Midwest City Scoop: Construction Starts in Kansas City

Overall Spending Expected to Fall Slightly as Non- Residential Activity Weakens

Residential work holds steady, while non-building sector should post strong gains after decline in 2016.

City Grill

Bill Johnson
Senior Vice President, Director of Design, Interiors
HOK

Peter Sloan
Vice President, Design Principal
HOK

“There’s a palpable level of energy and interest going on in multiple markets” in the city, Sloan says.

One proposed project is the $972-million Kansas City International Airport single terminal, which could soon materialize. Another is Johnson County’s $180-million courthouse, which has been in the works for almost 10 years and was approved by voters in November. Additionally, on April 4, “the city is voting on an $800-million infrastructure bond for the entire 400-sq-mile Kansas City metro area,” Johnson says.

On a broader level, Missouri’s recent “right to work” bill could impact unions in a “really significant way,” Sloan says. Plus, “three of the top construction companies here in town, JE Dunn, Turner and McCownGordon, have all had record years and are projecting really strong backlog in terms of their work,” Sloan adds. “It signals that this is not stopping anytime soon.”