OFFICIAL - Bartle Hall Expansion construction

KC Kropf · Post by **KC Kropf** » Thu Jan 06, 2005 12:29 am

I really like the numerous lit 'Welcome Visitors' sign through the 13th steeet 'tunnel' They are all up now and it makes a strong statement. Anybody agree or disagree?

There was a picture of them being hung, in today's KC Star.

KCPowercat · Post by **KCPowercat** » Thu Jan 06, 2005 12:33 am

I haven't seen them in person yet but it seemed overkill. I hope they are planning more unique banners with there being so many....even every 3rd one being the "welcome X group" banner would make the statement.

tat2kc · Post by **tat2kc** » Thu Jan 06, 2005 12:13 pm

I think the banners would change depending on the event. I do like the new lighting and entrances along 13th. Its much brighter and cheerful. From what I've seen, it looks great.

KCPowercat · Post by **KCPowercat** » Thu Jan 06, 2005 12:59 pm

yeah they will change I'm sure....I'm just hoping they don't all change to the same thing everytime...mix it up a bit.

Pork Chop · Post by **Pork Chop** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 10:27 am

[quote]...architect Todd Achelpohl of HNTB Architecture, which is overseeing the Bartle renovation and other projects downtown, unveiled details of a design theme for the ballroom building addition that will celebrate water.

â€œKansas City is a river town,â€

KCPowercat · Post by **KCPowercat** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 1:29 pm

did anybody go to the open house yesterday? I had planned to but I got sucked into a happy hour.

Post by **dangerboy** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 5:21 pm

I checked out some of the stuff after the sports show last night. The meeting rooms do look very nice and are comparable hotel meeting rooms. Unfortanetly the new look doesn't cover the whole building. There are still lots of place with cinder block walls and exposed duct work.

I was also reminded how nice the Conference Center is. It's the small annex south of Municipal Auditorium that was build in 1992 and contains dozens of meeting rooms.

Pork Chop · Post by **Pork Chop** » Sun Jan 09, 2005 7:34 pm

dangerboy wrote:I checked out some of the stuff after the sports show last night. The meeting rooms do look very nice and are comparable hotel meeting rooms. Unfortanetly the new look doesn't cover the whole building. There are still lots of place with cinder block walls and exposed duct work.

I was also reminded how nice the Conference Center is. It's the small annex south of Municipal Auditorium that was build in 1992 and contains dozens of meeting rooms.

Dangerboy, are the cinder block walls and exposed duct work located in the convention hall vs. the meeting and conference space?

Pork Chop · Post by **Pork Chop** » Sun Jan 09, 2005 7:35 pm

tat2kc wrote:I think the banners would change depending on the event. I do like the new lighting and entrances along 13th. Its much brighter and cheerful. From what I've seen, it looks great.

I just passed through this area tonight and I have to agree how much brighter and better it is. Although I do see where KCP is coming from with the banners. It is an eye full.

Post by **dangerboy** » Sun Jan 09, 2005 11:47 pm

Pork Chop wrote:
dangerboy wrote:I checked out some of the stuff after the sports show last night. The meeting rooms do look very nice and are comparable hotel meeting rooms. Unfortanetly the new look doesn't cover the whole building. There are still lots of place with cinder block walls and exposed duct work.

I was also reminded how nice the Conference Center is. It's the small annex south of Municipal Auditorium that was build in 1992 and contains dozens of meeting rooms.
Dangerboy, are the cinder block walls and exposed duct work located in the convention hall vs. the meeting and conference space?

It's in the meeting space on the ground floor, under the big exhibit hall. The new rooms are all clustered around the 13th St. lobby. If you go very far north or south from there, you will find some of the older-style areas.

Pork Chop · Post by **Pork Chop** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 6:52 pm

dangerboy wrote:
Pork Chop wrote:
dangerboy wrote:I checked out some of the stuff after the sports show last night. The meeting rooms do look very nice and are comparable hotel meeting rooms. Unfortanetly the new look doesn't cover the whole building. There are still lots of place with cinder block walls and exposed duct work.

