DowntownKC.net

Supeastudio was kind enough to post some videos he took of the Kansas City Power and Light district at night.  There are 8 videos in all, here’s one that gives you an idea of the much anticipated Lucky Strike Lanes.

I haven’t had a chance yet to go to any of the other new restaurants aside from Famous Dave’s, and wow, the ribs were phenomenal there.  Michael Buble tickets were my present to my girlfriend, so we’ll be heading up to the district tomorrow night, and hoping to check out Vivino for the first time.

Four more Power & Light District tenants announced (KC Star)

The Cordish Co. today announced four additional tenants for the Kansas City Power & Light District: Chefburger, a locally owned burger restaurant; Rum Shack, a Caribbean style nightclub; Sprint Studio, a flagship interactive retail store; and Living Room, a high-end outdoor lounge that will serve as the centerpiece for the Kansas City Live! block.

Nothing too sexy, but always exciting to hear about new tenants.

I met one of the managers while out on the town the other night and he confirmed a couple opening dates for two P&L district establishments.

McFaddens grand opening is November 9th @ 8pm.  This is supposed to be one of the premier sports bars in Kansas City, so having one of these in the area should be Willie’s and Minsky’s a run for their money.  The guy I spoke to even hinted that they’d like to have beer pong at some point in the near future too.  Now that… I cannot wait for! =)

Vinino is the wine bar and it is scheduled to open November 16th @ 8pm.  While I’m excited to see this place open, it’ll take a lot to pry me away from JP’s Wine Bar. 

Now if we could just get a confirmation on an opening date for the Howl at the Moon that will be coming to town, I’d be a happy camper.  I checked out the new piano bar in Westport that opened a few weeks ago and wow…  that is an awesome time!

And they look pretty good (Downtownkc.org)

Seventy-five percent of the 95 people interviewed said parking was easy to find and 60 percent said they found a space within three blocks of the arena Oct. 13, the night of the Elton John concert.

Almost 95 percent of respondents said it was easy to find their way around downtown. Overall, 92 percent of the respondents described their downtown experience as “excellent” or “good.”

…

Another question asked how often the respondents would include downtown as a future destination for entertainment and/or dining. Fifty-six percent said they would come on a weekly or monthly basis. About 35 percent said they would come on a quarterly basis.

I’ve yet to go to an actual event there aside from the grand opening, but I’ll get a first hand experience next week at one of the Garth Brooks shows.

The Sprint Center had it’s grand opening tonight and I was quite amazed.  I’ll let the pictures & video do the talking.

(click the "more" link at the bottom to view all the pictures)

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KCPowercat posted a nice list on the KCRag forums of new businesses applying for liquor licenses that will hopefully be opening in the near future.

Chipotle - 1370 Main (I know this is in P&L but this is the first “in district” liquor license I’ve seen so thought I’d list it)
Cheeseheads - 1616 Grand
Cupini’s - 25 E 12th
G Spot Rock Bar - 423 Southwest Blvd.
Jam Central Station - 1522 McGee
Jayhawk Bar & Grill - 1915 Main
Madrigall - 1627 Oak
Paddy O’Quigley’s - 100 E. 20th
Studio - 1118 McGee
The Friend of the River - 1100 Walnut

Also mentioned in that thread. John’s Big Deck has applied for a 3am application, and Bo Ling’s is opening in the City Market. Speaking of the City Market, The Buzz is going to announce the next “Buzz under the stars” concert Tuesday at 8am, pre-sale on Wednesday, and public sale on Saturday. They talk of this show like it will blow away the other two shows this summer (The Killers and Incubus). So get ready!

Yet another pizza place was announced for the crossroads area.

Pizza in the Crossroads (KC Star)

Pizza in the Crossroads

Rob Dalzell, founder of 1924 Main and Souperman, is about to open a third concept in the Crossroads Arts District.

Pizza Bella, a neighborhood Neapolitan pizza place, will use all Italian ingredients and a wood-fueled oven to get certified by the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana in Naples, Italy. The dine-in and carry-out operation at 1810 Baltimore Ave. is scheduled to open by early September. It is named after Dalzell’s 14-month-old daughter, Isabella.

“It’s always been a dream for a pizza place,” Dalzell said. “I know I can make a killer pizza, and I wanted to have a place dedicated to it.”

