Bella Roe Plaza - Roeland Park

[KCMax]

For as progressive and forward thinking as Mission is, I must say I'm rather disappointed with its neighbor (and my city of residence) Roeland Park. Bella Roe Plaza is a huge improvement from what was once there, and the new Price Chopper is fantastic. However, they had a chance to make this a really unique plaza instead of another typical strip mall, and a chance to integrate it with the West Gateway development with a walkable Roe Avenue connecting the two. Instead, we get a huge parking lots with a Lowe's, the Price Chopper, and this ungodly structure - note, this is the side that FACES ROE AVENUE!

Considering how walkable West Gateway and Mission will be, and considering there is actually a good sized mass transit hub nearby (the JO is HQ at Mission and Lamar), and considering how many Hispanic shoppers from WyCo use mass transit to get to the Roeland Park Price Chopper, I'm really appalled at how Bella Roe Plaza turned out.

Just when you think NE JoCo is headed in the right direction, it reminds you its still a suburb! 

[dangerboy]

I think they originally tried to make it less strip mall and more town center, but either the developers balked or the city didn't have the guts to go through with it.  Regarding walkability to the Mission Center redevelopment, this was planned long before.  It doesn't make sense to criticize it for lacking a connection to something that is happening after the fact.  Besides doesn't Roe already have sidewalks?

[KC0KEK]

Right. The original game plan was to make it more Plaza-like -- the developer and city used that term, as I recall -- but I don't remember why that concept was scrapped.

[KCMax]

Roeland Park is currently putting in sidewalks along Roe.

[KC0KEK]

The latter half of RP's comprehensive plan (www.roelandpark.net/CompPlan/final%20plan.pdf) covers some of the options and ideas that the city had going into this project.

[justin8216]

OH well. The new Chinese restaurant is worth the ugly shopping center. LOL. It is really good, and fresh made too. Kind of like a Chinese Chipoltle.
The fountains are a nice touch.
I must say, however, the material pallet is a little silly. Natural stone and aluminum panels together? It is just wrong, and in 20 years people will no doubt look  at it and say "what in God's name were we thinking?" LOL

[heatherkay]

I have the same reaction to the side facing Roe -- what were they thinking?!?   They have made an effort with the restaurant on the corner and the fountains to have some sort of sidewalk presence, so I'm hoping (optimistically) that the dirt along the sidewalk implies that there will be some sort of landscaping to disguise the utility access.  I'm reassuring myself with the fact that, at least, it's not a huge parking lot the entire length of the development.

ETA -- nobody wants to hug a parking lot

[KCMax]

That China Star is fantastic. We talked to the owners a bit. Very nice Chinese-American family. They are not affiliated at all with China Star on Metcalf. I love their containers - they preserve leftovers very nicely.

[justin8216]

That China Star is fantastic. We talked to the owners a bit. Very nice Chinese-American family. They are not affiliated at all with China Star on Metcalf. I love their containers - they preserve leftovers very nicely.

I was going to say something about those containers in my last post, but I thougt people would think I was crazy. I kept mine to re-use. They are like little tupperware bowls. LOL

[dangerboy]

This place seems to have been built very cheaply.  The biggest of the three fountains is broken.  All three fountains have missing marble tiles.  Many of the brick pavers are missing or warped.  It's not holding up well after just a few years.

[slimwhitman]

Notice that the fountains are often broken.  And now that everthing is a few years old, the cheapness of everything is starting to show.  Notice the silly concrete paver design in the parking lot and how badly the pavers are already fading.  (Why were they added?  You only appreciate them in aerial photography!)

It is better than the run-down Venture Plaza it replaced, but unwalkable compared to the old Roeland Park Shopping Center that was next door (and was somewhat similar to the PV Shops or Corinth Shops) but was also torn down for the Walmart.

[KC0KEK]

the old Roeland Park Shopping Center that was next door (and was somewhat similar to the PV Shops or Corinth Shops) but was also torn down for the Walmart.

Got any photos? I've seen ones of the old Katz that's now CVS, but never one from an angle that shows the old shopping center.

[justin8216]

This place is really starting to fall apart. I refer to it now as Fea Roe Plaza

Whoever owns this needs to step up and fix the entrance fountains that are falling apart and bust all the brick pavers out of the parking lot and replace it with scored colored concrete or just pave it with asphalt.