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Automotive Service Building
1901 McGee Street
Kansas City, Missouri
SCOPE OF WORK: National Register Nomination; Federal & Missouri Historic Tax Credit Applications; coordination with owner and architectural team
CLIENT: 1901 McGee, LLC
INVESTMENT: $3,470,000
COMPLETED: September 2009
 The building at 1901 McGee Street was constructed in 1912 by architect/builder C.C. Smith. Located in the heart of Kansas City’s original Automobile Row, it housed a variety of car-related businesses for nearly five decades. The design meshed a traditional two-part commercial façade with structural elements that addressed the specific needs of auto sales and service:
- Large storefront windows gave passersby a clear view of the vehicles for sale inside.
- The 2nd floor walls were nearly all window; together with skylights in the roof, they provided well-lit and well-ventilated work areas.
- An oversized freight elevator made the transfer of auto parts and vehicles from the back alley to either floor a breeze.
- Massive steel I-beams that span the ceiling on the 1st floor and distinctive turnbuckle trusses that hang from the ceiling on the 2nd floor supplement a traditional early-20th century, masonry and wood structure. This amalgam of elements deftly illustrates an early, specialized adaptation of the typical main street commercial block for a very specific and modern purpose.
The storefront was updated around 1941 with the addition of a band of structural glass above sleek, new aluminum-framed display windows. Some minor modifications were also made to the interior. By the early 1950s a large, neon-lit blade sign hung at the corner. The freshened building functioned as an auto dealership through much of the decade.
In 1968, 1901 McGee housed a wholesale electronics company. That year, after a period of civil unrest, the company installed corrugated metal panels over all the window openings. Although the building was continuously occupied, the panels were never removed. The corner of McGee and 19th Streets remained uninviting and the building essentially invisible for the next forty years.
Jeff and Audrey Kunin purchased the building in 2008 to house their company, Derma Doctor. The Kunins removed the metal panels, revealing the historic oversized double-hung wood windows on the 2nd floor. After decades of neglect, the windows were severely deteriorated. The frames were restored and new custom-fabricated double-hung wood sashes with thermal glazing were installed to replicate the historic sashes. New display windows and structural glass reproduced missing elements of the 1941 storefront. The highlight of the rehabilitation was a new oversized illuminated sign that mimics the size and shape of the historic sign. This one captures Derma Doctor’s trademark logo. It is a fun and whimsical element that enlivens the immediate neighborhood. The historic auto showroom now houses Derma Doctor’s flagship retail store. The remainder of the building functions as warehouse and offices. A palate of fashionable finishes complements the historic wood ceilings and floors, exposed structural members, and brick walls. State and federal historic tax credits made the project financially feasible.
The result is a dramatically transformed building. The reclaimed façade has been restored to its former glory. The exuberant signage has reawakened the intersection. With a functioning retail storefront, the building once again offers a robust presence that creates synergy with the redeveloping neighborhood around it.
Automotive Service Building in 1952
Automotive Service Building Before Restoration
Automotive Service Building After Restoration
Automotive Service Building Derma Doctor Sign
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