KCRag Forum

What's that fancy "new urbansim" development going in at US 169 and Briarcliff called, I forgot. It's got those big billboards up and new office buildings etc.

Anyway, they are trying to land Bass Pro. That is an extremely upscale area. Does't seem like a good fit, but who knows, it might just work there.

Doncha know, wealthy businessmen like to hunt...makes them feel more powerful...jus' wish the poor animal would win sometimes. I guess that's why I hate urban sprawl so much...we should be developing upwards instead of outwards.

La Bella Vita

I think Bass Pro is just playing developments against each other...no way they would want to be there....just doesn't fit.

I can assure you there is a genuine interest on behalf of both parties. Briarcliff was a very very close second choice to the Bannister location. Great Mall was another consideration, but it's simply too far out of the standard metro mix.

Interesting...doesn't seem like the type of development that La Bella Vita would want...they seemed to be going high class...although have they even started the retail portion yet?

I always drive by this place and always see the sign lite up but from what Good2Great had to say, they've blown their wad. Is there no chance for this development? Who's the leasing agent? Any info would be great because that would be a great development to help serve the expanding downtown population.

From my understanding of the project (which isn't much), La Bella Vita was aimed toward more older, upscale demographics that don't exist in that area outside Briarcliff itself. I would think downtown residents would be a younger crowd that would tend to want the typical Oak Park Mall/Plaza stuff. I'm not too excited about La Bella Vita, nor too disappointed by the fact it's not getting its feet off the ground. I'm much more interested in the development of Zona Rosa and Renaissance North.

I've never heard of an shopping center that caters to older demographics...who are they trying to land? Miracle-Ear, Cadillac, and Woolworth's?

trailerkid wrote:I've never heard of an shopping center that caters to older demographics...who are they trying to land? Miracle-Ear, Cadillac, and Woolworth's?

Older, meaning not geared toward people in their 20s and early 30s.

From shoppingcenterworld.com:

La Bella Vita's demographics are predominantly executives aged 34- to 54-years-old. As Thompson describes, 'In our immediate neighborhood, Briarcliff West, we have presidents and chairman of the boards of major corporations in the Kansas City area.'

Who will be the primary anchors of La Bella Vita? “We just started going after our anchor tenants,â€

Have not heard anything on this project for a while, anybody know anything?

I heard they thew their eggs in one basket a couple years ago at the Vegas convention and got no bites.....and have faded since then.

Nothing recently...I wish that would get going...the woman and I are seriously looking at that area to buy a house (the older area, not the semi-mansions on the west side)

Kay??? You live there now and you are mayor. Come on fill us in.

Do they still have the signs advertising it along 169N or 69N (I always forget which one it is)?

Does anybody else on this forum seem to think we have too many highways that are called 169 or 69...or maybe it's just me.

yep- 169 and briarcliff parkway have a huge sign with these little carnival-type looking lights on it. pretty tacky for a multi-million dollar developer. i bet the peeps in the semi-mansions hate it.

I emailed the developer a few months ago when I was looking at moving to Old Briarcliff or nearby and I just got a very generic saying they were still talking to retailers, nothing definite yet, etc.... I think it's pretty safe to say that at this point the project is at least in limbo, if not a lost cause. They moved a bunch a dirt last year and then stopped, so it looks like they don't even have enough retailer interest to justify moving anymore dirt, not mention actually constructing something.

just for future reference and not trying to be a know-it-all, 69 exits on and off of i-35 from the william jewell exit clear to vivion rd. and turns and runs west accross the northland to riverside and never really becomes a freeway. 169 however is from broadway bridge and runs up into downtown airport and is like a freeway/expressway mix where it exits onto briarcliff parkway. you can also exit on vivion/69 from 169- i admit it does get REALLY confusing unless you drive it alot.

Jayhawk, I am guessing 169 is to 69 what I-635 is to I-35, hence the similar names. 69 is a long highway, I was chasing in northeast Texas and ended up on it...I was like, wait, aren't I on Vivion Rd in the middle of TX?

BTW, if you ever thought it'd be a good idea to get from JoCo to Gladstone by taking 69 the whole way, well you'd be wrong.

169 is mostly a separate freeway in Clay County, however in Wyandotte County it becomes Rainbow Blvd, and in Johnson County it is Metcalf Ave. South of Joco it becomes a separate freeway again. Hwy 69 is mostly the same as I-35, except for some areas of Clay County where it separates into it's own route.

In the meantime while the shopping center is in limbo, you can enjoy a great view of Downtown and other areas from the site where it was supposed to be built. Behind Gold Bank, Mulberry turns into a gravel road going up to the top of the bluff. There is a gate there, but it is usually open. This spot seems like it would be great for residential because of the views, maybe a cluster of townhouses.

Any Northland natives familiar with this spot? It looks like it would have been a great lovers lane, back in the day...

dangerboy wrote:I emailed the developer a few months ago when I was looking at moving to Old Briarcliff or nearby and I just got a very generic saying they were still talking to retailers, nothing definite yet, etc.... I think it's pretty safe to say that at this point the project is at least in limbo, if not a lost cause. They moved a bunch a dirt last year and then stopped, so it looks like they don't even have enough retailer interest to justify moving anymore dirt, not mention actually constructing something.

KC could sue the developer for leavin' a big ugly dirt field for everyone entering the city to see.