Kansas City's Prairie Village Shops

KCK's PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS was the first post-war shopping center in the Sunflower State. 

Drawing from the J.C. Nichols Company

J.C. Nichols (1880-1950). A major real estate developer of the 20th century, he started work on his Country Club District in 1906. As planned, the District would contain several individual housing plats. One of the Kansas-side communities would be known as Prairie Village.

Photo from Wikipedia / Julian Felsenburgh

In 1941, Nichols bought four land parcels from the Porter family; these to be incorporated into Prairie Village. An obstacle presented itself in 1942, when Elizabeth Porter balked at selling her homestead (seen in the photo above). After 5 years of delicate negotiations, Nichols acquired the land. It was utilized for the construction of a shopping center.

Photo from the Johnson County Museum / City of Prairie Village, Kansas

A vintage snapshot shows some of the original Prairie Village tract houses. Each sold for the whopping sum of $6,000. By mid-1942, ninety-five had been built. After a 4-year -war induced- hiatus, construction resumed in 1946. An entire house was finished in one day. By 1949, over 1,000 had been completed. 

Photo from State Historical Society of Missouri / J.C. Nichols Company Scrapbook

PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS opened for business in mid-1948. One of eleven charter stores was John S. Watkins Drugs. 

Photo from The J.C. Nichols Company

A fledgling PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS is seen in this 1948 aerial view. 

Photo from The State Historical Society of Missouri / J.C. Nichols Company Scrapbook

A Pay-Less supermarket was a charter 1948 PRAIRIE VILLAGE tenant. This store was quickly outgrown. A new "Super Food Market" was built, which opened in September 1951.

Drawing from Pay-Less Stores, Incorporated

The first of four PRAIRIE VILLAGE site plans depicts the shopping center of early 1952. Building 1 (a.k.a. the Main Plaza) was completed in several stages, with the oldest sections shown in black. 

PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS TENANTS 1952:

OPENED MAY-JULY 1948:

PAY-LESS supermarket / CLYDE SMITH 5 & 10 / Calvert's Beauty Salon / Ed Cox Bakery / Hannah Cleaners / John S. Watkins Drugs / M.A. Stevenson Plumbing (basement) / M & H Book & Gift / Robinson Shoe Company / Skelly Oil Company / Ziegler's Plainfield Cab

OPENED NOVEMBER 1948:

Hensler & Bollard Village Washerette / Joe Maseda's Toon Shop / Johnson County National Bank & Trust Company / Marcia Thompson's Infant's & Children's Wear / Pete Potter & Martha Grother Dress Shop / Robert N. Miller Hardware 

OPENED MAY 1949:

Johnson County National Bank & Trust Company # 2 (outparcel) 

OPENED 1951:

PAY-LESS supermarket # 2 / Prairie Village City Hall (basement) / Standard Oil service station (outparcel)

A series of contemporary PRAIRIE VILLAGE exterior views begins with Building 1 and the storefront originally leased by John S. Watkins Drugs. At the time of this snapshot, the space was occupied by Fleet Fleet Sports.

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

Here, we see the southwest end of Building 1 and its Chico's dress shop.

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

Comprising the southeast end of Building 1, this structure housed the center's second Pay-Less supermarket. The first Prairie Village City Hall was in its basement. Over the years, grocery stores have operated here under the Pay-Less, Safeway, Food Barn and Hen House Market nameplates. 

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

"The Homesteaders," created by local artisan Anna Belle Campbell, was installed at PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS in 1952. It was relocated in 1991 and now stands northwest of the Mission Road and Tomahawk Road intersection.

Photo from The J.C. Nichols Company / John Brouck

PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS, circa-1958. In 1954, a section of Brush Creek was enclosed, with a new East Mall (Buildings 2 and 3) constructed over it. The open-air shopping concourse in Building 2 was dedicated in mid-1956. A (94,000 square foot) Jones Store, added to the south end, welcomed first shoppers in late 1958. 

The first of two PRAIRIE VILLAGE logo montages is composed of trademarks of stores that were in operation between the late 1940s and early 2000s.

