KCRag Forum

GO KC Project- Beacon Hill Infrastructure Improvements Open House

The Kansas City Public Works Department is improving Forest Avenue from 25th to 27th Street and E 26th Street from Troost Avenue to Tracy Avenue in the Beacon Hill neighborhood. Join us for an open house to learn how this GO KC project will benefit your neighborhood. Public Works and project representatives will be present to answer questions and detail design plans.

WHEN: Tuesday, Feb. 27 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
WHERE: Kansas City, MO Health Department 2400 Troost– 4th Floor (Samuel Rodgers Room)

chaglang wrote:

GO KC Project- Beacon Hill Infrastructure Improvements Open House

The Kansas City Public Works Department is improving Forest Avenue from 25th to 27th Street and E 26th Street from Troost Avenue to Tracy Avenue in the Beacon Hill neighborhood. Join us for an open house to learn how this GO KC project will benefit your neighborhood. Public Works and project representatives will be present to answer questions and detail design plans.

WHEN: Tuesday, Feb. 27 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
WHERE: Kansas City, MO Health Department 2400 Troost– 4th Floor (Samuel Rodgers Room)

This came in an email a few days ago. The project area is more or less the footprint of the Milhous/UC-B development in Beacon Hill.

Has anyone else gotten an email about a GO Bond project? This is a first for me.

nother project that caught the attention of the Council was the $3.6 million expenditure for the reconstruction of streets, sidewalks, and storm water infrastructure in the southwest quadrant of Beacon Hill, between 25th Street and 27th Street. Canady spoke out against spending valuable bond proceeds in year one of a decades-long plan on a portion of Kansas City that has already seen significant investment. She noted that it’s not in the best interests of a Blue Hills resident to fund an infrastructure project for a half-million dollar home in Beacon Hill.

John Wood, Director of the Neighborhoods and Housing Services Department, replied that the City is obligated to fund infrastructure in Beacon Hill because of the federal dollars that have previously been funneled into the area.

“It started off as a City project that utilized federal dollars,” said Wood. “HUD is expecting this to be complete within a 10-year window.”

First District Councilman and Mayor Pro Tem Scott Wagner advised against reading too much into the first year of a 20-year process, and acknowledged the dangers of putting off the Beacon Hill project until a later date. Wagner indicated that if funds aren’t dedicated to Beacon Hill as part of the local match soon, the City could be expected to cut a check to the federal government.

“Because there are federal dollars involved in Beacon Hill, there are federal expectations and federal obligations,” Wagner said. “However it gets satisfied, they don’t care, but it has to get satisfied nevertheless.”

chaglang wrote:So the city has been sitting on the obligation to pay for improvements for 20 years?

The city invested $11 million in federal housing dollars to acquire the property and several million city dollars in new streets and other infrastructure. But in 2004, Beacon Hill became infamous for two Tracy Avenue bungalows that soaked up as much as $600,000 in federal funds.

The city canceled the contract with its housing agency at the time and the redevelopment ground to a halt while a federal receiver and city officials tried to straighten out the financial mess. The economic downturn didn’t help –– a few new Beacon Hill townhomes failed to sell and eventually went rental.

The receivership lasted eight years, but finally ended this spring and city economic development agencies regained control of all the property.

chaglang wrote:Hyde Park has started a committee to voice concerns about the MAC development at Armour. Led by Central Hyde Parkers and Janssen Place residents. Focused on restricting the height of the development and maximizing the parking.

chaglang wrote:Hyde Park has started a committee to voice concerns about the MAC development at Armour. Led by Central Hyde Parkers and Janssen Place residents. Focused on restricting the height of the development and maximizing the parking.

chingon wrote:That corridor (as well as some of the midtown Troost nodes) would absolutely explode if 2 things happened: redevelop the Landing site, and upgrade the Troost Max to true BRT. Troost is low hanging fruit for the first time in probably 50 years.