The Veterans of Foreign Wars Foundation and the National World War I Museum at Liberty Memorial are pleased to announce a partnership which will allow both organizations to further their respective missions. The relationship will allow both organizations a unique platform to raise awareness for urgently needed military assistance programs as well as the nation’s only museum dedicated solely to the First World War. The two organizations plan to partner together on several events in 2012 that will honor our nation’s veterans as well as explore the history of World War I.

“Honoring veterans from the past and present is crucial to both organizations’ missions and we look forward to working with VFW Foundation in this expanded capacity,” said National World War I Museum President & CEO Brian Alexander.

“The National World War I Museum is a world-class facility, and we look forward to continuing to grow together,” said VFW Foundation Director John Lowe. “The VFW Foundation is committed to honoring those who have sacrificed for our great nation and I am impressed with the museum’s commitment to honoring those who served in ‘the war to end all wars’.”

The VFW Foundation is the official charity of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States (VFW),America’s largest organization of combat veterans. Both the VFW National Headquarters and Liberty Memorial have been staples of the Kansas City community since the 1920s.

The National World War I Museum is the only American museum solely dedicated to preserving the objects, history and personal experiences of a war whose impact still echoes today. Designated by Congress as the United States’ official World War I Museum and located in Downtown Kansas City, the Museum inspires thought, dialogue, and learning to make the experiences of the Great War era meaningful and relevant for present and future generations. Visit www.theworldwar.org for details.

“We are excited to end the year on a high note,” said Rick Hughes, president & CEO of the KCCVA and an executive committee member of the Downtown Council. “As the industry adapts to securing bookings closer in, making top 10 lists like Frommer’s and Budget Travel keeps us in the national spotlight of go-to destinations. We’ve worked hard over the past several years on making our Downtown vibrant and thriving, and we are now enjoying the fruits of our labor.”

Among the major conventions booked last month was the biennial meeting for the American Baptist Churches of the USA, which will generate nearly 2,500 room nights with 3,000 attendees and an economic impact of more than $1.7 million.

Other major December bookings which were previously announced include the American Contract Bridge Championships. The competition will bring 4,000 attendees to KC, generating 10,000 room nights and create an economic impact of more than $5.3 million over the 10-day event.

“The impact these meetings have on Kansas City will be felt throughout the metropolitan area,” said Hughes. “The average convention attendee spends $208 per day during their stay, which brings much needed tax money from outside the city to help do things like pave our roads and fix our sewers.”

Crossroads Academy of Kansas City is designed to be a tuition-free elementary charter school in Downtown. The Crossroads Academy mission is to prepare students to excel in high school by providing an academically rigorous K-8 education. The school’s vision is to be the premier urban school serving Kansas City’s youth and a destination for other educators seeking inspiration and best practices. The school is projected to open in fall 2012 with 140 students in grades K-6.

The last several months have been very eventful for the school, founded in July 2011 by experienced charter school leaders Dean Johnson and Tysie McDowell-Ray. In recent months, the University of Central Missouri voted to sponsor Crossroads Academy; an outstanding group of educators has been convening on a regular basis to design and write the Crossroads Academy curriculum; and the Downtown Council’s Education Committee voted to endorse the school.

Crossroads Academy ended the year on a high note, as it reached it’s initial fundraising goal of $100,000!  That feat has fueled the school with the resources to hire its first staff members and to launch full-scale student recruitment activities.

To celebrate these accomplishments and to further prepare for the coming school year, the Community Outreach Task Force, a dedicated group of parent and neighborhood volunteers, is planning the Crossroads Academy Launch Party on Saturday, Feb. 4, 10 a.m.-12 noon at Studio B; 2016 Main Street. Parents seeking to enroll their children and everyone interested in elevating public education in Downtown Kansas City is encouraged to attend!

For more information visit http://www.crossroadsacademykc.org

“Kansas City Mayor Sly James is starting the new year pushing hard for a downtown streetcar plan, traveling to Washington this week to lobby federal officials and winning early support Thursday from a key local constituency, the Downtown Council,” The Kansas City Star reported in today’s edition. Downtown Council leaders Ron Coker, board chairman, and Bill Dietrich, president and CEO, were part of the mayor’s team that visited Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to advance the streetcar plan.