In this contemporary snapshot, we see Building 2, which was the first mall-type shopping facility in Kansas. 

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

This building housed the aforementioned Jones Store for over 47 years.

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

Graphic from the Mercantile Stores Company, Incorporated

Over the years, the official name of the south Kansas City shopping hub has evolved. By the late 1960s, it was being promoted as the PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPPING CENTER. This moniker was still in use in 1979. By 1981, the original name -PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS- had been reinstated. 

Graphics from the J.C. Nichols Company 

All PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS structures were given an exterior face lift between June and October of 1989. As part of the renovation, a Clock Tower was added to the East Mall (Building 2).

Photo from https://sah-archipedia.org / SAH Archipedia / Society of Architectural Historians / David Sachs

Building 3 occupies a pad west of Building 2 and was built as part of the shopping center's 1950s expansion.

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

Several structures have been added in the periphery of PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS. This building, completed in September 1963, originally housed a relocated Johnson County National Bank & Trust Company. A northward addition was dedicated in May 1972.

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

By the time of a circa-2007 layout, The Jones Store has been replaced by Macy's. The retail complex encompasses approximately 393,500 leasable square feet. The two main buildings contain thirty-two stores and services, with ten more in outparcel storefronts.

PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS TENANTS 2007:

MACY'S / Adriene Mason, Limited massage / A Fairytale Ballet & The Princess Club / Applebee's Neighborhood Bar & Grill / Bag & Baggage / bijin salon & spa / Blenders beverages (outparcel)  / Blue Moose Bar & Grill (outparcel) / Boulangerie Philippe French pastries / Bruce Smith Drugs / Café Provence / Chico's ladies' wear / Cold Stone Creamery / Creative Body Balance yoga & fitness / Curious Sofa antiques & collectibles / Einstein Brothers bagels (outparcel) / Euston Hardware / Fitness for Life / Hen House Market / M. Taylor jewelry & accessories / Mady & Me children's wear  / Missouri Bank & Trust (outparcel) / Minsky's Italian restaurant / Mr. Goodcents Subs & Pasta / Natural Wear, Incorporated apparel / Prairie Village Shoe Repair / R.S.V.P. In The Village / Rimann Liquors / Shell service station (outparcel) / Spangler's gifts & accessories / Starbucks Coffee (outparcel) / Stoney Broke Limited interiors / TCBY yogurt (outparcel) / The Better Cheddar cheese shop / Tiffany Town cards & gifts / Toon Shop, Incorporated musical instruments / Tower Dry Cleaners & Laundry / US Bank (outparcel) / Village Flower Company (outparcel) / Village Hairstyling Number 1 / Village Hairstyling Number 2 / Waid's restaurant (outparcel)  

A second PRARIE VILLAGE SHOPS logo montage is presented in living color. It features trademarks of stores in business during the 2010s.

The center's first Starbucks Coffee opened, in this freestanding building, in August 1998. Today, the space is leased by Einstein Brothers Bagels.

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

THE VILLAGE Macy's pulled up stakes in early 2020. 

Photo from Johnson County, Kansas

Above, we see the two most recent logos for the KCK shopping complex. During the 2010s, it was promoted as simply THE VILLAGE. By the year 2020, the official moniker had morphed into THE SHOPS OF PRAIRIE VILLAGE.

Graphic 1 from https://www.lane4group.com / Lane4 Property Group

Graphic 2 from https://www.firstwash.com / First Washington Realty

Our fourth -and final- VILLAGE plan illustrates the shopping hub of the year 2024. The newest structures have been built in the center's northeastern periphery. These consists of a 5,000 square foot -three-unit- store strip and offices for a UMB Bank branch. 

A 2020s birds-eye view of THE SHOPS OF PRAIRIE VILLAGE includes locations of the center's iconic Clock Tower and The Homesteaders statue. 

Photo from Google Earth

In October 2020, a renovation of the mall's abandoned Macy's building was officially announced. The 120,000 square foot structure would be reconfigured with retail tenants, leased office spaces and a relocated Hen House Market. Construction commenced in January 2025.

