OFFICIAL: Penn Valley Park (Ideas+redeveloment)

[tat2kc]

Public sex needs to be confined to the back seat of mom and dad's car, like all good high school kids in the burbs do.

[KCMax]

Where is Kansas City's "Inspiration Point"?

[Gladstoner]

Yes the park could be a gem of a park, and it does indeed need to be redeveloped.  Yes, much of the activity is illegal and many people don't want to see the activity, however this is a part of an urban environment, which makes a city different from the sick bourgeois/middle class value system of suburban wastelands.  That said, If those individuals buying a $500k condo want a suburban lifestyle, maybe they should locate to the suburbs.  Pushing illicit and perceived immoral behavior to the sidelines is not the solution.  Should all activity considered deviant be pushed out of sight?  And who decided which behavior is deviant?  If people want a sterile/fake environment, maybe they should stay away. I don't see it healthy or helpful and in fact consider it very dangerous to demonize these segments of society.  Where does the demonizing end?  I suppose it depends on ones political and moral orientation, however this is a dangerous precedent to begin. I'm sure I'll take lots of flak for this post, but bring it on.

I don't see it healthy or helpful and in fact consider it very dangerous to demonize these segments of society.  Where does the demonizing end?  I suppose it depends on ones political and moral orientation, however this is a dangerous precedent to begin. 

Anyway, these funky acts can be done in private just as easily as in public. People who do it in public are merely inconsiderate or do it to be provocative. I don't give two rats' a$$es what people like to do, but please, leave the freakiness at home.

[schugg]

I say put a outdoor iceskating rink in the park...?

[trailerkid]

I get so tired of the whole 'well, that's what you get with an urban environment' argument.  Public sex, prostitution, open drug use, dog crap on the sidewalk, unkept filth, etc. are NOT what living in an urban community is all about.  Urban living is being in close enough proximatey that you develop a sense of community.  This means you care enough about the person close to you that you don't enfringe on their rights to enjoy the common spaces.  This means you have enough class to find somewhere to have sex without someone else having to see it.  An urban community can be safe, clean and dense enough for everyone to enjoy the space together.

How can a true Kansas Citian be against public sex? The founders of KCMO are turning in their graves listening to this talk. 

[chrizow]

"but officer, we are performance artists."

[trailerkid]

Updated master plan for Penn Valley Park offers safeguards from development

By MATT CAMPBELL

The Kansas City Star


Penn Valley Park should be off-limits to private developers, according to a report expected to be approved today.

An updated master plan for the park also calls for improving access and security and creating a support association among the park's neighbors.

The plan, which will be voted on today by the Kansas City Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners, revises a 1991 plan. It was spurred in part by concerns over designs on the park by private developers.

I have to wonder why it's OK to cede part of Penn Valley Park to the IRS for parking, but oppose any move to put private development in undeveloped parts of the park grounds. Turning green into parking lot does a lot more damage than adding businesses, tourists, and residents to a vast, underused green space.

Penn Valley Park is sooo huge that a few private developments within its grounds would not even make a dent. Adopt very strict zoning laws and ordinances on building design to ensure postive development (No Quick Trips or whatever) to produce positive impact. Has the city ever considered that 24/7 residents living close to or within the parks grounds would make it safer and more used? I used to oppose any private development, but I think we need to get a little more realistic on the park's current state. It is not a slippery slope argument...the park is huge and underused.

I find it completely unironic that KC's "central park" is vastly underused, sprawling and not very pedestrian-friendly.

[BigSam]

Yes the park could be a gem of a park, and it does indeed need to be redeveloped.  Yes, much of the activity is illegal and many people don't want to see the activity, however this is a part of an urban environment, which makes a city different from the sick bourgeois/middle class value system of suburban wastelands.  That said, If those individuals buying a $500k condo want a suburban lifestyle, maybe they should locate to the suburbs.  Pushing illicit and perceived immoral behavior to the sidelines is not the solution.  Should all activity considered deviant be pushed out of sight?  And who decided which behavior is deviant?  If people want a sterile/fake environment, maybe they should stay away.  I don't see it healthy or helpful and in fact consider it very dangerous to demonize these segments of society.  Where does the demonizing end?  I suppose it depends on ones political and moral orientation, however this is a dangerous precedent to begin.  I'm sure I'll take lots of flak for this post, but bring it on.

Okay, being middle class is sick - but committing sex acts in public is okey-dokey?  Riiiiiiight.

Nothin' more to say about that one.

Later,
Sam S.

[voltopt]

from what i understand, penn valley park was originally created to remove some of the late 19th century slums and shanty towns from the hillsides south of the city.  they never seemed to close the edges with buildings or find a compelling everyday use for this park, beyond large gatherings and festivals.

[LenexatoKCMO]

they never seemed to close the edges with buildings or find a compelling everyday use for this park, beyond large gatherings and festivals.

They never seemed to bother creating real entrances to the park either.  That is the one thing that troubles me about development around the perimeter of the park - its already hard enough for the public to find obvious ways into the park, will surrounding it with development make this worse?

[bahua]

I wouldn't be opposed to cutting into the park's perimeter with development, so there can be easier ways in, and so the park isn't separated on almost all sides by uncrossable high-speed streets.

[voltopt]

before this irs business, they should have tunneled broadway under the OK creek bluff - basically it would go straight down from 31st street under penn valley park and come out as the old alignment of broadway between the irs building and the old post office - there would be no need for the terrible broadway/west pennway highway viaduct bridge flyover - the old broadway and west pennway bridges could have been saved over the KC terminal railway and the part of west pennway that is now broadway going through the park could have been smaller and for park traffic only.

if not a tunnel, then at least sunken like the through roads in central park.

[trailerkid]

The skatepark just held a grand opening. I like the way that BMA/Landmark tower overlooks it...great urban feeling to it.

[KansasCityCraka]

Great, now they brought the skaters DT. What next the Gothic people. What are they going to do put in a Hot Topic store?

[trailerkid]

Great, now they brought the skaters DT. What next the Gothic people. What are they going to do put in a Hot Topic store?

The skaters already were downtown.

[bry456]

With the opening of the Nat'l WWI Museum later this year, Liberty Memorial and surrounding Penn Valley Park has the chance to bring in more visitors and locals.

If you had a chance to improve the park, what would you do?

[WSPanic]

Gondolas to Union Station.

Or a frisbee golf course. Whichever is cheaper.

[warwickland]

there are a few penn valley posts chock full of suggestions somewhere.

[LenexatoKCMO]

I would plop down a nice big roundabout in the middle of Broadway with nice big formal gateways into the park on both the east and west sides so that once and for all the park would have a proper entrance.  Of course I would subsequently be shot by the city traffic engineers.  

[chrizow]

i'd like to see more options for drug ingestion and public sex.  MKB ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!?!?