Latest Stories
Olathe mayor touts startup community in pitch for Amazon HQ2
With a workforce rich in entrepreneurial spirit, Amazon would be wise to tap Kansas City for its second headquarters, Michael Copeland said. “The climate has cultivated world-class start-up businesses and nurtured corporate giants, and it’s been a source of support and stability for everything in between,” said Copeland, mayor of Olathe. “It fosters risk-taking and…
Hyperloop to AP: Kansas City-St. Louis route among top 5 as finalists narrowed
Kansas City’s hopes to land a high-speed commuter route to St. Louis continue to shoot forward, a Hyperloop official confirmed Thursday. Two weeks after the State of Missouri entered into a public-private partnership with Hyperloop to study the feasibility of a 23-minute supersonic track between the two cities, the Associated Press reports Missouri is a…
After shootings, ‘It’s most important to keep the public safe,’ Smart City leaders say
Citizens expect public safety from their city government to encompass such basics as sidewalks and water, Bob Bennett said. And for that reason, improving public safety must be a top concern for smart city projects around the nation, the chief innovation officer at the City of Kansas City, Missouri, added. “We have to provide the…
$1.6M grant will create incubator for low-income, minority entrepreneurs
A large federal grant will help reanimate an older industrial building in Kansas City to serve as a small business incubator. The U.S. Economic Development Administration recently awarded a $1.6 million grant to the Hispanic Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City, Missouri. The Kansas City organization said that the grant should create about 90 new…
Kauffman report: KC ranks 28 out of 40 in entrepreneurial growth
Fewer Kansas City companies are growing to become medium- or large-sized firms, according to a report released Thursday by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. It’s a common story across the U.S., as the nation rebounds from the slump of the Great Recession, the report says. The 2017 Kauffman Index of Growth Entrepreneurship report suggests the…
Housing trends show young professionals don’t care about Troost’s stigma, UC-B says
Lance Carlton initially was skeptical of developing east of Troost Avenue, he said. “But the mentality of the market has changed,” said Carlton, co-managing partner of UC-B Properties, which brought its offices to the 4300 block of Troost in August 2016. The company helped prove an appetite for residential development on the corridor with 19…
Mac Properties plans four-corner food startup village at Armour and Troost
Mac Properties’ Kansas City arm wants to turn a “sleepy intersection” on Troost into a four-corner incubator for thriving residential and restaurant activity. The vision is to create a “food startup village” as the foundation of the development, which would bring 400 new market rate apartments to Armour Boulevard and Troost, said Peter Cassel, director…
Wonder developers eye emerging businesses and creatives for Troost
Business is brewing at the former Wonder Bread bakery. With a flurry of activity at 30th and Troost, the historic site is undergoing a transformation: from yet another vacant space on the corridor to an anchor for residential and commercial life on Troost. “They’ve gutted the inside and they’ve done a ton of work,” said…
You don’t have to pick a side, neighbor-led Troost Coalition says
It’s about bringing residents back to Troost Avenue, Cathryn Simmons said. And that means challenging the status quo. “This used to be a free-for-all. Troost was the Wild Wild West of Kansas City,” she said. “You could come over here and do anything you wanted. Legally.” A founding member of the Troost Coalition, Simmons helped…
Video: Nonprofit wants to bring coworking, craft fairs and farmers markets to Troost
Nonprofit group Troost Market Collective hopes to revitalize a section of Troost Avenue — from 31st to Linwood — bringing a coworking space, art collective and maker spaces, as well as regular festivals and farmers markets. While other developers are busy building residential and retail space along the Troost corridor, Troost Market Collective co-founders Katie Mabry…
