One of KC’s oldest buildings could face the wrecking ball despite efforts to save it
The Jeserich Building, one of the oldest in Kansas City, having stood on the northeast corner of 31st and Main street since 1888, could soon be demolished, city records indicate.
For at least three years, the fate of the distinctive commercial building — whose three-stories include brick Victorian touches, such as turret rooms and bow windows along its southwest corner — has been the topic of speculation.
In October 2022, the Kansas City Council, looking to save it and its three surrounding buildings from the wrecking ball, took the unusual move of going against the owner’s wishes and voted to place the Jeserich Building, also known as the Tower building, and those attached, on the Kansas City Register of Historic Places.
Doing so essentially saved the building from possible demolition, requiring the owners to seek approval from the city to make any changes to the building’s exterior.
Should the owners have sought to demolish the building, the designation would have required them to seek a special permit, known as a certificate of appropriateness, from the city’s Historic Preservation Commission. If the commission denies the certificate, such work cannot be done for three years.
New owners with a plan
In September, ownership of the Jeserich and surrounding buildings on 1.25 acres of land changed hands, from a PriceMgmtCo.-allied firm to Thirty-First and Main Properties LLC, led by Thomas Feyerabend Jr. of Blue Springs, who also is an owner of the Union Hill Animal Hospital north of the 31st and Main buildings.
His LinkedIn profile lists him as president and chief executive officer of Managex Consulting LLC.
Contacted by The Star, Feyerabend said he very much recognized that issues surrounding the historic building are “sensitive.” He said his company plans to distribute a news release regarding their plans for the buildings and the site perhaps as early as Tuesday.
He quoted from a prepared written statement, saying “The owner, Thirty-First and Main Properties LLC, appreciates the interest being expressed. A formal press release is forthcoming soon.”
City records point toward demolition
City records, however, show that the company filed for and, on Tuesday, received a permit to disconnect the city water line, often a precursor to demolition. Records from Missouri 811, which logs excavation for underground utility work, has approved Kansas City-based Industrial Wrecking & Salvage Co. at the site.
Under the heading “Type of work,” the document reads “Demolition.”
On August 6, the city added the buildings at 31st and Main to its dangerous buildings list. When the city labels a building as dangerous, it becomes easier to demolish under city code, despite its historic status. A city inspector has issued an order that the building be repaired or demolished within 30 days.
The complex has been boarded up and empty for several years.
An inspection report listed the following, among other issues: Its roof has partially collapsed. Stone, brick and window work has deteriorated. Stone elements on windows could collapse. Its interior has holes in the sheetrock, water damage, broken glass and graffiti. The basement is full of mold.
The inspection report says that the property owner also hired a structural engineer to examine and report on the property.
The corner containing the Jeserich building is a four-building complex, all of which are attached and include an array of addresses: 3031 Main St., 3027 Main St., 3029 Main St, 3041 Main St, 4 E. 31st St., 6, E. 31st St., and 8 E. 31st St.
Besides the Jeserich Building, the complex includes a limestone building known as the Ward building built in 1905.
‘Demolition by neglect’
Preservation group Historic Kansas City called the prospect of demolition disappointing and characterized the last several years as a case of “demolition by neglect.”
“These historic commercial buildings, the last remaining from turn-of-the-century development along the corridor, create a unique sense of place by telling the important story of Main Street’s early development,” the group said in a statement.
While the property is currently listed on the local register of historic places, Historic KC said it could also be eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places, which would unlock state and federal incentives for redevelopment.
In a statement, the Union Hill Neighborhood Association’s board said that, even in 2022, as they pushed for the corner to receive historic status, “many area residents hoped to eventually see the structures preserved by the new owners in some form as part a future development which retained the Victorian character of the existing neighborhood.”
“Despite neighborhood attempts to persuade the ownership group to maintain the properties over the past few years,” the group’s board said, “they were allowed to fall into further disrepair, resulting in the current situation.”
The neighborhood association said it has been frustrated by little progress and communication over the past three years, but that it hopes to be involved with discussions with the owners about redevelopment going forward.
“With the location framed by a brand new Union Hill streetcar stop, this area is of utmost importance to the neighborhood,” the board said.
If the building is demolished, it would, at least in the short term, leave an empty lot just steps away from a streetcar stop that’s expected to open next month as part of the Main Street extension.
The area is witnessing new development.
One block west, on the site of the former Trinity Lutheran Hospital, a new luxury apartment complex, ArriveKC, is rising. Expected to be finished in early 2027, the complex is to add 371 luxury apartments to the Union Hill landscape.
