Local

Five fronts of Kansas City business growth

Stories by Kansas City Star journalists, with AI summarization

The articles focus on different ways Kansas City’s business scene is expanding. They highlight land development, new restaurant openings, and city programs that support local commerce.

A large tract of land in Lee’s Summit, owned by the Mormon church, is set for development with help from city officials and private groups. New restaurants are appearing across the metro, such as a gourmet deli in Johnson County and a fried chicken and seafood spot near Rockhurst University. The River Market district saw three new restaurant concepts open, including a deli inside a vintage trolley. The city launched a pilot program that subsidizes storefronts for entrepreneurs ahead of the 2026 World Cup, aiming to fill empty spaces and support new business launches.

Car No. 551 offers The Hog & Heifer, a half-pound double cheeseburger with a quarter-pound of kielbasa. By Jenna Thompson

NO. 1: INSIDE 3 RESTAURANTS RECENTLY ADDED TO KANSAS CITY’S RIVER MARKET DISTRICT

Kansas City’s River Market is already home to several popular restaurant and retail spots — Thou Mayest, Pigwich and Brown Loe, to name a few. | Published October 14, 2025 | Read Full Story by Jenna Thompson

KC Fry Bros is a new restaurant serving chicken and seafood.

NO. 2: NEW KANSAS CITY FRIED CHICKEN AND SEAFOOD RESTAURANT HAS OPENED

Fried chicken wings, fried shrimp, fried catfish, fried tilapia. | Published October 14, 2025 | Read Full Story by Jenna Thompson

Kansas City hopes to fill empty storefronts with businesses during the World Cup through a program that would subsidize their rent and offer grants of up to $10,000. By Eric Adler

NO. 3: KC TO PAY FOR BUSINESSES TO OCCUPY EMPTY STOREFRONTS AS WORLD CUP PROGRAM BEGINS

Are you an artist, maybe a chef, or small business looking for a place to put your wares before what is expected to be Kansas City’s thousands of World Cup visitors? | Published October 15, 2025 | Read Full Story by Eric Adler

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La Fetta’s Queen sandwich has turkey, bacon, fresh mozzarella, fresh walnut pesto, pepperoncini, piquillo peppers and basil. By Jenna Thompson

NO. 4: GOURMET DELI OPENS IN JOHNSON COUNTY: ‘BEST SANDWICH THEY’VE EVER HAD’

Opening a deli hasn’t always been on Adam and Kelly Bracco’s bucket list. | Published October 15, 2025 | Read Full Story by Jenna Thompson

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A development plan presented Oct. 14 for the smaller section of a 4,000 tract of land in Lee’s Summit, owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints, proposes a series of residential and commercial developments along with dedicated green space.

NO. 5: MORMON CHURCH OWNS TONS OF LAND IN LEE’S SUMMIT. CITY HAS PLANS TO BUILD ON IT

After five years of talks with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the Mormon church, the city of Lee’s Summit has developed a plan for nearly 4,000 acres of vacant church-owned land in city limits. | Published October 16, 2025 | Read Full Story by Ilana Arougheti

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.