KSHB 41 reporter Alyssa Jackson covers Kansas City, Missouri. Share your story idea with Alyssa.

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The Family Dollar store on Broadway Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri, that was the scene of a deadly building collapse last year, will be demolished.

KSHB 41 News reporter Alyssa Jackson reports that KCMO city officials are set to issue a demolition permit for the former store at 3726 Broadway once the building’s owner or contractor submits payment for the permit.

On Friday, K&S Associates, Inc., listed as the demolition contractor for the project, told KSHB 41 News that they would likely wait until after the FIFA World Cup 2026 matches were completed this summer and were targeting to start demolition around the beginning of August.

Around 2:45 p.m. on Sunday, July 27, first responders raced to the store on reports of a building collapse. When crews arrived, they found that parts of the building’s parapet wall and façade had collapsed.

The collapse killed Larry Banks and injured three other people.

In March, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined Family Dollar more than $11,000 in connection with the circumstances in the lead-up and during the collapse.

In OSHA’s citation, inspectors wrote, “The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees.”

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Hy-Vee is selling its 21 standalone Fast & Fresh-branded convenience stores, opening the door for a 78-year-old family-owned, Nebraska company to expand to Iowa.

Bosselman Enterprises, which operates six brands in the travel-service sector, will rebrand the Fast & Fresh stores under the Pump & Pantry name, which it uses at 48 locations in Nebraska, it announced Friday, June 5.

The companies did not disclose the purchase price for the 21 stores. Fifteen are in the Des Moines metro, two are in Davenport and one is in Marion. Of the other three, two are in the Omaha metro and one is in Lakeville, Minnesota.

Hy-Vee spokesperson Tina Potthoff said the West Des Moines-based grocery giant will move out of the standalone convenience store business it entered in 2018. The 168 Fast & Fresh stores adjacent to Hy-Vee grocery stores and distribution centers will remain, Potthoff said.

Hy-Vee can now turn its attention to further expansion.

“We’re ready to start building Hy-Vees again,” Potthoff said.

Rebranding to occur in July

More: Hy-Vee wasn’t always a Des Moines metro institution | Market Memories

The Pump & Pantry rebranding will go into effect in July, beginning July 15, and will be completed by July 26, Pump & Pantry said. The companies said the sale will result in no layoffs, with most current Fast & Fresh employees to be hired by Pump & Pantry. A small percentage will shift to other roles within Hy-Vee, Potthoff said.

The high-end feel of the Fast & Fresh locations fits the Pump & Pantry business model, said Kinsey Bosselman, director of operational planning for Bosselman Enterprises. Visitors to the new stores can expect some changes, though. Fast & Fresh locations offered grocery store items, including some produce.

“We operate a little differently,” Bosselman said. “We won’t have a ton of grocery options. We hope to bring to the market some new offerings.”

Pump & Pantry to bring new food offerings, maintain Hy-Vee rewards

Pump & Pantry has licenses with the submarine sandwich brand Quiznos and Cinnabon, and its online menu includes extensive hot and cold to-go items, pizza and sweets, including ice cream. It also will retain the side-by-side coffee offerings at 12 of the Fast & Fresh locations ― five of them Starbucks and seven, Smokey Row.

Bosselman said customers at the new Pump & Pantry stores will still be able to use their Hy-Vee Fuel Saver points. Pump & Pantry offers its own rewards program, too, with an annual sweepstakes that offers prizes including free fuel for a year.

More: Hy-Vee rebrands 4 Dollar Fresh stores as it considers brand’s future

The Nebraska convenience chain is entering a competitive convenience store market in the Des Moines metro and the rest of Iowa, with Casey’s, QuikTrip, Kwik Star, Maverik, Git N Go and others already dotting its street corners.

“That might step on Casey’s toes,” Bosselman said, “But we’re ready to be a Nebraska-Iowa company. Iowa is a thriving market.”

Pump & Pantry says Fast & Fresh culture works with business model

Bosselman said her company had been eyeing opportunities for more than a decade in Iowa, and Fast & Fresh employee culture meshed with its business model, which emphasizes a sense of ownership among its workers.

With 69 total stores after the acquisition, it plans to expand further into the state, building its own stores, she said.

How will Pump & Pantry separate itself from the competition?

“We are the hometown experience,” Bosselman said. “We serve our community beyond the store. We’re the store you go to refill the cup you’ve had all week. When I go into a store in Nebraska, they know my name, they know the farmer’s name who comes in to get their coffee before 6 a.m.”

The change is the second big shift in the Des Moines convenience store scene in recent years. Salt Lake City’s Maverik bought the Des Moines-based Kum & Go chain in 2023 and completed its rebranding last year.

The Fast & Fresh locations being sold are:

• 3590 Prairie Fire NW, Altoona.
• 11925 University Ave., Clive.
• 3200 East Kimberly Road, Davenport.
• 4631 East 53rd S., Davenport.
• 5801 Hickman Road, Des Moines.
• 1701 SE 37th St., Grimes.
• 5169 Merle Hay Road, Johnston.
• 2790 Seventh Ave., Marion.
• 20410 George B Lake Parkway, Omaha.
• 20310 Vinton St., Omaha.
• 9915 Douglas Ave., Urbandale.
• 12905 Meredith Drive, Urbandale.
• 14200 Douglas Ave., Urbandale.
• 15501 Meredith Drive, Urbandale.
• 2855 Grand Prairie Parkway, Waukee.
• 155 W Hickman Road, Waukee.
• 425 S Jordan Creek Parkway, West Des Moines.
• 9150 SE University Ave., West Des Moines.
• 300 Grand Avenue, West Des Moines.
• 7220 Hickman Road, Windsor Heights.
• 17380 Cedar Ave., Lakeville, Minnesota.

Summer is here, and that means our annual Summer Reading Program is underway. This year’s theme is “Unearth a Story!” and focuses on dinosaurs, archaeology and history.

We have a variety of programs for all ages, including story times for preschoolers and school-age children, movies for kids and adults, crafts and special presentations. This summer, we are bringing back crowd favorite The Mixed Nuts, who will perform their family-friendly comedy show at 1 p.m. June 24. We will also host a puppet performance by Sonflower Puppets at 1 p.m. July 15. All programs are free and open to the public.

We are once again partnering with the Bank of North Dakota to give College SAVE certificates to all youth reading program finishers. When children age 18 and younger complete their reading logs, they will receive money from the Bank of North Dakota to contribute to a 529 college savings account. All finishers will also be entered into a drawing for one of 10 additional $529 scholarships at the end of the summer program.

We are also excited to announce a new partnership with the FM RedHawks. Children enrolled in the school-age summer reading program for grades K-5 can sign up to become one of Hawkeye’s Bookworms. Participants will receive four additional prizes from the RedHawks, including tickets to a RedHawks home game. No additional forms or reading requirements are needed to participate.

Thank you to the Bank of North Dakota and the FM RedHawks for supporting our summer reading program.

Lastly, we are pleased to announce that the Leach Public Library is now fine-free. If you have been reluctant to use the library because of overdue fines on your account, those fines are now being waived. If you have a long-lost library book at home, simply return it and no fine will be charged.

We are excited to remove this barrier, which has often prevented people from using both the library’s physical collection and digital services available throughout the Libby app. Fines will still apply to lost or damaged materials, as well as circulating technology such as iPads and Launchpad tablets.

For more information about fines or library cards, please contact the library.

Have a safe and happy June! We look forward to seeing you at the Leach Public Library!

Rachel Kercher is the youth services librarian at the Leach Public Library.