This Week in KC

🏛️ PRAIRIE VILLAGE BREAKS GROUND ON ITS $30 MILLION CITY HALL​
Prairie Village broke ground July 10 on a new $30 million municipal complex on Mission Road, ending years of resident pushback and a dismissed lawsuit. The plan includes an 18,350-square-foot city hall at $15.5 million and $4.5 million to buy the former church site, funded largely by $27 million in municipal bonds. The current city hall at 7700 Mission Road will be converted into an expanded municipal court and police headquarters.

🚲 KANSAS CITY STARTS WRITING ITS FIRST REAL E-BIKE RULES​
A Kansas City Council committee took up a proposal July 14 to define what counts as an e-bike, which classes can legally operate, and where riders can go. The measure would align KC with Missouri state law to cut rider confusion and standardize enforcement, though it is still at the committee stage, not a passed ordinance. KC is the last major metro holdout: Overland Park, Prairie Village, and Olathe have all already adopted e-bike and scooter rules, and Johnson County officials are pushing to unify them.

✈️ FRONTIER ADDS A KCI TO ORLANDO NONSTOP STARTING NOVEMBER 20​
Frontier Airlines will launch a nonstop from Kansas City International to Orlando on November 20, running four times a week with introductory fares from $69. It is one of four new Frontier routes announced July 14 and follows the airline's new KCI to Las Vegas nonstop that started July 5. The Orlando addition gives KC travelers another warm-weather option as KCI keeps expanding its route map.

🏠 JACKSON COUNTY JUST PULLED 1,000+ HOMES OFF THE AUCTION BLOCK​
More than 1,000 Jackson County homes were set to be auctioned on the courthouse steps in August over unpaid property taxes, until County Executive Phil LeVota canceled the entire sale by executive order. His reason cuts straight to the county's long-running assessment mess. The sale would have covered unpaid 2022, 2023, and 2024 taxes, and LeVota says he isn't confident the 2022 numbers are even correct. Canceling it, he said, was "the right thing to do," buying time to verify property records and tax-bill math. For homeowners staring down a forced sale, it's a reprieve, and the latest fallout from the assessment controversy that's dogged the county for years.

🏗️ KANSAS CITY IS BUILDING WHILE THE REST OF MISSOURI STALLS​

Building permits in the Kansas City metro are up nearly 67% over a year ago, even as homebuilders across Missouri report a statewide construction slump. Census Bureau figures show metro permits rose 5.7% from April and 66.7% from May 2025, with 509 single-family permits pulled in May and 2,358 so far this year, a 32% jump over the same stretch in 2025. Builders credit part of the turnaround to Kansas City rolling back portions of its 2023 energy-conservation code in February, which developers said had driven up construction costs. The takeaway: while much of the state pulls back, KC's housing pipeline is running hot.

🏫 KCPS IS SPENDING $474 MILLION TO REBUILD ITS SCHOOLS THIS SUMMER​
Kansas City students head back this fall to new floors, paint, lighting, and playgrounds, courtesy of the $474 million bond voters approved last year. Crews are working through the summer at Border Star Montessori, Central High School, and Gladstone and Wendell Phillips elementaries, with each of those buildings set to reopen renovated by fall. The upgrades run from new HVAC and LED lighting to rebuilt bathrooms, cafeterias, auditoriums, and turf fields. Every school in the district is guaranteed at least $5 million from the bond, one of the largest reinvestments in KCPS facilities in a generation.

What you might have missed last week

• As Kansas City's monthlong World Cup celebration came to a close, one Olathe couple began a new chapter by saying "I do" beneath the iconic 65-foot Fan Festival heart.
• ​Sporting KC is making it easier than ever to experience the excitement of match day!
• West Bottoms Whiskey Company is celebrating its fifth anniversary with the launch of Murdock's Opus, a limited-edition Kansas City whiskey and the first release in its new Chronograph Collection

🏢 DEVELOPMENT SCENE

ENCORE TAKES ITS NEXT STEP
(A 33-STORY TOWER ACROSS FROM THE KAUFFMAN CENTER)

The tallest new residential tower on Kansas City's board right now just moved a step closer. On Monday, July 13, Overland Park–based EPC Real Estate Group presented Encore to the Port KC Board of Commissioners — a 33-story, $215 million project on the west side of Broadway between 16th and 17th streets, directly across from the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. The first of three parcels would bring 392 residential units on just 1.34 acres, with I-35 visibility that puts the tower on the skyline drivers see coming into downtown. If the financing comes together, EPC is targeting a late-2026 groundbreaking and residents by 2029.

This isn't a brand-new reveal — Encore has been in motion for months, and earlier plans floated a larger three-building program north of $400 million. What's new is the ask: developers are seeking tax incentives from Port KC, and the board is expected to take up formal consideration and a vote in the coming weeks.

That's where it gets complicated. Port KC is already under scrutiny over how its incentive deals affect Kansas City Public Schools' revenue — two of seven recent Port KC projects were flagged over those exact concerns. Encore now steps into that debate. The height and the address make it a skyline story; the tax-break vote makes it a test of how far KC will lean on public incentives to keep downtown building. The rendering is ready. The financing and the vote are not.

