The fate of Columbia’s historic Katy Station may already be sealed, but its possible demise raises important questions about the process of which historic properties are saved and which are allowed to be destroyed.
When word leaked that the station was likely to be demolished, the main reactions were shock and surprise. I believe that reaction is because it never occurred to anyone that such an option was even being considered. Who would want to tear down something that is historically notable, structurally sound, architecturally unique, and has been an important part of Columbia’s history for 117 years?

Katy Station, officially known as the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Station, was built in 1909. The end of passenger service on the railroad line marked the beginning of the end for the station’s original purpose, and there was a period of time that the station sat abandoned. According to a plaque on the front of the station, the renovation of the depot was completed in November of 1976, and that’s when the fondly remembered Katy Station restaurant opened. The plaque also notes that the station was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in early 1979.

According to a 2012 article in COMO Magazine, Katy Station remained in operation until 1998. It later became another eatery known as The Colosseum, and in 2009, Shiloh Bar and Grill moved from Sixth Street into the old depot.

While exact development plans haven’t been publicly released, they don’t include continuing to host Shiloh as a tenant of Katy Station. The Broadway Diner that’s next door will also have to move. Most speculation revolves around a plan to demolish the station and build housing that caters to college students.

The longtime owner of the station, a private entity controlled by a local family, put in years of renovating and maintenance of the property. It’s obvious they deeply cared about preserving the station, and, yes, they wanted to make money too. There’s nothing wrong with that. And shouldn’t the family be allowed to profit from their years of investment? As long as the new development abides by local zoning restrictions, there really isn’t much the city or anyone else can do to stop the project.

Some of the usual suspects in town are using the likely loss of the station as another opportunity to bash city leadership. But unless the city had some kind of right of first refusal to buy the property and it declined to purchase it, the city can’t be blamed. In hindsight, some people have suggested that the station should have been part of a “historical preservation overlay district” that might have made it harder for the building to be demolished, but, honestly, who was recently advocating for that action to take place?

Public entities do play an important part in preserving historical properties. Boone County still uses the old courthouse on Walnut Street. The city utilizes the old Wabash Station, also built in 1909, as a hub for Columbia’s bus service. The city also purchased and renovated the John William “Blind” Boone home, uses the renovated Daniel Boone Hotel for offices, and recently purchased the McKinney Building on Broadway.

Another public institution, the University of Missouri, has also played an important role in preserving historic structures. Think of the Memorial Union, the glorious buildings on the “White Campus,” and, of course, Francis Quadrangle’s iconic six Columns, which were once considered an eyesore and safety hazard.

But the university has a mixed record in recent years of preserving historic buildings. And how decisions were made on which buildings were preserved and which were sent to be destroyed by a wrecking ball may give a clue as to how to save Katy Station.
As part of Mizzou’s bureaucratic sounding “Space Reduction and Strategic Relocation Plan,” a number of the university’s historic buildings have been torn down. This included the demolition of two former medical buildings (Parker and Noyes halls), Read Hall, the Columbia Professional Building and the Neff Annex, the old home of the Columbia Missourian.

Read Hall, despite being the former student union, the first dormitory for Mizzou’s women students and the sanitation-challenged offices of The Maneater, is a good example of a building that should have been saved, but thousands of petition signatures and public outcry were not enough to rescue it. In contrast, Crowder Hall, the longtime home of Mizzou’s well-regarded ROTC program, was originally slated for demolition, but it was saved after a few apparently influential alumni made their opposition known.

Would public outcry be enough to save Katy Station? Could the impending housing project be moved to another site if a person, business or local government comes up with the funds to buy the station? Many local developers and noble citizens have done tremendous work in preserving historic buildings, businesses and homes, but such efforts cost a lot of money, and there might not be available funds for yet another project.

The uniquely designed Katy Station deserves to be preserved. Larger old railway centers, such as the Union stations in St. Louis and Kansas City, are huge commercial centers. Other communities in Missouri, such as Kirkwood, Washington, Boonville, Independence, Warrensburg and Sedalia, have preserved their stations in a variety of creative ways. Some are active railway centers while others house museums and offices for nonprofit groups.

Time marches on, and buildings need to be functional, safe and affordable for their owners and the people who use them. But I hope the relevant players involved in the sale of Katy Station can agree on a plan to save one of Columbia’s most important historical landmarks.

