‘Frustrating’ meeting about midtown KC Costco offers few answers, residents say
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kansas City residents demanded answers about Costco’s plan to convert the Linwood store.
- Costco said the conversion decision came from top management and offered few details.
- The conversion would eliminate the pharmacy, tire shop, optical center and food court.
Dozens of Kansas City residents demanded answers from Costco officials during a public meeting on Tuesday about the company’s plan to change its Linwood Boulevard grocery store into a business center.
But some said they left the meeting at the Westport branch of the Kansas City Library frustrated and angry that their questions were met with few satisfying answers.
The most common question the residents asked was what factors led the company to seek the conversion that would turn its only store in the city into a business center focused on selling products to small businesses rather than local residents.
The residents were frustrated when the officials repeatedly said the decision came from the top of the company and they could not provide any further details other than what changes would be coming.
Ed Scanlon, who lives near the store, said he felt the Costco representatives were deflecting questions. He said the representatives didn’t seem to have any interest actually hearing the residents’ concerns.
“They’re here to try to sell it to us, to shove it down our throats,” Scanlon said.
City rules require staging the neighborhood meeting about Costco’s rezoning proposal ahead of its Plan Commission hearing in July. Developers have to host neighborhood meetings open to the public about various kinds of development plans to share information, answer questions and hear concerns as they move through city review.
The Costco representatives used the meeting as a chance to share details about how the wholesale grocery store would be different once it converted to a business center in the future.
They said the members-only store would still be open to its current members and would continue to sell groceries like packaged meat, produce, snacks and dairy products. It would also continue to sell household items like paper towels, diapers and cleaning supplies.
But the change would come with the store removing items like clothing, jewelry and electronics. It would also no longer offer services like the pharmacy, the tire shop, the optical center and the food court.
A huge community loss
The loss of the pharmacy was a common concern from the audience, with several residents asking the representatives to consider keeping it while making the other changes.
Molly Scanlon, who is Ed’s daughter, said she’s shopped at the store since it opened in 2001. She said the community the store serves includes a large population of older residents who rely on its pharmacy that’s set to disappear. She said those residents won’t have many other options to get their medications once the conversion happens.
Scanlon also questioned the Costco officials if the company considered how the change would affect the local community.
“Where are we going to take care of our families and our children?” Scanlon asked.
Others expressed anger that they would have to travel miles to the suburbs to shop at similar wholesale stores that would include the full ancillary products and services.
Joy Curtis said the midtown area doesn’t have enough big box grocery stores, requiring residents to travel just to shop at Target or Walmart for necessities. She said the business center may still have over-the-counter medicines she uses, but that’s not guaranteed.
“It’s just frustrating,” Curtis said. “I don’t think they realize how many people they’re going to lose that shop there for the basics.”
Bruce Appel said after the meeting that the amount of angry residents questioning the change should be a wake-up call to Costco leaders. He said the store has served as an important grocery store for the center of the city and neighboring communities have supported it for 25 years.
“It’s been a little oasis for this community,” Appel said. “I don’t think they understand the role of this store in this city.”
Nearly the entire City Council penned a letter asking Costco to reconsider the change, noting concerns about how the changes could impact nearby residents who shop and work at the store. The plan remains under review by city staff.
The midtown Costco opened in 2001 under a plan that dates back to the 1990s, and sought to transform a blighted area with new suburban-style retail development that would benefit local residents.
The plan called for redirecting increased tax revenues from new development into both helping cover development costs and supporting housing rehabs in the midtown area.
