Iconic Kansas City venue hasn’t had a concert in decades. Now it’s going to reopen
The former El Torreon Ballroom, a Kansas City icon that hasn’t hosted a concert since 1974, is being renovated into a music venue, the developer said Thursday.
“We think the timing is right,” said Scott Petersen of the locally based Whitestone Co.
“We have new apartment units going up across the street, more commercial developments on the way around the corner, and the streetcar coming in next year. There’s all this redevelopment happening here, and we think this building can again be the crown jewel of the neighborhood.”
The project, estimated to cost $16 million, calls for a 1,500-capacity venue in the second-floor ballroom space, which has a domed, 30-foot ceiling. Whitestone is partnering with the local production company Mammoth Live to design the 23,000-square-foot venue, at 31st Street and Gillham Plaza, and book events.
“Sizewise, it’s smaller than the Uptown, larger than the Madrid — probably closest in this market to The Truman,” Petersen said. “And because of the dome and the lack of columns, we think we can see certain sporting events there, like pro wrestling and UFC. So, not just live music.”
The building is rich with history. Built in 1927 with concrete from political boss and businessman Tom Pendergast, El Torreon’s second-floor ballroom was a jazz age concert hall that hosted the likes of Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway. It closed and became a roller skating rink from the late 1930s to the 1960s, then enjoyed a second musical act in the early 1970s as the Cowtown Ballroom, where stars including Van Morrison, The Byrds and Linda Ronstadt performed. It became the subject of a 2009 film documentary.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, El Torreon’s first floor was a semi-legal home for the local underground music scene, hosting punk, hardcore and ska bands.
Several developers have taken a run at revitalizing the building over the years. It has been owned since 2014 by Bridgeport, a local church that continues to gather there. Its first floor is currently used as an event space and wedding venue, but the ballroom has been out of use since a roof collapse seven years ago. Fortunately, Petersen said, the church carried insurance, which allowed the ballroom to be fully repaired.
Bridgeport hired Petersen’s firm in 2020 to look into restoring the building. The project has since been approved for $5.1 million in state and federal tax credits, and the local community development fund AltCap is applying for millions more from the New Market Tax Credit program. Per an agreement, Bridgeport will transfer ownership of the building to a holding company through which a new nonprofit, Friends of El Torreon, will oversee the restoration and operations of the building.
Petersen said the project will not apply for tax incentives from city agencies.
“We will need some gap funding, but between the historic tax credits and the NMTC funds, I think our capital stack is adequate to make this work,” he said.
Bridgeport will likely continue to maintain a presence on the first floor, Petersen said, but that level will also be remodeled and updated, with plans for a restaurant or cafe.
In addition to the open concert space, the venue will also offer a VIP area on the upper terrace and two bars.
Construction is expected to begin early next year, with plans for a February 2025 opening.
