Crown Center: urban disaster, shining star, or in-between

[cknab1]

This is welcome news to me. With all the rumors floating around the center, I'm glad this is the result. It certainly has to help my property value and the continued investments in Crown Center makes me feel like I've made a good choice in buying here.

[earthling]

Sounds like a good plan. CC and downtown overall needs Halls more than Plaza does.

Biz Journal has several pics/renderings..
http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/n ... ge_gallery

[pash]

.

[earthling]

Highwoods will probably want to tear it down for an office building. I could see it updated with windows and several smaller streetfront retail and offices above. I don't see Plaza attracting a multi floor dept store in an age of dying large format retailers.

BTW, back to CC, I don't think it has been mentioned that Westin recently modernized the lobby and it looks much better. About time they got rid of that 70s look. It's still modo minimalism but a well done update with unique finishes and modern sheer dividers. Bathrooms moved/revamped too. Now they need an ultra mod lounge to replace Brasserie as most Westins have. Wonder if they could pull off updating the waterfall with indigenous landscaping (indigenous to MO/KS that is) as some find it gauche to have tropical plants in a natural hill. There are a few good examples of indigenous landscaping around town.

[cknab1]

I really like the lobby of the Westin. It’s a fairly unique design that has a different look from various angles. The money that has been invested in Crown Center over the last 3 years is amazing. As far as I know, no tax paying money has been involved. With the challenges that Hallmark is facing in their core business, it’s nice to see they still have an aggressive approach to Crown Center.

[flyingember]

Highwoods will probably want to tear it down for an office building. I could see it updated with windows and several smaller streetfront retail and offices above. I don't see Plaza attracting a multi floor dept store in an age of dying large format retailers.

I could see them implementing an inside multi-store setup in that block without a ton of work.

I remember a similar setup in the French Quarter in NOLA.

[GRID]

Posted this elsewhere, so it's not really in response to this thread specifically, but it's obviously relevant to the topic:

First off,

If it were not for Hallmark, there wouldn't be any department stores in the urban core of KC.

KC people tend to totally take for granted what is one of (if not the only) incredibly civic minded corporate citizen in KC, Hallmark Cards.

They have single handily built one of the largest urban redevelopment projects in the country (Crown Center) with very little tax incentives and continue to invest in the Crown Center area well beyond anything necessary just because they maintain an extremely passionate will to be a part of urban KCMO and they simply want to do their part to make KC a better city.

This is especially interesting in today's world when sending greeting cards is not as popular as it once was. This company could have bolted a long time ago for some corporate welfare suburban office park in Kansas or they could have at least pulled way back on what they subsidize in Crown Center (Ice rink, festivals, fountains etc), or sold the shopping center to some out of town retail developer who's employees probably wouldn't even know what state Crown Center is in.

Instead they continue to invest in the Crown Center complex and have created one of KC's most important tourist attractions and cultural assets and do so in the downtown area, an area that damn near every other cooperation in KC completely ignores and continue to flee even after billions of city money has been invested in reviving downtown.

Crown Center is one of the only things that has truly kept KCMO's downtown from seriously being the "other" downtown Detroit over the past 30 years.

OK, got that off my back.

This is great for Downtown KC and all of urban KCMO. Halls will build a single full service modern department store right smack in the middle of the city. That is something that KC should be thanking Hallmark for because KC is lucky that Halls isn't closing both stores.

This should help give Crown Center more retail diversity and help it become a more serious option for urban residential development, one of the things Crown Center still needs to improve.

As far as the Plaza location of Halls? It has been a nice run for Halls there. But let it go. Retail changes.

It's a shame that the Plaza is not home to places like Bloomingdales, Crate & Barrel or Nordstroms or Neiman Marcus. It seems like when these places to come to KC, they end up clear out in the southern JoCo suburbs rather than a more central and culturally significant location. Regardless, I don't see any problems with the Plaza doing something positive with that block and yea, it might even mean some reconstruction there. Maybe they can gut the building and build something more mixed use inside the historic shell. Half that building is just a parking garage anyway, which should be moved underground and most of it has terrible interaction with the street and sidewalk. Something will happen there and it will probably improve the plaza.

