A Front Yard for Downtown Kansas City

Client Challenge

The Downtown Council of Kansas City was advancing the South Loop Project, a proposed 4.6-acre park deck that would place a lid over a below-grade section of I-670 and reconnect the Central Business District with the Crossroads Arts District. The Downtown Council had already raised more than $90 million from public and private sources, with initial construction phases tied to Kansas City's role as a 2026 FIFA World Cup host. To support continued fundraising and ground policy conversations with Kansas City and the State of Missouri, the Downtown Council needed an independent analysis quantifying the project's long-term economic and fiscal value.

Approach

Victus Advisors conducted a 30-year economic and fiscal impact analysis covering both Kansas City and the State of Missouri. The work included demographic and socioeconomic analysis, gross-to-net direct spending modeling for both construction and ongoing park operations, IMPLAN economic modeling calibrated to each economic area and stakeholder interviews with city and project partners. Victus also benchmarked the project against Dallas's Klyde Warren Park — the closest comparable urban park deck — and built a real estate development impact model covering 25 potential projects within the surrounding value-capture area.

Benefits to Client

The analysis quantified the South Loop Project's long-term economic and fiscal value over a 30-year horizon. Victus projected more than $700 million in combined economic output (NPV) for the city and the state, along with potential annual fiscal impacts approaching $23 million by 2031 from property valuation gains and new development in the surrounding value-capture area. These findings gave the Downtown Council a data-driven case to carry into fundraising conversations and policy discussions with taxing authorities and government partners.