Mark Your Calendars for the 2026 Downtown KC Annual Luncheon on April 10, 2026!

Announcing an exciting program for the DTC Annual Luncheon!

DTC - KC Skyline

By Jared Campbell, Resident Engagement Project Manager at Downtown Council of Kansas City

We are excited to have you join us on Friday, April 10th as we celebrate the energy, progress, and people who make Downtown Kansas City such a dynamic place.

As in years past, we will be celebrating a new class of Urban Hero award winners this year along with the 2026 J. Philip Kirk Jr. Award in recognition of Community Vision and Downtown Stewardship.

We are thrilled to be presenting Warren Erdman with the J. Philip Kirk Jr. Award.  Warren is a long-time civic leader for Downtown, Kansas City, and the State of Missouri.  He is a retired business executive with CPKC and the current chair of the MO Highways & Transportation Commission.

This year’s Urban Hero honorees are:

  • Bethany Alzanadi (Art Garden KC)
  • Dulcinea Herrera (Café Corazón)
  • Bruce Holloway – Community advocate for the West Bottoms neighborhood
  • Rob & Deborah Reiman – Community advocates for the River Market neighborhood
  • Courtney Thomas (Newhouse)

Carol Coletta will be our featured speaker this year. Carol will be joined on stage by Downtown Council’s Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Ann Holliday for a conversation on how public space activation within such projects as the Roy Blunt Luminary Park, Barney Allis Plaza, Rock Island Bridge and the Greenline will build on our legacy of downtown revitalization. Carol will be sharing stories from her career overseeing projects like Tom Lee Park and her work in cities as a Bloomberg Fellow.

Events like the Annual Luncheon would not be possible without the support of our sponsors.  We would like to especially thank our current Gold Sponsors: Blue KC, Burns & McDonnell, & JE Dunn and our Silver Sponsors: Academy Bank, Evergy, FNBO, H&R Block, Kansas City Royals, Kauffman Foundation, McCownGordon, Risk Strategies, UMB, and Van Trust Real Estate.

Is it not too late to register for the luncheon!  We would welcome your involvement as a sponsor.  Please visit our website at www.downtownkc.org/annual-luncheon or email Jared at jared@downtownkc.org with any questions about the event.

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