The Next American Dream : Kansas City : A Documentary Film

July 19, 2005 | Kansas City Star

Big names help carry downtown

By Kevin Collison

H&R Block Inc., Sprint Corp. and now AMC Entertainment Inc. — if anyone needed convincing that downtown’s revival is for real, those are pretty heavyweight endorsements.

Last week, AMC became the latest to take the plunge, joining the Cordish Co. of Baltimore to renovate the beloved but neglected Empire Theater as a six-screen movie house. They also plan to bring energy to the historic Midland Theatre with much more live programming and, for good measure, convert its 12-story office annex to condos.

In late 2003, H&R Block got the ball rolling by announcing it would build a new world headquarters as part of the South Loop Redevelopment Plan. Last year, Sprint announced it would help fund the new downtown arena by buying the naming rights for up to $2.5 million annually.

Since I arrived in Kansas City almost four years ago, I’ve wondered why much of downtown had been allowed to slip for so long. In a city that took so much pride in its many gracious neighborhoods, the Country Club Plaza and its boulevards and parks, downtown’s decay was a perplexing blind spot.

Nobody seemed to have viewed it as their collective responsibility. Companies would take care of their own immediate environs but were unable or unwilling to work together for the well-being of the whole.

Now, that is changing. There’s a tangible feeling that downtown is becoming the place to be again. That’s why H&R Block, Sprint and AMC have decided to join the club.

“These are players that are careful, and they have confidence this is for real, and they want to be part of it, and it’s good to be part of it,” said John Laney, a civic leader whose resume includes stints as chairman of the Downtown Council, chairman of the Economic Development Corp. and as city planning director.

Fresh partnerships for the overall betterment of downtown are forming as a result. Earlier this year, relative newcomer Mark Ernst, the chief executive at H&R Block, joined veteran downtown advocate Tom McDonnell, the chief executive at DST Systems Inc., to enlist corporate support for bringing the Royals downtown.

That effort, which involved lining up commitments for luxury suites, sponsorships and other goodies that would help finance a downtown ballpark, was shelved when the Royals got cold feet. But the message was clear: growing numbers of corporate leaders were willing to work together for a common downtown goal.

Laney, who is now the interim president of the development corporation, believes the new corporate commitment to downtown is sending a signal to other people that it’s a place to invest. He mentioned the decision by McGowan & Walsh Historic Renovators, a St. Louis firm, to jump into the downtown housing rehab market, setting a goal of 2 million square feet in its control by year’s end.

“By having these nationally known players involved it has attracted a lot of attention from outside developers,” he said. “The classic example is the St. Louis developer, and there is more to come.”

And there are hopes that other household names in the Kansas City corporate world such as Applebee’s, which is considering its options for a new headquarters, and the new spin-off company emerging from the Sprint-Nextel merger will come downtown, too.

So why did it take so long for the big corporate names in Kansas City to coalesce around reviving downtown?

“The big corporations always have been concerned about downtown, but there was some frustration that no one entity could do it and it would take a lot,” Laney said. “They now feel that lack of progress that was frustrating them is no longer and issue.”

Laney credited Mayor Kay Barnes and her commitment to downtown revitalization and a similar focus by the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City for the sea change in attitude.

“What mayors can do the best is put the emphasis on a particular set of goals. And she has been steadfast in that,” he said.