In The Loop: September 2023
Your connection to Downtown Kansas City
Earlier this week I posted on Twitter (in so many words) that, while the fountains at the K are beautiful and need to be incorporated into any new Royals ballpark — I think Crown Vision is just plain ugly, and needs to go away.
These are my opinions and, surprisingly, I didn’t get skewered too bad for expressing them.
So, having avoided the flaming arrows on social media, I’ve committed the entire “City Center” section below to a commentary of sorts about the two proposed ballpark sites.
Let me know your thoughts.
And now, on to the The Loop….
No prizes or praises (for now), just a trivia question to test your Downtown knowledge….
Q. On today’s date in 1896, Elmer Pierson was born in Kansas City. Forty-one years later, Pierson and his brother John founded the Vendo company, with headquarters in the Downtown area for many years. A world leader in its industry, what exactly did Vendo do?
A. See the answer below the “Signboard Hill” section of advertisers at the bottom of this issue.
1933: Italian Gardens moves to 1110 Baltimore
Eight years after being founded at 13th and Walnut by John Bondon and Frank Lipari, Downtown’s famous Italian Gardens restaurant moved to its third location — the one where most people knew it for the next 70 years — on the west side of Baltimore, near 12th Street. The Baltimore location opened on Sept. 1, 1933, and was the continuation of a 78-year run that saw five generations of family operate the Downtown landmark eatery.
In addition to serving prominent Kansas Citians, a 75th-anniversary advertisement published by the restaurant in the Kansas City Star noted the wide range of celebrities who dined at the restaurant, such as Ed Asner, Al Jolson, Cindy Lauper, Mae West, P.T. Barnum, Tom Pendergast, Frank Lloyd Wright, Elvis Presley, Charlie Parker, Emmylou Harris, Harry Truman, Pat Benatar, Liberace, ZZ Top, Joe DiMaggio, Frank Sinatra, Walt Disney, Pretty Boy Floyd, Black Sabbath, Cab Calloway, Bonnie and Clyde Parker, Barbara Streisand, Ted Williams, Liza Minelli, Billy Joel, local Kansas City sports stars, and the cast of “WKRP in Cincinnati,” among many, many others.
The legendary dining spot closed its doors in December 2003 and, unlike so many other Downtown landmarks of bygone days, the site of the former restaurant building is not a surface parking lot today. (It is a parking garage.)
1915: Houdini unveils a new act of peril
Possibly the most shared article ever in The Loop, we wanted to share this 2022 story with all of our new readers:
On September 8, 1915, world-famous Harry Houdini performed — for the first time ever — his suspended straitjacket escape right here in Downtown Kansas City. The magician, who was in town for a paid performance at the Orpheum Theater earlier in the week, performed his new trick — escaping from a straitjacket while hanging upside-down in mid-air — for free, in front of a reported 5,000 spectators outside the Kansas City Post newspaper office at 10th and Main. On that Wednesday in 1915, the straitjacket was supplied and fitted to Houdini by two detectives from the Kansas City police department.
Afterward, as the Post recounted, “[The crowd] saw him twist and turn at the end of the swaying rope, bend his body almost double and then with the ease of a man snapping a thread he slipped the arms of the straitjacket over his head and in twenty seconds was free.”
Eight years later, Houdini’s suspended straitjacket escape was filmed in Kansas City, again in front of the Kansas City Post building — and, amazingly, there’s video:
The future KC Baseball Stadium: Opinions and Insights
Listening to sports talk radio — especially listening to those who call in to the shows — can be a maddening experience, especially when a caller’s opinion seems to be made devoid of any other information that exists.
So, as an exercise to preserve my own sanity — and to offer more information to those who welcome it — here are some common opinions that irk me combined with a little context as it relates to the Royals’ two proposed ballpark plans.
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OPINION: The Royals should just stay where they are.
INSIGHT: Sports team owners are more and more becoming land developers; they go where land can be developed and where retail/restaurant/hotel will work.
