The George Floyd protests that led to tense times in late May of 2020 resulted in significant damage and vandalism to the Plaza Medical Building at 4620 Mill Creek Parkway in Kansas City, Missouri. The building was heavily tagged with graffiti and a number of windows were shattered throughout that period of unrest.
Following the events, the building started receiving multiple complaints from both area residents and neighboring businesses. Block & Company, Inc., Realtors leases, manages and represents the ownership group involved with the Plaza Medical Building and immediate action was taken to address the building violations that resulted in several tickets from the City of Kansas City, Missouri.
David M. Block, president of Block & Company, Inc., Realtors, contacted the mayor’s office to discuss a resolution for the property. Block proposed the idea of multiple murals with imagery that would represent family and cultural unity.
Mayor Quinton Lucas approved the proposal and connected David Block with Vince Sanders, founder of CBD American Shaman and SprayKC. Aside from his success in the CBD industry, Sanders is well-known for his philanthropic work in the arts community with a particular interest in public art and murals.
Block and Sanders began discussing the vision of cultural unity and expression for the mural and from there, Sanders involved his non-profit art venture, SprayKC. SprayKC is a Kansas City-based 501(c)(3) non-profit that organizes, creates and showcases public art throughout the metropolitan area.
Chris Haghirian, Project Manager at SprayKC, began the process of selecting the artists and coordinating the project alongside Sanders. After months of planning, the project officially initiated on Oct. 13.