To read the full story in today’s Star, go to:

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/01/05/3354629/mayor-lining-up-support-for-streetcar.html

Kansas City made a national splash on NBC’s Today show on Thursday for the second time in three months. Saveur, one of the nation’s top culinary magazines, announced its Top Food Trends for 2012 — proclaiming Kansas City as America’s next great culinary destination for 2012.

The announcement was made by James Oseland, editor-in-chief of Saveur and a judge on Bravo’s Top Chef Masters. “We’ve long thought of Kansas City as a good barbecue town,” Oseland said, “but its high-end dining is really on the rise.”

This high-profile ranking is a result of a 2011 media visit hosted by the Kansas City Convention and Visitors Association. The organization’s PR department hosted Saveur Executive Editor Todd Coleman in March and also contributed messaging for Thursday’s broadcast story.

The story specifically mentions Debbie Gold and the American Restaurant, one of more than 250 restaurants, cafes and bars in greater Downtown Kansas City.

To view the Today show story and read its blog, click here.

Praise for Kansas City continued on the Today show blog, also released on Thursday. In it, Oseland said Kansas City is “going to have its moment in 2012.”

“This Midwestern city has a deep-rooted food culture that’s been around for well over a century, one that’s now poised to reinvigorate itself and position the city as a new culinary destination. We all know about Kansas City’s reputation as a great barbecue town, but recently there’s been a fantastic wave of smart, new high-end cooking that’s been lighting a fire in the heart of America,” the story says. “Laying the foundation are chefs like Debbie Gold, Celina Tio, and Colby Garrelts, whose restaurants … are galvanizing the area’s independent and organic farmers and producers, and inspiring Kansas City’s next generation of chefs to reach for new heights.”

What a better way to celebrate this good news with a great, New Year’s out at the Downtown restaurant of your choice??

Here are four sips of cheer to lift your holiday spirits this weekend:

1. Holiday shopping – If you’d like a change from the same ol’ chain stores you find in every shopping mall, head Downtown. For starters, check out Black Bamboo in the Crossroads; the Garment District at Power & Light; Cellar & Loft in the River Market; Function Junction at Crown Center; or the museum shops at 18^th & Vine, Union Station and Liberty Memorial.

Windows aglow– Explore your favorite holiday classics in window displays designed by 10 local artists. Sponsored by the Power & Light District, the second annual Holiday Windows on Main will feature holiday artwork on Main Street between 12^th and 14^th Streets daily through Jan. 2. Plus, from noon to 4 p.m. on each Saturdays Dec. 17 and 24, you can join a free Holiday Window Walk that includes holiday fun, menu samples and food and drink specials.

Warm up with the arts – Celebrate the holidays with a dazzling variety of concerts and performing arts on 11 different stages in Downtown. This weekend alone, you can revel in holiday cheer with the Kansas City Ballet and The Nutcracker at the Kauffman Center for Performing Arts; the Kansas City Symphony and its Christmas Celebration at the Kauffman Center; the Trans-Siberian Orchestra at Sprint Center; the Blue Man Group at the Music Hall; the Owen/Cox Dance Company and The Nutcracker & The Mouse King at Union Station; concerts by The Fray and Steel Panther at the Midland; Mark O’Connor at the Folly; a Messiah Sing-Along at Grace and Holiday Trinity Cathedral; plus five holiday-themed plays at five Downtown theaters, including the American Heartland Theatre, City Stage at Union Station, the Coterie Theatre, Fishtank Theater, Off Center Theatre and the Quality Hill Playhouse.

Holiday traditions – Downtown is home to great, annual holiday features like the Grinch’s WhoVille Holidays at City Market (this Saturday); Holiday Magic at Union Station (this weekend), Santa’s Crayola Christmas and Gingerbread Village at Crown Center (thru Dec. 31), and a season of outdoor fun at the Crown Center Ice Terrace.

Welcome to Downtown this holiday season. Why go anywhere else?