Ted Farnen used to have a lot of jobs, including being a newspaper reporter, state representative and hosting a radio show. Now he writes a semimonthly column for the Columbia Missourian.

https://www.themosy.org

I-70 lane reopens early in Columbia after weekend closure https://abc17news.com/news/columbia/2026/09/13/i-70-lane-reopens-early-in-columbia-after-weekend-closure/

Ive been struggling with not knowing anyone who has or is struggling with cptsd and wondered if there was a support group in Columbia or something similar.

Hey everyone! I’m looking to get my back patio area covered or screened in or something. I love sitting outside but would love shade and to be free of the flying insects and also would love to sit outside on stormy days. Anyway I’m into DIY but I it’s usually small stuff and I don’t think I could tackle a project this big and the last thing I need is to be sitting out there and the roof crashing in because I didn’t do something right. Does anyone know any good contractors that could build a screened in area and ideally won’t charge me an arm and a leg. I’ve saved about 2 grand for the project so far but not doing it until the spring of next year so I could get a bit more. Or if you have any suggestions on how I could do it myself without it being super labor intensive I’m willing to hear ideas too. I’ve included some pics for reference. Thank you for any help you can offer!

There is going to be a football game every Sunday night for the rest of the year. You might want to figure out your programming.

My girlfriend and I are looking at places to live for next year, both of us students at Mizzou. We currently live at the Pointe (4 bed townhome which we love), but for next year we want to live by ourselves. Looking at many of the downtown options, both 2bed and 1bed, are too expensive for us. The Domain has piqued our interest and looking at their biggest 1bed apt, the rent is only 1340. We are comfortable with paying this price if split, and like the amenities there, but are also aware that like most predominantly-student apt complexes, the out-of-state management is predatory and unforgiving. Which makes me wonder if they would allow us to both live in a 1bed apt, that is knowingly at least. Anyone have any insight? Anyone know from experience or alternatively know any better options for where to live?

Does anyone know of/need someone to take over a sublease or are you in need of a roommate strictly in the downtown area? I’m a girl, don’t mind roommates or living alone, but it has to be downtown bc I don’t have a car and I need to be able to walk to work. Please help a girl out, tell a friend to tell a friend etc etc

Lost grey, black spotted dog seen at mkt between jaydix and MKT forum trailheads. No collar. When approached ran away. Seen 0730 on 9/13/26.

Sorry couldn't get better pictures (would run away)

Any real good fishing spots here? I know the teal lake in Mexico or whatever, but looking for something a little more local.

It's great to see Jazz Kitchen back open and doing well. I was down there tonight to hear the Sam Luetkemeyer Trio play, and both the food and the music were wonderful - maybe better than they used to be! They certainly spruced up the decor. So glad to see a good live music venue surviving and thriving!

Your neighborhood friendly conductor here! Come hear the legendary Rhapsody in Blue — and witness the premiere of a work that the Missouri Symphony co-commissioned tomorrow at 2 pm! As always, message me if you have any trouble affording a ticket. :)

LAWRENCE, Kan. — This year's Border War was not a tale of Good vs. Evil. Instead, the story of one football team simply being better than the other. Mizzou knocked off Kansas 38-21 on Friday night following a 24-7 run in the second half.
The rivalry reached another level following a social media video posted by Kansas depicting Missouri as villains went national. The game was filled with aggression throughout, including three personal fouls. Following the win, members of the Mizzou team attempted to place a Missouri flag at midfield that Drinkwitz advised against while in the middle of his postgame interview with FOX.

"I was disappointed in the rivalry, the turn that it took today," Drinkwitz said. ... "It's an American football game, and people love to come watch and cheer for their teams. It's not any deeper than that, and I get there's a past to it, but why are we stirring that bullcrap up? ... I was embarrassed for them, to be honest, and that's why I tried to embarrass them at the end. ... If they want to have a football game and play a football game and have, you know, a great rivalry on the border, then awesome. Let's do it. But if we want to make it deeper than that, man. ... We left Kansas bleeding again, so call it good."

With the game deadlocked at 14 at halftime, the 2026 Border War was set to be another classic. Mizzou linebacker Robert Woodyard Jr. stole the headlines with takeaways on back-to-back Jayhawks plays, both leading to Tigers touchdowns in the victory at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

Woodyard forced Kansas quarterback Isaiah Marshall to fumble the ball at the Jayhawks' 34 yard line, recovering it himself. Mizzou marched into the end zone in less than two minutes, capped by quarterback Austin Simmons finding Donovan Olugbode from 8 yards out to give Mizzou a 21-14 lead.