This makes three pizza places in the same block.
Pizza Bella (1810 Baltimore)
SPIN! (opposite 1810 Baltimore)
Art of Pizza (1800 Baltimore)

Hey! There’s no such thin as too much pizza. Even if one of those fails, there’s still two left, which is two more than the area has right now. I ate at Spin! out in Overland Park a few years back and thought the food and the concept was great. It’s the kind of place you can bring a bottle of wine to and they have a corking fee.

Now… if we could only get an Original Pizza somewhere north of Johnson County.

KC developer fined (KC Star)

A Kansas City developer will pay $200,000 in penalties and fines for removing asbestos illegally while rehabbing a tower of condominiums.

Matt Abbott, 34, pleaded guilty Monday to criminal charges in connection with the improper removal of asbestos from a building in Kansas City. Abbott is the owner of The Manhattan condominiums, also known as University Tower apartments.

Interestingly, in 2005, the developers for The View (which is next door to The Manhattan) were charged for improper asbestos removal.

The View will pay fine for asbestos removal

The DNR said it had received a complaint about renovations at the former Vista Del Rio building, at 600 Admiral Blvd., and sent an investigator to the site on Dec. 15, 17 and 19, 2003.

The department concluded that the company hadn’t notified the proper authorities about the asbestos-abatement project and that it had used untrained, uncertified workers who improperly removed materials that contained asbestos.

The workers were spraying the material with a high-powered pressure washer and improperly packaging and containing it for disposal, the DNR said.

The settlement alleges that the company violated the state’s Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants law and the Missouri Air Conservation law.

I gotta imagine if The View was only charged $20k, and Abbott was charged $100k as well as settling a civil suit for another $100k, that criminal charges, if not imminent, are seriously being considered.

Abbott told Judge Scott O. Wright that he was guilty of violating the Toxic Substances Control Act and that his corporation, Manhattan K.C. LLC, was guilty of violating the Clean Air Act. The charge against Abbott is a misdemeanor and carries a penalty of up to one year in jail. The charge against the corporation is a felony.

It will be interesting to see how this impacts the rest of the project. Last I heard, only a few units were left, and with this news, I must say they might be a hard sell at this point for any knowledgeable buyers. What really irritates me is when I was looking at buying at the Manhattan, I spoke with Matt about how the Asbestos removal process went, and he flat out lied to me and my family by saying it went fine. I also feel sorry for the prior residents, who were already poor, they then had to be subjected to improper asbestos removal while they resided on the floors below.

Sorry for the lack of stories. I finally finished moving the last couple boxes from my old place last night and am settling into my loft in the River Market. I’ve been pretty out of touch with all the happenings in these parts over the last couple weeks, but am going to spend the next few days getting caught up and will post the stories as I come across them.

The first bit of news that caught my eye is a new Cordish & Co. project that was recently approved which allows them to build a 35 story condo / luxury hotel at 13th & Main. This project still has a few more hurdles to jump through, including approval from the mayor, but it appears to be on the right track.

Story: Cordish plan for condo-hotel OK’d

Looks like the proposed residential development project at 100 Wyandotte in the river market is finally underway

Downtown housing proposed with river view (Kansas City Star)

Biggest new residential project in downtown KC since ’80s is to be built on former rail yard in River Market.

A desolate corner of the River Market is slated to be transformed into a 326-unit, upscale apartment development beginning this fall, downtown’s biggest new residential project since Quality Hill.

The Morgan Group of Houston has completed planning for a market-rate apartment complex, tentatively called 100 Wyandotte, geared toward younger professionals.

The location is an empty 7.4-acre tract that was once a Kansas City Southern rail yard and the historical starting point of the railroad referred to as “milepost zero.” The site occupies the northwest edge of the River Market overlooking the Missouri River.

“It was a great piece of property and a rare opportunity to purchase a piece that large,” said Karen Covington, a spokeswoman for the Texas company. “We think it will be a great asset to the community.”

The new residential project, which is expected to be completed in mid-2009, comes at a time when the River Market area is enjoying a marked upsurge in investment. The old Cold Storage Building recently reopened as a 224-unit apartment building, HOK Sport occupied a new headquarters building last year, and new condominium projects have been built as well.

Click for more…

I’m absolutely thrilled at the idea of another upscale project being built next to the 1st & Main building along the river, especially one of this magnitude. With that opening in 2009, the 300+ unit Columbus Park project hopefully being near completion at that point, Bridgework Lofts phase II underway, the River Market, and downtown area in general, will become a very attractive place. If the River Market can keep up this momentum, it could become one of the most desirable places to live in the downtown area because of it’s urban neighborhood feel along with great views to the north (river) & south (downtown).