VeLa Crossroads (Broadway and Southwest)
Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2023 6:01 pm
Let me preface this by saying I don't know if this is an active proposal, but I post this because it's a good conversation starter.
I found the full view rendering, and thanks to bspecht having a better eye than me, found higher quality renderings. This tower is/was planned on the properties at 400 Southwest and 2035 Washington. Both are owned by LLCs associated with Wesley Grammer, the President of Sky Real Estate (that firm is partnered with Cordish on the Main and Truman towers). The LLCs were produced in 2018 and 2020. The renderings are named "VeLa Development Kansas" and were apparently produced late last summer/early last fall (based on the status of Three Light and the Wonderland).
VeLa Development Partners is the company started by Nick Benjamin after his departure from Cordish. His company has proposed projects in Nashville, Phoenix, Charlotte, Raleigh, and Tampa. Even his company's website mentions that their focus in sunbelt and mountain west cities, so KC is an outlier. But KC is also the home of the VeLa Development Partners office.
It's a great height and a decent design. There's just one problem: The Greater Downtown Area Plan. I count 24-stories of residential over a parking garage (so I assume this is a 30-story project). The height is limited to 75ft on this property, so a project like this would need a variance. I'm sure if a true proposal was brought forward, the variance would be approved.
If this were pulled off, as well as EPC's 1650 Broadway project, more high-rises could (and should) be built on the westside of Broadway and I'd walk back my arguments on "aesthetics" and "photo angles" that I made in the 1650 Broadway thread a while back. Since Sky owns the real estate here, it makes me wonder if this design is strictly with VeLa in mind or was dictated by Sky. If dictated by Sky, I almost wonder if this gives us a peek at the general styling for Truman and Main.
VeLa's business model are attainable luxury apartments with a focus on design to create a better product.
https://veladev.com
Site...
Renderings...
I found the full view rendering, and thanks to bspecht having a better eye than me, found higher quality renderings. This tower is/was planned on the properties at 400 Southwest and 2035 Washington. Both are owned by LLCs associated with Wesley Grammer, the President of Sky Real Estate (that firm is partnered with Cordish on the Main and Truman towers). The LLCs were produced in 2018 and 2020. The renderings are named "VeLa Development Kansas" and were apparently produced late last summer/early last fall (based on the status of Three Light and the Wonderland).
VeLa Development Partners is the company started by Nick Benjamin after his departure from Cordish. His company has proposed projects in Nashville, Phoenix, Charlotte, Raleigh, and Tampa. Even his company's website mentions that their focus in sunbelt and mountain west cities, so KC is an outlier. But KC is also the home of the VeLa Development Partners office.
It's a great height and a decent design. There's just one problem: The Greater Downtown Area Plan. I count 24-stories of residential over a parking garage (so I assume this is a 30-story project). The height is limited to 75ft on this property, so a project like this would need a variance. I'm sure if a true proposal was brought forward, the variance would be approved.
If this were pulled off, as well as EPC's 1650 Broadway project, more high-rises could (and should) be built on the westside of Broadway and I'd walk back my arguments on "aesthetics" and "photo angles" that I made in the 1650 Broadway thread a while back. Since Sky owns the real estate here, it makes me wonder if this design is strictly with VeLa in mind or was dictated by Sky. If dictated by Sky, I almost wonder if this gives us a peek at the general styling for Truman and Main.
VeLa's business model are attainable luxury apartments with a focus on design to create a better product.
https://veladev.com
Site...
Renderings...