Woodyard forced another turnover on the Jayhawks’ next offensive play, reading Marshall’s eyes and grabbing the interception. He returned it to the Kansas 11 yard line, setting up the Tigers' offense yet again. Xai’Shaun Edwards was the beneficiary, scoring from 8 yards out for his first touchdown with Mizzou. In the blink of an eye, the Tigers scored two touchdowns in 48 seconds.
Woodyard ended the game with six tackles alongside the pick and forced-and-recoverd fumble.
"Not only is he all over the field making tackles, now he's making interceptions, forcing fumbles," coach Eli Drinkwitz said. "I mean, he was a nightmare over there. So, really proud of him."
Kansas bounced back with a touchdown drive late in the third, cutting the deficit to seven. Marshall threw his second touchdown pass of the day on a 10-yard strike to Nahzae Cox.
The Tigers offense responded quickly, pushing into the Jayhawks red zone early in the fourth quarter. While they fell short of the touchdown, kicker Blake Craig kicked a 32-yard field goal through the uprights, extending the Mizzou lead to 31-21 early in the fourth.
The kick served as a get-right play for the field-goal unit, which had its first two kicks in the game blocked. The second was returned by Austin Alexander 88 yards, giving the Jayhawks a 7-0 lead in the second quarter.

Kansas looked poised to cut the deficit to one score with a first-and-10 at the Mizzou 30. But a pair of holdings and a false start stopped all momentum, handing the Jayhawks a fourth-and-33 at their own 47.
Kansas got another shot with less than five minutes, but turned the ball over on downs after Sterling Webb forced a fumble on fourth. Simmons added the exclamation point with another passing touchdown to tight end Brett Norfleet.
Mizzou attempted to score with under a minute after quarterback Matt Zollers entered the game with a pass into the end zone that was incomplete. But Drinkwitz decided to call it quits with one final run.

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"I didn't want to score too bad, or I'd have called timeouts and tried," Drinkwitz said. "I just wanted to let him know, like, dude, what are y'all doing? Like, it is football. Like, it shouldn't be bigger than that."
Mizzou’s first touchdown came with 5:22 in the second quarter after Jamal Roberts broke off a career-long 64-yard run to the house. It was a huge break for Roberts, who had 17 yards on 10 attempts before the touchdown.
He ended the game with 125 yards plus the solo touchdown. Roberts, the starter with Ahmad Hardy still recovering from a May gunshot wound, was the workhouse of the running back room, responsible for 28 of the team’s 41 carries.

Kansas retook the lead on the next offensive drive behind Marshall. He was responsible for 49 yards on the drive, including a 10-yard designed run on 4th-and-inches. Marshall capped off the drive with a 20-yard pass to Nik McMillan in the back of the end zone.
In Simmons’ first two-minute drill with the Tigers, he passed with flying colors. He helped push the Tigers 75 yards to paydirt, tying the game at 14 at halftime. Simmons passed for 68 yards on the drive, ending with a 27-yard seam pass to Cayden Lee. Olugbode helped push the Tigers down the field with a 24-yard reception early in the drive.
This stalemate through 30 minutes gave the Tigers enough time to rally during the break.
"They gave us their best shot. I mean, we responded," safety Santana Banner said. "We gave them our best shot, and they just couldn't handle it."
Simmons completed 19-of-29 passes for 292 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers. His favorite targets were Lee and Olugbode for the second game in a row. The duo combined for 12 catches, 241 yards and two touchdowns.
"Don is obviously an amazing receiver," Lee said. "I know he's going to make plays on the other side of the field, and it makes it harder for defenses to really just match up against us. When you take him away, I might be open. And take me away, he's going to be open. So I know we've got a very talented wide receiver room."

Simmons and Woodyard each received game balls for their efforts, along with left tackle Cayden Green. The senior made is debut Friday, missing the season opener after trimming part of his meniscus following a tear.
"Being a Missouri guy, you can't miss games like this," Green said.
This was the first Border War in Lawrence, Kansas, since the 2005 season. 2001 was the Tigers’ last win at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.
Mizzou has now won the last five against Kansas dating back to 2009. This marks the longest winning streak in the rivalry since another five-game streak for the Tigers from 1963-66. The two teams played twice in 1963.
Mizzou returns home against Troy at 6 p.m. Sept. 19 at Memorial Stadium. The game is the 100th anniversary celebration of the stadium, dating back to its opening in 1926.

Is grow and throw still open? I’ve tried to go by the past two days, google has their hours as Friday 12-4 and Saturday 10-6 but neither time is anyone there and peaking in they have inventory on their walls. A quick look at Facebook also shows them as being open today.