Drawing from the GRI Prairie Village, Limited Liability Company

PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS

Mission Lane and Tomahawk Road

Johnson County (Prairie Village), Kansas

Kansas City, Missouri's J.C. (Jessie Clyde) Nichols was one of the 20th century's most innovative real estate developers. His Country Club District, a housing plat implemented between 1906 and 1950, was the nation's largest planned community ever built by a single developer. The District's de facto downtown was its COUNTRY CLUB PLAZA; one of America's first suburban shopping centers. Its first businesses opened in March 1923. 

In developing the Country Club District, J.C. Nichols ushered in several city planning innovations. Landscape architects were consulted to lay out broad, curving avenues. All streets were paved. Small sections of greenspace would often be decorated with statuary and fountains. On the negative side, all residential property was bound by discriminatory covenants. 

In all, the Country Club District encompassed 6,000 acres. Its subdivisions on the Missouri side of the state line included Brookside, Crestwood, Sunset Hills and Westwood. Kansas-side communities were Fairway, Mission Hills and Prairie Village. Platted in 1941, Prairie Village would eventually encompass 1,781 homes. The community was named after the historic Prairie School, a Johnson County landmark built in 1882. 

An auto-centric shopping complex was developed on 10 acres in the northern sector of the plat. PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS was designed by Nichols Company architect Edward W. Tanner. Its storefronts were decorated in the style of Colonial Williamsburg. Eleven inaugural tenants opened their doors between May and July 1948. These included John S. Watkins Drug, Ed Cox Bakery, and a (7,300 square foot) Pay-Less supermarket. Six additional stores welcomed first shoppers in November 1948. 

In 1950, the National Association of Home Builders recognized Prairie Village for being the "Best Complete Community Development in the United States." In February 1951, the locality was officially incorporated as a third-class city. Second-class city status was achieved in January 1953, with Prairie Village becoming a first-class city in 1956. In Kansas, a third-class city has a population of between 1,000 and 2,000 inhabitants. A second-class city has between 2,000 and 15,000, with a third-class city's population exceeding 15,000.

Getting back to PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS...the Pay-Less supermarket had re-opened in a larger store on September 20, 1951. Encompassing approximately 18,000 square feet, the building's completion established the footprint of Building 1. In June 1957, stores in the Pay-Less chain -including the PRAIRIE VILLAGE unit- were rebranded by Safeway Stores, Incorporated.

An expansion of the shopping hub, extending it southward over Brush Creek, was on the drawing board for several years. By the spring of 1955, construction was underway. When completed, the open-air East Mall addition would cover approximately 103,800 leasable square feet and house eleven stores beneath its awnings. 

Among the first operational tenants was a 2-level (30,000 square foot) The Palace ladies' wear emporium. This store was open for business by May 1956. Adjacent tenants included Smith Drugs, a George Muehlbach & Sons grocery,  Prairie Village Public Library and 2-level (14,000 square foot) T. G. & Y. 5 & 10. 

Plans for a bona fide anchor store were announced in February 1957. Kansas City, Missouri's The Jones Store chain would build a 2-level -with basement- facility; this added to the south end of the East Mall (a.k.a. Building 2). The (93,800 square foot) Jones Store was officially dedicated on October 30, 1958. With its completion, PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS covered 17.4 acres and encompassed approximately 354,300 leasable square feet. It was now the second-largest retail complex in the J.C. Nichols Company portfolio (this following Kansas City, Missouri's COUNTRY CLUB PLAZA).

Major buildings in the PRAIRIE VILLAGE complex remained unchanged during the 1960s. A rooftop parking deck at The Jones Store was rebuilt as a third retail level in the early 1970s. The store now encompassed around 120,000 square feet. 

Safeway's Kansas City supermarkets were sold in January 1988. The PRAIRIE VILLAGE unit was rebranded, as a Super Food Barn, in early 1989. It closed for good on March 25, 1994. The local Hen House Market chain assumed the store space, renovated it, and commenced operation on February 11, 1995.

