Northeast News
June 15, 2016

Kudos to Councilwoman Jolie Justus for finally finding the courage to stand up and ask what the rest of the city is asking in regard to 18th and Vine. Where’s the plan?

The fact of the matter is this, there is no comprehensive and cohesive plan to prioritize and develop projects at 18th and Vine. Never has been, and to date there still isn’t one. Apparently the “plan” is to keep kicking the can down the proverbial financial road until someone starts asking for a strategic plan that covers the whole district.

The Kansas City Museum at Corinthian Hall, a scant three miles away from 18th and Vine, has been planning since 2010 and already has some major successes behind it as far as renovation, redevelopment and programming are concerned. Within the next few months the city’s Parks Department, the management component for the Museum, is scheduled to release Phase I of a two-year plan that guides the restoration of the first two floors of the old Long Mansion and launches a number of new exhibits and programming initiatives. This planning at every turn has involved the community at large and has helped boost attendance at Museum exhibits and programs over the last 18 months.

In the case of 18th and Vine where no strategic plan exists, the converse is true. How often do we hear about programs or new exhibits at The Vine? The sad fact is we don’t and that’s a slap in the face to everyone, Buck O’Neil included, who put so much time, sweat and effort into supposedly ensuring that the legacy of both the Negro Baseball Leagues and Kansas City Jazz could be celebrated.

The real losers in this whole sad charade of throwing fistfuls of cash at a culturally significant district are the museums that exist there and the quality, or lack thereof, of the visitor experience. If this Council is intent on throwing more cash at this district, it’s high time there be stipulations tied to it, like the development of a comprehensive and strategic plan for the district before another dime is pledged there. That’s just common sense economics.