Discuss items in the urban core outside of Downtown as described above. Everything in the core including the east side (18th & Vine area), Northeast, Plaza, Westport, Brookside, Valentine, Waldo, 39th street, & the entire midtown area.
brewcrew1000 wrote: ↑Tue Jan 29, 2019 3:23 pm
Larkburger is pulling out of KC. 4800 Main is going to look super empty now, I hope a local place comes in, i honestly think its a perfect spot for Q39.
We're at a point where gourmet burger joints are a dime a dozen and there's not much you can do to separate yourself from the competition. With the exception of Wahlburgers (celebrity association) and Shake Shack with it's NYC trendiness, there's only so much a burger place can do to attract business, especially outside of their original cities.
The problem with differentiating burger places is anyone can do the same thing. It too easy to copy any new kind of burger another place comes up with. One place makes a KC BBQ burger, everyone else will have it. One place gets ground angus beef, someone else will buy the same kind of meat. If one place grinds their meat on location another will.
It's why the places that get mentioned and last have something else. Steak and Shake is all about getting a burger and a shake. High quality self-serve topping bars is an easy way to differentiate. (We always got cheese sauce at Fudrucker's) Unlimited fries is a common gimmick. For a fancier place they might push a pairing like a small burger with a gourmet salad that go together. You might have burgers and beer tastings.
I'm surprised Jollibee, since they have a Smashburger here, haven't opened one of their chicken restaurants.
I wish Kenny Rogers Roasters hadn't gone into bankruptcy and closed down in the USA. They still operate in Asia. I loved that restaurant. There was one three blocks from my apartment in New York City, and I got takeout there once a week. The chicken was very good, but it was the quantity and variety of side dishes that drew me there so often.
Re: Plaza Church of Christ, Scientist
Just noticed on the 46 Penn construction cam that the north side of the tile roof has been patched several times and I don't think all the patches are tile. Suggests that the congregation is having a hard time supporting the building.
missingkc wrote: ↑Tue Jan 29, 2019 9:17 pm
Re: Plaza Church of Christ, Scientist
Just noticed on the 46 Penn construction cam that the north side of the tile roof has been patched several times and I don't think all the patches are tile. Suggests that the congregation is having a hard time supporting the building.
So, sell the building to another congreagation...or, better yet, give to them. I don’t understand why a church would have to sell to the highest bidder. Seems keeping it a church would be a better legacy move than having it torn down. Give it to that Cause church. They seem packed when I go by there.
What they get out of this deal is a new, smaller, supportable space for their congregation. They may have worked out a deal similar to that done by the Plaza Library. Free rent might be part of the deal. Perhaps that carries more weight with them than preserving the building.
Though, I will be sad to see the building go. I imagine many members of the congregation will be, too.
The thing I worry about with that type of deal though is that the congregation will continue to get smaller and smaller until it doesn't exist anymore. I mean, how many Christian Scientists does one even encounter in KC. So they eventually cease to exist anyway and a perfectly good church building--in a great location--is gone.
Why not sell to a growing congregation who needs a bigger space, and work out a sharing agreement where each congregation meets at a different time on Sunday? Most churches sit empty most of the time, so sharing them makes a lot of sense.
FangKC wrote: ↑Tue Jan 29, 2019 9:34 pm
The thing I worry about with that type of deal though is that the congregation will continue to get smaller and smaller until it doesn't exist anymore. I mean, how many Christian Scientists does one even encounter in KC. So they eventually cease to exist anyway and a perfectly good church building--in a great location--is gone.
Why not sell to a growing congregation who needs a bigger space, and work out a sharing agreement where each congregation meets at a different time on Sunday? Most churches sit empty most of the time, so sharing them makes a lot of sense.
Churches sit empty because most congregations want to meet on Sunday mornings. Even if you have 10 churches sharing the building, it doesn't change the fact that this piece of prime real estate sits empty 6 of 7 days a week.
Fang, you must have missed the memo that religious affiliation is shrinking including in KC. The only religious growth in KC (2013-2017) is with Latinos and Black Protestant according to...
No, I'm aware that it's happening. Thus, why it makes even more sense for congregations to share buildings. Yes, everyone wants to do their worshiping on Sunday, but one could meet at 8 am; another at 11 am, and perhaps a third at 1 pm. Pick the better church buildings that are special, and combine assets for maintenance. In NYC, some of the churches did the staggered worship times because they had big congregations that couldn't all fit in the church at the same time. This was a common practice with synagogues and Catholic parishes. Some of the congregations have professional choirs that are hired. One of my friends made extra money singing at a church in Queens, and he'd sing at all three services.
The other way churches made money was to rent out their churches for lectures and community events, neighborhood association meetings, concerts, non-member weddings, etc.
The reality is that underused property in a prime location like that is sold to highest bidder that likely wouldn't find a good function for that structure (the layout of building and fact that it's few floors). Ditto for the old Westport bank building, unfortunately. Both could have made great restaurant space.
NYC has countless hyper-wealthy individuals who can buy primo property for personal reasons to save, KC not many. The Westport Bank had such uproar and still not saved. Ten+ years ago Park Lane Apts was saved from being torn down for office building (turned into boutique hotel). There were protests at Mill Creek fountain, this church doesn't have any such protest.
Last edited by earthling on Tue Jan 29, 2019 11:27 pm, edited 2 times in total.
earthling wrote: ↑Tue Jan 29, 2019 10:54 pm
The reality is that underused property in a prime location like that is sold to highest bidder that likely wouldn't find a good function for that structure.
But, the point I’m trying to make is that this isn’t just another company, or at least shouldn’t be. It’s a church. Finding the biggest return shouldn’t be the primary concern for a congregation like this. Perhaps, church-going is shrinking because of examples like this:churches aren’t living by any kind of higher standard than any dumb multinational.
The trend of many existing church goers appears to be gathering in strip malls or mega churches - 'the building doesn't matter' crowd. Most of the rest are struggling to maintain expensive old money pit buildings with shrinking members.
The church, however, says it doesn’t need rescuing.
A letter from the church’s executive board, filed with the city’s Historic Preservation Committee in response to the nomination, said that while members treasure the existing structure, they don’t consider it historic and don’t support the proposed designation.
According to the statement, the church wants to remain in its location and expand its congregation, but the “condition and suitability of the current structure inhibit these plans for growth.”