With her bold new album, You Are Not Alone, the legendary vocalist adds a remarkable new chapter to an historic career. Staples is a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner, and a National Heritage Fellowship Award winner. VH1 named her one of the 100 Greatest Women of Rock and Roll, and Rolling Stone listed her as one of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.

For a 20 percent discount on tickets to this special performance, follow this link and enter the promotional code SISTERS.
http://tickets.kauffmancenter.org/single/eventDetail.aspx?p=3621

The former U.S. Federal Courthouse in Kansas City, Missouri, named by Affordable Housing Finance as the Best Historic Rehabilitation of 2011 and as the Historic Kansas City Foundation’s 2011 Merit Award Winner for Best Adaptive Reuse, will officially re-open as Courthouse Lofts today.

Located at 811 Grand Boulevard in Downtown Kansas City, the official grand opening ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. today with official remarks. A public open house will take place from 4-7 p.m. today, and will include tours and refreshments.

The $40 million renovation, which transformed the 72-year old courthouse into 176 workforce-housing apartments featuring high quality finishes and amenities, including a community room and theater, roof top terrace, and heated, underground parking. The historic courtrooms, which served as the backdrop for several landmark civil rights cases, were preserved as part of the rehabilitation.

Courthouse Lofts features 109 one-bedroom apartments with rents starting at $595 per month, and 67 two-bedroom apartments from $720.

“The Courthouse project is a significant public/private partnership and all levels of government worked tirelessly to see this project come to fruition,” said Joseph Alexander, president, The Alexander Company, who managed the project. “The end result will provide high-quality, work-force housing that will help drive the economic engine of downtown Kansas City.”

Assembling financing took several years and essentially closed twice, as the project was days away from finalizing funding in December 2008 when its lead bank pulled out. With key federal funding available only to shovel-ready projects that could assemble sources by the end of 2009, more than a dozen governmental agencies and private sponsors collaborated to completely restructure the transaction in time.

“Courthouse Lofts is exactly the type of project federal and state incentive programs were designed to benefit,” said Lynn Craghead of U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation and a former board chair of the Downtown Council. “Restoration of this important landmark and the creation of much-needed affordable urban living space add to the fabric of downtown Kansas City and compliment the City’s ongoing investments. The value of tax credit programs in strengthening communities across the country can be easily understood once you have visited this property.”

A product of the New Deal program, the building’s foundation was laid on Oct. 20, 1938, and the first federal agency moved in on Sept. 21, 1939.  Its quarters served as the setting for several landmark desegregation, anti-trust, and criminal cases during the mid-to late 20th century. In addition to housing the federal courts and associated judicial offices, more than 16 different government bureaus and departments also occupied the building, including a post office substation and Harry S. Truman’s local senatorial offices.

Form Follows Functions, a special design exhibition featuring the work of UMKC Theatre students, will open today (Friday, Dec. 2) with a reception from 4-6 p.m. in The Box Gallery, 1000 Walnut St.

Theatrical Designers are charged with the responsibility of transforming dramatic literature into three-dimensional existence. Through scenic design, costume design, and lighting design the tone and aesthetic atmosphere is invented, so the actors can bring the content to life. The UMKC Theatre graduate students come out from behind the scenes, to showcase their talent in this exhibition, titled Form Follows Function.

UMKC Theatre has been ranked by U.S. News and World Report among the top graduate theatre training programs in the country. For 34 years, the theatre department has trained and developed some of the finest theatre artisans working in the industry today.

Form Follows Function will be on display in The Box Gallery from today, Friday, Dec. 2 through Friday, Feb. 24. The Box Gallery is located in the Commerce Bank Building at 1000 Walnut St.  Hours are Monday-Friday from 8am to 5:30pm.  Admission is free and open to the public.  An opening reception for the artists will be held from 4-6:30 p.m. today (Friday, Dec. 2).

The public is invited to Quality Hill on Saturday for a free event that will feature holiday shopping, raffles and sampling. Fourteen vendors will be participating from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday at the Quality Hill Leasing Office, 1003 Broadway.

Donations of new toy will be cheerfully accepted. For each new toy that is donated, you will receive five free raffle tickets.