‘It’s just a little deflating’: String of West Plaza break-ins leaves business owners frustrated

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – Several business owners just outside of the Plaza are on edge after a string of break-ins overnight.

It happened around 4:20 a.m. on Monday. Two people started at The Bar off 47th Street and didn’t stop there. They also broke into Chingu Coffee and Johnny Jo’s Pizza. They didn’t take anything but left a giant mess.

Taylor Clement, the general manager at The Bar said she was the first to discover the destruction that these vandals left.

“Definitely not a fun morning to wake up to,” Clement said. “It’s just unfortunate that it happens – it happens in the middle of the night; no one wants those phone calls.”

Clement gave KCTV5 the security footage, which captured two people breaking in through the side door. The alarm goes off, and they immediately run out.

“Luckily, we have security cameras, so I pulled them up; the police were fast at responding,” Clement said.

Clement said replacing doors isn’t cheap.

“It’s a three-pane door to try and deter break-ins; they still get in, of course,” Clement said. “But the door itself is around $1,500 to $2,000 dollars. It’s definitely a hit to us.”

Over at Chingu Coffee, Bria Zyniewicz, the co-owner, said it’s hard as a small business to recover from these types of break-ins.

“It’s a small business, so it’s not like we’re raking in the dough,” Zyniewicz said. “I think people don’t realize that even breaking a window or a door is a lot.”

Both Clement and Zyniewicz said they not only hope police will catch these people but that crime like this will stop.

“Hopefully, it stops happening, and everyone supports the small businesses around here,” Clement said.

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