CNNMoney.com's Best Places to Live

[WyCo]

Pretty sure Sumner Academy in KCK was rated higher than Blue Valley in the USA Today top 100 school rankings.

[trailerkid]

Pretty sure Sumner Academy in KCK was rated higher than Blue Valley in the USA Today top 100 school rankings.

Sumner and Lincoln Prep in KCMSD are both hundreds of spots higher than any BV school. Lincoln Prep is the highest rated public h.s. in the region and nationally in the top 100 public high schools. The BV schools are in the 600s+.

[aknowledgeableperson]

Define "best choice".  I will freely admit that sending your kid to the homogenous, no-minority, no poor kids, no-gov't lunch school may well give your kid a better short term chance in life.  Odds are there will be fewer distractions, etc.  But that is a contrived and unsustainable reality.  The only way that ideal "good school" can exist is to keep sprawling further and further out, stay ahead of the minorities and poor kids and keep abandoning every other school as soon as any challenging pupils start to show up.  Without constant induced sprawl, that "good school" without minorities and gov't lunch kids can't exist.  Is it really in the best interest of anyone's kids to contribute to this unsustainable, damaging cycle that will ultimately leave them living with a future of hundreds of miles of blighted, boom/bust suburban disaster, just to give them a minor leg up in the short term?

Of course much of the current discussion has centered around schools but there are many reasons why one chooses suburbs or so-called city life.  For instance my wife and I do not like the floorplans of the older houses, we like the looks of the newer houses, both inside and out.  Where we live currently, yes it is car dependent, has just about everything we need, want, and like within a short drive.  Distance wise it might be further away from many things you would prefer but if one takes into account travel time instead of distance traveled these businesses are generally closer.  Within the bigger community there is a wide dispersal of incomes and ages and to a lesser extent races, but if you want to compare my old KCMO neighborhood to my present neighborhood the racial makeup is just about the same.
Funny thing though this small city (incorporated 1877) is just a smaller version of KCMO or many other larger cities.  Within the original city limits you have the older, smaller houses with what I would assume the poorer population and businesses but surrounding that is the newer sections of the city, or what one might say the suburbs.

[KCPowercat]

Within the original city limits you have the older, smaller houses with what I would assume the poorer population and businesses

This might wrap up what is wrong with the mindset of this country.

[mlind]

Do these studies ever include boredom as a factor?

[kcmetro]

Do these studies ever include boredom as a factor?

Typically people in their 30's and up have different ideas of fun than people in their 20's.  Whereas bar hopping and clubbing might have been fun for them in their 20's, it's not so much anymore.  Instead, going to the movies, going out to eat, or taking a walk along a trail might be more enjoyable now, which are things places like OP offer quite a bit of.

[KCPowercat]

Then why would the want the burbs, we have all that walkable downtown.

[kcmetro]

Then why would the want the burbs, we have all that walkable downtown.

JOCO offers far more of that than the urban core.  Lots of trails, many more movie theaters, and many more restaurants.

[KCPowercat]

I only go to one theatre at a time, who cares how many there are. And you mention walking, well down here we don't have to drive to those places

More places to eat..:yeah I guess. More quality places?  Ehhhhh.

[chrizow]

JOCO offers far more of that than the urban core.  Lots of trails, many more movie theaters, and many more restaurants.

"JOCO" has 550K people and comprises 500 square miles.  i would hope it has "more" of a lot of things than a few-square mile area (the urban core).  but there is no doubt at all that the urban core provides the highest density of arts, food, culture, entertainment amenities, shopping, history, neighborhood parks, etc. all within a few minutes drive (or walk or bike ride).  

trails, sure.  i will take it on faith that JoCo's trail scene is superior to urban KCMO's.    

[aknowledgeableperson]

Typically people in their 30's and up have different ideas of fun than people in their 20's.  Whereas bar hopping and clubbing might have been fun for them in their 20's, it's not so much anymore.  Instead, going to the movies, going out to eat, or taking a walk along a trail might be more enjoyable now, which are things places like OP offer quite a bit of.

Hope I got this right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOKuSQIJlog


Is this why many of you guys are single?  And live in condos?  Afraid of the burbs?

[mean]

Is this why many of you guys are single?  And live in condos?  Afraid of the burbs?

I actually think that kind of sums it up, yeah. I wouldn't call it fear of the burbs, but personally I find that entire lifestyle concept to be more of an American nightmare than American dream.

[cknab1]

that was a funny video.  A lot of guys go thru that stage.  I'm glad mine is long gone.

[Hurst]

That was a funny video and definitely has made the rounds on the internet and email strings.  There are many dad's who recognize themselves in the video but still laugh anyway and are not offended.  Good dad's (and moms for sure / many times more) make tremendous personal sacrifices of money, time, hipness, extracurricular activities, etc. when raising their children.  The majority believe that the suburbs offer a better place to raise a family.  That does not make it right for everyone but it is right for a great many as they obviously have the wherewithall to live in the urban areas.  There is also product available in the urban area so that is not stopping them. See today's KCBJ?  The vast majority of the wealthiest zip codes (top 7 & 19 of top 25) are in Kansas suburbs.  People are voting with their home purchase or rental on where the most desirable places to live are.  You can throw out all the numbers you want about the ranking of the BV schools vs the KCMO schools but the perception is reflected in the wealth of the zip codes. Ranting on and painting suburbanites (vast majority and wealthiest people group) as evil and stupid accomplishes next to nothing.  It would be a suprise if all the suburbanites are stupid and the urbanite commentors here are the only smart and lifestyle correct people in the metro.

[mean]

When did AKP make a sock puppet?

[KCPowercat]

So because a zip code is the richest makes it them smartest?  Weird.

[Hurst]

Apparently your are so blinded by your need to be the smartest that you don't even take the time to read a post fully.  (Probably one of those people who doesn't listen either - just sits there thinking about what bit of genius they are going to share next while the other person is talking.)  Anyway, I specifically used word like 'perception' and 'believe' because I totally agree that there are many factors that cause one individual to be wealthy and another not to be - and "smarts" is not always one of those factors.  In fact, I was making the point that no one mass group is 'right' but the majority mass group believes differently than you do, which also does not make them wrong. 

[KCPowercat]

Nevermind using zip codes as any kind of measure us completely insane.

Great post. &