I spent a few days last week in the Kansas City market. First of all, it is one of the nicest markets in the US, especially the area around Country Club Plaza. Retail on the whole is performing well in the market. The most successful retail properties seem to be Town Center at Leawood and Oak Park Mall. However, one real concern in the market is the number of big box vacancies. In fact, there is a project in the suburb of Merriam with a recently completed Circuit City that never opened.
Integra Real Estate Resources, Inc in their IRR-Viewpoint, noted that the Kansas City Market Area has 43.9 million square feet of retail with a vacancy rate that is just shy of 10%.