Meanwhile, the exterior of PRAIRIE VILLAGE SHOPS had been given a face lift. As part of this renovation, components of the original Colonial Williamsburg motif were carried over and improved upon. Decorative towers were rebuilt, dormers, new awnings and signage installed, and a 53-foot-tall Clock Tower added to Building 2. The remodeling project got underway in June 1989, with the revitalized shopping center being dedicated on November 11th.

The J.C. Nichols Company merged with Raleigh-based Highwoods Properties in July 1998. Ownership of the complex would change on two more occasions. In May 2009, the Kansas City, Missouri-based Lane4 Property Group became its proprietor. Bethesda-based First Washington Realty took the helm in August 2014.

In September 2010, The Prairie Village City Council established the first of six Community Improvement Districts. A 1% sales tax was levied, which would be collected for 22 years. Accumulated funds would be used to reimburse the owner(s) of the renamed SHOPS OF PRAIRIE VILLAGE for various property upgrades.

As part of CID-related renovations, improvements were made to the Mission Lane thoroughfare. Moreover, a new (6,200 square foot) retail building was constructed, with Chipotle Mexican Grill, Etiquette Boutique and a relocated Starbucks Coffee leasing space. Storefronts in existing buildings were also retenanted. New businesses included Pinot's Palette, Beltone Hearing Aid Service and a new US Post Office.

The Jones Store, a charter Mercantile Stores division, was bounced between a couple of retail holding companies between 1998 and 2005, eventually ending up as a Federated Department Stores operative. THE SHOPS OF PRAIRIE VILLAGE store was rebranded by Macy's on February 1, 2006. It was shuttered in March 2020. 

Sources:

The Kansas City Star

The Kansas City Times

The Shawnee Mission Post

https://ims.jocogov.org / Johnson County, Kansas

https://www.globest.com

https://kcyesterday.com

https://jocohistory.wordpress.com

https://artsandculture.google.com

Katie Keckeisen, Johnson County (Kansas) Museum

https://www.jcprd.com / Johnson County Museum, Johnson County, Kansas / "Final Historic Resources Survey Report"

https://growingourhome.wordpress.com 

https://sah-archipedia.org / Society of Architectural Historians

https://shawneemissionpost.com

https://www.groceteria.ca / Groceteria

https://www.supermarketnews.com

https://www.henhouse.com

http://www.prairievillageshops.com (Website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

https://shopsofprairievillage.com (Website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

https://shopsofprairievillage.com

https://theclio.com 

https://prairiepta.org

https://www.pvkansas.com

https://smeharbinger.net

https://www.lane4group.com / Lane4 Property Group

https://www.firstwash.com / First Washington Realty

Kansas City's Metcalf South Center

The logo of KCK's first fully-enclosed shopping complex. This trademark promoted the shopping hub over the entirety of its 47 years in operation.
Graphic from the Metcalf South Corporation   

The Jones Store, which was the north anchor at METCALF SOUTH CENTER, is in the final stages of construction in this 1967 snapshot.
Photo from www.thenewmetcalf.com

In late 1967, the shiny new METCALF SOUTH CENTER consisted of three floors; the Lower Level, Middle Level and Upper Level. The mall spanned approximately 687,000 leasable square feet and housed a total of sixty stores and services. A 3-level parking area accommodated over 4,000 autos.

METCALF SOUTH TENANTS 1967:

LOWER LEVEL
SEARS (with Coffee House and freestanding Auto Center) / SAFEWAY supermarket / F.W. WOOLWORTH 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) / Arts International Gallery / Bock Barber Shop / Burstein-Applebee home electronics / community meeting room /  DeCloud Studios / Fred Diebel Pipemaker & Tobacconist / Harper Rug Company / Harris Opticians / Hobby Haven / Home of Tile / Household Finance Corporation / Jenkins Music Company / Katz Drug (with luncheonette) / Maytag Home Appliance Center / Metcalf South Animal Clinic / Metcalf South Liquor Store / Mode O'Day Frock Shop / Pappy's Rib Pit / Pet Palace / Pizza Place / Ragsdale Beauty Salon / The Watch Shop / Topsy's Popcorn & Ice Cream Shop / Valley View State Bank / Woman's World ladies' wear 

