KC developers score $15.5M from feds to rebuild homes in historic Black-owned co-op

Officials announced this week that developers snagged a multi-million dollar federal grant to help rebuild a historically Black former housing cooperative on Kansas City’s East Side.

Plans have been in the works for years to redevelop Parade Park Homes, one of the country’s oldest Black-owned housing co-ops until 2022. The complex, in the 18th and Vine Jazz District, faced high vacancy rates and poor conditions in some units in recent years, and community leaders have pushed to find a way forward.

Flaherty & Collins Properties and Twelfth Street Heritage Development Corp. took ownership of the site last spring, and the city approved plans in the fall to remake Parade Park Homes with over 1,000 new homes. Current residences would be demolished and replaced with mixed-use commercial space, new amenities and a mix of housing units at various price points, including market-rate units, affordable units and senior housing.

The plan includes protections for current residents from displacement and prioritizes them for the new units. The project, with a nine-digit price tag, will be constructed in phases through spring 2031.

On Wednesday, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II, D-Missouri, announced that the project will be awarded a $15.5 million federal grant through the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The funding comes through the department’s Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program, which offers funding for the rehabilitation and development of housing for people age 62 and up with qualifying incomes.

“I am so happy that my staff and I were successful in convincing HUD that Parade Park is a viable and valuable place to invest in the future of Kansas City’s Jazz District,” Rep. Cleaver said in a statement. “With this funding, our community has taken another major step in expanding access to affordable housing while maintaining local control of this historic property, which is the foundation to vibrant and prosperous communities.”

Cleaver said the work has been a team effort to ensure that Parade Park residents can remain in their homes and the community can receive redevelopment needed to create affordable housing for families on Kansas City’s east side.

“The work is not finished, but this is a major victory for the people of Kansas City, and I’m thrilled to have helped play a role in making it possible,” Cleaver said.

Mayor Quinton Lucas said on Facebook that the grant will “help build a bright future.”

“Parade Park Homes on 18th Street is an important part of our history, Kansas City’s Black heritage, and will continue to be a vital housing development welcoming Kansas Citians of all ages,” Lucas said.

This story was originally published January 16, 2025 at 3:22 PM.