Tommy Felts

Twelve Kansas City restaurants, breweries and other businesses were chosen this week for grants to expand patio space — including adding furniture and lighting, painting murals and more.

Phil "Sike Style" Shafer is known for his vibrant depictions of life in Kansas City. The artist was selected to create a mural for the newly completed Buck O'Neil Bridge downtown.

First opened as a pop-up kitchen inside Dodsons Bar & Commons in Waldo, Cosmo Burger's smashburgers and tots quickly became a Kansas City favorite. Their new location on Locust Street sits in a popular corner of the Crossroads Arts District, and will add new menu items like fries, milkshakes and cocktails.

Missouri Rep. Mark Alford said the U.S. Small Business Administration should relocate its regional office to Columbia. While Kansas City is not actually a "sanctuary city," Mayor Quinton Lucas has expressed support for the city's growing population of immigrants and refugees.

While Kansas City, Missouri, considers aid to small businesses plagued by thefts, break-ins and vandalism, the River Market will increase the presence of security officers during the "witching hours" between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

TIME Magazine's annual list of 100 must-visit places around the world includes two locations in the Midwest, both of which opened in Kansas City this year.

Near the Hy-Vee Arena, the historic bridge is being refit with 35,000 square feet of music venues, coffee shops, dining and trails. The project will physically connect Kansas City, Missouri, and Kansas City, Kansas, and hopes to revitalize the riverfront.

The Westside welcomed in a rich and diverse community of Latin American immigrants, but it was broken up by the construction of I-35 in the late 1960s. Kansas City will develop a comprehensive plan to increase mobility and connectivity, repair the community, and redress inequities and barriers to opportunity.

Meta can receive up to nearly $1.8 billion in sales and use tax exemptions over the next 15 years for its new data center in Kansas City's Northland. But leaders say they expect the investment to draw even more tech companies to the region.

Kansas City officials announced Thursday that a 1 million-square-foot Meta facility will be constructed at the Golden Plains Technology Park. The company is expected to invest more than $800 million to build out the complex, and will hire up to 100 operational jobs.