Construction crews have broken ground at 8036 Metcalf Avenue in downtown Overland Park, where developer Hunt Midwest is building Canvas, a luxury multifamily community that will bring 227 one- and two-bedroom units to the heart of the city. The project is expected to open in early 2029 and will sit just a couple of minutes on foot from the Overland Park Farmers Market.
The groundbreaking caps a lengthy approval process. As reported by KSHB 41 Kansas City, Canvas will include a pool, a dog park, a fitness center, co-working space, a garden room, and private parking, along with more than 5,000 square feet of ground-floor space dedicated to retail and restaurants. The Overland Park City Council voted 10-0 in July 2025 to approve a redevelopment agreement and tax increment financing package for the project, following negotiations over developer reimbursement requests that totaled $15.9 million, according to the Johnson County Post. TIF districts allow developers to use property tax gains generated by rising land values to help offset site preparation and construction costs.
That financing followed an earlier regulatory milestone: the council voted 9-0 in January 2025 to approve a certificate of conformity confirming the project's seven-story layout met the standards of the city's Downtown Form District overlay, which sets guidelines for density and pedestrian orientation in the area.
A Site With Deep Local Roots
The 1.55-acre lot has a long history in Johnson County. It previously housed a classic Winstead's hamburger diner that operated from the late 1980s until its closure in August 2017, after which the property briefly served as a temporary UMB Bank branch before being demolished, per the Johnson County Post's earlier reporting.
Architectural firm BRR Architecture designed Canvas with that local heritage in mind, drawing inspiration from the historic Strang Line Interurban Railroad, an early 20th-century electric trolley network that once ran through Johnson County. The firm paired dark steel and brick with blue exterior accents meant to align with Overland Park's municipal brand colors, according to its project portfolio. The design also calls for a stacked, mostly below-ground parking structure that will include public parking capacity alongside resident amenities such as a covered and heated dog run.
Hunt Midwest's Growing Downtown Footprint
Hunt Midwest has a track record in the immediate area. The developer previously built The Vue, a 219-unit luxury mixed-use community completed in 2018 at 7201 W. 80th Street in downtown Overland Park, before selling it to JVM Realty in May 2022, according to REJournals. The company first expanded into the Kansas City metro's luxury multifamily market in 2014 with Mission 106 in Leawood, after decades spent as a master-planned single-family neighborhood developer founded in 1985 and backed by the Lamar Hunt family estate. Brenner Holland, Hunt Midwest's Senior Vice President of Residential Development, has led the firm's suburban infill strategy across the metro, overseeing mixed-use projects in Overland Park, Lenexa, and Kansas City since joining the company more than 30 years ago.
Per Hunt Midwest, Canvas aims to seamlessly connect new residents to the walkable downtown and to maximize what the developer described as a long-underutilized location on the city's Metcalf corridor. Overland Park Mayor Curt Skoog said, “Canvas is the next chapter in downtown Overland Park's incredible renaissance over the past few years and will bring even more residents and visitors to the heart of the city.”
Part of a Broader Metcalf Corridor Boom
Canvas is not an isolated addition to downtown Overland Park. A separate proposal submitted in January 2026 at 8201 Metcalf Avenue calls for a 198-unit, five-story apartment building with 7,400 square feet of retail, and together with Canvas and other projects it would add nearly 500 new residential units to downtown, according to The KC Pulse.
That private residential growth is unfolding alongside public investment nearby. Downtown Overland Park is also undergoing a multi-million-dollar rebuild and expansion of the adjacent Overland Park Farmers Market shed facility, with completion scheduled around 2026, the outlet reports. The market is considered one of the highest-rated public markets in the region, and its proximity to Canvas underscores the city's broader push to knit new housing into its existing commercial core.