I was also reminded how nice the Conference Center is. It's the small annex south of Municipal Auditorium that was build in 1992 and contains dozens of meeting rooms.
Dangerboy, are the cinder block walls and exposed duct work located in the convention hall vs. the meeting and conference space?
It's in the meeting space on the ground floor, under the big exhibit hall. The new rooms are all clustered around the 13th St. lobby. If you go very far north or south from there, you will find some of the older-style areas.

That's interesting. I wonder if they will update those areas as well?

KansasCityCraka · Post by **KansasCityCraka** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 10:29 pm

They need to, if you do one place that nice it should spread thoughout.

KCPowercat · Post by **KCPowercat** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 4:00 pm

There is a story in this week's Biz Journal about building the proposed 5 story glass atrium on 14th street along with the ballroom expansion planned for this spring.

A funding source is still needed but the CVB and oversight committee want to build it right away. One plan calls for leasing retail space inside the atrium to pay for it. Cost is $35-60M.

Plans call for a 5 story glass atrium to replace 14th street between Central and Wyandotte that would hook all 3 major convention buildings together (Bartle, Muni, new ballroom).

This would also act as the new main entrance for the convention complex and put it closer to the P&L district.

Not many details beyond that. I think this could work well to link all 3 buildings together but worry about the convention center keeping people in with it's own retail/restaurants and not letting them out onto the streets to explore the rest of downtown. Sounds like it would be a big help in bringing in conventions with everything essentially tied into this one glass atrium.

scooterj · Post by **scooterj** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 5:58 pm

If they do this, coupled with the eventual Ballroom expansion, how will anyone get onto 14th Street... the grand entrance into P&L Live and the arena? This would also kill one of the major entrances into downtown from I-35.

Gladstoner · Post by **Gladstoner** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 12:26 am

An interesting scale model of the Bartle expansion and PAC is shown at:

http://www.thekonrathgroup.com/Bartle.htm

I'd like to see the design of the proposed expansion on the west side of Broadway. That would be an interesting engineering challenge.

KCTigerFan · Post by **KCTigerFan** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 11:43 am

So is the future Bartle expansion to the East of the Ballroom expansion dead? I heard somewhere that they were exploring to the West of Bartle for the future expansion. It would be great to see a North-South Expansion across the highway West of Broadway. That is a huge distance between the Bartle loading docks on the North and Denny's on the South. It could make for some awesome architecture. They would need to do something with Broadway through that stretch though. It is already VERY pedestrian hostile, it would be unbearable framed by two blank convention center walls and all of the traffic buzzing by and under.

If they could rebuild the ramps to the highway I would love to see them create a median along Broadway to soften it and slow traffic, then add planter boxes and do somethign to the concrete wall of Bartle.

tat2kc · Post by **tat2kc** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 2:36 pm

its supposed to be on the west side, last I heard.

aknowledgeableperson · Thu Mar 10, 2005 9:04 pm

The Ballroom expansion and the expansion west of Broadway are two different projects. West of Braodway is some time in the future if I am correct.

Post by **dangerboy** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 11:00 pm

Yes, the next expansin of exhibit space is now tentatively slated for the west side of the current exhibit hall. It would span Broadway and the southwest corner of the loop, roughly from the western loading docs down to Denny's and the southern loading docks.

I don't think there is any date for this nor any plan yet. All they have announced is that when the time comes in the future to expand again, this is where they now prefer.

Gladstoner · Post by **Gladstoner** » Sun Mar 13, 2005 7:46 pm

Now that they plan on expanding Bartle to the west, and assuming no expansion will occur east of the ballroom, that leaves the block west of Baltimore free for other options. Currently, it contains a lot next to the limestone bluff that looks like something you'd park at for a hillbilly swap meet (the little building on the top looks ok, though). The bluff, and a possible gateway position for the PAC and ballroom (and northwest Crossroads and P&L for that matter), make for some interesting possibilities. I've thought a glen-style park would look cool there, perhaps with a restaraunt or cafe with outdoor seating mixed in with it. It could tie in well to any future upgrade treatments to Truman road. Whatever they do, I can't see that parking lot staying as is.