Editorial: Projects help boost downtown Overland Park

The future of Overland Park’s downtown area appears brighter these days. Proposed new investments have the potential to continue reviving that older part of the city.

It’s crucial to keep residents living in the area, and two mixed-used projects will offer additional housing units to attract people to Overland Park’s core.

It’s also important that both redevelopments will have office space as well.

With the help of taxpayer subsidies, Overland Park officials are making smart moves to boost downtown.

One project — with an expected total cost of around $40 million — is called Avenue 80. It includes apartments, a parking garage and office and retail space at 80th Street and Metcalf Avenue.

The other, smaller project, worth about $10 million, is called InterUrban Lofts, at 79th and Conser streets. It also would feature residential units, a garage and office space.

The city extended the public assistance to help developers deal with building projects that require parking garages in the downtown area. Across the state line in Kansas City, officials have had to take that same step while trying to woo office and residential developers to their downtown.

Proponents of both Overland Park projects say they like the current vibe of the city’s downtown, which features smaller retail stores, restaurants and a farmer’s market.

Bringing in additional residents should help inject more vitality into older Overland Park. And this worthwhile effort also ought to ensure that northern Johnson County remains an attractive place for people and commerce long into the future.

This story was originally published June 9, 2015 at 3:50 PM with the headline "Editorial: Projects help boost downtown Overland Park."