A transformative project. That’s what the $500 million redevelopment of Kansas City’s Parade Park will be for the city’s east side.
The project, led by Flaherty & Collins and local non-profit Twelfth Street Heritage Development Corporation, bring almost 1,100 new housing units to the area, including for-sale, workforce, affordable, senior and service-enriched housing, along with commercial and office space.
The goal is to bring new life to Kansas City’s 18th Street corridor and provide a connection to the city’s 18th & Vine district. The project is also expected to create 1,00 construction jobs and generate more than $400 million in total economic impact for the region.
The development will take place in three phases, with the first breaking ground in late 2025. It’s an important project not only for Kansas City’s east side, but also for the city’s history in general: Parade Park is the oldest black housing cooperative in the United States.
The goal is to revitalize this historic site, said Alexis Williams, chief operating officer of Twelfth Street Heritage Development Corporation.
“Not only was this the first black co-op in Kansas City, it was one of the first in the country,” Williams said. “We know how difficult redlining was for black people who wanted to buy a home. This co-op provided some of the first housing that black people in this area could own. A lot of black people here took pride in owning.”
Williams said that in its glory years, Parade Park bustled. It was home to an array of people, including baseball players, lawyers, doctors and jazz musicians.
“It was a center for black excellence in Kansas City,” Williams said.
The property, though, eventually fell into foreclosure, with the city of Kansas City purchasing it from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development. Twelfth Street and Flaherty & Collins responded to the eventual RFP issued by the city, and the companies’ proposal ended up being the winning bid.
“We want to restore the pride and joy that Parade Park brought,” Williams said. “Our office is right down the street from Parade Park. We saw the decline in the property over the years. We are more than excited about the opportunity to help restore the east side of Kansas City.”
Julie Collier, vice president of development and principal with Flaherty & Collins, said that the Parade Park redevelopment will offer a mix of housing and retail.
When Flaherty & Collins and 12th Street Heritage purchased the site, only 164 households lived in Parade Park. That’s a low number considering that the development boasts 510 housing units. The new plan will eventually bring more than 1,000 homes to the site. It will also bring back some of the activity and energy that Parade Park once boasted.
“Density was important for the city of Kansas City and the neighborhood,” Collier said. “The first phase of this project is almost fully funded. We have large commitments from the city, and we are waiting to hear back on Low-Income Housing Tax Credits from the state. We have a HUD seniors housing grant. We have all the players with all their funding buckets to make sure that this gets done.”
Collier said that all the housing built at the development will be high-quality. The residences will also have a unified look so that the development will function as one community.
Amenities will be an important factor, too, with the new development’s multifamily buildings featuring pools, fitness centers and community centers.
“We will be bringing all the amenities that Flaherty & Collins typically provides in its projects,” Collier said.
Williams said that providing a mix of housing types is important. The property will feature both market-rate and affordable housing, something that will attract a wider range of buyers, she said.
This project has posed challenges for Twelfth Street Heritage and Flaherty & Collins. Collier said that the biggest is the site itself.
Parade Park was not built on a grid system. That makes it more difficult to maneuver around the site. As Collier said, the neighborhood doesn’t flow through from its east side to its west side or from its north to south.
“It’s a hard site to get around in,” Collier said.
Williams said that it’s been a challenge, too, to foster realistic expectations on the part of community members for how long the redevelopment of Parade Park might take.
“I don’t think people always understand how long development takes,” Williams said. “This site in particular is taking time. People expect things to pop up quickly. We are reassuring the community that the redevelopment is coming. It’s understandable; The community has seen projects fall by the wayside in the past, especially in our community. When things get tough, developers and investors often walk away. For us at Twelfth Street, it’s important to provide a lot of reassurance that developments take time. This is not going to be an overnight pop-up.”
And when this work is complete? Dwayne Williams, president and chief executive officer of Twelfth Street Heritage, said that the wait will have been worth it.
“This has been a project that many of us have looked at,” Dwayne Williams said. “When is someone going to grab the bull by the horns? Well, we are doing that. This will be a life-altering project. We are looking at families having Thanksgiving dinners, Christmas celebrations, children being born, children going to high school, people getting married, all while living in this development. This is a godsend project. It will be wonderful for the community.”
