Ingram's May 2024

Setting a Foundation for Progress

Fifty years ago, the Kansas City region was closing one of its most dramatic eras in public construction. When the first issue of this magazine’s predecessor hit the streets in December 1974, both the Truman Sports Complex and Kansas City International Airport were brand new. Downtown, Kansas City had just finished a series of major develop ments that included opening the Commerce Tower, expansion of the Muehlebach Hotel and Hallmark’s plan to turn old Signboard Hill into something called Crown Center. But the wider metro region was about to experience a transformation. A project that had started nearly a decade earlier was by 1974 taking shape in the form of an asphalt ring around the central core. By the time Interstate 435 was completed in 1986, it had triggered development not just in Wyandotte County but suburban development into the far reaches of neighboring Johnson County as well as Northland’s Clay and Platte counties. In the 50 years that followed, Kansas City was knee-deep in big business deals, head lines made on a national level, and sweeping changes. Here are some of the pivotal points along the path of that journey: 1974 p Kemper Arena opens in the Kansas City West Bottoms, Oak Park Mall opens in Johnson County, and Kansas City becomes an NHL town—for a few seasons—with the arrival of the Kansas City Scouts. Independence Square opens. 1975 The first building opens at Corporate Woods, signaling Johnson County’s transformation from a bedroom community for commuters to a regional employment center.

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Ingrams.com

May 2024