Sunflower Secures $7 Million in NMTC Allocation

Sunflower is excited to announce that our team has secured $7 million in New Market Tax Credit allocation for our client, the Unified Government of Wyandotte County (the UG). The UG was working with local stakeholders to identify a grocery store operator in downtown Kansas City. The Merc Co+op has signed onto the project and is slated to open in mid-2020.

The Merc Co+op is a community-oriented, co-op grocery store based in Lawrence, KS. The company’s emphasis on fresh foods and healthy living made it a prime choice to operate this new development in the downtown area. 

This area of downtown Kansas City was designated a “food desert” by the federal government. This designation was created as part of a campaign by First Lady Michelle Obama and refers to an urban area where the nearest grocery store is more than a mile away. This designation has led the way for several grocery stores to apply the New Market Tax Credit to their projects. 

The 14,000 square foot development will include a classroom, salad bar, deli counter and prepared foods counter. It will also include dedicated seating areas and a classroom for educational workshops. The project will create several jobs for the immediate area, and will also service the 5,000 to 6,000 downtown employees. 

Read the full story at the Kansas City Business Journal here.