Grain Valley looks like it will be KC's next big suburb.

KCgridlock · Post by **KCgridlock** » Sun Mar 30, 2003 2:18 pm

Have you guys followed the housing permits numbers on metro area cities? I am amazed that Grain Valley is now a constant top five city, building more homes than Blue Springs, Independence, Lenexa etc.

I suppose GV will be a Blue Springs in the next ten years or so. Never would of thunk it.

Same thing is about to happen in Lone Jack, now that is amazing.

Post by **dangerboy** » Sun Mar 30, 2003 4:02 pm

Oak Grove isn't far behind. Next we'll be moving past the county line into Odessa in Lafayette County. If the office market in Independence ever gets off the ground things really explode, as proximity to the central business district would be less of an issue.

Before we know it I-70 will be fully developed from Lawrence, KS to Concordia, MO. But hey, we gotta keep up with Atlanta where it is over 100 miles between opposite suburbs.

Post by **bahua** » Sat Apr 05, 2003 12:04 pm

It's just the consuming nature of the sprawl cycle. Grain Valley will be a cookie-cutter suburb, with good schools and Old Navy shopping, and Odessa will be on the drawing board, while KC, Independence, Raytown, and Blue Springs rot in the sprawl's wake.

Post by **dangerboy** » Sat Apr 05, 2003 12:20 pm

Independence will be sprawling for a quite a while still. They annexed farmland all the way east of 7 Hwy, like KCMO did with the Northland. Western Indep. will continue to struggle, but eastern part of the city has lots of farmland left to pave over.

ShowME · Post by **ShowME** » Fri Jun 06, 2003 7:09 am

I try and keep track of housing permits as well. For some reason I really have an interest in it. You can really feel what cities are doing well and which one's aren't by reading them. Anyways I don't know if it was you or KC that made the point on a different thread about Blue Springs. They do almost seem to be a working class suburb. And as far as there infrastrcuture is concerned Hwy 7 is a mess which probably is one of the reason's why Grain Valley is growing so much. I have an uncle who now lives in the Minneapolis area who farmed and lived for years in Oak Grove. He still owns a ton of land out that way. I never thought I'd see the day when Oak Grove is almost next in line for serious growth. But the way the KC Metro area is sprawling these days I wouldn't be surprised one bit if that happened in the next 3-5 years. That city is already reporting 20+ permits a month. I still can't believe that both Grain Valley and Oak Grove are in Jackson County. They just seem way out there.

Post by **dangerboy** » Fri Jun 06, 2003 7:22 am

The big appeal of Grain Valley for many people is that it is much smaller than Blue Springs (especially the schools), yet only a couple miles further out.

Oak Grove isn't that far, it's closer to Downtown than De Soto, KS. However they also have infrastructure problems. They main road from I-70 through town (Hwy F) is in terrible shape. Truck traffic keeps the pavement a mess, and traffic is horrible. Plus they have had numerous scandals with city government. The state had to sue the city in order to force them to build a much-needed new sewage plant. Even if Oak Grove gets growth, the government really isn't competent enough to handle it right now.

ShowME · Post by **ShowME** » Fri Jun 06, 2003 7:30 am

I totally agree. Not only is there city government a mess in Oak Grove but so is there school board. I always remember visiting that place as a kid and it always seemed like we were in some backassward town in south central Missouri. You gotta admit though that cheap land and housing is what drives alot of this growth and Grain Valley and Oak Grove have plenty of that. That drive from there to downtown and back everyday I would not tolerate though.

Post by **dangerboy** » Fri Jun 06, 2003 7:38 am

Given the problems with Oak Grove, I predict Grain Valley will fill up first, and maybe even Odessa. Oak Grove was just a small town that started handing out building permits without any plan. The other two have their act together much more.

People do drive Downtown from these places. A lot of people want a small town on the edge of the city. When places like Blue Springs or Liberty get too big they move on out the next one. And a lot of people are commuting to Independence, Lee's Summit, SKC, or Joco instead of Downtown from Grain Valley and points east.