MIDDLE LEVEL
THE JONES STORE (with Beauty Salon and restaurant) / SEARS (with Coffee House and freestanding Auto Center) / F.W. WOOLWORTH 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) / Anchor Savings Association / Baker's Qualicraft Shoes / Bogdon Candies / Cake Box Bakers / Calandra's Hallmark & Party Shop / Chasnoff ladies' wear / Coach House / Gateway Sporting Goods / Hartzfeld's / Helzberg's Jewelers / House of Fabrics / Kinney Shoes / Jack Henry men's wear / Jenkins Music Company / Leighter's / Lisman's / Louis Barry, Limited / Metcalf Theatre (single-screen) / Robinson's Shoes / Rothschild's / Singer Sewing Center / Sir Knight Formal Wear / Tall & Longwaisted Fashions / Thom McAn Shoes / Todds Men's Store / Topsy's Sidewalk Cafe 

UPPER LEVEL
THE JONES STORE (with Beauty Salon and restaurant) / Adler's / Continental One-Hour Dry Cleaners / Harzfeld's / Putsch's Cafeteria / Rothschild's / Tailor Shop / Gulf Service Station (outparcel)

Katz Drug, the first of three pharmacies that were to operate in this Lower Level space. The Katz chain, based in Kansas City, Missouri, was acquired, and rebranded, by Skaggs Drug in 1971. Skaggs stores were absorbed into the Osco chain in the mid-1980s.
Photo from the Johnson County Museum

A circa-1976 cut-away view of the "Metcalf Mall." The north end, and The Jones Store, were one level higher than Sears on the south. The original complex included a partial Upper Level. This was extended southward in 1974-'75. An addition to The Jones Store was also completed at around the same time.

Click on image for a larger view.

Our second METCALF SOUTH plan dates to 1991, after the completion of an indoor face lift. A vacant Woolworth is divided into nine tenant spaces and small Food Court. Likewise, the Safeway supermarket has been repurposed as an indoor amusement area. With these improvements, the complex covers around 946,000 leasable square feet. Mall floor designations changed in the 1970s. There were now Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3.

The Level 2 mall entrance of The Jones Store, taken right before a nameplate conversion.
Photo from www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way"

A second view of the same storefront, which, by late 2006, was sporting a Macy's nameplate. This store was shuttered in March 2014. 
Photo from www.flickr.com / "Army Arch"

A snapshot of the center of the center, showing the "tower of stairs."
Photo from www.labelscar.com / "Prange Way"

Above and below are two interior views, which show the pristine condition of the property in its final years. It was always meticulously maintained, making it one of the nicest dead malls in the United States.

Photos from www.flickr.com / "Army Arch"

A lot of the original interior design elements were retained over the years. The complex was officially shuttered in September 2014.
Photos from www.flickr.com / "Army Arch"

A rendering of the proposed STREETS AT METCALF mixed-use complex that was supposed to have replaced METCALF SOUTH CENTER. This plan was abandoned in 2008, primarily due to The Great Recession.
Drawing from www.thestreetsatmetcalf.com

A squabble between a new developer and Overland Park city planners slammed the brakes on CENTRAL SQUARE, a second redevelopment plan for the moribund METCALF SOUTH mall. This project was abandoned in 2015.
Drawing from http://www.lane4group.com / Lane4 Properties Group 

The third time's a charm! Here we see the Lowe's-anchored power center that (finally) replaced METCALF SOUTH CENTER. Plans for this redevelopment were approved in late 2016, with mall demolition getting underway in April 2017. Stores in the 95 METCALF SOUTH power center opened in 2018.
Drawing from http://www.lane4group.com / Lane4 Properties Group 

METCALF SOUTH CENTER

Metcalf Avenue / US 69 and West 95th Street
Overland Park, Kansas

The city of Overland Park was incorporated out of area in Johnson County, Kansas on May 20, 1960. In 1966, construction commenced on Greater Kansas City, Kansas' first fully-enclosed shopping center. It would occupy a 50-acre parcel, located 7.3 miles southwest of downtown Kansas City, Kansas.

