Construction is now underway on the $300 million redevelopment of Kansas City’s Parade Park Homes, one of the country’s oldest Black-owned housing cooperatives.
The transformation will result in about 1,100 apartments, townhomes, and flats near the Historic 18th and Vine district.
“I want the people of Kansas City to know just how important it is,” said U.S. Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II at the groundbreaking on Friday. “This was once one of the citadels for the African American community.”
The redevelopment plan, led by Flaherty & Collins Development and Twelfth Street Heritage Corporation, marks a new chapter for Parade Park, often considered a crown jewel and point of pride for Kansas City’s Black neighborhoods.
The Kansas City Council in March approved $20 million to support the redevelopment project, located northeast of 18th Street and Woodland Avenue. The project’s first phase includes construction of 479 townhomes, apartments and flats. The first phase of construction is set to be complete in 2027.
According to the Kansas City Business Journal, 490 units will be made affordable for people making between 30% and 60% of the median family income. 535 apartments will be affordable for people making between 60% and 80% of the median family income.
60 units, to be developed in future construction phases, will be available to own. Some units will be priced at market rates, and others will be made specifically as senior housing. The development will also include retail and office space.
“Parade Park’s story is one of resilience,” said 3rd District-at-Large Council member Melissa Patterson Hazley, noting the development will become the largest housing development project east of Troost Avenue.
Halsey also acknowledged, historically, Parade Park wasn’t just a place where families lived next door to each other.
“They actually governed together, built equity together, and created a model of self determination that inspired communities across the country,” she said. “This is more than a development. It's restoration, it's renewal and it's a promise to our community.”
In addition to city funding, the Parade Park redevelopment project received a 30-year property tax break from Port Authority in September, and $15.5 million in federal grant funding at the start of this year.
Parade Park’s history
Parade Park was established in 1963 as Kansas City’s first Black-owned housing cooperative, meaning the residents owned a share of the nonprofit that controlled the development. But it fell on hard times in recent years, as living conditions deteriorated and turmoil brewed between management and residents.
Without enough money to repair the aging townhomes, residents lived with issues like leaking roofs and black mold, resulting in low occupancy, and low inspection scores from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“People have been leaving weekly for fear of being foreclosed on and not knowing what the situation was,” longtime resident Debra Williams told KCUR in 2022. “So, they just left.”
All of those issues led HUD to take over the property in 2022 and then foreclose on it in 2023. Kansas City purchased Parade Park in that foreclosure sale last year, then transferred the property to Flaherty & Collins and Twelfth Street Heritage Corporation for redevelopment.
Remaining Parade Park residents relocated earlier this year. Residents who chose to return to the new development will be prioritized for units and have the right of first refusal on new homes. Any residents still living at Parade Park were told by the developer to move by the end of this month, according to KCTV5.
“There's a lot of history to the Parade Park neighborhood,” said Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas. “A lot of outstanding families and people have lived here, have worked here, have built up community here. And I have to say, we are proud to build a new beginning today in Kansas City.”
