Grocer's Warehouse complex sells to Taing Capital Group

The Grocer’s Warehouse complex, anchored by Hufft Architecture and Fabrication in the historic Roanoke Park neighborhood of Kansas City, Mo., has sold to Taing Capital Group, LLC.

Originally a manufacturing facility built in 1949 by Kansas City grocer Fred Wolferman, the iconic building was redeveloped into creative office and living space in 2015. The 60,000 SF building has seven commercial tenant spaces and studio loft apartments.

Hufft plans to remain in its current space as the GW anchor, along with the other tenants including Studio Lofts, Real Fitness & Conditioning, Pure Workplace Solutions, Roanoke Park Conservancy, MEDiAHEAD and ZancTank Concepts.

“We have realized our master plan for the Grocer’s Warehouse campus and properties. It has been a phenomenal process to see it transform. While our primary roles lie in running Hufft, we were ready for a group to take over the management and all of the responsibilities that come with that. We are very much looking forward to staying a part of the GW campus and Roanoke Park for a long time. The Roanoke Park Conservancy is really to be credited for their efforts in making this location a desired place to work and live. That group holds the original visionaries that believed in this beautiful area of Kansas City,” said Hufft co-founder and principal, Jesse Hufft.

Logan Freeman of Clemons Real Estate and Parker Webb with Third Space Property Group represented the buyer and Pat Murfey of Evergreen Real Estate Services represented the seller in the June 2020 transaction.

"This was a great collaboration between the current ownership group and the new buyers. It was definitely an uphill battle with the pandemic and commercial tenants being a large percentage of the rental income. Securing financing was tricky, but we had a local lender step up who believed in the project as much as we do. Both sides worked together great and are going to continue this vision for the Grocer’s Warehouse and the surrounding Roanoke Park area," Freeman said.

Read previous Grocer’s Warehouse stories by MWM here:

July 2019

Sept 2017

Grocers Warehouse Development adds commercial office space to Midtown KC

The Grocers Warehouse development is continuing its expansion, adding four new commercial office spaces for lease, ranging from 1,500-4,200 SF.

The mixed-use community, which existed as grocery distribution facilities in the early 1940s, is comprised of two buildings located at 3525 Roanoke Road and 3612 Karnes Boulevard. The site offers picturesque views and convenient access to one of Kansas City’s finest green spaces- Roanoke Park.

"The Midtown location is unique, just minutes from both the 39th Street Shops and Restaurants and I- 35, yet nestled into a park setting. With both residential and commercial use, the development has an energy both day and night, every day of the week," said Jesse Hufft, principal and co-founder of Hufft, who is overseeing the expansion's design and fabrication.

Anchored by Hufft, the current campus tenants also include ZancTank Corporate Office (locally known as Red Door Grill), Roanoke Park Conservancy, MEDiAHEAD, PURE Workplace Solutions, Real Fitness and Conditioning and the Studio Loft Apartments.

“Preserving and finding new uses for existing buildings can prove to be a labor of love; however, the increased property value and positive synergy from a creative community translate into good business,” Hufft principal, Matthew Hufft said.

For tours or leasing inquiries, email info@grocerswarehousekc.com. More photos can be viewed here: ADDITIONAL PHOTOS.

Groundbreaking ceremony kicks off today for Charlotte Street Foundation

A groundbreaking ceremony will kick off at 5pm today to celebrate the soon-to-be start of construction for Charlotte Street Foundation’s new campus, located near Roanoke Park.

Charlotte Street Foundation was established in 1997 in response to a lack of creative, social and economic resources for Kansas City artists. The organization has steadily expanded its suite of services to include special commissions, free studio residencies, exhibition and performance space for artists, and advocacy with local and national philanthropic business and civic leaders. Charlotte Street is also the only organization in the region that grants artists direct monetary support.

The new campus – a two-building industrial complex – is located at 3333 Wyoming Street and will offer nearly 25,000 SF of operating space. Charlotte Street’s relocation will repurpose the closed, segregated buildings into a flexible, open, community-focused hub of activity.

The building concept starts with the idea of an artist’s village. Hufft, who leads the design, focused on connections: artists to other artists; artists to the greater community; artists to the Charlotte Street staff; and artists to the surrounding landscape.

The building opens up both vertically and horizontally, starting with inserting a main reception that connects the lower and upper terraces. As the new collective entrance to the building it ensures that everyone passes through the same space regardless of how they access the hilly site. It serves as a lobby, an incubator, a lecture hall with large cascading staircase, and the first space for a chance interaction. From here the building opens up vertically, so that from the reception you can see up to the artist’s studio levels, forming the next level of community interaction.

The final step is the insertion of large openings into the windowless industrial building, providing a glimpse to the outside and connecting the artists to both the surrounding community and lush landscape. The result is a continuous internal village streetscape, where artists step outside their studio to find themselves in an active continuous space, one that connects down to the reception, artist’s courtyard, and beyond.

The foundation moved its offices to the new campus in October and continues to operate their 2019 programming out of various metro area locations. With construction kicking off this summer, current project schedules have the transition of resources to the campus taking place in the first quarter of 2020.

Hufft leads the design along with the project team of Benson Method, who serves as the Owner Representative. Newkirk Novak is the general contractor, 40North is the landscape architect, and engineering support for the project is provided by Lankford Fendler as MEP.

The Charlotte Street Foundation Groundbreaking Ceremony is today, June 12 starting at 5pm at 3325-3335 Wyoming Street. There will be a guided tour and feature artists performing throughout the event.

Hufft helps Tuft & Needle become sleeper retail success story

Thanks to startup mattress company Tuft & Needle, architecture and design firm Hufft has found a soft spot in today’s hard-pressed retail market. 

The online industry disrupter chose Hufft last year to design its experiential prototype store serving the Kansas City market, a project so successful that 10 additional stores are planned for 2019 in addition to stores in Portland, Ore. and Raleigh, N.C.

"The idea was to create a space that felt like home, making the mattress buying experience a little less intimidating," Hufft Design Principal Dan Brown said. "It can be uncomfortable to lay on the bed with your significant other or yourself."

Hufft's concept store in Leawood replaced the sea of flat mattresses and harsh lighting typically found in mattress stores with soft lighting and four semi-private rooms where customers can test mattresses and meet with a "no pressure" sales rep if needed. Orders are placed via iPad and shipped directly to the home.

“It’s exactly what people are talking about when they talk about the future of retail being experiential,” Brown said. “It’s lean, customer centric and experience-based. The concept is more about conveying the experience of the brand, rather than picking from 1,000 products. It’s not about having the most things but about having the most quality.”

Hufft’s on-site fabricating shop creates project efficiencies by producing everything from fixtures to furniture to in-wall rolling casework and cabinetry. The unique combination of retail design expertise and custom fabrication is helping the firm carve out a niche in the crossroads of e-commerce and experiential retail.

“We can quickly roll out these stores. They hand us a location and a box size and then we work with them to develop the concept using the KC store as a template,” Brown said. “While we are in the design process, we can also be building cabinets and fixtures, for the space so it’s a really seamless process.”

MetroWire Media's top themes of 2018: Push, Pivot, Preserve

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