METCALF SOUTH CENTER was developed by local entrepreneurs Frank Morgan and Sherman Dreiseszun, under the auspices of MD Management. The shopping hub was designed by Boyle & Wilson Architects (of Overland Park, Kansas), Uri Seiden & Associates (of Kansas City, Missouri) and John C. Fasnacht & Associates (also of Kansas City, Missouri).

The official dedication of METCALF SOUTH CENTER was held on August 3, 1967, The grand opening was attended by Duard Enoch (Mayor of Overland Park), Donald Pipes (City Manager of Overland Park) and Debbie Bryant, "Miss America 1966". A 2-level (183,000 square foot), Kansas City, Missouri-based Jones Store opened as part of the festivities.

Charter stores and services included Putsch's Cafeteria, Baker's Shoes, Singer Sewing Center, Katz Drug, Hartzfeld's, The Swiss Colony, an F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10, Safeway supermarket and Commonwealth Theatres Metcalf Theatre (a single-screen venue). A 2-level (196,500 square foot) Sears opened for business in October 1967. With its completion, the shopping hub encompassed approximately 601,800 leasable square feet and housed sixty tenant spaces.

In the early days, the commercial competitors of METCALF SOUTH CENTER were WARD PARKWAY CENTER (1959) {3.1 miles northeast, in Kansas City, Missouri}, OAK PARK MALL (1975) {2.6 miles west, also in Overland Park} and, to a lesser extent, MISSION CENTER (1956 and 1986) {4.7 miles northeast, in Mission, Kansas}.

METCALF SOUTH CENTER was enlarged with an extended Upper Level concourse. This addition comprised approximately 103,500 leasable square feet and housed nineteen tenants. Dedicated on October 17, 1975, it added stores such as Spencer Gifts, B. Dalton Bookseller, Casual Corner, The Limited and Smaks Hamburgers to the retail roster. A subsequent addition expanded the existing Jones Store by 38,000 square feet, for a total area of 221,000. A parking deck comprised the first level of the addition. 

 

The Metcalf Theatre was reconfigured as a twin-plex. It re-opened, as the Metcalf I & II, on December 19, 1980. Katz Drug, which had been rebranded as a Skaggs Drug in 1971, came under the Osco Drug banner in early 1985. After Harzfeld's was shuttered in 1984, its space became a Jones Store Furniture outlet. With these modifications, METCALF SOUTH CENTER spanned approximately 744,000 leasable square feet. 

 

Between 1989 and 1990, the complex was given an interior face lift. This included the installation of chrome and mirrored ceilings and marquee lighting fixtures. A vacant Woolworth was sectioned into 2 levels of inline stores, including a small Food Court. Moreover, the Safeway space was refitted as Carousel Park, a mini amusement area with a video arcade, carousel and mini-roller coaster.

Unfortunately, METCALF SOUTH CENTER would soon encounter two formidable competitors. TOWN CENTER PLAZA {2.7 miles southeast, in Leawood}, was dedicated in 1996. THE GREAT MALL OF THE GREAT PLAINS {10.4 miles southwest, in Olathe} opened its doors in 1997.

 

Soon after the turn of the 21st century, the in-mall movie house was reconfigured again. It was returned to its original single-screen format and re-dedicated, as the Glenwood Theatre, on November 22, 2002. By this time, METCALF SOUTH CENTER had entered a downward spiral. In late 2006, MD Management entered into a joint venture with Greenwood, Colorado-based Alberta Development Partners.

They devised a redevelopment plan for THE STREETS AT METCALF, a mixed-use facility encompassing over 1 million square feet. This lifestyle complex was to incorporate the existing Sears and Jones Store (which had been rebranded by Macy's on September 9, 2006). The enclosed mall section between these two stores would be demolished.

