Independence Square business owners thrilled at Christmas in July with Hallmark movie | Opinion

Have you seen recent photos of the historic Independence Square at night? I have and the place looks gorgeous. Fixtures and buildings around the four-block area that encompasses the Square are affixed with Christmas lights and other holiday decorations.

When the sun goes down, the extravagant display is a sight to see, according to Jeff Rogers, executive director of the Independence Square Association.

“It’s magical,” Rogers said.

And we have the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs to thank for this special decorative exhibition.

Filming of Hallmark Channel’s “Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story” is set to begin next week. While the movie will be shot at various locations around Kansas City, Independence Square was chosen as its primary location, according to Rogers.

Somewhere in the heavens above, former President Harry S. Truman is smiling down on his beloved city square.

Produced by the Chiefs, Hallmark, the NFL and Skydance Sports, the film is described as a budding love story between a team executive and a Chiefs superfan — cue the cheesy romance movie jokes now.

But what Kansas Citian wouldn’t love a romantic holiday flick with the Chiefs and football as the backdrop?

In Independence, local business owners and a Hallmark movie fan I spoke with beamed with the excitement of children hoping to open gifts on Christmas Eve.

Holly Grant of Oak Grove grew up in nearby Buckner. As a child, Grant and her friends would make regular trips to Independence Square, she told me this week. On Wednesday, Grant and 12-year-old son Jacob took photos in front of a Parade of Hearts exhibit and a statue of Truman that stands on the east side of the Jackson County Courthouse on Main and Lexington streets.

I asked Grant if she was a fan of Hallmark movies. Yes, she said. She told me she learned of the movie on social media.

“It’s exciting,” she said of a holiday movie about the Chiefs. “I got sucked into Hallmark movies a few years ago and I’ve loved the Chiefs forever, so that made my day.”

Jason said he is not too fond of Hallmark movies. Confession: Neither am I, but I plan to watch “Holiday Touchdown” to see if I can spot some familiar places in and around the square that I frequently visit.

“He gets stuck watching them when I am watching them,” Holly Grant said.

The younger Grant is a Chiefs fan — and an astute one at that. He pointed out to me the decorative snowflakes adorned to a building on Main Street directly across from the courthouse. Somehow I’d missed those during a recent visit to the Square to check out the new display.

“I noticed the snowflakes and Christmas lights,” Jason said.

While the suburb just east of Kansas City has hosted Christmas in July promotions before to support local businesses, this year’s edition takes on a new meaning with a movie production on tap, the Square Association’s Rogers said.

“This year is a whole new level,” he said.

Beginning next week, 200-300 cast and crew members are expected to set up shop in Independence, according to Rogers. Those figures don’t include extras for the film, he said. All will be encouraged to shop and dine on the square while here, Rogers said.

Some local businesses may be featured in the film — at this point, which ones are unknown. Because of security reasons, neither Rogers nor business owner Cindy McClain were at liberty to divulge particulars about filming locations.

The way I see it, stargazers and hangers-on should not swarm the area during the making of this movie anyway. Independence police have more pressing public safety matters to tend to than be on call for crowd control.

The businesses that make the cut may have their storefronts scrub of names, according to McClain, who owns several retail shops and restaurants on the Square.

But each and every entity on the Independence Square stands to gain an uptick in sales while the film crew and cast is here, McClain said.

Staff members at businesses in the shopping district are being prepared to handle an influx of patrons, which could present a challenge but a welcomed one, according to McClain.

“We want people to leave the square feeling good,” McClain said.