| SubTropolis | |
|---|---|
SubTropolis | |
![]() Interactive map of SubTropolis | |
| Location | Kansas City, Missouri, United States |
| Coordinates | 39°09′40″N 94°28′34″W / 39.161213°N 94.476242°W |
This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. (January 2020) |
SubTropolis is a business complex located inside of a 55,000,000-square-foot (5,100,000 m2), 1,260-acre (5.1 km2)[citation needed] limestone mine in the bluffs north of the Missouri River in Kansas City, Missouri. It was developed by late Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt via Hunt Midwest Real Estate Development, Inc., with the trademarked phrase World's Largest Underground Business Complex.
SubTropolis is up to 160 feet (49 m) beneath the surface, dug into the Bethany Falls limestone mine. It has a grid of 16-foot-high (4.9 m), 40-foot-wide (12 m) tunnels separated by 25-foot-square (7.6 m) limestone pillars created by the room and pillar method of hard rock mining.[1] The complex contains almost 10.5 miles (16.9 km) of illuminated, paved roads and several miles of railroad track.
The mine naturally maintains year-round temperatures between 65 and 70 °F (18 and 21 °C). The United States Postal Service and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lease spaces within SubTropolis, the U.S. Postal Service for its collectible stamp operations and the Environmental Protection Agency for its Region-7 Training and Logistics Center.[2] The National Archives and Records Administration leases space for a Federal Records Center.[3]
On the surface of the north edge of the complex, Hunt developed the Worlds of Fun and Oceans of Fun amusement park complex.[4][5] His extensive business dealings in Clay County contributed to the Chiefs establishing a training camp site at Liberty's William Jewell College from 1963 until 1991.
Other facilities exist that are similar to SubTropolis, although not on the same scale, such as the abandoned mine in Butler, Pennsylvania used by Corbis and the Federal Government for secure storage. The room and pillar mining method is used to extract limestone throughout the Midwest, and many companies are looking at ways to utilize the hundreds of millions of square feet created in this manner, such as for mushroom farming and crude oil stockpiling.
History
SubTropolis was developed from limestone mines that supported Kansas City's construction in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. As mining activity decreased, the site was repurposed by Lamar Hunt and Hunt Midwest. The underground complex officially opened for commercial use in the 1964, utilizing the tunnels and rooms for industrial storage and operations. Early tenants included Pillsbury and Russell Stover Candies. In the early 1970s, the Ford Motor Company leased 25 acres of the facility to store vehicle inventory.[6][7][8]
See also
- Mega Cavern, a similar and smaller cavern in Louisville, Kentucky
References
- ^ "What is SubTropolis". Hunt Midwest. December 15, 2014. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ "Welcome to Subtropolis The Business Complex Buried Under Kansas City". Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
- ^ "Kansas City, MO Federal Records Center". Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
- ^ Nadis, Steve (April 13, 2010). "SubTropolis, U.S.A." The Atlantic. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
- ^ Standlee, Emily (July 2, 2022). "Kansas City underground: How to explore the hidden locations beneath our streets". KCUR. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
- ^ "KC is a city of caves and tunnels. We dig into a reader's KC Q". Kansas City Public Library. December 12, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
- ^ "The Story of SubTropolis & KC's Limestone Caves". KC Yesterday. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
- ^ "SubTropolis underground business complex". Hunt Midwest. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
Bibliography
- "Go inside 'SubTropolis', the underground city housing Hollywood treasures, 'cool' companies". TODAY.com. October 16, 2016. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- Kavilanz, Parija (May 1, 2015). "Doing business 100 feet underground". CNNMoney.
- Collision, Kevin (April 15, 2014). "LightEdge Solutions opens data center at Subtropolis underground business park". Kansas City Star. Retrieved January 2, 2024.

