Port Authority of Kansas City: Development Committee (May 11, 2026)

By Sarah Bleha, Kansas City Documenter

Summary

• Committee members held for further consideration incentive requests from developers of a data center and for expansion of a supplier of trucks and custom equipment. 
• Committee members recommended approval of incentives for an apartment complex in the Northland.
• Several improvements are in the works for the riverfront, including reclamation of land under the Town of Kansas Bridge and work on a “flyover” bridge that addresses a dangerous rail crossing on Lydia Avenue near the riverfront.

Notes

Agenda 

1. Consideration of Resolutions
   1. Issuance of Bonds
      1. Project Blitz
         1. Port KC CEO Jon Stephens described the project as an “AI factory and research facility,” but that it is “much different” than a traditional data center.
         2. Staff requested that this agenda item be held until, Stephens said, “we can provide more comprehensive information on some of the benefits of this.”
         3. Stephens provided no information on the location of the data center or the dollar amount of the bonds Port KC is considering issuing.
      2. Custom Truck One Source Inc.
         1. Port KC is considering a request by the company to issue up to $50 million in bonds to support the purchase and renovation of a 174,000-square-foot building at 4343 Clary Blvd., built in 1964, that will serve as a new manufacturing location.
         2. The plan also calls for installing and upgrading  rail infrastructure at the main Custom Truck One Source campus to connect the two sites.
         3. The project would be an expansion for the company, which has a facility in the Blue River corridor in east Kansas City.
         4. The project is projected to provide up to 300 jobs with an average salary of approximately $81,000 per year.
         5. The company is also seeking exemptions from taxes on real estate, personal property and construction materials.
         6. This agenda item was also held so Kansas City Public Schools can have more input on the proposed incentives.
      3. Brighton Crossing Apartments
         1. Sunflower Development Group is requesting Port KC issue up to $39 million in bonds and to provide exemptions from taxes on real estate, personal property and construction materials.
         2. Sunflower is proposing to build a four-story, 161-unit complex in the Northland at Northeast 80th Terrace and North Denver Avenue. The roughly four-acre site is near the intersection of Interstate 435 and Missouri Highway 152 in Clay County.
         3. The project would include a $500,000 contribution to Kansas City’s housing trust fund.
         4. The committee members voted to recommend approval to the full board. 
   2. Authorizing the acceptance of land under the Town of Kansas Bridge
      1. The proposal called for Port KC to  accept land under the Town of Kansas Bridge for the “advancement of community improvements and enhanced connections to the riverfront”.
      2. Development Director Chase Johnson said Port KC has been working with the River Market Community Association on this plan for about 18 months.
      3. Johnson said the area is overgrown with honeysuckle and has had homeless encampments and illegal dumping. The goal of this plan is to better connect the riverfront and the River Market area by cleaning up and developing the area. 
      4. Stephens said that “over time, what we would like to see is a green space under here, and a little bit better access, and maybe even some restoration or viewing of the historic site of the original Town of Kansas.”
      5. The committee voted to recommend approval by the full board.
   3. Supporting the submission of a Rail Crossing Elimination grant application for the final design and construction of a flyover at Lydia Avenue.
      1. The purposes of the overpass, according to a Port KC document, are to:

1. Improve safety on Lydia Avenue between Guinotte Avenue and Berkley Parkway by removing conflicts between train traffic and pedestrians or vehicles.
2. Improve connectivity for vehicles, bikers and pedestrians between Berkley Riverfront and neighborhoods to the south and east.
3. Provide safe and reliable entrance and exit from the south side of Berkley Riverfront, especially during special events and emergencies.

2. “It’s kind of been on every single planning document for the last 30 or 40 (years),” Johnson said, “because it’s always been there as the existing condition. … It’s really time to get this flyover funded and built.”
3. Port KC is preparing to submit an application, due June 8, to request up to $90 million from the Federal Railroad Administration to support the project. The grant requires a 20% local match.
4. The committee recommended that the full board adopt a resolution supporting the grant application for design and construction of a flyover and authorizing execution of any necessary documents, including but not limited to intergovernmental agreements, to ensure the project meets federal eligibility requirements.
5. Port KC is holding an open house regarding the Lydia Avenue flyover on May 27 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the Garrison Community Center, 1124 E. Fifth St.
6. Other Business
   1. Stephens provided updates on several activities/projects underway at the riverfront.
      1. A streetcar pavilion is substantially complete.
      2. Ongoing work includes the replacement of more than 10,000 square feet of sidewalk and construction of the Berkley Memorial reflective area.
      3. This year’s Missouri River Mural Festival will take place May 22 through May 24 at the Berkley Riverfront. It will include 60,000 square feet of murals with 100 artists who will be working on approximately a mile of the levee wall along the trail from Berkley Park to the West Bottoms.
      4. Port KC is having a local artist paint a “Welcome to Berkley Park” mural on a 40-foot shipping container alongside the recently completed Grand Boulevard bike/pedestrian bridge. Stephens did not provide any information about the artist.
      5. Port KC is bringing back its vegetation-clearing goats for a month starting May 29.
      6. Referencing a recent article by The Beacon, he told committee members that Berkley Riverfront “will not be a place where anyone is allowed to camp” during the upcoming World Cup. Port KC will be posting signs to that effect in many different languages.

Observations & Follow-Up Questions

• When will the public learn the details of this mystery “AI factory and research facility?”
• I was interested to learn the identity of the developer of the Brighton Crossing Apartments.
• I wonder if the campers referenced in the meeting are really visitors for the World Cup or really homeless people who are genuinely homeless.

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