City Hall Replacement

[normalthings]

City Hall and Jackson County Courthouse have a debilitating pipe leak or another major issue at least once a year. Now City Hall's garage is getting ready to collapse. At some point, we need to start thinking about replacement facilities. Thoughts?

[beautyfromashes]

City Hall and Jackson County Courthouse have a debilitating pipe leak or another major issue at least once a year. Now City Hall's garage is getting ready to collapse. At some point, we need to start thinking about replacement facilities. Thoughts?

How about updating the old Federal Reserve building as a temporary City Hall/Courthouse and doing proper renovations on the two buildings instead of bandaids? The old Fed should have layouts and amenities good enough for the short term and activity in the building might spark movement after they move out.

[TheLastGentleman]

At some point, we need to start thinking about replacement facilities.

....or rehabilitation of the buildings that, uh, already exist?

[normalthings]

At some point, we need to start thinking about replacement facilities.

....or rehabilitation of the buildings that, uh, already exist?

Exactly, build replacement facilities and renovate the old into housing. Gut job is needed but intrusive and costly if you are working around active offices

[DaveKCMO]

Just fix it and maintain it properly -- basically what they should be doing with everything.

[KCPowercat]

I like the idea of moving out and fixing it properly versus new buildings.

[beautyfromashes]

I like the idea of moving out and fixing it properly versus new buildings.

yeah, the board of education went the new building route and the old building ended up an empty lot instead of being redeveloped.

[chaglang]

I like the idea of moving out and fixing it properly versus new buildings.

yeah, the board of education went the new building route and the old building ended up an empty lot instead of being redeveloped.

+1 on renovate. We gotta get out of this habit of tearing down buildings and then lamenting all the vacant lots in the city.

[FangKC]

+ on renovate. Those two buildings are among the best examples we have of our art deco architecture. If the Power & Light and 909 Walnut buildings can be renovated, there's no reason these buildings cannot.

And didn't the City just refurbish the exterior of City Hall just a few years ago?

[Philacav]

City Hall is as much a landmark as other notable city halls of a similar vintage, like the Los Angeles City Hall. It’s not going anywhere. It would be costly to do a full renovation but perhaps the current issues will create a momentum to finally take it all on. I hope so.

[beautyfromashes]

City Hall is as much a landmark as other notable city halls of a similar vintage, like the Los Angeles City Hall. It’s not going anywhere. It would be costly to do a full renovation but perhaps the current issues will create a momentum to finally take it all on. I hope so.

Same said about BOE though.

[Philacav]

City Hall is as much a landmark as other notable city halls of a similar vintage, like the Los Angeles City Hall. It’s not going anywhere. It would be costly to do a full renovation but perhaps the current issues will create a momentum to finally take it all on. I hope so.

Same said about BOE though.

I’ll take your word for it as I was not aware of the discussion about the building. I wager there’d be far more affection for City Hall than the former library/BOE. A matter of architectural taste of course.

[normalthings]

I am not proposing the demolition of the existing structures. I am proposing new replacement facilities constructed at a different location (your choice of east village, 18th vine, BOE, etc), government moves out of what is there today, and the old get gutted and refurbished into something else.

We can't keep having expensive bad aid after expensive band-aid. Build all new facilities and turn the old into housing or another use. Power & Light kicked everyone out, was gutted, and turned into a new use. Lets do the same with City Hall.

[beautyfromashes]

I am not proposing the demolition of the existing structures. I am proposing new replacement facilities constructed at a different location (your choice of east village, 18th vine, BOE, etc), government moves out of what is there today, and the old get gutted and refurbished into something else.

We can't keep having expensive bad aid after expensive band-aid. Build all new facilities and turn the old into housing or another use. Power & Light kicked everyone out, was gutted, and turned into a new use. Lets do the same with City Hall.

Totally agree with this as long as it is guaranteed the buildings wouldn't be torn down, thus the discussion of BOE. They said the building would be redeveloped when they built their new building but it's now gone.

[KCPowercat]

I am not proposing the demolition of the existing structures. I am proposing new replacement facilities constructed at a different location (your choice of east village, 18th vine, BOE, etc), government moves out of what is there today, and the old get gutted and refurbished into something else.

We can't keep having expensive bad aid after expensive band-aid. Build all new facilities and turn the old into housing or another use. Power & Light kicked everyone out, was gutted, and turned into a new use. Lets do the same with City Hall.

Could do the same and keep it city hall. A new city hall is going to be a boring building.

[normalthings]

I am not proposing the demolition of the existing structures. I am proposing new replacement facilities constructed at a different location (your choice of east village, 18th vine, BOE, etc), government moves out of what is there today, and the old get gutted and refurbished into something else.

We can't keep having expensive bad aid after expensive band-aid. Build all new facilities and turn the old into housing or another use. Power & Light kicked everyone out, was gutted, and turned into a new use. Lets do the same with City Hall.

Totally agree with this as long as it is guaranteed the buildings wouldn't be torn down, thus the discussion of BOE. They said the building would be redeveloped when they built their new building but it's now gone.

My thought is KCMO says they want to build work force housing and can actually develop this as such vs schools plan was to sell it off for renovation.

[TheLastGentleman]

If they build a new city hall I can guarantee it’ll be mediocre at best and absolute trash at worst. The existing city hall is a building so lavish and expensive, KC couldn’t have ever even afforded it normally. Turning it into something as mundane as apartments would be like turning the British parliament into a luxury hotel. Strange, unnecessary, and a total shame

[beautyfromashes]

If they build a new city hall I can guarantee it’ll be mediocre at best and absolute trash at worst. The existing city hall is a building so lavish and expensive, KC couldn’t have ever even afforded it normally. Turning it into something as mundane as apartments would be like turning the British parliament into a luxury hotel. Strange, unnecessary, and a total shame

I'd take a boring City Hall being built on an empty lot and 1000 new DT residents in the current building any day of the week.

[TheLastGentleman]

I'd take a boring City Hall being built on an empty lot and 1000 new DT residents in the current building any day of the week.

If the goal is just getting 1000 more people downtown, there are a million better ways of doing that besides kicking the city government out of their historic purpose built skyscraper.

For instance, you could kick the computers out of the Bryant Building and put people there. Or restart the old federal reserve project as apartments and put them there. Or restore oak tower as apartments and put them there. Or restore the scarritt building as apartments and put them there. Or restore the grand temple building as apartments and put them there............

[KCPowercat]

Yeah but a fan of this idea at all. City hall is an awesome building inside and out. Keep it a public building