A Kansas City nonprofit's plan to turn World Cup tourism dollars into year-round shelter beds earned praise from city leaders as brilliant and innovative. Several months later, the facility at 1400 Agnes Ave. still has no permit to operate as a shelter, and the organization behind it says the delays have harmed its growth trajectory.
Open Doors Foundation described The Hostel KC as a European-style hostel at the Agnes Avenue property, intended to capture short-term World Cup visitor revenue and use it to self-fund the nonprofit's year-round emergency shelter and job-placement work, according to Open Doors Foundation. The group received zoning clearance for short-term lodging at the site in April, but no hostel operation ever took place during the World Cup, as reported by the Kansas City Star. Josh Henges had praised the hostel plan as innovative and brilliant, per the Star's reporting, yet the property later became the focus of a shelter-permit application.
Code Citations Pile Up at the Agnes Avenue Site
Kansas City opened a code case at 1400 Agnes on June 10, and an inspector found a change in use without permits, the Star reports. The property ultimately received four code citations, including for change of use and for structural work done without plans or permits, and each citation carried triple fees. Open Doors responded by applying for a special use permit for a low-barrier shelter at the address on July 30 and hiring an engineer to work on shelter plans, according to the same account.
City staff have since asked for more details about shelter operations, security and parking at the site, the Star notes. The Kansas City City Plan Commission continued the Agnes Avenue low-barrier shelter case in September, with a public hearing scheduled for October, according to Center for Neighborhoods - KC. Open Doors plans to accommodate 80 clients at the Agnes Avenue shelter, staffed around the clock seven days a week.
A Separate Property Added to the Nonprofit's Troubles
The Agnes Avenue permit fight isn't the only regulatory obstacle Open Doors has faced this year. A Kansas City inspector visited a separate property at 1425 Agnes on April 21, April 23 and May 13, before closing that case on May 19 citing insufficient evidence, per the Star's reporting. That case had opened back on March 25, and the organization received zoning clearance for homeless services at 1425 Agnes on April 28.
Mathew Smith, who leads the organization's permit applications, said city permitting difficulties have harmed Open Doors' growth trajectory, according to the Star. The nonprofit has had to “pump the brakes,” the outlet reports. Open Doors provides low-barrier shelter, job placement and ID assistance. The group has said its low-barrier model still maintains rules and expectations for clients.
The Backdrop: A City Scrambling for Shelter Beds
Kansas City's homelessness crisis has been described as urgent by officials.
In response, Kansas City launched the Housing Gateway Program this year, aiming to house 600 people in its first year. The program drew roughly $11 million in private philanthropic and business contributions, spearheaded by Commerce Bank CEO Kevin Barth, KCUR reports. The city itself made an initial $1 million seed investment in the program, per the Star. Clutch Consulting managing partner Mandy Chapman Semple designed systems used in Houston and other cities, and Kansas City's program includes vouchers.
Even with that momentum, the region's underlying math remains daunting. The Kansas City metro area faces a deficit of roughly 64,000 affordable housing units, creating bottlenecks for voucher-backed rehousing programs, Hoodline has previously reported. The metro also has roughly one program for every 12 unhoused individuals, but has historically lacked a unified system aligning funding toward measurable housing outcomes, according to the Business Journal.
Open Doors' Permit Delays Continue
The city's year-round shelter network itself is relatively new, having grown out of a March 2025 shift from a seasonal cold-weather framework under the Zero KC strategic plan, which raised baseline low-barrier shelter capacity from 100 to 160 beds.
For now, the Agnes Avenue property that once drew praise as a brilliant World Cup-funded concept remains without a shelter permit, awaiting the City Plan Commission's October hearing.
