Just got back from Kansas City...trip recap

[JivecitySTL]

Well my wife and I just returned from a very brief trip to KC.  I had not been there for at least 7 years.  I must say that I was VERY impressed with the city.  It is absolutely beautiful.  I love the layout-- how boulevards wind through the city, offering really nice views of various neighborhoods and downtown.  I wish I could have been there in warmer weather because you guys have some great little parks that I bet are really nice in the summer.  The city really puts on a great face to visitors and it looks like there is a lot happening to bring people back.

Kansas City people are some of the friendliest of any city I've ever visited.  Wherever we went, people initiated conversations with us and even invited us out with them.  We had drinks at Grinders and then at Jilly's and everyone was so fucking nice, we couldn't even believe it.  We ended up exchanging phone numbers with some people and are even hosting a few of them when they come for Soulard Mardi Gras in Feb! 

The vibe of Kansas City is completely different than the vibe of St. Louis.  We definitely felt how KC was more similar to Denver and cities of the west than to the east.  Aside from being much, much friendlier than St. Louis, it seemed like the people in KC are younger too.  The city looked bigger than I remember, but overall the metropolitan area felt pretty small.  Highway 70 is pretty much two lanes until just outside the city, and there wasn't much traffic to contend with.  We were in and out of metro KC in no time at all, whereas St. Louis goes on forever and the traffic sucks.

We did a lot of driving through different neighborhoods and really enjoyed the "KC flavor" of the city.  Saw a lot of cool, cozy neighborhoods and some great architecture.  Looks like there's a pretty lively art scene there, too.  The architecture of the new buildings being built downtown is really impressive and edgy; we loved it.  A lot of glass, which I like and think it looks good mixed with the older buildings.  Westport was lively and seemed like a nice mix of places; River Market seemed was interesting, albeit a little too sanitized.  We had brunch at Succotash, which was a great pick. 

Now for a couple questions...On Armour Blvd. just east of Main, there are some old mid-rise apartment buildings that are boarded up.  What's happening with those?  What a terrific neighborhood!  Also, I noticed that the taxis in KC do not have the new yellow taxicab license plates; they just have the regular Missouri plates.  In StL, every taxicab licensed in the city or county must have the MO taxicab license plates. 

All in all what a great city.  Missouri is very lucky to have two gems with very distinct character.  Thanks, Chrizow, for the great suggestions and hope to be back soon!

[GRID]

Jive, glad you enjoyed your trip to kc and yes, you have to come back in the summer...of 2008 .

As far as how the "metro" feels small.  I agree, but there is a reason for that.  The suburbs of KC go in all directions while in St Louis, you have to practcially drive through most of the suburbs and the city to reach downtown.  Driving into StL from the west makes the city seem as large as Houston or Atlanta.  If we took the KS burbs (overland park, lenexa, olathe etc) and placed them in MO east of Independence and Blue Springs leaving only KCK on the KS side, KC would "feel" the same way as StL and be set up in a similar way.

[trailerkid]

I was expecting a KC bashing. What's the fun in this post?

The architecture of the new buildings being built downtown is really impressive and edgy; we loved it.  A lot of glass, which I like and think it looks good mixed with the older buildings. 

I'm not into H+R Block or The Star printing press. I wouldn't call any of our new architecture edgy except for maybe Sprint Center and the Bloch addition.

[KCPowercat]

What else did you do Jive?  Glad you had a good time.

[ComandanteCero]

Good to hear you enjoyed yourself.  Did you take any pictures?

[JivecitySTL]

Unfortunately we didn't take any pics, but I must say that I definitely have a newfound respect for Kansas City.  It was so much more than I remember from previous trips.  I guess I wasn't really mature enough to appreciate it before.  I really do think it is one of the more interesting cities in the Midwest, and it has a lot of class.  My favorite features are definitely the boulevards that twist through the city.  I'm not sure any other American city has such an attractive street system.

[WinchesterMysteryHouse]

My favorite features are definitely the boulevards that twist through the city.  I'm not sure any other American city has such an attractive street system.

Welcome to Kansas City.  Thanks for the praise. 

However, did y'all walk these streets?  KC has the absolute worst conditions for pedestrians. 

[nota]

All I want to know is if you found the sushi?

[JivecitySTL]

^Didn't have sushi.  Instead we went to a little bistro in Westport that was pretty damn good, I think it was called Matsu's.  It was simply too cold to schlep around looking for restaurants.  We just sought refuge in like the second place we saw.  It turned out to be a good choice.

