For nearly ten years, a gaping hole on Liberty's historic square has served as an unwelcome landmark, a reminder of a building that suddenly gave way during renovations. Now foundation work is expected to begin in late September or early October, according to developers, as crews finish burying utility lines beneath the corner of 1 N. Water Street and prepare to raise a $7.5 million mixed-use building in its place.
The site's story starts on May 3, 2016, when the century-old Bedinger Building, which had housed an Ethan Allen furniture store, partially collapsed during renovation work, according to KCUR. The collapse led local business Hammerhand Coffee to use 22 N. Main Street as a temporary base until the original location was rebuilt and ready for occupancy, as reported by Flatland KC. What followed was a decade of an empty lot at the corner, something Copper Canary gift shop owner Cari Brogden described as a major eyesore, according to KSHB 41.
Assembling the Footprint, Piece by Piece
Turning one collapsed building into a full redevelopment site took years of behind-the-scenes work. The site later became part of Star Development's project. The city council went further in March 2024, approving demolition of the 1960 G.M. Peters Building at 11 N. Water Street because the building did not match the surrounding historic style, per city records.
The site is part of a mixed-use plan. The square is historic, and its character was considered during the project's review.
According to the City of Liberty Official Website, the city has six districts and eight individual properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places. According to the City of Liberty Official Website, the city's Historic District Design Guidelines are intended to assist property owners when planning improvement projects.
A Mixed-Use Design
The project calls for a building with commercial spaces and residential lofts. Star Development plans to fill the ground floor with commercial spaces, including a restaurant patio area on the corner, with lofts occupying the upper floors, per KSHB 41's reporting.
Matthew Iway, Star Development's project manager, said the site had not been touched for 10 years and had not been built on for about 100 years before that. He said construction crews are working through underground utilities before foundations can be poured, and are reusing existing infrastructure where possible. The project's historic character and underground utility work have shaped the construction process.
Local Businesses Ready for Foot Traffic
Iway said the site holds plenty of construction surprises, and that the work requires care to preserve the square's historical character. Still, he said he hopes people won't remember the lot as a giant hole once it's finished, with the mixed-use development anticipated to be complete by the end of August 2027.
For business owners who work the square daily, the wait has already shaped their plans. Brogden's Copper Canary is expanding from a gift store into a business that also includes a coffee shop, a move she says was influenced directly by the coming development. She said additional residents and businesses will bring more people to the square and expects the whole district to benefit. Laci Waters, who works at Catfish + Tater Boutique nearby, said the square will finally be complete again once the building goes up, according to KSHB 41's report.
Nearby business owners have been waiting years for the empty lot to be filled, and for a while, its absence felt like something missing from the neighborhood. With new downtown retail and residential lofts planned, Brogden said she is excited about the construction progress finally underway on the corner she has watched sit empty for years.
