KCRag Forum

The realities of the modern entertainment marketplace revolve around branded names and franchises. Kansas City may have to accept a Hard Rock Cafe to interest tourists. There are few movie theaters owned by a single, independent owner. Subsequently, Joe's Hamburger Stand cannot compete in market wit...

I've seen those guards too. I will wager a guess and say that it has something to do with terrorism threats against public gathering places. At night, Bartle Hall hires "day laborers" to come in and tear down and re-setup the exhibit halls for whatever convention is in town. A security per...

Trailerkid, I think at this point it would be hard to ruin downtown.

In most large cities where there is a Hard Rock Cafe, they are frequented by visitors more than residents. Locals visit them one time for the novelty, and then return to their former hangouts. In the 10 years I lived in New York City, the only time I went to HRC was to take visiting relatives who wa...

Yes, that's true; it was called Vaughan's Folly because it was thought to be too far south (in 1870) for desirable office space.

I think the new Federal Reserve Bank in Houston was designed by architect Michael Graves. He did that cool municipal building in Portland, Oregon too. I.M. Pei's firm won the bid for the new headquarters here in KC, but I don't think Pei himself is going to design it. I think the Fed. Reserve's reas...

Phoenix constructed a downtown freeway with a 14-block tunnel. It limited the number of exits and that could be done on the north loop. We don't need an exit at every street--just Grand, Main, and Broadway. The other thing would be to build an arced structure over the freeway in between the existing...

Here's a photo depicting the Junction around 1906. The 4-story triangular structure was called Vaughan's Diamond Building. Constructed in 1870, it was from the Second Empire style of architecture. Vaughan's Diamond occupied that site until 1915, when it was razed and the Westgate Hotel was built. Th...

I think I would have liked living in Kansas City from about 1900-59.

My parents lived here in the late-50s to 1962. My mother says that Kansas City was a fun town back then. She said she used to get excited when she took the streetcar to downtown to shop.

Maybe we could combine "Petticoat Lane" (E. 11th St.) with "The Junction" and have "Petticoat Junction." LOL. That area was called The Junction because many of the City's early cable and street cars routes criss-crossed there. The route that used the Ninth Street Inclin...

I want to present some additional ideas for reuse of the Empire Theater, and specifically address past attempts to lure the House of Blues franchise into the Empire. What about this idea? Instead of the House of Blues taking out a long-term lease on the building, why not build the facility in such a...

I want to present some additional ideas for reuse of the Empire Theater, and specifically address past attempts to lure the House of Blues franchise into the Empire. What about this idea? Instead of the House of Blues taking out a long-term lease on the building, why not build the facility in such a...

The problem with expanding Westport is that the people who already live in the adjacent areas complain about the crowds, noise, parking problems, and litter. Westport doesn't need more bars and clubs. What it does need is more housing to provide residents whom will frequent the existing establishmen...

I think most Kansas Citians think of it as one. Since the neigborhood residents complain about the noise, parking, and crowds littering, etc., perhaps it's time to think about slowly moving the bars and clubs downtown. Hopefully, when the downtown entertainment district is built, some of the clubs w...

You'd think with all the Web sites that exist for hooking up, that practice wouldn't be necessary. I guess the people that frequent that area for that purpose don't have computers. ;-) Or if they do, they don't want any evidence of such activity left on their computers for their wives to find. Some ...

Thanks for the compliment on the ballroom idea. :-) The Empire Ballroom. I like the sound of that. And with its' stage and portable table seating, it could be used to stage dinner theater as well. A restaurant-quality banquet kitchen could be placed in the basement of the old theater, or in the base...

I think I read that Ron Jury did get his financing in time--from some investor in San Antonio.

I did a little research at the downtown public library today. I looked in the Cole's Directories and old SW Bell Directories over a span of years (from the 1940s-80s) for any business called Subway at that address. I found none. I'm inclined to think it was a subterranean tunnel that lead to the Pro...

Hey, I have an idea. Why not scrape the entire plan to build a ballroom over the interstate, and take that money and turn the Empire Theater into a ballroom? They want a ballroom that will seat 3,000 people. The Empire seated 3,000 people when it opened. Surely it would be cheaper to renovate an exi...

I agree about not using Kansas Citians' tax money. I would like to see it turned into a world-class museum though. Since it is the only WWI Memorial in the United States--and is really a national museum, I'd rather see it turned over to the National Parks system; or private groups like the Veteran's...