The Plaza Then - Now - Tomorrow

Cute here, doing my blog bit while Cutest tries to find relief from the usual summertime heat and humidity.

Today dear blog fans, I’m going to chat about one of my favorite Kansas City locations, the Plaza. As soon as I was awarded my teenage freedom, a driver’s license, I drove to the Plaza.

There I savored the nod to Spanish architecture, the luxury hotels, top notch retail clothing stores and the swanky bars and restaurants. Oh, if I could have only turned 16 and 21 at the same time. Being a photographer, the European statues, tiles, and fountains instantly drew my eyes towards them. But I digress.

Here’s a quick Plaza history lesson (which you may not need). The Plaza, the first shopping mall in the U.S., came to be in 1922.  The depression slowed its growth, with the '30s came expansion, and after WW II, an upward trend began. Next, after eras of unprofitable ownership and the Covid pandemic on top of it, the Plaza began to decline more severely.

Although the Christmas lighting ceremony still attracted boat-loads of observers, the daily shoppers started staying away. Stores and restaurants closed. Sidewalks, curbs and store fronts showed neglect.  Street crimes occurred more often. Customers drifted away.

Then, like the William Tell overture announcing the arrival of the Lone Ranger, the Village Collection (formerly named Highland Park Village Partners) of Dallas, Texas, rode into town last summer and purchased the Plaza shopping district. The Village people offer an honest look into the future of the Plaza. They whipped out no magic wands and promised no biblical miracles.  Instead, time accompanied with fresh paint, concrete repairs, infrastructure upgrades and strengthened security would be the cure.

Today I strolled some 4,000 steps around the Plaza for an up-close view. Almost all facades now boast fresh paint, as do the decorative pieces of iron works. Yes there are still sidewalks, curbs and store fronts requesting attention and the homeless trash collection beneath the Mill Creek bridge needs to be removed, but there is progress.

Once these and other deficiencies (including plumbing and sewers from the 20s) have been addressed, Village Collection can go out and approach retailers with confidence that the Plaza is again a great place to be located. Much like a one-hundred-year-old home that has been neglected, a facelift and more need to be done before the Plaza is once again the crown jewel of KC. But it's on its way.