KCRag Forum

Kansas City’s Canary rooftop bar and restaurant has new operators and a new name.

Music producer and songwriter Joe Macklin and two silent partners took over operations earlier this month and have rebranded the downstairs restaurant as Boho Sway at Canary and the rooftop bar as The Nest at Canary.
...
Although Macklin was a restaurant manager years ago, he’s spent his career in the music industry, where he’s known as “Jo Blaq.” He co-founded Kansas City-based music label Distrkct and has worked on projects for artists such as Ariana Grande, Jill Scott and Justin Bieber. He was a vocal producer on Grande’s “My Everything” album, which was Grammy nominated for best pop vocal album in 2015.

Lately, Macklin has been using his music prowess to organize open-mic nights for area restaurants, including food hall Parlor, to build brand awareness and attract more patrons. For The Nest at Canary, he plans to host live music featuring a variety of genres two to three times a week.
...
The new operators have reconfigured the downstairs restaurant to create a lounge vibe and added TVs to the bar so people can watch local professional sports. Don’t think of it as a sports bar, however, he said. They want to make it feel intimate with a Miami vibe.

The rooftop bar now has more furniture and heating lamps to allow patrons to enjoy the views throughout the year. During the winter, the new operators plan to install four to five faux igloos that parties can reserve.

Macklin said they plan to have the restaurant and bar fully operational by Dec. 1.

beautyfromashes wrote: ↑Fri Oct 28, 2022 12:32 pm "faux igloos" ouch.

Cratedigger wrote: ↑Fri May 03, 2024 7:11 pm Not that it’s any surprise but the Bobo Sway concept failed and is closed. Apparently there was a fatal shooting there too

I’m late to find out, but I was looking for rooftop bars now that the weather is better. Hope a new concept closer to the original Canary opens here. Really enjoyed getting to see both the plaza and downtown skylines

https://news.yahoo.com/deadly-shooting- ... 28956.html

dukuboy1 wrote: ↑Tue May 07, 2024 4:09 pm Hopefully with more residents in the area, the Street car and such will help create an even stronger community in Midtown that will demand better security and help work together to make the neighbor as safe & as great as it can. It might also dissuade ppl who feel the need to pack heat and settle things with violence to stay at home

dukuboy1 wrote: ↑Tue May 07, 2024 4:09 pm Hopefully with more residents in the area, the Street car and such will help create an even stronger community in Midtown that will demand better security and help work together to make the neighbor as safe & as great as it can. It might also dissuade ppl who feel the need to pack heat and settle things with violence to stay at home

dukuboy1 wrote: ↑Wed May 15, 2024 10:21 am You are correct random violence is random regardless. It could have happened with a drunk patron at a sports bar at 151st deep in JOCO as well. Gun violence knows no bounds and is the bigger problem in general.

The idea of more residents was creating a neighborhood of like minded citizens who are invested in the area and hopefully will help drive down chances to commit crimes of all kinds and just generally improve the pedestrian areas with better lit streets and more visibility to the streetscape. Also it will provide less opportunities for trouble makers to lurk about about because they have less places to be. The shooting was tragic and random, but there were other issues I believe related to other crimes that had just piled up over the years in the general area. That corner of 39th & Main has always been ground zero for transients, homeless, mentally disturbed, etc. There were several abandoned buildings or buildings with minimal occupants that allowed for these type to squat in and or use as a meeting meeting place. This has been an issue in Midtown for a while where you get these pockets of decay in either established neighborhoods and ones trying to come back. The more development and new opportunities with new people and new money will be very helpful. Call it gentrification (which I'm sure it will be) but it will take what was once a very vibrant and bustling part of the city and help breathe life into it once again. The years of decay leftover from the suburban flight took their toll. But now we have an opportunity to bring it back and inject some life to bring it back.

Violence can happen anywhere, as does crime, I get that. But you can help reduce crime by reducing the opportunities for it to take place. If the environment is darker streets, with minimal activity, and minimal people around it creates an environment for individuals to be singled out because the criminals have the upper hand and places to operate. But increase the population now you have the protect of the herd so to speak with more people to call police, witness things, and in general look out for each other.