This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.

RoKC is a locally founded indoor climbing company with three metro gyms — North Kansas City, Olathe, and “Underground” at 31st and Mercier — plus a dedicated kids’ facility attached to the Olathe gym. It was started by brothers Andrew and Frank Potter, Andrew having conceived it while deployed to Afghanistan, and built around the phrase “build it to give it away.” Beyond climbing it sells yoga, fitness classes, personal training, courses and private events.

Description

RoKC operates three indoor climbing gyms in the Kansas City metro. The North Kansas City gym at 1501 Howell Street and the Olathe gym at 654 N Central Street are full-service facilities; “Underground” at 3150 Mercier Street in Kansas City, Missouri is a third site at 31st and Mercier.12 A dedicated children’s facility, RoKC Kids, is directly connected to the Olathe gym and opened as a distinct space.1

The gyms sell day passes as well as memberships, and a day pass includes unlimited climbing, access to the fitness facility, and one yoga class; rental harnesses and shoes are available so first-time climbers need no gear of their own.3 Staff check in first-time visitors, tour the facility, and instruct on bouldering and auto-belay procedure.3 The company’s stated positioning is accessibility — its founder’s line, repeated on the site and in press, is “If you can climb a ladder, you can climb at our facility.”32

RoKC also runs a substantial community-giving program, stating on its own site that it donates to over 140 nonprofits each year, with named partnerships including Children’s Mercy Hospital’s Snowflake Shoppe toy drive, The Birthday Party Project, HopeKids, Big Brothers Big Sisters, The Battle Within (a veterans and first-responders program), Exploring Roots, and job-skills and internship partnerships with surrounding school districts. It works with the Greater KC Chamber of Commerce on inclusion initiatives and is a Silver Certified Healthy KC Workplace.3

Goods and services

  • Indoor climbing — bouldering, top rope, and lead climbing14
  • Day passes — unlimited climbing, fitness facility access, one yoga class3
  • Memberships — weekly-billed adult membership with unlimited gear rental; All Access Youth Membership for ages 6–171
  • Climbing courses — Intro to Climbing, Top Rope Course, Lead Course, Anchor Cleaning Via Lower, at the North and Olathe gyms1
  • Yoga and fitness classes — seven days a week, plus run clubs and group training1
  • Personal training — including nutritional guidance and programming1
  • Youth programs and RoKC Kids — a dedicated kids’ space at the Olathe location1
  • Birthday parties and private events1
  • Retail — gear shop and gear rental13
  • Routesetting — in-house routesetters rearrange wall holds to vary route difficulty2

History

Andrew Potter conceived the gym while deployed to Afghanistan, deciding he did not want a military career but still wanted to serve his community; an experienced climber, he judged that Kansas City deserved a serious climbing facility and brought in his brother Frank to plan it.32 Potter began climbing young in Germany, where his father was stationed, and co-founded a climbing club as a student at the University of Central Missouri.2 “ — the University of Central Missouri detail was surfaced in search summaries and is not confirmed against a fetched page.

Flatland, reporting in September 2019, dates the founding to 2016 and describes RoKC as then operating North Kansas City and Underground with a third location in Olathe due to open later that year.2 A 2015 establishment date also circulates in search-surfaced summaries; the two are not reconciled here.5 By 2026 the company operated three gyms plus the RoKC Kids space.1

The company’s founding phrase, “build it to give it away,” is carried on its own About page as the origin of its giving program.3

Sources

Footnotes

  1. RoKC — official site, home page and location footer — asserts: three gym locations with addresses, phones, emails and hours (North KC, 1501 Howell St, North Kansas City, MO 64116; Olathe, 654 N Central St, Olathe, KS 66061; Underground, 3150 Mercier St Suite 641A, Kansas City, MO 64111); RoKC Kids at the Olathe address; “Locally Established. Community Focused. Adventure Driven.”; “RoKC was developed by local climbers”; climbing, yoga, fitness and private events; climbing courses (Intro to Climbing, Top Rope, Lead, Anchor Cleaning Via Lower) at North and Olathe; weekly-billed membership at $21 per week with free gear rental; All Access Youth Membership $9 per week for ages 6–17; personal training; birthday parties. (Retrieved by direct fetch 2026-08-14.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11

  2. Flatland (Kansas City PBS) — Clarence Dennis, “Rock Climbers Reach New Heights in Kansas City,” September 6, 2019 — asserts: RoKC founded in 2016; founder Andrew Potter; the venture followed his time in the military; as of September 2019 a third location in Olathe would open later that year, joining North Kansas City and “Underground” at 31st and Mercier; routesetter Alex Gromacki described as responsible for rearranging wall holds; Potter’s quotation “What we’ve done is we’ve made climbing accessible to everyone. If you can climb a ladder, you can climb at our facility”; Potter estimates about 70% of climbers ascend casually; RoKC teams with local nonprofits and has expanded into yoga and fitness. This is the principal independent source on the page. (Retrieved by direct fetch 2026-08-14.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  3. RoKC — About page — asserts: Andrew Potter decided to keep serving the community after returning from tours in Afghanistan and founded RoKC with his brother Frank; the company expanded to three facilities; the founding phrase “build it to give it away”; mission statement; “If you can climb a ladder, you can climb at our gyms”; RoKC donates to over 140 nonprofits each year, with named partners Children’s Mercy Hospital, The Birthday Party Project, Greater KC Chamber of Commerce, surrounding school districts, The Battle Within, HopeKids, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Exploring Roots; Silver Certified Healthy KC Workplace; day passes include unlimited climbing, fitness access and one yoga class; harness and shoe rental available; first-visit procedure. (Retrieved by direct fetch 2026-08-14.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  4. North Kansas City Business Council — member listing, RoKC Climbing Gym — asserts: RoKC Climbing Gym at 1501 Howell St, North Kansas City, is an indoor rock climbing gym offering bouldering, top-rope and lead climbing; listed as a business-council member. (Surfaced via search 2026-08-14; not fetched directly.) ↩

  5. Climbing Business Journal — “Olathe To Get Its Climbing Gym” — asserts: trade-press coverage of the Olathe expansion; search-surfaced summaries of RoKC material attribute a 2015 establishment date and state that “all owners and investors are all natives to KC.” This URL returned a JavaScript/Cloudflare interstitial on direct fetch 2026-08-14 and its body was NOT read. The 2015 date and the owners-and-investors phrasing are therefore recorded here as unverified and in conflict with Flatland’s 2016 founding date. ↩

Categories

On the record — ks.city/registry/rokc-climbing-gym · record updated 2026-08-14