KC’s remaining shopping malls face an economic crossroads (and starkly different futures)

By Tommy Felts | July 10, 2024

Editor’s note: This story was originally published by Kansas City PBS/Flatland, a member of the Kansas City Media Collective, which also includes Startland News, KCUR 89.3, American Public Square, The Kansas City Beacon, and Missouri Business Alert. Click here to read the original story. [divide] Country Club Plaza, Oak Park Mall, Independence Center hit with similar challenges…

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New Plaza owner shares vision for iconic district — including a return to local cuisine

By Tommy Felts | July 1, 2024

Editor’s note: This story was originally published by Kansas City PBS/Flatland, a member of the Kansas City Media Collective, which also includes Startland News, KCUR 89.3, American Public Square, The Kansas City Beacon, and Missouri Business Alert. Click here to read the original story. [divide] Addressing crime, deferred maintenance noted as top priorities; new projects, tenants to…

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Plaza retailers concerned for employee safety after recent shootings, upticks in thefts, harassment at iconic KC shopping district

By Tommy Felts | September 8, 2023

No business owner should have to deal with ongoing incidents that threaten the safety of their employees and customers, Tyler Enders shared, but that’s the reality for some entrepreneurs on Kansas City’s Country Club Plaza. Employees at Made in KC’s marketplace location on the Plaza were closing up for the night Sept. 2 — the…

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I’m black and a Plaza business owner — in that order; why a Main Street entrepreneur joined KC’s protests

By Tommy Felts | June 2, 2020

Isaac Collins is exhausted, but he can’t sleep. His wife and mother are both worried about the 31-year-old community entrepreneur whose business is just blocks away from the scene of late-night mayhem and unrest following peaceful protests on Kansas City’s Country Club Plaza. But it isn’t rioters and looters that have Collins on edge, he…

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