built upon. 18 single family homes on spec all priced within about 50K in either direction of $400K and 5 apartment buildings totaling around 350 units or so. Gillam will have three 5 story buildings, market and slight premium to market rate apts with ground level commercial/retail reaching from the Cadillac building all the way to Martini Corner and there will be two smaller 4 story, 23 unit luxe condo-quality (though initially rental) buildings further into the neighborhood on vacant lots on the north side of 30th. The large open fields on McGee and DeGroffe and at 30th and Grand will all be completely filled in with the single family units I mentioned. Everything is planned, financed, permitted, contracted etc. so it's a done deal. Everything will be built all at the same time and they plan to start construction in the next couple of weeks. All the plans and renderings seem very tasteful, and there will be new streetscapes on Gillam and 30th. All parking, crucially, is underground. As a resident I'm pretty happy with the mix of density and single family.

For context I'll repost what Gretz wrote as he has been correct so far.

[Gretz]

Of the 3 23 unit "platinum living" buildings two will be on 30th at the top of the hill, west of Oak and the third will be on the SW corner of 30th and Gilham. The two larger buildings will be on the NW corner of 30th and Gilham (excavation already nearly complete on this one) and further south on Gilham past the aforementioned building on the SW corner. If memory serves, I believe he said that there would be street level retail on the Gilham ones but the ones further up the hill on 30th are pure residential, set back a ways from the street with patios for the street-facing units. The single family homes he mentioned were financed as a package with the 5 apartment buildings with the apts in effect slightly subsidizing the single families. He mentioned that his expertise is in multi-tenant buildings so that they were hiring someone else as general contractor on the single families and that ground breaking might consequently be a few weeks behind on the houses vs. the apts but that all would be built more or less simultaneously. I believe that I was mistaken before and it is 13 single family homes, however, not 18. There were detailed drawings and plans at least for the single families and I have no reason to believe that he isn't following through with them as he is with the rest. I often take the dog over to throw the ball for him on the vacant lots the single families will be built on and little flags marking the different lots have appeared, I've noticed.

The 22 unit building by Hoffman East of Gilham is an unrelated project; I only know what I've seen here and from Collison about that. Rumor has it that Hoffman in Longfellow and Bob Frye in Union Hill don't get along and have a gentleman's agreement that each is not to buy property/develope on the other's side of Gilham.

[flyingember]

proving construction workers are not detail oriented.

I went by one of the sites and they put a fence in upside down. how do I know? the sign was upside down and near the ground. because you pre-attach a sign so it's installed wrong

the most ironic building in that area has a pool next to the cemetary. whose idea was that?

[KCtoBrooklyn]

There is some more info on John Hoffman's other projects in this week's Biz Journal (I know it's not in Union Hill, but I didn't want to start a new thread):

"Now, he also is developing six homes starting in the $300,000s near 24th and Forest streets in the Beacon Hill area, plus seven homes from $250,000 near 27th and Charlotte streets in the Longfellow neighborhood. In addition, Hoffman plans 23 market-rate units on the west side of Gillham between 36th and 37th streets, and he's negotiating for 18 lots in Manheim Park south of 39th Street between Gillham and The Pase. Most are vacant lots, where he will develop smaller homes priced from $125,000. About five homes will be restored."

This would be phenomenal if all of this happens. Finally a developer who wants to seriously invest in KC's urban core neighborhoods.

[earthling]

You can just smell the momentum of fumes picking up in city core overall, like the fog rolling off the Spinal Tap stage, pods opening up with new life forms proudly sporting a pickled package. Time to turn it up to 11...

[chaglang]

There is some more info on John Hoffman's other projects in this week's Biz Journal (I know it's not in Union Hill, but I didn't want to start a new thread):

"Now, he also is developing six homes starting in the $300,000s near 24th and Forest streets in the Beacon Hill area, plus seven homes from $250,000 near 27th and Charlotte streets in the Longfellow neighborhood. In addition, Hoffman plans 23 market-rate units on the west side of Gillham between 36th and 37th streets, and he's negotiating for 18 lots in Manheim Park south of 39th Street between Gillham and The Pase. Most are vacant lots, where he will develop smaller homes priced from $125,000. About five homes will be restored."

This would be phenomenal if all of this happens. Finally a developer who wants to seriously invest in KC's urban core neighborhoods.

The "buy it and sit on it" crowd must be wetting themselves.

[Eon Blue]

We drove by yesterday and it looks like most of the excavation (including quite a few cubic yards of rock) is complete for the building on the west side of Gillham. The demo on the adjacent building isn't quite complete.

The excavated rock was staged in large chunks on the lot directly south of there, so I don't know if it will be used in some capacity in the area or if they're just waiting for it to be hauled off. Looked like some pretty nice limestone.

[chaglang]

Those huge chunks of rock are new and not from the excavation. We sat at the Filling Station and watched them excavate last weekend and most of what they were digging through was soil. I would guess they're going to build a retaining wall out of the large rocks at the back of the grassy lot they're sitting in.

[Gretz]

Not sure what the plan is for that rock and why they've been putting it on that lot and the ones on 30th St (waiting to be hauled away vs for use in a wall or something) but the rock is definitely coming from the excavation across from filling station. It was all soil on top but they've had an excavator with a jackhammer attachment going to war with the limestone bedrock for the last week or more as I've watched from my deck which overlooks the site.

[Critical_Mass]

Do we know if this building on Gillham will be spared from the wrecking ball?

[chaglang]

Think so. That building and Haus are owned by the same entity, different from the owner of the parcels under construction.

[rxlexi]

quick question to those in know re: Founders phase II.

Do we know if the "loft' style building on Gillham will bend along McGee Trafficway to continue the retail streetscape originally envisioned there? I seem to recall plans from phase I including a building just east of the current swimming pool that faced McGee Trafficway and continued it's NW/SE oriented streetscape.

Just curious how they're planning to handle the corner of McGee and Gillham.

[FangKC]

The answer is yes. Here is the rendering showing the new building that will be built next to the bend. The Greenlease Cadillac Lofts are to the right.



This is essentially the same viewpoint showing the vacant site.

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=30th+and ... ,,0,-10.39

[earthling]

^Great project but the blank wall on left side stands out. Maybe if they grow vines on it, would give it some character.

[flyingember]

^Great project but the blank wall on left side stands out. Maybe if they grow vines on it, would give it some character.

yep, and end up destroying the wall over time

[FangKC]

That may be just a rendering for media purposes. The other buildings of similar design at Founders
all have windows on the ends of the buildings.

https://maps.google.com/?ll=39.072641,- ... 9,,0,-2.01

[chaglang]

^Great project but the blank wall on left side stands out. Maybe if they grow vines on it, would give it some character.

yep, and end up destroying the wall over time

With proper maintenance, ivy poses little threat to buildings.