KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Country Club Plaza is in need of a spark after another business recently closed up shop.

The plaza has endured quite a bit over the 100-plus years it’s been open, but the last few years have been especially tough for one of the most iconic areas in the Kansas City metro.

The number of businesses closing or leaving the shopping/dining district has increased recently. Season’s 52 became the latest business to close on the Plaza.

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According to a Kansas City Star report, of the 156 retail locations on the plaza, 30% of them are empty. The number of vacancies today is 11% higher than during the pandemic.

The Village Collection will meet with Mayor Lucas on Monday to develop a plan to revitalize the neighborhood and attract businesses.

Many people believed this would have occurred soon after the Village Collection paid $175 million to purchase the Plaza, but according to the star’s report, the ownership group has not yet filed a redevelopment plan with the city. Perhaps that will change after Monday’s meeting.

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KSHB 41 reporter Caroline Hogan covers development across the Kansas City area. Share your story idea with Caroline .

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It’s a pattern shoppers are starting to notice: empty storefronts on the Country Club Plaza. Seasons 52, Pure Barre and Razzleberry are the latest closures.

There are currently 106 stores and restaurants open on the Plaza. Walking the area, I noticed there were over two dozen vacancies. There’s no definitive answer as to why these businesses have closed.

‘I don’t think it’s a Plaza thing’: KCMO boutique, shoppers weigh in on Plaza closures

“We are disappointed to see Seasons 52 leave the historic property, but as we progress, we realize that it may be a natural transition time for some tenants,” said the Country Club Plaza in a statement to KSHB. “We are proud of the behind-the-scenes progress being made and are committed to these necessary improvements that will support our long-term vision for the Plaza.”

These closures are shocking to some shoppers because it seems as though they’ve happened fast.

“I just stopped doing security at JD Sports a couple of months ago, this wasn’t empty,” said one shopper, Kenyatta McClendon. “We had people here in these stores.”

It can be disappointing, but where some are skeptical, others like Deserae Minor are optimistic.

Minor owns KC Style Haus, a local boutique that’s been at its Plaza location for three years.

“We are in a transition period,” Minor said. “I know the focus is, ‘Oh, there’s another business closing, here’s another business closing.’ But I think that there’s gonna be good changes happening, and I’m not worried about it.”

Minor’s referring to the changes the new owners of the Plaza want to enact, including a cleaner environment, stricter security, and more local spots.

KSHB 41 spoke to the president of HP Village Management, Ray Washburne, back in October 2024.

“We’ve found that what Kansas City really wants is a local food and beverage scene back,” Washburne said. “You have a great culinary scene in this town, but it isn’t in the Plaza. So we’re going to bring that here.”

Minor said sales at her shop are up this year compared to last, and attributes that success to being a local business.

“They’re [shoppers] not gonna come down to the Plaza for that same thing they have five minutes from their house at a local mall,” Minor said.

Change can be hard, but in this case, some are staying positive that something good is coming.

“I love the Plaza, and I would love to walk around the Plaza again like I used to,” McClendon said. “It’s our city. Support your city.”

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Shopping malls across America have been left in a state that not even Paul Blart could save, and Kansas City is no exception.

Known as “dead malls,” these abandoned, dilapidated, or mostly vacant shopping centers have become a subject of fascination — especially thanks to the online popularity of liminal space aesthetics.

Metro North Mall and its iconic balloons, circa 1979. Photo by Dwaynep2020 via Wikimedia Commons

Let’s go to the mall

Metro North Mall was once in its heydey.

The two-story, 1.3 million-sqft shopping center that opened in 1976 was once popular for its shops, arcade, theater, and grand plaza with a water feature + four mini “hot air balloons” that floated up and down. By 2010, however, the mall was down to 17% occupancy.

Over on the Kansas side, Indian Springs Mall was one of the largest indoor malls of the Midwest after opening in 1971. Locals may remember the children’s maze, pet and fashion shows, and anchor tenants like Montgomery Ward during the mall’s popularity.

As seen in Ward Parkway Mall in 1962. | Photo via MVSC

Back to the future

Metro North Mall — now Metro North Crossing — officially closed in 2014 and sat abandoned for several years. Now, the former mall site is a 106-acre mixed-use development anchored by T-Shotz, a golf entertainment facility.

Two years later in 2016, Indian Springs Mall was demolished. Since then, the site has remained unused, but earlier this year local government selected three development companies to submit redevelopment proposals.

Today, Kansas City still has a number of thriving shopping centers, plus other successful mall redevelopments:

Do you have memories of a local mall from back in the day? Share them with us and we may feature your story in a future newsletter: First date at the food court, trying on prom dresses at the department store, hitting up Orange Julius before picking up the perfect graphic tee at Hot Topic — we wanna hear it all.