KCRag Forum

You could put ATMs at parking garage entrances downtown that gave out $10 free to people who parked in them, and people would still look for a free surface parking lot.

People in KC generally get very flustered downtown. One-way streets?? Parking Garages?? Walking more than a block?? Parking Signs with posted hours??
The businesses downtown, including Cordish, would greatly benefit from some culture/behavior changing initiatives.

I never cease to be amazed at how downtown-challenged KC is. Having grown up in much-smaller Wichita, I would have expected otherwise, but we actually had a downtown culture there, complete with restaurants, shopping, theatres, etc. It was very normal for us to take a bus downtown on a Saturday, spend the morning shopping, have a nice lunch somewhere, possibly catch a movie. Having developed an urban skill set by age 10, it always boggles my mind seeing adults fail at the simplest downtown tasks. I never mind having people stop and ask for assistance, but they will literally be standing in front of a sign bearing all of the info they need and ask me when/where/how to proceed. If you're 21 and haven't mastered parking meters, ATMs. enter/exit signs or the ability to read a basic transport schedule, you might consider some remedial work before going out into the cold, cruel world. Seriously.

KCPowercat wrote: KC is a very strange parking obsessed city. I know people that won't go to the Plaza because they think the parking is too complicated. If they go, they check out the surface lot around Starbucks and if it is full, they just leave. Not making this up.

Well when you suburbanize america with millions of surface parking lots, this is bound to happen, i am sure the stories like this are similar in LA, Dallas and Phoenix.

Do they even teach kids how to Parallel Park anymore in Drivers Ed or is it just optional?

moosnsqrl wrote:
Having grown up in much-smaller Wichita, I would have expected otherwise, but we actually had a downtown culture there, complete with restaurants, shopping, theatres, etc.

Your point is well taken, but come one, Wichita? downtown culture? I have family that lives in Wichita and I've been downtown plenty of times. KC's downtown culture makes Wichita look like Dodge City. Bad example.

P&L and Downtown will thrive in 2 instances:

1) downtown residential population grows (will never truly explode because schools suck). But, local business and commerce needs neighborhood clientele. We want evening hours? We need weekday evening shoppers, diners, i.e., people who live on the block. Nobody is making a trip downtown on a tuesday night to eat dinner at Chipotle, sorry.

2) downtown/P&L lands some unique commercial attractions. PAC, SC, Midland will continue to draw thousands of people in from aroud the metro. These people will pay $2 parking and park in garages because they can't get arena sporting or cultural events anywhere else in the metro. With regard to P&L, we will never experience the maximum draw of suburban types when our crown jewel tenants are Chipotle and Burger King. Are we surprised that people won't pay $2 parking to eat dinner at the Mixx, or Mongolian BBQ? We live in a car-friendly society. Reality. If comparable options are available (westport, waldo, plaza, etc.) people will choose the path of least resistance. We need to be offering non-comparable options. Unique ventures. Exclusive retailers.

Oh yeah, true Light Rail would help too.

Downtown population has little if anything to do with schools.

KCPowercat wrote:Downtown population has little if anything to do with schools.

Agreed. Urban schools in every city are subpar if not downright awful, and yet some downtowns thrive.

KC-wildcat wrote:

moosnsqrl wrote:
Having grown up in much-smaller Wichita, I would have expected otherwise, but we actually had a downtown culture there, complete with restaurants, shopping, theatres, etc.

Your point is well taken, but come one, Wichita? downtown culture? I have family that lives in Wichita and I've been downtown plenty of times. KC's downtown culture makes Wichita look like Dodge City. Bad example.

Actually, it is a DATED example, not a bad one. I am old; there was a downtown culture there a century ago

Well, there was a large downtown-culture in KC about they same time period you are probably talking about. Also, not everyone in KC is downtown-retarded. The people in Roanoke, like my family and other closer in neighborhoods have no problem with going downtown etc. Once you cross Brush Creek the problem begins and just gets worse as you drive south.

The metro needs to put a greenbelt around our growth. We need to stop developing in all directions. It's fill-in time.

KCMax wrote:

KCPowercat wrote:Downtown population has little if anything to do with schools.

Agreed. Urban schools in every city are subpar if not downright awful, and yet some downtowns thrive.

Childless yuppies don't care about the schools

Anybody figure out the Whopper Bar? I was eating at Bristol last night and confused by their hours. Very inconsistent for a chain fast food joint. By comparison Chipotle is always open.

KCPowercat wrote:Anybody figure out the Whopper Bar? I was eating at Bristol last night and confused by their hours. Very inconsistent for a chain fast food joint. By comparison Chipotle is always open.

KCP, I was at Bristol last nite, too. Would have picked up your check had I known. (sounds good, doesn't it?)

It was my first evening at Bristol in a long time and I was too busy paying attention to my food and wine to think about the Wop Bar.

So, I'll just offer the reminder that the Sunday night happy hour at Bristol is such an awesome treat. Bottle wines under $100 are half price, and such wonderful appetizers and salads with which to build an inexpensive and fine meal.

mixx is adding breakfast. now open 9a-3p.

DaveKCMO wrote:mixx is adding breakfast. now open 9a-3p.

I walked in to try out breakfast this morning at 9AM. The place looked abandoned, and the menus weren't on the wall save for today's specials on the chalkboard. Finally, someone came out from the back and told me they would serve me a sandwich or salad if I wanted one, but they seemed surprised that I was there that early. There were at least 5 or 6 fliers posted that advertised their new hours of 9AM-3PM. It was probably foolish of me to think they would offer breakfast items at 9AM(&), but that does explain why they don't open even earlier. For a restaurant that offers such sparse hours already, why would they open at 9AM to not serve breakfast? If they think a few extra hours will run them out of business, I'd think they would open at 10:30AM or so. This is one of the more puzzling moves I've ever seen.

bobbyhawks wrote:

DaveKCMO wrote:mixx is adding breakfast. now open 9a-3p.

I walked in to try out breakfast this morning at 9AM. The place looked abandoned, and the menus weren't on the wall save for today's specials on the chalkboard. Finally, someone came out from the back and told me they would serve me a sandwich or salad if I wanted one, but they seemed surprised that I was there that early. There were at least 5 or 6 fliers posted that advertised their new hours of 9AM-3PM. It was probably foolish of me to think they would offer breakfast items at 9AM(&), but that does explain why they don't open even earlier. For a restaurant that offers such sparse hours already, why would they open at 9AM to not serve breakfast? If they think a few extra hours will run them out of business, I'd think they would open at 10:30AM or so. This is one of the more puzzling moves I've ever seen.

Or if they're adding hours, stay open for dinner. Who eats a salad at 9am?

That place is so frustrating. I like it better than ingredient but never go.

Ouch

Dang.

I don't really understand what they're referring to..other than Cordish sucks. Which, btw, the fact that they are tweeting about is awesome.

I'm guessing it has something to do with the christmas light celebration last night, maybe a christmas tree? Don't they have some kind of holiday window painting thing that began last night on Main? I know there was a christmas light celebration at Allis Plaza...but not sure if P&L was involved.