Inside the West Bottoms' development

The big picture: SomeraRoad, based in New York, is retooling more than 20 acres. The $527 million, five-phase project is projected to add more than 1,200 apartments and bring in new business while improving the surrounding infrastructure over the next 10-15 years.

• Meanwhile, The Borman Group, based in Los Angeles, recently bought up about half a million square feet of building space on the West Bottoms' north end, the Kansas City Business Journal reports.
• Both companies specialize in "adaptive reuse," which usually means keeping a building's bones and facade while fixing it up for new purposes.

What we're watching: While The Borman Group has not yet announced plans, the company converted a similar-sized imprint in downtown LA into offices, townhouses and retail.

• The Borman Group did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication.

What they're saying: "West Bottoms is probably one of the last truly undeveloped parts [of the downtown area]," Tom Esselman, president of the Historic West Bottoms Association, tells Axios.

• "What some people like and some people hate about the West Bottoms in its current state is what I like to call its grittiness… that's going to change."

SomeraRoad's head of its KC office, Grant Hromas, tells Axios the redevelopment will greatly improve the neighborhood's streets and utilities while creating more places for people to live, work and play.

• "The neighborhood will ultimately be more walkable and more accessible, all while honoring and preserving what makes the West Bottoms so unique and special," he says.

Context: Esselman tells Axios that developers have been good partners in working with the community.

• He says the biggest change people will experience outside of building renovations is better roads and navigation.
• A Kansas City ordinance will provide up to $36.3 million over 30 years for infrastructure improvements.
• "We have been happy to see the great reception from the community," Hromas says, adding that his KC-based team are "community stakeholders."

Between the lines: While many West Bottoms business owners have reportedly supported the new development plans, Esselman says there's a tension between business owners who like doing things their way and building owners who want to see more use and revenue.

• He hasn't heard concerns about prices increasing — although county property value assessment increases have already begun putting a strain on building owners.

State of play: In May 2024, crews imploded the Weld Wheel building — a nine-story behemoth unfit for reuse across the street from SomeraRoad's local office. The Kansas City Star reported in July that construction is set to begin in the next few months.

• The Depot, a community plaza at 11th and Santa Fe, is already under construction.

What's next: Pins Mechanical, a bowling and arcade bar, is slated to be an anchor tenant at The Depot as early as 2026, the Business Journal reports.

New to the West Bottoms

You don't need to look far to find a recent example of adaptive reuse in the West Bottoms. A 133-year-old carriage manufacturing building at 13th and Hickory now houses four pools and a tea cafe as part of the newly opened Klā Sanctuary.

The big picture: It's the same building Klā's lead architectural firm, DRAW, chose as its office space, resulting in a mixed-use office and retail renovation.

• While the building isn't part of SomeraRoad's plan, DRAW has ties to one of the projects.

The spa: Klā's sanctuary includes a 4,000-square-foot communal bathhouse with flowing architecture and state-of-the-art amenities:

• Four pools — warm, hot, cold and salt — for different thermal experiences;
• An herbal steam room and an infrared sauna;
• And showers, swimsuit dryers and bottomless tea.

The cafe: Selah is a tea bar open to the public and sanctuary guests alike, independent of spa bookings.

• It offers teas from Shang Tea House in Crown Center, plus pour-over coffee and espresso alternatives, like matcha and chicory root lattes.

What they're saying: Co-owner Matthew Matsch, who was a founding partner of Messenger Coffee, tells Axios his new business is a way to create a culture of slowing down and connecting with others. He said Klā is the result of a personal evolution for him away from coffee and into wellness.

• "It's a space that says, 'Retreat for a bit,'" he says. "There aren't phones allowed or cameras allowed."
• "The nature of tea itself, you have to slow down to appreciate it," hospitality and cafe manager Nick Geels says. "It kind of welcomes you in."

Zoom out: DRAW Architecture was already working with Klā when it bought the historic West Bottoms building both companies now call home.

• "I knew that [SomeraRoad] was already working on developing retail, office, residential and a boutique hotel just around the corner," founding principal architect Dominique Davison tells Axios. "It seemed like a great way to introduce a symbiotic program into the energy that has been growing in this part of the West Bottoms."
• She says that while redeveloping these old buildings "is not for the faint of heart," they have "enormous charm and potential" that ultimately contribute to the neighborhood.

What's next: DRAW is the planned architect for the new Avery Hotel at 11th and Sante Fe — part of SomeraRoad's first phase.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with comment from SomeraRoad.