Grill of the city
Jeff Blaesing
Senior Vice President and Kansas City Office Manager
JE Dunn
Marking 100 years in business in 2024, JE Dunn has a lot to celebrate, including a thriving construction industry in Kansas City, Blaesing says.
There is buzz surrounding a potential new Royals baseball stadium to move to the downtown area, as well as renovations to Kansas City Chiefs Arrowhead Stadium, he says. Those projects depend on a vote by Jackson County taxpayers in April to help fund them through a sales tax initiative.
The focus on downtown development continues with ongoing funding for a “deck” with a park and walkways to be built over Interstate 670, connecting downtown to the Crossroads Districts, he says There are also big plans at 47th and Rainbow, where the University of Kansas is planning a cancer research building, while the University of Kansas Medical Center plans an expansion. The multi-family housing remains active. Hot spots are dotted throughout downtown and the Crossroads District, as well as along the river. The expansion of the KC Main Street Car Line will continue to drive urban development, he adds.
Some of the major projects that JE Dunn is building include the $300 million American Royal complex, the $271 million Jackson County Detention Center.
We’ve seen an increase in high-rise/adaptive reuse projects, along with potential redevelopment around current and future streetcar routes. There is a push to start and complete projects for the 2026 World Cup. Public Private Partnership (P3) methods are becoming more common in municipal and institutional work. Some Kansas City developers are starting to turn to non-traditional markets, such as industrial space.
The construction market is currently busy driven by large megaprojects in manufacturing and data centers. These projects are affecting the workforce and capacity of trading partners. The ramp-up in construction has returned to pre-pandemic levels, but we don’t expect prices to drop. The market is expected to remain strong; Procurement of certain materials and equipment must be procured earlier in the project life cycle to meet schedule requirements.
Kansas City adopted the 2021 energy code that went into effect in September 2023. Projects currently being submitted for review are subject to this new code. The air leak commissioning requirement, as acquired, is performed and the results obtained will require new processes and procedural lessons for the many parties involved. Large industrial projects continue to identify Kansas City as a viable region due to available state incentives and energy/water availability.
We’ve seen an increase in high-rise/adaptive reuse projects, along with potential redevelopment around current and future streetcar routes. There is a push to start and complete projects for the 2026 World Cup. Public Private Partnership (P3) methods are becoming more common in municipal and institutional work. Some Kansas City developers are starting to turn to non-traditional markets, such as industrial space.
The construction market is currently busy driven by large megaprojects in manufacturing and data centers. These projects are affecting the workforce and capacity of trading partners. The ramp-up in construction has returned to pre-pandemic levels, but we don’t expect prices to drop. The market is expected to remain strong; Procurement of certain materials and equipment must be procured earlier in the project life cycle to meet schedule requirements.
Off-site manufacturing (OSM) and multi-trade prefabrication are two primary ways JE Dunn is mitigating labor shortages in the market. We take great care in planning construction schedules with labor analysis and facilitate in-depth reviews with business partners to ensure capacity, commitment and support for workforce development programs.
JE Dunn and Monarch Build joined forces to oversee the construction of the revolutionary CPKC KC Current Stadium. This game-changing $117 million project, the world’s first stadium dedicated exclusively to a professional women’s sports team, is poised to reshape the global landscape of women’s sports.
Built for the KC Current, a team in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) since 2021, CPKC Stadium embodies the sports spirit of Kansas City. With a capacity of 11,500 seats, it heralds a new era for women’s sports, creating waves of excitement worldwide.
JE Dunn Construction was founded in 1924 in Kansas City and is currently underway with its centennial celebration throughout 2024.
