Dillons is coming to the Northland. More KC-area stores will follow

A new Dillons grocery store in Kansas City’s Northland could be among the first of several in the region as the brand returns to the metro area.

The city’s plan commission signed off on plans for a new Dillons store off Northeast Shoal Creek Parkway and North Oak Trafficway on Wednesday, ahead of a final vote by the City Council at a later date.

The site was originally eyed for a Hy-Vee grocery store and gas station alongside other retail development in 2021, but those plans did not ultimately come to fruition. The new plan will make way for a 100,000-square-foot Dillon’s store and a gas station.

The proposal could affect the layout of Karapat Drive, which connects a nearby neighborhood to Oak Trafficway. City staff have discussed re-routing the street past the water tower to Northeast 109th Terrace, eliminating a possible dead end.

Plans have already been announced for a Dillons store in Olathe, while plans were filed for a Lee’s Summit store, and a proposal for a second Northland store is expected soon.

And Dillons is eyeing at least 10 sites throughout the metro, according to the development team.

“It’s a really good thing,” Patricia Jensen, attorney representing the development team, said at the plan commission hearing on Wednesday.

Dillons, which has several locations across Kansas, falls under its parent company Kroger, a grocery company based in Ohio, overseeing several regional brands.

The brand’s plans for expansion in Olathe and Missouri mark its return to the Kansas City metro area after nearly 20 years.

The Shoal Creek site has been undeveloped since at least 2006, according to city documents.

This story was originally published March 5, 2026 at 4:19 PM.