The Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas will keep negotiating with developer Eastside Innovation over a $1.15 billion plan to transform the long-vacant Indian Springs Mall site near Interstate 635 and State Avenue, even though the two sides still have not settled how to structure tax incentives or finalize a payment schedule for the land.
The continued talks, reported by The Business Journals, mark the latest chapter in a redevelopment saga that has dragged on for years and ballooned in cost. The proposed Midtown Station development could bring more than 2,000 housing units to the site, according to the same report, continuing a vision that has shifted repeatedly since the project was first announced.
A Price Tag That Keeps Climbing
When the Unified Government picked Eastside Innovation's proposal from a pool of three candidates in November 2024, the project carried a price tag of $700 million, as reported by The Kansas City Star. By June 2026, that figure had grown to more than $1 billion amid inflation and changes in the project's scope, the Star reported. The project's estimated cost continued to rise through 2026. The $1.15 billion figure now attached to the project reflects the latest estimate reported this week.
The scale of what's envisioned has remained ambitious even as the dollar figures moved. The Star has described the proposed Midtown Station development as including roughly 2,000 apartments, a grocery store, a hotel, retail space and a solar micro grid to generate electricity. Eastside has planned the project in five phases, with the first phase alone including 65,000 square feet of retail space, more than 600 units of housing and 30,000 square feet of gathering space, per the Star's reporting.
Land Price and Payment Terms Remain Sticking Points
At the center of the holdup is a disagreement over what the roughly 90-acre property off State Avenue and Interstate 635 should actually sell for. As of a June 2026 commission meeting, the Unified Government wanted $6 million for the land, while Eastside had closed much of that gap with a $5.9 million offer, the Star reported. The two sides have also clashed over payment terms: Eastside proposed five increasing payments starting at $750,000, while the Unified Government countered with five equal payments of $1.2 million, according to the same reporting.
That standoff has kept the groups from finalizing a development agreement needed to move the project toward construction, the Star has reported. A market appraisal obtained by the Unified Government valued the former mall land at $6.12 million, according to KSHB, though a separate KSHB account put the appraised value at $6.2 million.
Commission Moved to Revoke the Developer's RFP
The price dispute escalated over the summer. The Economic Development and Finance Commission voted to recommend revoking Eastside Innovation's request for proposals, with Commissioner Jermaine Howard dissenting, the Star reported. Wyandotte County commissioners later voted 4-1 to terminate the RFP altogether, according to KSHB's reporting on the breakdown.
Even amid that friction, the two sides have continued exploring ways to make the financing work. They have been assessing whether a newly proposed exhibit on energy generation and use could qualify the project for Kansas sales tax and revenue, or STAR, bonds, per the Star. The Unified Government also requested a third-party feasibility study from PGAV Architects to determine the true price tag and feasibility of Eastside's plans, a study estimated to cost $40,000 and paid for entirely by the developer, with completion expected by the end of September, the Star reported.
A Site With a Long Redevelopment History
The vacant mall property has been a target for redevelopment for more than a decade. Back in 2013, the Unified Government issued a request for information describing the more than 100-acre site at the northwest corner of I-635 and I-70 and seeking ideas to redevelop it into a retail center with mixed-use and power-center concepts. That 2013 solicitation also noted the site already had an approved tax increment financing district and plan, and that the Unified Government was willing to work to modify it if needed.
More than a decade later, the fundamental questions from that 2013 solicitation — what to build, and how to pay for it — remain unresolved. With negotiations set to continue, neither the final shape of the development nor the terms that would unlock it have been settled, leaving the site's future tied to whether Eastside Innovation and the Unified Government can bridge gaps that have persisted for years.
