Excelsior Springs

[ShowMeKC]

I'm a Communitarian as well as Patriotic (national and local) and somewhat Nationalistic.

[Slappy the Wang]

I'm a Communitarian as well as Patriotic (national and local) and somewhat Nationalistic.

So you've loved all the President's we've had?  Based on your logic, criticism of anything you vaguely support (nation, state, city) is unacceptable.  You're a real piece of work, but I LOVE YOU. 

[Czar]

this is a great thread.....  We should have a smack off? Jim Rome style..

[ShowMeKC]

Slappy... Calling my hometown TRASH is NOT criticism. It's an insult and offensive. You seriously need to learn the difference between insulting/offending someone and mere criticism.

Like I said, if you had just said, that you don't really like Excelsior very much, or if you named the stuff you don't like, I would not have been offended. But you called Excelsior and the Elms TRASH and I'm not going to let you do that without a challenge.

[Slappy the Wang]

Slappy... Calling my hometown TRASH is NOT criticism. It's an insult and offensive. You seriously need to learn the difference between insulting/offending someone and mere criticism.

Like I said, if you had just said, that you don't really like Excelsior very much, or if you named the stuff you don't like, I would not have been offended. But you called Excelsior and the Elms TRASH and I'm not going to let you do that without a challenge.

Challenge all you want, the proof is in the pudding, or in this case a 10 minute drive through the town.

[FangKC]

Showme, is the Clay County Bank building, designed by Louis Curtiss, still standing?  Has it been drastically modified?

[Tosspot]

^ Still there, mostly unaltered.

[kcdcchef]

If a dying town like Weston can reinvent itself successfully to feed off the metro trade, why not Excelsior?

i have been going to weston for 25 years now and i cannot ever say i saw it as dying, nor did it reinvent itself. it merely relied upon what it is best at, showing off it's old antabellum architecture, it's various festivals ( irish, wine, apple ) and relying on farmers markets and the ski business.

cannot ever say it really died, it has been a quiet, and prosperous community for decades now. and some of the best food in the kansas city metro area ( the vineyards, the avalon )

[Slappy the Wang]

PROPOSITION

Shall the city of Excelsior Springs be permitted to continue to impose the existing one-half of 1 percent transportation sales tax for transportation purposes?

To transport what, filth?

[DaveKCMO]

transportation, as in roads... not much else. this article is from a cached version of the excelsior springs newspaper:

During Thursday night’s Candidates’ Forum, Excelsior Springs Public Works Director Chad Birdsong reassured voters that if they approve a no-sunset continuation of the 27-year-old Transportation Trust Sales Tax, very little will change.

The biggest changes, he said during his presentation about the tax and its benefits, will be that the Transportation Trust Authority will be able to rely on funding past the current four-year sunset and that the city can save the money spent every four years in elections to renew the popular half-cent sales tax.

The tax, which has been in place since its initial approval in June 1981, has been renewed by as much as 70 percent or more of voters every time it’s appeared on the ballot since then.

Birdsong said that the tax has funded numerous purchases and projects around town during its 27-year period.

Equipment used for street repair and maintenance has been added to the city’s garage over the year using the $550,000 generated by the tax each year, and since 1997, nearly 300 of the city’s approximately 400 blocks of street have been resurfaced or reconstructed.

In a conversation after the forum, he also said that — like all taxes — state law allows voters to repeal any tax that they feel is not fulfilling its purpose.

The issue is on the April 8 ballot alongside the Excelsior Springs City Council election and county primaries, and a simple majority is needed for passage.

[slimwhitman]

I visited Excelsior Springs last week and was a bit surprised.  Not in a good way.  The town has everything going for it, but it has done almost nothing to help itself.  I really like how the old main street is nestled into a tight valley. It has a low park on the south side, behind the main street buildings and a ridge just beyond that park.  There is another ridge a block north of the main street.  It feels great, just nestled between the two ridges.

So, what else does it have?  The 'Hall of Waters' is a cool deco style building.  They also have The Elms nearby that has a steady business.  Otherwise, the downtown is dead as a doornail with very little to attract tourists.  Heck, the downtown has very little to offer to local residents!  Almost all the restaurants and shopping has moved to the west "suburbs".  All of it is suburban padsite chum that could be anywhere U.S.A. (and nowhere U.S.A. at the same time).  The downtown was so sleepy, that we couldn't wait to leave it.  We had a burger at Ray's Lunch (the only place with any "energy" on the main street and real-nice owners).  Then we stopped into the Mercantile (not much there).  Stopped into the Hall of Waters.  I took a few pics, then we went back to the B&B we where lodging at. 

Too bad they have not tried to spruce up the downtown a bit more.  It really has a lot of potential.

By the way, we stayed at 'The Inn at Cresent Lake'.  It was a great B&B.  I would recommend it to anyone.    http://www.crescentinn.com/

[cknab1]

Well, they do have Wabash BBQ which I think is pretty good and the Wabash has free Blues concerts Saturday nights during the summer that get a good turn-out.  I don't have any thing bad to say about Excelsior, I'm going to be in Des Moines three days next week.  I'm not really looking forward to that. 

[slimwhitman]

I did also eat at Wabash BBQ one night.  It was fine, no complaints, but no rave reviews either.  It is in a neat old train depot but is a little off the beatin path, behind The Elms. 

[Jeff]

Slim, downtown was dead and had nothing to offer tourists?
What were all those cars doing there, rusting?
Redman's is an interesting store, Ventana Grille has tremendous breakfasts, there are new places going in right and left. I can't believe you didn't see any of that. Sure, there are some junky establishments but compared to ten years ago, it's a paradise.
I don't think their downtown area is any worse than any other small town. There's going to be good places and bad places. The Job Corps facility has never helped Excelsior's image but for a small town buried back there in the valley, I think it's doing fairly well.

[ShowMeKC]

Excelsior def. hasn't done much to help itself. It's tried in the past, but it just hasn't done much except resurfacing the streets and sidewalks, and the renovation of a couple buildings.
More families have been moving into houses in the downtown area though. Usually you have to hit the town during a weekend or some event.

I don't see too much going for Downtown Excelsior in the future since the city still seems to think the best idea is to continue to sprawl out and place sprawl/suburban chains along the main routes out of the city. Although it looks nice at times, it is definitely not nice, esp. since most kids want to get the heck out of town after high school, though some don't make it out.

[AlbertHammond]

*edit*

[slimwhitman]

Slim, downtown was dead and had nothing to offer tourists?
What were all those cars doing there, rusting?

I have nothing against the town.  I am sure there is stuff to do, but from a this tourist's standpoint, it felt dead.  There where cars on the main drag, but they all seemed to be locals hitting the burger joint at lunch or people that work in the buildings they parked in front of (this was a Thursday afternoon).  I walked up and down the street and only saw one group of 3 older women that looked to be shopping or visiting the corridor.

The problem with your perspective is that you are TOO familiar with the place and cannot see the place with fresh eyes.  How does the place feel to the visitor and what does the place APPEAR to offer at a glance?  You got my perspective as a certified city planner and registered landscape architect and my wife's perspective as an registered architect.  I'd say those are pretty good eyes to judge a place for the first time.  Take it for what it's worth.

[Tosspot]

I've only been to Excelsior once, but the downtown area actually seemed to be doing somewhat better, I thought, than a lot of other less fortunate small towns all over the midwest.

[Slappy the Wang]

*combusting*

[moderne]

Elms getting new owner and big renovation.