In the meantime, KC should be celebrating anytime a company announces a significant private investment in urban kcmo north of 45th Street, especially when they don't involve an excessive amount of incentives. Sadly, such announcements are rare for KC.

[thegeester68]

Posted this elsewhere, so it's not really in response to this thread specifically, but it's obviously relevant to the topic:

First off,

If it were not for Hallmark, there wouldn't be any department stores in the urban core of KC.

KC people tend to totally take for granted what is one of (if not the only) incredibly civic minded corporate citizen in KC, Hallmark Cards.

They have single handily built one of the largest urban redevelopment projects in the country (Crown Center) with very little tax incentives and continue to invest in the Crown Center area well beyond anything necessary just because they maintain an extremely passionate will to be a part of urban KCMO and they simply want to do their part to make KC a better city.

This is especially interesting in today's world when sending greeting cards is not as popular as it once was. This company could have bolted a long time ago for some corporate welfare suburban office park in Kansas or they could have at least pulled way back on what they subsidize in Crown Center (Ice rink, festivals, fountains etc), or sold the shopping center to some out of town retail developer who's employees probably wouldn't even know what state Crown Center is in.

Instead they continue to invest in the Crown Center complex and have created one of KC's most important tourist attractions and cultural assets and do so in the downtown area, an area that damn near every other cooperation in KC completely ignores and continue to flee even after billions of city money has been invested in reviving downtown.

Crown Center is one of the only things that has truly kept KCMO's downtown from seriously being the "other" downtown Detroit over the past 30 years.

OK, got that off my back.

This is great for Downtown KC and all of urban KCMO. Halls will build a single full service modern department store right smack in the middle of the city. That is something that KC should be thanking Hallmark for because KC is lucky that Halls isn't closing both stores.

This should help give Crown Center more retail diversity and help it become a more serious option for urban residential development, one of the things Crown Center still needs to improve.

As far as the Plaza location of Halls? It has been a nice run for Halls there. But let it go. Retail changes.

It's a shame that the Plaza is not home to places like Bloomingdales, Crate & Barrel or Nordstroms or Neiman Marcus. It seems like when these places to come to KC, they end up clear out in the southern JoCo suburbs rather than a more central and culturally significant location. Regardless, I don't see any problems with the Plaza doing something positive with that block and yea, it might even mean some reconstruction there. Maybe they can gut the building and build something more mixed use inside the historic shell. Half that building is just a parking garage anyway, which should be moved underground and most of it has terrible interaction with the street and sidewalk. Something will happen there and it will probably improve the plaza.

In the meantime, KC should be celebrating anytime a company announces a significant private investment in urban kcmo north of 45th Street, especially when they don't involve an excessive amount of incentives. Sadly, such announcements are rare for KC.

[FangKC]

Sources see strategic move in Halls' departure from Plaza

While the new Halls might not attract quite the same clientele as at the Plaza, there's an entire population that it could bank on at Crown Center: tourists. Ever since Crown Center brought in Sea Life Aquarium and Lego Land Discovery Center, sales are booming, he said.

"The tourist economy is very vital," White said. "It gives them (Halls) a real marketing ability to reach out to new conventions and group and use the muscle of the Sheraton to bring people to Crown Center. Local business is one thing, but tourist business is a great add-on."

...

White said that another big attraction to moving to Crown Center would be the lure of not having to worry about a lease and the high renewal price of leasing the department store's huge amount of space on the Plaza. But, he said the Plaza's owner, Highwoods Properties, most likely has a large shopping list full of retailers to which they'd like to lease the space.

...


http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/n ... 137&page=2

[kboish]

KC people tend to totally take for granted what is one of (if not the only) incredibly civic minded corporate citizen in KC, Hallmark Cards.

They have single handily built one of the largest urban redevelopment projects in the country (Crown Center) with very little tax incentives and continue to invest in the Crown Center area well beyond anything necessary just because they maintain an extremely passionate will to be a part of urban KCMO and they simply want to do their part to make KC a better city.

