2007 Downtown Urban Homes Tour Survey

[TheBigChuckbowski]

I had a couple jocos with me and of course they wanted to drive from 5th and Delaware to 909 Walnut. I forced them to walk and we ended up walking to every place we went to. Afterward, they realized it didn't take very long to walk and would've taken longer to find a parking spot. Amazing.

[TheBigChuckbowski]

I also wasn't that taken with First & Main.  It seems like a really solid project but the units on the tour just seemed sort of cold and sterile to me.  I think if they had painted the drywall a color other than white, it might have warmed things up a bit to offset the concrete floors.

I think the concrete floors were my main problem with them. They were the floors of an unfinished basement not of a $300,000 condo. Maybe they just weren't finished.

[HalcyonKC]

As concrete floors go, I thought they looked fairly high quality.  Smooth and evenly colored.  Concrete like that can be stained and finished to look sort of like rich leather, although I'm not sure that would have been the right space for it.  With old buildings like that, concrete is frequently in less-than-ideal condition--decades-old stains from rusty water, paint, and unknown industrial chemicals...also unevenness from pitting, gouges, and ugly patching efforts. 

[PumpkinStalker]

I have to piggy back on the 1st and Main.  While on the shuttle for a few minutes (this was before I realized walking was the way to go) I heard many people say they loved 1st and Main.  I'm with everyone else here though.  Didn't think it was so hot at all.  I do like the location, right by the pier.

In addition, it's too bad that Garretts Corner Market went out of business a while back.  I liked the little hidden place and it alone would have persuaded me to buy in the area by the pier.

[Carfree]

I believe the floors at F+M were poured during the renovation, so they should polish up nice when they get waxed. Newly poured floors also take dye very well and can look awesome, if done by someone that knows what they are doing.

I know what you mean about the first three units feeling cold, but when I got to the last unit, the furnished one, it showed me how a place can change when there is art on the wall and some soft places to fall.

I heard an organic cafe / lounge / restaurant was looking at moving into the old Garrets space. Now that Second Street is getting rebuild by the city, I think that whole area is poised to do very well.

To me, it's a tie between 909, F+M, and 5 Delaware.

[TheBigChuckbowski]

Has anyone heard if the wine/coffee bar spot in 1+M has been filled?

[Czar]

Has anyone heard if the wine/coffee bar spot in 1+M has been filled?

I am just very excited that Second Street will be finished this year.. Retail is bound to follow.. This will provide Kansas City with a connection to the river and the history of the Town of Kansas  Anyone see the mass of wood debris floating down the flooded Missouri River?  Unbelieveable the power.

[staubio]

As concrete floors go, I thought they looked fairly high quality.  Smooth and evenly colored.  Concrete like that can be stained and finished to look sort of like rich leather, although I'm not sure that would have been the right space for it.  With old buildings like that, concrete is frequently in less-than-ideal condition--decades-old stains from rusty water, paint, and unknown industrial chemicals...also unevenness from pitting, gouges, and ugly patching efforts. 

I stained my original 100 year old floors.  They did have cracks and a few pits in them, but that adds to the character. I had them grind down to expose some of the original aggregate, adding a lot of texture.  The staining process itself tends to be inconsistent, leaving darker and lighter areas intentionally that offset any variations in the floor.

I've really enjoyed my floors and I think they look awesome.  My only gripe is that there is no hiding the presence of dirt, which is probably preferable to carpet replete with debris.