City Interface

Prof. Vladimir Krstic, Kansas City Design Center, University of Kansas, 2010

City Interface confronts the thriving car culture of Kansas City by providing a sustainable point of entry into downtown. Its building typology is based on the contemporary train station prototype (e.g. Berlin Hauptbahnhof and Kyoto Station), which is characterized by transparency, abundant natural light, multi-level free public space, views of the city, links to public transit, shopping, dining, and concealed parking. The program of City Interface incorporates multipurpose public spaces, workspaces, free Internet access, a bookstore, local and regional bus transit, bicycle commuter facilities, and public parking as a pivotal component. The building mediates the divide between the metropolitan area and downtown Kansas City: it is a portal with the qualities of a destination, an integral point in travel to and from the city.

In regard to its monumentality, the building is analogous to Union Station, a former point of entry to the city via train. City Interface contributes a powerful new manifestation of the intermediary space between the highway and the city: here, the suburban meets the urban dweller face to face, where both are offered opportunities to collaborate and to share common experiences. As much a civic institution as a practical parking garage, the building responds to its contemporary urban context and anticipates future function. Floor plans are open and malleable; public spaces are poised to satisfy diverse events and residual functions; infrastructures are adaptable to advancing transportation technology (i.e. electric cars and buses); and its integration of necessary public amenities ensures longevity.

The building situates itself along the proposed Walnut Corridor and acts as extension of the public realm. Its eastern façade, which plays a crucial role in the building’s circulation, modulates the interstitial space of the street and provides visual connection between the Loop and the River Market districts of downtown, which are separated by a high-speed motorway. The ground floor maintains a functionally modified version of the site’s inherent sloping topography and is regarded as a pedestrian continuation of the street. Ample free public space, a rarity in downtown Kansas City, extends to an elevated public plaza on the upper deck of the parking garage. City Interface is a contemporary civic institution; it is a monument to the collective will of the residents of Kansas City.