This is especially interesting in today's world when sending greeting cards is not as popular as it once was. This company could have bolted a long time ago for some corporate welfare suburban office park in Kansas or they could have at least pulled way back on what they subsidize in Crown Center (Ice rink, festivals, fountains etc), or sold the shopping center to some out of town retail developer who's employees probably wouldn't even know what state Crown Center is in.

Instead they continue to invest in the Crown Center complex and have created one of KC's most important tourist attractions and cultural assets and do so in the downtown area, an area that damn near every other cooperation in KC completely ignores and continue to flee even after billions of city money has been invested in reviving downtown.

Crown Center is one of the only things that has truly kept KCMO's downtown from seriously being the "other" downtown Detroit over the past 30 years.

Also don't forget that the Halls are one of the most outspoken critics of the cross border incentive war. They financed initiated(?) the study the EDC did last year and personally signed it the letters sent to each governor highlighting how detrimental those activities are to the greater community.

Fantastic civic leaders

[Eon Blue]

Also don't forget that the Halls are one of the most outspoken critics of the cross border incentive war. They financed initiated(?) the study the EDC did last year and personally signed it the letters sent to each governor highlighting how detrimental those activities are to the greater community.

Fantastic civic leaders

I was just coming to post this exact point. He's been very consistent with his stance on this.

[KCMax]

Crown Center's Function Junction relocating, expanding

Going to move to the Gatos Cat Boutique location so Hall's can expand on the 3rd floor.

[Gretz]

Sorry to report the death of Kabuki in Crown Center after 28 years. The main sushi chef cited a dispute over a rent increase as the culprit and mentioned some vague, indefinite plans to "move south." Pity, was the best sushi in town, in my opinion, and only a ten minute walk from my door. Other downtown options are pretty slim with Nara being all flash with pretty mediocre nigiri, Kobe sub-average but passable and Drunken Fish being absolutely piss-poor. On the up-side, is Crown Center suddenly able to command higher rents with the entire 3rd floor being taken out of circulation for Halls?

[bahua]

It was my favorite too. My girlfriend loves Nara, but has never once had a piece of nigiri there. Nara's specialty is deep-fried items slathered in sweet/spicy sauce. I give their bar a passing grade, but seeing as it's within decanting distance of Anton's I see little point.

[cknab1]

For some reason, it seems Crown Center management could not wait to see him go. One VP told me he Ted wouldn't last a year after he took over from Kinji Kaneda. I'm glad he proved them wrong. We should have went there much more then we did. CC must have something in mind for that place, but I haven't heard any rumors yet.

[kcjak]

My coworkers and I used to eat at Kabuki weekly until a few years ago when we consistently became ill after eating. The place became disgustingly unclean and outdated, and the employees really didn't seem to care. A couple years ago I would've lamented Kabuki's closing; now I'm looking forward to something new.

[KCMax]

Kabuki was pretty great the first time I went there some 8-9 years ago. I went maybe 18 months ago, and I was kinda surprised how downhill the place looked like it had gone.

[Gretz]

It may have had a dark period a few years back, but for the last couple of years at least it had been excellent (aside from slow table service). They had a chef from Japan come in for a month or two, do on the job training and re-design the roll line-up. As someone who eats sushi weekly and is pretty particular I'd say it was the best nigiri in town after that. Of course many things, like salmon, eel etc are about the same everywhere but the fish quality for the species that have a lot of variability, like yellowtail, albacore, etc, was consistently head and shoulders above most other places in KC and they frequently had off-menu specials like spanish mackerel when good specimens were available. I'm not sure how they were getting better fish than everyone else as I think there are only a couple of big distributors that handle most or all restaurants around here. At any rate, moot now.

[earthling]

Used to like it years ago but then a couple years ago the sushi/nori was consistently dry and something not quite right so stopped going. Maybe they improved but couldn't get past rut they were in a couple years ago so called it quits - or maybe a victim of more sushi options downtown. Frankly Streetcar Named Desire is far worse at what it does and needs to go but will be interesting to see what replaces Kabuki.

[KCMax]

Weren't their rumors of the Milano leaving too? I never see anyone there.