Going, going, gone! Three long-vacant buildings undergo demolition in south KC

By Kathy Feist

The beginning of 2026 has brought with it the end of three blighted and unsafe properties. A look back at what were once thriving entities. 

Paul Robeson Middle School

The old Paul Robeson Middle School building, located at 8201 Holmes Rd., opened in 1961 as Kansas City’s Jewish Community Center. The 151,880-square-foot building contained a 300-seat theater, Olympic-sized swimming pool, tennis courts, softball fields, a playground and more. It flourished until 1984, when the current JCC opened in Overland Park.

The building was then purchased by the Kansas City Public School District as the Kansas City Middle School of the Arts. In 1990, a portion of the building was used to house the district’s Greek magnet school. In 1998, the building became Paul Robinson Middle School before closing in 2004. 

In 2017, attorney Sean Pickett and a few investors purchased the property with the intention of repurposing the property for the community. Plans were announced in 2018 for a free youth recreation center and senior living facility on the site.

Attorney Sean Pickett and a few investors purchased the property in 2017 and formed the Robeson Holding Co. They agreed to repurpose the school for the benefit of the surrounding community. 

After meeting with the Waldo Tower Neighborhood Association and the Marlborough Community Coalition, plans were presented in 2018 for a free youth recreation center and senior living facility. Plans involved upgrades to the theater, swimming pool and gymnastic facilities, as well as adding two multi-sport fields. Possible tenants would include daycare providers, food vendors and even grocers or caterers. 

The announcement generated excitement, but the timing was off. The pandemic interrupted any hope for corporate funding, according to Pickett. Momentum slowed. Pickett’s investors lost interest.

Last year, Pickett not only had to buy out his partners’ investments, but also faced foreclosure as ballooning back taxes remained unpaid from  2021 to 2023. 

In September, Pickett began work on the property’s track for an expanded rugby football field. It proved too little, too late. Mayor Quinton Lucas decreed the property blighted on social media. On September 18, the city passed an ordinance initiating receivership of the building. The receivership allowed Pickett to remain owner, but it required him to demolish the building.

Demolition began on Feb. 3. The demolition is expected to take three to six months.

“It’s a mixed blessing,” said Pickett.  “Unfortunately we are not going to be able to repurpose it, but we are still going to move forward with the project.”

Robandee Shopping Center

Robandee Shopping Center was once a popular destination for south Kansas City residents, especially those in the Hickman Mills area. 

Built in the early 1970s, it featured a grocery store, roller skating rink, hardware store, florist, public library, and a host of local restaurants and retail spaces. But by 2008, the grocery store closed, creating a domino effect with the remaining businesses. 

Last year, only one retail shop, a liquor store, remained in the 107,000-square-foot building. It went down in a blaze of fire in July 2025, setting in motion the end of Robandee Shopping Center.  

For years, neighbors complained of illegal trash dumping, late night spin-outs and vagrancy on the property, but to little avail. The fire changed that. 

City Councilman Darrell Curls took action, requesting city receivership from the owner, Babar M. Khan with Commodity Express, who purchased the property in 2019.

Curls discussed the value of city ownership and resale of the property with the Telegraph in July.  “We look forward to estimating this for the community and not only offer jobs but plans that bring in kick-starter organizations that promote entrepreneurship.” Curls mentioned developers already interested in multi-family housing or mixed-use projects at the site. 

But Khan had similar plans.

The city considered an ordinance that would let the city spend up to $1 million to buy Robandee Shopping Center but the plan changed to include other blighted properties in the 5th District.  

Today, Khan still owns the property. 

As 2025 came to a close, the fire-damaged portion of the shopping strip was demolished and cleared away. A fence now surrounds the 10-acre property. 

4-Acre Motel

The 4-Acre Motel was once a bright spot for weary drivers entering the city on Old 71 Highway, now known as Hickman Mills Drive. 

Built around 1950, the 24-room motel featured a swimming pool, family restaurant and cocktail lounge. As a new gateway into Kansas City, Old 71 Hwy was booming with motels, roadside bars and restaurants. 

When 71 Highway was diverted, so too were the tourists. The family motel eventually became a hub for hourly stays and illicit activity in an area less traveled.

After the murder and rape of a Southwest High School honor student at the hands of her own father at the motel, 4-Acres soon shut down. Vandals and vagrants moved in, damaging property with fires and forced entry. Trash accumulated and brush grew. 

In 2022, Eddie Guinn of Guinn Group Properties bought the property thinking at least some of the buildings could be restored and used in a housing project, according to a 2024 interview with the Telegraph. 

After complaints of blight and safety risks from the surrounding residents and the Marlborough Community Coalition, the motel was finally razed in early January. Debris will be hauled away over the next month or two. 

Guinn says he still has plans for the property and has retained a small portion. “We are working on some options right now in the form of a housing project,” he said. 

Guinn says he’s ready to move on. “I bought a property that wasn’t meant to be,” he said. “It’s good to have it removed. It’s good for everybody.” 

The stand-alone 4-Acre Motel neon sign was salvaged in 2019 to be displayed in the forthcoming Lumi Neon Museum planned for Pennway Point (near the downtown ferris wheel).