AJoD wrote:
I think only the Plaza has national name recognition. I hadn't heard of any of the others when we started looking at KC, and Legends not until well after moving here. That said, City Market was one of the first (new to me) places I learned about researching and was a must-stop on our first area-familiarizing visit. I wish Columbus Park were more family friendly. The ideal for City Market and Westport seem similar to me...it would be cool if both could make it and differentiate themselves. Or not and just have more options.
The City Market has had an up-and-down history, and a history that is much younger than Country Club Plaza, and of course not as constant. It is also accurate to say that it has not yet found its "niche," although I think it is well along in that direction.
Every time I visit there I have a good time. I can't say that for many places in our metro. And added together City Market, Crown Center, Crossroads, the Plaza add up to a pretty nice combo.
Midtownkid wrote:
Pike market is not only enclosed, it constantly has merchants selling goods all day. They sell flowers, cool Northwestern Indian art, organic products etc daily. Our market isn't active 9-5 everyday with vendors in each slot is it? Also the Pike Market has tons of shops in the lower levels in a maze like configuration. It is really fun to explore. All the shops are family owned and interesting. Some are flee market type things, and some are hippy type stores, others are just touristy. (Not to mention the original Starbucks just outside the market)
Pike market also has the benefit of national recognition, Puget Sound, and thriving downtown Seattle just outside with no highway between them and the rest of downtown. I wish downtown KC had half the stores, skyscrapers, and dwellers as Seattle does.
I was there in January. Some Pics:
Midtownkid makes good points, and for those who have been to Pike Street, it is very nice, very touristy and for a visitor an unforgettable experience. I am not sure how much being a tourist adds to the impression of specialness, it just might. Go back and look at Midtown kids pictures and then compare them to the pictures of City Market
AJoD wrote:
I wish Columbus Park were more family friendly.
I don't get it, what's not family friendly about Columbus Park? There are probably more families here than any other part of downtown, except maybe the West Side. And it's arguably the safest neighborhood in all of downtown.
"Hit it, lick it, split it and quit it." -James Brown
taxi wrote:
I don't get it, what's not family friendly about Columbus Park? There are probably more families here than any other part of downtown, except maybe the West Side. And it's arguably the safest neighborhood in all of downtown.
I don't know much about the area, we moved from out of town. I would have looked there, but my wife wasn't particularly interested. "Safest in all of downtown" is still grittier than she wanted. She wanted more Brookside-y. Also, my impression is that there isn't much in the way of public schooling available, which was an option we still wanted to preserve at the time. I don't mean to suggest that it's a dangerous place to raise a family, just not what we were looking for, and from what I can tell, not what a lot of other metro families with several young children are looking for either.
"It is not to my good friend's heresy that I impute his honesty. On the contrary, 'tis his honesty that has brought upon him the character of heretic." -- Ben Franklin
Things could happen a little bit sooner, since MoDot is finally moving off the development site that Zimmer Cos. plans to break ground on this year for the (eventual) 360 housing units, (15 percent to 25 percent affordable), along with 30,000 square feet of commercial space. Optimistic, but possible.
It takes a long time to plan, build, and for a neighborhood to gain wider acceptance. It will take at least 15 years for the affordable housing credits to expire on the 15-25 percent portion, and the units go market rate, or for sale.
Six years ago, Kansas City decided its City Market needed a more “food-focused” future that would cater to loft tenants. It evicted seven minority-owned businesses. Some were behind in their rent; others were told they had to leave because they didn’t fall into the new focus.
Now, once again, several tenants are uncertain about their future.
Tony Conforti, for example, has until June 13 to relocate his Discounts Unlimited business. He has been in the market for 37 years, and his father was there years before him. Some fans have started a grassroots petition in an effort to keep him in the market.....
Restaurants opening in the past few years like Bo Lings Chinese Restaurant and Blue Nile Cafe have been a draw, Thomas said.
But he noted that discount retailers might not be the best choice going forward, so he is looking at unique, boutique shops that are locally owned.
Revue is one locally owned shop that would like to open a second location in the City Market. The women’s boutique with its own clothing line has a location on West 39th Street....
Other tenants are voicing complaints.
Some say too much money has been spent on heaters in breezeways when the heaters in many of the shops and restaurants don’t do the job. Glassed garage doors that allow the operations to be open-air during the warmer months also make it harder to keep the spaces warm in the winter.
I'm not sure how I feel about this. Sure, most of the stuff at Discounts Unlimited was crap and the guy there was a little surly but it was a place in the neighborhood where you could find shampoo, soap, razors, toothpaste, etc. The departure of this store will leave a gap, though the limited hours they kept didn't make relying on them practical for the neighborhood anyway.
I think the neighborhood was really starting to engage with the City Market. I agree that it needs to be more of a destination and I think the angle is a great center of ethnic food as it is already shaping to be, but I hope that the realization that the neighborhood is around them every day will still be a factor.
In other River Market news, they are hauling dirt away from the Milepost Zero site this morning.
Agreed on Carollo's. Love that place. I'd be very, very upset if it were to leave. Fresh Farm-to-Market bread from there makes my day almost every weekend. Great for French Toast!
They better not push out Corollo's -- I get lunch there whenever I need serious sandwich therapy. But it seems like it would have natural synergy with the Market part of the Market (rather than the restaurant part), especially for the more upscale, foody part of the market that they are trying to attract. After all, you have to have prosciutto to wrap around the seasonal asparagus, right?
I have mixed feelings - on the one had I recongnize the appeal of having an eclectic mix of bohemian shopping - a lot of these places they are probably panning to get rid of would fit right in at the legendary Pike's Place market which has more junk shops than anything else when you get right down to it. But on the other hand, it would be nice if the big building on the east had at least a few more shops with more to offer than cheap, trashy t-shirts. That building on the East seems like a much bigger disappointment than the presence of Discounts Unlimited - it always reminds me of what you would find in a trashy carribean port,without the useful presence of duty free liqour.
What if they made the City Market a World Trade Zone, and allowed duty free items to be sold? I don't really know how that all works, but it would be neat to bring imports into the Market.
Six years ago, Kansas City decided its City Market needed a more “food-focused” future that would cater to loft tenants. It evicted seven minority-owned businesses. Some were behind in their rent; others were told they had to leave because they didn’t fall into the new focus.
Now, once again, several tenants are uncertain about their future.
If this is another remarketing of the City Market this would make about the 4th or 5th time since the late 80's. And from what I gather from the article they still do not know what to do with this resource. Given the makeover of the surrounding area it would appear that the best use would be businesses that cater to the locals along with the farmer's market for the wider area. Throw in a few restaurants and you just might make the area a success.
I may be right. I may be wrong. But there is a lot of gray area in-between.
