In the Dotte dispatch: Why KCK wants to kill Indian Springs redevelopment
Editor’s note: The following is from this week’s In the Dotte newsletter. You can sign up here to get them delivered to your inbox.
Good morning, Wyandotte County!
Some have said that filling the site of KCK’s former dead mall would bring needed housing to Midtown.
A local business owner once told me he thought it would do more for the city than the Kansas City Chiefs’ incoming stadium.
And although a group of developers have long tried to turn the vacant spot in the heart of KCK into something meaningful, government officials are effectively trying to kill the project.
I’m Sofi Zeman, your guide through all things KCK. Welcome back to In the Dotte. Let’s get to it.
Later this month, Wyandotte County commissioners may consider whether the local government should dump Eastside Innovation and its plans to bring a mixed-use development with numerous units of housing, grocery shopping and more to a long-vacant lot off State Avenue and I-635.
The project, named Midtown Station, would stand where the former Indian Springs Mall once stood before its 2016 demolition. And if it falls through, it wouldn’t be a first for that site.
The government’s Economic Development and Finance Commission recently moved forward a recommendation to revoke Eastside Innovation’s request for proposal, citing that the two parties couldn’t reach an agreement on how to pay for the land the project would be built on.
But the developer behind the project, meanwhile, says that government dysfunction and high turnover disrupted negotiations and made it more difficult to get the project done.
Check out my recent story to learn why both the local government and developer think the two parties can’t seem to get on the same page.
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And, if you have questions about Wyandotte County or a tip about what else I should look into, please email me at szeman@kcstar.com
Thank you for reading. See ya back here next week!
Sofi’s selects
🍎 New grocery store alert! KCK officials just gave a KC-area man the OK to fill the food desert left by another downtown grocer’s closure.
♥️ One of our columnists dubbed this local activist a threat to the status quo, and her work touched countless lives. We remember KCK’s Janice Witt, who recently died at 59.
⚖️ A Wyandotte commissioner who said he wanted to represent KCK at the state level has pulled out of this year’s election. What does that mean for his local seat?
What in the UG
🏢 After a top official’s abrupt exit from local office, a new man has been tasked with leading Wyandotte County through the rest of 2026.
🚨 The person behind Wyandotte County’s key economic development negotiations — including the Chiefs stadium — was arrested on felony charges over the weekend. What does that mean for the local government?
Get school’d
🎒 First it was a state lawmaker. Now, the federal government is going after KCKPS for its policies affecting transgender students. Why?
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