Oct. 6, 2010

In the mid-1990s, when Robert Altman was filming his classic movie, “Kansas City,” the building at 4601 St. John Ave. got a complete makeover that exposed the original elements of the storefronts, creating the air of 1930s Kansas City. Prior to that, however, the building’s pedigree is full of history, including being the home of the Crown Drug Store and one of the first Piggly-Wigglys in Kansas City.

But its primary claim to fame was being for many years the home of Cascio’s Corner and the weekly newspaper, the Northeast News.

The structure at 4601 St. John Ave. consists of six separate storefronts, most of which are occupied and generating rental income for the present owner. There has not been more than one vacancy at any time for more than four months during the past 50 or so years, the present owner said.

Each unit features separate utilities (gas, water and electric) and numerous upgrades to the façade and the roof. The building itself measures roughly 6,700 square feet, sitting on a lot measuring a shade more than 9,000 square feet. A private drive behind the building is available for loading and unloading to each back door.

The building also figures prominently in the Elmwood Business node of the ongoing St. John Corridor Plan that was developed recently by community stakeholders in the Indian Mound and Scarritt Renaissance neighborhood associations.

Victor G. Cascio has this commercial property listed at an extremely modest $285,000. If you’d like to see how commercial real estate could work for you, this might be the perfect opportunity to get in to the market. Call Victor today at (816) 483-0500. He’d be happy to take you through this owner/agent-listed commercial property.

– Michael Bushnell