We did not actually stroll the boulevards because it was so fucking cold, but they were a pleasure to drive on.  We did notice that KC is probably not the most pedestrian-friendly city.  There were lots of drive-thrus, parking lots and driveways, but that's probably due to its younger age.  The city has a very spacious, well-designed feel to it, I can't really put my finger on it.  It has a lot more breathing space than St. Louis, that's for sure.  

You KC folks simply have a really, really nice city.  I know why you're so proud of it.  It has its own character and isn't a fake like so many towns these days.

[chrizow]

nice report!  glad you had fun.  i know kc's brand of urbanity is not your preferred style (brick, dense, old) but hopefully you saw KC's laidback, leafy, eclectic charm

come again soon and i'll make sure i'm here to be an ambassador to the city. 

[JivecitySTL]

^Hey chrizow, I think KC's urbanity is very, very interesting to me.  My wife and I both said it was by far the most pleasantly surprising city we've visited in the past year.  I sincerely enjoyed the unique layout of the city and found its urbanity to be very different...and refreshing.

[Sportster]

Gawd - Don't let the Mayoral Candidates get ahold of this - They'll think we live in utopia now and kill every infrastructure improvement in the planner for the next 60 years!! (LOL)

Glad you enjoyed your visit. I'd be interested to know what neighborhoods you motored through. It souinds like you stayed in Westport and made the City Maarket - great places to be sure. I know you probably don't know neighborhoods by name, moreover, what areas of teh city did you get a chance to explore?

Sportster
...come back often too

[DaveKCMO]

that bistro was tatsu's... and it's westport's best-kept secret (until now). thanks for the report! i look forward to another STL trip soon, especially now that the cross-county extension is complete.

[ComandanteCero]

^ is that on off-shoot from the restaurant in Leawood? (i have the impression there is some really fancy French place in leawood with the same name)

[skim82]

I know there is a sushi restaurant named Matsu's that serves Sushi in Westport, maybe that was what he was referring to.

Well, anyways jive, i'm glad you enjoyed your visit to KC... It's a great place to live, and I second the "younger" feeling you had of KC, I loved STL, but it def. seemed like more of an older city much similiar to a smaller version of CHI.

The drive into KC from the West or East is pretty bland... KC is much more of a north-south city, as the drive up from 35 or down 29/35 is probably more like STL.. as for the gridlock, that's probably more along the South Loop of 435, between the Grandview Triangle and 35 interchange... but i'm not complaining about the traffic, as SoCal was about 10x worse.

I-70 E of DT will continue to see increased development and will continue to grow.  As for now, I don't think there is a need to widen 70 into DT because KC's surroundings are much more rural in nature than even STL. 

[cdschofield]

The city has a very spacious, well-designed feel to it, I can't really put my finger on it.

You can thank George Kessler and the City Beautiful movement for what you're trying to put your finger on.

http://www.georgekessler.org/index.php? ... &Itemid=83

The city and a large developer are wrestling over a deal to restore those beautiful apartment buildings on Armour Blvd. Somewhere on this forum I think there is a discussion of this.

[KCMax]

Matsu's and Tatsu's are right next to each other. Matsu's is the sushi place, Tatsu's is the bistro, and it is an offshoot of the Leawood location (its also struggling from what I understand).

Glad to hear you had a great time Jive! I think both St. Louis and KC are fine cities and we're lucky to have two great cities so close to each other!

[Maitre D]

I really do think it is one of the more interesting cities in the Midwest, and it has a lot of class. 

You haven't been to Camaro-Head, I take it.  Sitting around people in the Jones Dome, made me think that STL is civilized, and we're cave-men.

Still tho, glad you enjoyed your trip.  I head to STL about 3 or 4x a year.  A quick getaway, cheap too.

[shaffe]

You haven't been to Camaro-Head, I take it.  Sitting around people in the Jones Dome, made me think that STL is civilized, and we're cave-men.

and apparently you haven't spent a long period of time around bandwagon cardinal fans.

jive, it's great that you enjoyed KC and you should definately come back often.  next summer would probably be a fantastic time, or maybe even in the fall if you're a mizzou basketball fan for the NABC tournament.

[mean]

I think we're really lucky to have two great cities in Missouri, and it's nice to hear that someone from across the state has something positive to say about KC. I dream of a day when there's cheap, fast transportation between the two cities that would facilitate commuting between them. A STL->KC bullet train would be so sweet, no matter how fantastically unrealistic it is.