KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Constructions began Monday on the long-awaited convention center hotel in Kansas City. The Loews hotel is going up near 16th and Wyandotte downtown.
The 24-story, 800-room hotel will have a pedestrian bridge connecting it to Bartle Hall. Developers said the $320 million project will do more than just reshape the Kansas City skyline.
Loews said the hotel will allow Kansas City to host national conventions, drawing crowds to the city and pumping money into the economy. Plus, it will take roughly 2,000 people to build the hotel. And once it is up and running, the hotel will create about 500 permanent jobs.
Kansas City will use money collected on a tourism tax to pay for about $35 million of the project, money the city views as an investment.
Early Monday morning, crews placed orange construction cones along Wyandotte Street. Loews will host an official groundbreaking ceremony at a later date.
The hotel is scheduled to open in 2020.
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