Ivanhoe Neighborhood 39th Street

SGA was retained by the City of Kansas City, Missouri to develop a strategy for the redevelopment of the 39th Street Corridor. The corridor consists of a six-block section of street serving the predominately low income, African-American neighborhood of Ivanhoe. Its development is supported by an accomplished neighborhood association, the Ivanhoe Neighborhood Council. Community members, the City, and private investors have made significant strides over the past decade toward reducing crime, cleaning up vacant or dilapidated properties, and creating amenities such as community gardens and playgrounds.
SGA’s role in the project was to develop a redevelopment approach that prioritized the creation of “places” over parcel-by-parcel “developments.” The foundation of this idea is the desired outcome that both public and private activities should result in the creation of highly desirable places that mesh seamlessly with the surrounding residential context as incremental development activities occur.