UC-B Properties was formed 8 years ago, merging Urban Coeur Properties and Bridger Properties into a company led by Lance Carlton and John Hoffman whose mission has been and will continue to rebuild urban Kansas City with an emphasis on properties along Troost and east.  

Our current projects are BLVD64, an 82 unit apartment building at 64th and Paseo and Mt. Prospect at 22nd and Tracy, a continuation of Beacon Hill where we completed 15 new homes and now building 31 single family homes.

We are committed to erasing the stigma created over the past 60 years that living in the urban core was inferior to living in the many suburbs that surround the beautiful urban areas that were build from the 1880s to the late 20th century. This “white flight” that began in the late 1950s was due to the desegregation of our public schools and the creation of the highway system that circled the urban core, allowing people to circumvent “older” neighborhoods and “inferior” school systems for new developments. There were efforts to deal with civil rights issues in the 1960s and again in the decades that followed but it wasn’t until the turn of the century did we begin to see a shift and return to the urban cores found in many cities to have become blighted and derelict. In 2002 we saw a return by young people to older buildings being restored in the River Market, downtown, the Crossroads and Westport. In the last two decades we’ve seen a major impact on these areas and UC-B Properties has been catalytic in helping to return urban living as a desired destination especially for young people but also for a growing number of empty nesters.

Eight years ago Lynn(our daughter) and Lance moved from Boston back to Kansas City and both have embraced our concern and interest in urban issues. We finished several projects centered around our office at 30th and Gillham, then relocated three years ago to 43rd and Troost to be closer to our projects along Troost and east. We endeavor to employ women and minorities in our business plans. We focus on the beautiful older neighborhoods east of Troost and have build new homes and rehabbed older homes throughout these neighborhoods with the intention of being catalytic, hoping that others will follow our investment with their own investments in their houses and neighborhoods.

By recycling back into these neighborhoods we endeavor to strengthen these areas and attract new people to return to live in communities that once housed their parents and grandparents.

Our commitment to the urban core extends to our support of established not for profits such as Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey, the American Jazz Museum, the Boys and Girls Clubs and Lead to Read in the public schools. We embrace the Black Lives Matter movement and continue to find opportunities to work together with minority communities to help realize the full potential of living urban and enjoy the rich diversity that these neighborhoods offer.

OUR MISSION

Community

Our mission is to focus on creating communities in historical urban core neighborhoods through high design and new construction. Through thoughtful design in the locations that we develop, we want to leave a lasting, positive impact in those communities

We’re dedicated to Kansas City’s urban development
Our Experience

POSITION + PROMISE

Commitment

UCB is an urban developer committed to creating modern, high-quality places that have a positive impact in their surrounding communities. By collaborating with architects and reflecting the architecture of the communities, our projects honor an existing legacy while reviving the interest of people looking to be a part of a growing, urban community.

DEVELOPING EAST

What does this look like?

Restore commercial vibrancy and strength by concentrating market demand and resources to:

Economic empowerment and commercial development – Existing community residents, organizations and businesses should gain social and economic benefit from neighborhood revitalization efforts. Build upon the cultural legacy of the District. The cultural and historical personality should not be lost due to market pressures and gentrification. Housing development without displacement – Housing developments should include an appropriate level of rental and for sale units affordable to various income levels in order to prevent displacement.

URBAN DESIGN

PRINCIPLES

Reviatlization
63rd & Oak

ELEMENTS

OF THE STUDY

Initiatives & Strategies
View of two story contemporary home in Longfellow neighborhood.

Urban Design Initiatives are projects to improve the physical environment and to leverage development.


Program Initiatives are specific projects to help the community meet its goals of improving quality of life in the area and taking an active role in its regeneration.


Non-Displacement Strategies are intended to govern development activities and public funding decisions affecting the District, in order to ensure that existing residents will enjoy the benefits of a revitalized neighborhood. The District is characterized by lower household incomes and a high percentage of renters, and these conditions make residents vulnerable to displacement as the market improves and property values increase. The Non-Displacement Strategies are designed to prevent displacement by supporting the economic selfsufficiency and housing stability of existing residents.