OFFICIAL - Centropolis on Grand (5th & Grand)

[smh]

All the above is true, but the word on the street continues to be that KCCRG did not put street level retail in Centropolis because they viewed it as competition for City Market. Color me skeptical about their proposal for 5th/Main.

[DaveKCMO]

All the above is true, but the word on the street continues to be that KCCRG did not put street level retail in Centropolis because they viewed it as competition for City Market. Color me skeptical about their proposal for 5th/Main.

better get that letter ready now!

[DaveKCMO]

open house in may.

[smh]

open house in may.

I hope I'm able to get to the front door despite the light pole and utility box blocking the sidewalk.

[DaveKCMO]

[smh]

Please note the power box blocking the e/w sidewalk and the fire hydrant blocking the n/s hydrant. Kansas City!

[Eon Blue]

Idea: inspector in charge of final site approval must traverse the site once via wheelchair and once pushing a stroller.

[DaveKCMO]

walked the sidewalk in front of this the other night. man, those vents are just awful. i feel like i'm gonna be sucked into something. #TODfail

[DaveKCMO]

nite lite:

[taxi]

Those bar lights are pretty bad. They are just way too bright and the quality of light sucks. There are small fixtures at the 3rd floor level, but they have not been on yet. They really should be uplights. I know they are still fine tuning things, but the lighting needs some help. I could fix it easy, but for some reason I doubt they want my input.

I've been inside, several units are occupied but there must be a very long punch list. The lighting in the units absolutely sucks. For $1.60 psf, or thereabouts, I would expect something better than compact fluorescents (are these even still legal?) and no dimmers. Fixtures are pretty lame and, in general, the places lack any real style. It's a very conservative, hotel style. I will admit, I like the exterior more than I expected.

[earthling]

I haven't seen the lights on in person but looks good to me, and maybe provides more sense of security when sidewalk well lit.

[flyingember]

You also will notice a small road diet in the photo. They had to add a bumpout around the utility box and poles.

It's not much but anyone turning to eastbound on 5th has a slightly skinnier lane and this will slow cars down slightly. So the city can gain real world data on the impact of this kind of change.

You also will see an ADA issue. They did one curb cut instead of two. So it doesn't line up with the crosswalks. The city isn't supposed to be doing/approving this style anymore because it's not safe for someone who's vision impaired to not have the tactile strip lined up the the direction to walk

[FangKC]

Centropolis on Grand offers newly built apartments in historic River Market

Photos:

http://tinyurl.com/zooo89g

http://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/bab ... l-property

[miz.jordan17]

Does the subscriber article happen to mention where the developers want to do three additional projects?

[FangKC]

I don't have a subscription, but I'm hoping someone who does will post a clip telling us that information.

Since the developer of Centropolis already manages the City Market, my guess is that they are hoping to develop the surface lots on the three corners of Main and 5th Street. My other guess would be the vacant block at 3rd and Grand west of the Cold Storage Lofts.

[mgh7676]

I don't have a subscription either, but I do hope they are encouraged to include a retail component wherever they build. Centropolis isn't exactly a pleasant street experience..

[missingkc]

He said one of the sites, the location of which he declined to disclose, is already under contract.

"We hope to start construction there in the first quarter of next year," Cottrell said.

In addition, he said, his firm has responded to a request for development proposals related to two city-owned surface parking lots, which are located along the streetcar line at the southeast and southwest corners of Fifth and Main streets.

In exchange for the land and possibly tax incentives to support their proposed developments, respondents had to agree to build apartments over first-floor retail and provide enough parking to both accommodate their tenants and replace the 183 surface spaces currently available in the two lots.

[smh]

The current proposal on the north side of 5th/Main (the current parking lot) is for a 400+ space garage with a smattering of street facing retail.

The parking lots to the south of 5th are to become parking with a small amount of retail and apartments above.

I hope that everyone who cares about the River Market has had an opportunity to look at the finished product KCCRG developed in Centropolis. Zero ground floor activity, poor interaction with the street, a mishmash of architectural styles and finishes, inside an out. Did the building remove a long vacant corner? Yes. Should that be good enough for us as a city to wipe our hands and declare success? No. Poor quality in-fill carries many of the same effects on the neighborhood as vacant lots while bringing but one benefit: increased residential population.

My concern is that KCCRG thinks they did a bang up job on Centropolis and expect to build a similar level and style of product on the City Market parcels and on the undisclosed 3rd site (SE corner 3rd and Grand). My hope is that neighborhood leaders, RMCA especially, recognize the poor quality of Centropolis and are discussing with KCCRG ways to do better so that one of the most beloved neighborhoods in KCMO does not devolve into a beige caricature of a neighborhood as envisioned by a commercial real estate firm.

[NorthOak]

I think this is a great project.
Not every apartment building has to have street front retail, especially when a boatload of retail is within one block.
I understand that retail is important but there's no American city that has street front retail on every single block.
The Plaza is another good example with the "bowl effect" for retail that seems to work fine.
To me the important thing is that these surface lots are filled ASAP and that retail is a part of half of the new projects.

[smh]

I think this is a great project.
Not every apartment building has to have street front retail, especially when a boatload of retail is within one block.
I understand that retail is important but there's no American city that has street front retail on every single block.
The Plaza is another good example with the "bowl effect" for retail that seems to work fine.
To me the important thing is that these surface lots are filled ASAP and that retail is a part of half of the new projects.

I agree with you. But this isn't every street. This is Grand Boulevard on the city's first streetcar line in two generations. And, frankly, we can set aside retail for the time being. The Centropolis project not only lacks a retail component, it lacks any transparency at ground level other than the front door. That's the real crime. We know that transparency at ground level, the creation of an "interesting walk" promotes walking and will lure people further than they are likely to walk when confronted with blank, lifeless facades. The summary for me is that if we continue to develop like this we'll end up with an unwalkable city full of people who still use their cars to get everywhere.

But yes, it is better than a surface lot. Perhaps that should be the tagline for the project.