Map to 1799-1719 American Royal Dr, Kansas City, MO 64108
***From April 27, 2024: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DBj1oa-oXk&t=9s
Some 250 members of this public, private and philanthropic movement enjoyed a sneak peek of the new concrete decks and buildings. Check out the above video to see how far they’ve come.
Revival: Rock Island Bridge founder Michael Zeller welcomes 240 guests and Alan van Capelle, who leads the NYC High Line.
America is Taking Note: Reinventing an unused bridge as ‘land’ is innovative. This will build community, transform the Kansas Waterfront –– and people across America are taking note. –Alan van Capelle, Executive Director of the NYC High Line
Arts & Culture Over the River: Shirley Helzberg describes the bridge as a new stage for Kansas City arts and culture.
Bringing Kansas & Missouri Together + Reclaiming the Waterfront: Paddling KC kayakers with Strawberry Hill in the background is possible as the Kansas River is a gentle river with no commercial traffic, making it ideal for non-motorized boating.
KCK Commissioner Tom Burroughs paints a picture of a revitalized Kansas Waterfront for boating, biking, and economic development. And local media was there for it all.***
For nearly a century the Rock Island Railroad played a central role in the Kansas City Stockyards District which ran along both sides of the Kansas (Kaw) River, and was the second-largest beef processing center in the world. The Railroad's initial bridge over the Kansas River was swept away in the flood of 1901.
To replace it, the Railroad hired the American Bridge Company to design and build two 302 feet-long, Pennsylvania trusses and concrete foundations forty feet into the riverbed. The new bridge began service in 1905. In 1921, a third, shorter span was added to the eastern end when the US Army Corps widened the channel.
Following the devastation of the Flood of '51, the Corps hired L. G. Barcus Company of Kansas City, KS to install screw-lift gates capable of raising the three trusses six feet in advance of high waters. Barcus is now back on the job, using the same mechanisms to lift the bridge to its new permanent location above the height of the new levees, and installing the new steel and concrete decks and railings.
The City of Kansas City, Missouri purchased the bridge and its access easements in 1980 as part of the Kemper Arena parking expansion. Since that time, the majestic structure sat unused, its tracks long ago disconnected. Kansas City, Kansas took ownership of the bridge in 2022 to connect its emerging network of levee trails, and to activate the new Kansas Waterfront through this unique, public/private partnership. This is a first of its kind project in THE WORLD!
The statistics on this project are mind blowing. Join the Urban Core Group on June 26th at the Rock Island Bridge, World’s First Trailhead Services and Entertainment District Over a River!
Learn more about the Rock Island Bridge project at rockislandkc.com !!!
