Best and Worst Suburban Downtowns

KC topics that don't fit anywhere else.
flyingember
Mark Twain Tower
Mark Twain Tower
Posts: 9862
Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2012 7:54 am

Re: Best and Worst Suburban Downtowns

Post by flyingember »

AllThingsKC wrote: 4. Liberty - Lots of history, nice square. Fair to walk or bike, streets in the immediate downtown area are nice, but street grid gets weird after that.
You can find the grid if you know what's going on. it's radiating out from the center of town.

Liberty and Clay County were settled in 1822, 5 years before Jackson County and Independence and 9 years before Westport. These towns are all from the same era so you can see similar roads in each town

Many of the roads have been replaced or renamed, but some still point towards other settlements of the early to mid 1800s. You can still see this in and near Liberty in the name Barry Road, Nashua Road, Birmingham Road. Independence has Lee's Summit Road, Courtney Road, Westport Road, Liberty Street.
scooterj
Ambassador
Posts: 6020
Joined: Sun Oct 12, 2003 1:30 pm
Location: Northmoor
Contact:

Re: Best and Worst Suburban Downtowns

Post by scooterj »

shinatoo wrote:If we are including Leavenworth and Lawrence we might was well include Pleasant Hill and Harrisonville. Both solid Downtown's.
Harrisionvile should be a great downtown, but it's too vacant due to nearly all the property being held for decades by a single developer who was saving it for a big project that never panned out. I believe it's all being sold off in pieces now though so hopefully it will get a lot better in the years to come.
AllThingsKC wrote: Worst:
[...]
5. Grain Valley - It's historic. But the downtown area is basically just one block, on one side of the street
Until the 1980s GV was an isolated farm town of ~700. It became a suburb of ~15-20K way too fast for it to develop organically.
User avatar
AllThingsKC
Mark Twain Tower
Mark Twain Tower
Posts: 9352
Joined: Tue Aug 17, 2004 10:57 am
Location: Kansas City, Missouri (Downtown)
Contact:

Re: Best and Worst Suburban Downtowns

Post by AllThingsKC »

scooterj wrote: Until the 1980s GV was an isolated farm town of ~700. It became a suburb of ~15-20K way too fast for it to develop organically.
Yep. Same thing with Raymore.
KC is the way to be!
aknowledgeableperson
City Center Square
City Center Square
Posts: 12625
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2004 10:31 pm

Re: Best and Worst Suburban Downtowns

Post by aknowledgeableperson »

Raymore from what I can tell never had what one might call a downtown area or a "Main" street. Yes, it was a farm community but it was close to Belton and the old RG airport. In a way one might have called it a suburb of Belton. There is still a large amount of acreage being farmed on the main road through town, not far from what one might call the city center. There is still a clash between old and new residents but the old are becoming fewer and fewer and the clashes not as great. Besides the two families that dominate the town are making millions from development by selling land.

Of course I may have some bias on this subject. Last night I was appointed to the Board of Adjustment. It might sound important but it is just a small part of overall city government. But it will be interesting.
aknowledgeableperson
City Center Square
City Center Square
Posts: 12625
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2004 10:31 pm

Re: Best and Worst Suburban Downtowns

Post by aknowledgeableperson »

As I said there is no downtown Raymore or what one might call an old commercial area. Population in 1940 was 207 and it grew to 208 in 1950 so with a population that size and being so close to Belton I doubt there was little commercial development in the little town.

A little history of the city.
"Not long after the end of the Civil War, people began to settle in the area now known as Original Town Raymore. Raymore was one of the last areas of Cass County to be settled, as the prairie landscape had few trees and no major watercourses. Ultimately, it was the ideal agricultural soils that drew farmers and ranchers to the area. The first residence in the City was constructed in 1871. Surveyors Rae and Moore prepared the original plat for Raymore in 1874. The north/south streets were named after president’s and the east/west streets were named after trees.

The town incorporated in 1877 and soon there were new homes, churches, a bank, a school and a post office. In the 1880’s an interurban railroad traversed the City and a successful grain elevator was built. In 1888 Raymore became a fourth class city. The City thrived for many years, but in 1935 the railroad stopped running and the bank closed.

In 1960, Raymore’s population was 268. In 1964, Maplewood was platted to become the first subdivision added to the City. Soon to follow were the Bridlecroft and Silver Lake Subdivisions in 1966. By 1970, Raymore’s population had grown to 587. Residential growth continued on a steady pace and by 1980 the City’s population had grown to 3,154. The 1990 census showed Raymore’s population had grown to 5,592. The 1990’s and 2000’s were a time of rapid City growth, with the U.S. Census reporting Raymore’s population at 11,146 in 2000. In 2007, Forbes Magazine identified Raymore as the 52nd fastest growing suburb in the United States. By 2010, the City’s population had swelled to 19,206, a 72% increase since 2000."

I had some friends move to Raymore in the mid to late 70's and I don't remember seeing anything resembling an even small commercial area that had any age on it.
Post Reply