Historic buildings spared from demolition in Kansas City neighborhood — for now

In the first test of new city rules to delay demolitions of historic buildings, Kansas City officials put a pause on an insurance company’s request to knock down four vacant homes in the Valentine neighborhood after continued neighborhood outcry.

Meanwhile, new details have emerged about possible redevelopment on properties slated for demolition.

In the fall, Valentine residents mourned and protested as Kansas City Life Insurance moved ahead with the demolition of more than 20 properties in the neighborhood, which the company called non-viable and a safety risk ahead of possible redevelopment. KC Life owns dozens of properties in Midtown on and around Summit Street/Southwest Trafficway and Pennsylvania Avenue near its Broadway Boulevard headquarters.

In December, the city approved new rules that could allow the Historic Preservation Commission to delay demolition for 45 days if a building could be eligible for a special historic status.

A new round of demolitions proposed by KC Life was before the commission on Friday under the new rules. The latest proposal involves four buildings: a four-plex on Jefferson Street from 1909, a house on Summit Street from 1905, and two century-old colonnades on Summit Street. All have fallen into poor condition, and the company says they are dangerous and that saving them is not feasible.

City staff recommended a 45-day hold on the proposed demolition because it would remove eligible historic properties in a potential historic district.

Valentine neighborhood

Mary Jo Draper, of the Valentine Neighborhood Association, said at the Friday hearing that the four buildings up for demolition are part of the historical fabric of the neighborhood and add architectural value to the city, folding into the history of Valentine’s Norman School, which is now made up of loft apartments.

“They developed within a very particular time period. They retain the character of the years that they were developed,” Draper said. “And we think that there’s a strong case to be made for the historic value of looking at this district as a district rather than individual houses.”

The Valentine Neighborhood Association has proposed creating a formal historic district covering the neighborhood that would add special protections from properties for properties within its boundaries and benefits for preservation.

Ultimately, the Historic Preservation Commission voted to delay the demolition of the four properties for 45 days. A demolition permit could be issued after 45 days.

The commission also encouraged KC Life to go back to the city about the dangerous buildings status of the properties.

Under the new rules, city staff could automatically approve demolition of buildings that are found to be dangerous under city code. As of Friday, the four buildings are not on the city’s list of dangerous buildings.

‘Bone cancer’

Steve Huey, a structural engineer with Wallace Design Collective, has worked on historic preservation for decades and analyzed the building conditions on behalf of KC Life. He said he is often called into similar meetings to dispute someone else’s opinion that a building is dangerous.

Huey said KC Life had a list of buildings the company was considering for demolition, and the company has since determined not to demolish some of them.

But the four buildings that are up for demolition are dangerous, he said. They variously feature shifted porches, insect damage, rotting wood, structures out of place, water damage, plumbing problems, beam deterioration and/or a leaning chimney.

The buildings present precarious safety concerns, could cost millions to repair and could collapse during reconstruction, Huey said.

“At one point, we were standing out in front of one of these buildings, and someone came by and made the statement, which is I think a good way to look at this,” he said. “It’s a colloquial term: ‘These buildings have good bones.’”

“I would say these buildings have bone cancer,” he said, adding that they are more dangerous than they appear to be at first glance.

Gina Anderson, director of real estate for KC Life, said that preserving the buildings is not economically feasible for the company — especially for an insurance company that could lose money on assets — while the transformation of Summit Street into the six-lane Southwest Trafficway, which happened in the 1950s, fundamentally altered the street’s character and reduced the value of properties facing Summit Street with increased traffic, noise, pollution and pedestrian safety concerns.

Historical authenticity was also lost when the trolley was taken off Summit Street, Anderson said. The building on Jefferson Street, meanwhile, is unsafe and could collapse next to its neighbors, while the properties have attracted crime, she said.

Redevelopment details

Anderson said KC Life has an “emerging vision” for redevelopment on its land in Midtown, which retaining the three Summit Street properties would hinder, including plans for a new colonnade court modeled after the Roanoke Court apartments south of Valentine Road.

The plans include building five new colonnades that don’t face the trafficway and would use modern construction materials to keep out sound while fitting the historic fabric. There would be 30 units, replacing the 13 units that are there now. KC Life is contemplating a possible single-family home on the Jefferson site and further housing development at the intersection of Valentine and Summit.

Further details about the plans were not available on Friday.

The company recently celebrated its 100th anniversary in the neighborhood. Anderson said KC Life is committed to the neighborhood and has continued to make improvements on its properties since she started with the company in 2021 while looking to construct new residential units.