The Great Recession derailed the project, with Alberta Development Partners eventually pulling out of the deal. The moribund mall was sold to a joint venture of Kansas City, Missouri's Lane4 Properties Group and Columbia, Missouri's Kroenke Group in March 2008.

The METCALF SOUTH Macy's closed for good in March 2014. Soon after, what few tenants that remained in business were given eviction notices. The mall's final day of operation was September 19, 2014. Sears remained in business along with the Glenwood Theatre. The cinema was permanently shuttered in January 2015, just as a second a redevelopment plan was being announced.

The 320 million dollar project would have replaced the mall with an open-air complex. Done in "noeclassic Mediterranean style," CENTRAL SQUARE was to include retail, restaurant and residential components. By August 2015, this plan had been scrapped due to disagreements between the developers and Overland Park city planners.
  
A third redevelopment plan was approved by the local government in December 2016. The bulk of the METCALF SOUTH mall would be demolished, leaving Sears standing. A new power center, known as 95 METCALF SOUTH, would be built.

Anchoring the facility would be a 1-level (130,000 square foot) Lowe's home improvement center. 95 METCALF SOUTH would encompass 251,000 leasable square feet and house fourteen stores and services. The first tenants in the 80 million dollar power plaza were scheduled to open in the spring of 2018 Demolition of the METCALF SOUTH mall got underway in April 2017. Soon after, it was announced that Sears would be shuttering their 50-year-old METCALF SOUTH store in September 2017.

Sources:

The Kansas City Star

http:johnsoncountyhistory.org
https://www.labelcar.com 
http://www.mdmgt.com / MD Management
https://shawneemissionpost.com

https://govdocs.nebraska.gov
https://www.jocogov.org / Johnson County, Kansas
https://movie-theatre.org / Mike Rivest
https://www.cinematour.com
https://www.kansascity.com
http://www.bizjournals.com 
http://www.lane4group.com

Post by "Go Nordrike!"

"Overland Park, Kansas" article on Wikipedia

Kansas City's Mission Center

A triangular neon sign beckoned shoppers into Greater Kansas City's MISSION CENTER. The open-air strip complex opened for business -with sixteen stores- in July 1956.

Macy's Mission, the third branch in the Macy's Kansas City division, covered 70,000 square feet on 2 levels. The store would anchor MISSION CENTER for over 29 years.
Drawing from R.H. Macy & Company

Our first MISSION CENTER layout depicts the shopping hub of late 1956. Comprising twenty-four stores and services, the facility encompassed approximately 190,000 leasable square feet. Its bi-level parking area could accommodate 1,200 autos at one time.

MISSION CENTER TENANTS 1956:

MACY'S (with Beauty Salon) / W.T. GRANT (with luncheonette ) / F.W. WOOLWORTH 5 & 10 (with luncheonette) / Kroger supermarket / Allen's Shoes / B & G Hosiery Shop / Comb's Shoes / Consolidated Finance / Dring's Office / Elko Camera Shop / Gifts Unlimited / House of Fabrics /  Leighter's ladies' wear / Mission Center Barber Shop / National Shirt Shops / Parkview Rexall Drug (with luncheonette) / Parkway Restaurant / Pat Paul's infant's wear / Russell Stover Candies / Shirley's Maternity Fashions / Slenderella Figure Salon / Suburban Living hardware / Three Sisters ladies' wear 

By the 1980s, MISSION CENTER had been usurped by bigger and better enclosed malls in its trade area. The complex was demolished, leaving only its Macy's building intact. The dual-level MISSION CENTER mall was built. A "double-header" Dillard's was included, that repurposed the old Macy's (in black). It was now Dillard's South, a women's & home store.

The fully-enclosed complex spanned approximately 351,000 leasable square feet and contained fifty-two stores under its roof.
Photo from Reddit / "TheUknownJudy"

An aerial view of the mall, looking southward. By the turn of the 21st century, the shopping hub had (supposedly) run its course. It was shuttered in February 2006 and demolished in March of the same year.
Photo from www.shopmissioncenter.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)