Business Scene

• 🛍️ RexKC opens a 16,000-sq-ft West Bottoms flagship — Two-floor secondhand-fashion store at 1280 Liberty St. with Café Rex upstairs; grand opening today (Fri, July 17). rexkc.co​
• 🍔 Disco Burger goes brick-and-mortar in Brookside — The River Market smashburger kiosk gets a real restaurant at 600 E. 63rd St., opening in stages. @disco.burger​
• ⚾ Sandlot Social brings baseball "eatertainment" to Lenexa — 10 HitTrax batting suites, KC's biggest LED screen, and a full sports bar at 12120 W. 95th St. sandlotsocialkc.com​
• 🌮 Nunez Foods brings birria and "pizzadillas" to the West Bottoms — The KCK favorite's second, more sit-down location opened June 28. nunezfoods.com​
• 🐟 Charlie D's is opening its 4th location, across from City Hall — Gary Hill brings his seafood-and-chicken spot downtown to 1124 Oak St. charliedsonline.com​
• ☕ Apparition Coffee, a heavy-metal-themed café, is now open in Waldo — Owner Brian Denman's shop takes over the old Second Best space at 328 W. 85th St. @apparition_coffee​
• 🛒 Trader Joe's signs go up in Merriam, fall opening in sight — The $102M Grand Station Marketplace anchor at 8700 Shawnee Mission Pkwy is Merriam's first new grocery in years. City of Merriam​
• 🥬 Downtown KCK lands a new grocery in the old Merc space — Anthony Estrada reopens 501 Minnesota Ave. as United Market under a three-year city deal. UG agenda​

🎨 ART SCENE

KC FRINGE FESTIVAL​
KC'S BIGGEST ARTS BLOWOUT TURNS 20

Kansas City's largest arts celebration is back for its 20th year: 300+ performances over 11 days, packed into a dozen small venues across the metro. Think theater, comedy, improv, dance, music, storytelling, puppetry, burlesque, film, and visual art — all unjuried and uncensored, meaning anyone can put on a show and nothing is filtered. That's the whole appeal: it's raw and unpredictable, and you're just as likely to stumble into a breakout hit as a beautiful mess. Every show runs under 60 minutes, so it's easy to catch two or three in a night.

When & where

• Dates: July 16–26, 2026 (the newsletter lands on opening weekend)
• Venues: a dozen-plus small spaces, mostly in the Crossroads and around Union Station — including The Bird Comedy Theater, City Stage at Union Station, Unicorn Theatre, The Arts Asylum, Whim Space, Kansas City Oasis, and the Center for Spiritual Living

How it works (two things to buy)

1. A $5 Fringe Button — required once to get into any Fringe event all festival long. It's basically your festival pass, and the $5 helps fund the whole thing. Free for kids 12 and under.
2. A ticket for each show — $15 per show ($8 for kids 3–12). See a lot? Grab a 5-Show Pass ($65) or 10-Show Pass ($120) to save.

Where to buy: online at kcfringe.org, or at each venue's box office 30 minutes before showtime.

What's "Fringe 411"? It's the festival's central box office and help desk — inside The Bird Comedy Theater (103 W 19th St., Crossroads). Go there for tickets, buttons, passes, printed programs, swag, or any questions. It's also the only place that takes cash — every venue box office is card-only. (Open Fri–Sat July 17–18, noon–5 PM during opening weekend.)

This weekend's after-hours extras (beyond the 300 shows)

• Fri, July 17, 11 PM — Bird Jr.'s Carnival of Curiosi-THREE'S After Party
• Sat, July 18, 11 PM — Flashlight Cabaret After Party (hosted by Derek Trautwein)
• Sun, July 19, 11 AM — Foundations of Commedia dell'Arte Workshop

Runs through July 26, wrapping with the "Best of Fringe" awards (top-attended show at each venue earns a bonus performance) and the Curtain Call Closing Party on July 26.

Full lineup and downloadable program at kcfringe.org.

🏐 SPORTS SCENE

KANSAS CITY CLOSED THE BOOK ON ITS WORLD CUP
​(AND THE NUMBERS ARE STAGGERING)

Kansas City played its sixth and final World Cup match this week, capping a run that put the Heartland on the global stage. KC2026 CEO Pam Kramer called it proof KC is "the Soccer Capital of America." The crowds are gone; the reputation stays.

By the numbers:

• 413,169 fans at Kansas City Stadium across 6 matches — averaging 68,862 per match
• A historic quarterfinal, plus teams from 10 countries and 18 goals
• ~23,000 pieces of international media coverage (96%+ neutral or positive)
• An estimated 166 billion global audience and 55.5 billion social impressions
• 400,000+ FIFA Fan Festival visitors over 19 days
• 215,000 ConnectKC26 transit passes (145,000 on Stadium Direct alone)
• 3,400 volunteers at a 90% show rate — earning "Disney-level" reviews

On the pitch:

• Messi's hat trick vs. Algeria — the oldest player ever to score a World Cup hat trick, in his 200th international cap
• Argentina's extra-time win over Switzerland to reach the semifinal

KC as home base: All four Team Base Camp nations set up here.

• Algeria at KU (Lawrence adopted Les Fennecs)
• Argentina at Sporting KC's Performance Center
• England at Swope Soccer Village
• Netherlands at the KC Current Training Center, whose fan walk drew 36,000 downtown.

REAL ESTATE SCENE

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Weekend Events

Your KC Summer, All in One Place

We put together a 21-page Kansas City Ultimate Summer Guide covering everything you need for summer 2026.
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From World Cup match days and Pride to the best BBQ patios, hidden gems, day trips, free outdoor movies, pet-friendly markets, and a full neighborhood Saturday itinerary.
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Whether you've lived here 20 years or just moved in, there's something in here you haven't tried yet.