“As the sports industry grows savvier about mixed-use development and more interested in the long-term benefits of owning real estate around stadiums and arenas, owners and teams that in the past would have relied on real estate development partners are increasingly thinking about launching separate businesses to control their efforts.” —Sports Business Journal, May 29, 2023
OPINION: The K is beautiful.
INSIGHT: The K was an architectural and aesthetic masterpiece designed with Googie architectural influence when it opened as Royals Stadium in 1973. But the modifications and additions in recent years have negated that original, clean design and what remains is unfaithful to the original concept.
OPINION: The new stadium has to have tailgating, and Downtown won’t offer that.
INSIGHT: A new generation doesn’t want to rely on cars, expects multiple transportation options, seeks out pre- and post-game venues and activities, and prefers walkable areas such as Downtown.
“One reason for Gen Z’s lack of interest in cars and driving is the rise of ride-sharing services and other trending modes of public transportation such as electric scooters and bikes….”
Another reason for Gen Z’s apparent lack of interest in cars is they identify as being more environmentally conscious of their carbon footprint compared to earlier generations and want to prevent the negative impacts that driving traditional automobiles can have on the environment. Additional reasons include the high cost of owning and maintaining a car….
Further, Gen Z reports a heightened fear around driving compared to earlier generations and less need for personal transportation on a daily basis given the increase of remote work.” —Foley & Lardner LLP
OPINION: North Kansas City would be like a Kansas City version of Wrigleyville.
INSIGHT: Full disclosure: I’m a North Kansas City High School grad. I’m frequently visiting Northtown for one reason or another, and I like it. But NKC is not Wrigleyville. Just as developers have tried and failed to re-create the venerable and historic Country Club Plaza, you can’t plop a baseball stadium into a successful but modest inner-core suburb and call it “Wrigleyville.”
But Northtown is also not devoid of history or organically developed restaurants, bars, shops, and amenities, and — depending on how it integrates with the area — a stadium there could have an authentic neighborhood feel from day one.
OPINION: North Kansas City is too far to drive.
INSIGHT: The NKC stadium site is about the same distance to the north from Moretina’s Caddy Shack (great sports bar and pizza near the river) as is Union Station to the south. You can see the skyscrapers from Northtown. The bus lines (and someday maybe the streetcar) run directly from Downtown to NKC. People who live Downtown shop and get services from north of the river. If you’re on the highways coming from the south, add an extra 5 minutes from the North Loop to get to the business and retail district of North Kansas City.
OPINION: The Chiefs and Royals should just develop the Truman Sports Complex as an entertainment complex together.
INSIGHT: The Chiefs almost certainly want the Truman Sports Complex (and the Jackson County 3/8-cent tax) to themselves. With a renewed tax and no one to have to share it with, the Chiefs could make a football village fit for a Kingdom.
In my opinion, I really don’t see a bad choice among these two options. I’ve always wanted a baseball stadium Downtown and would love to see the East Village developed in such a way that it secondarily supports businesses in the River Market, the Central Business District, Power & Light, Crossroads, 18th & Vine, Westside and more. The ability to walk, ride the streetcar, use shuttles from nearby food and drink establishments, and other public transportation options is a big advantage here.
The North Kansas City site, while definitely not Wrigleyville, does have more existing restaurants, bars and other amenities than many people realize. The extra land available at this site offers more opportunities for innovation, such as a “central park” with a water feature, plus tailgating (if you enjoy grilling on summer-heated asphalt amidst a sea of parked cars).
The Chiefs, of course, would probably prefer this Clay County scenario so that they can use the entire Jackson County 3/8-cent sales tax by themselves for their development plans at Arrowhead Stadium.
And, ironically, only the Northtown stadium site would offer a view of the Downtown skyline. 😕
Still, I lean toward the East Village. What are your thoughts? Comment here, or on Twitter or Spoutible.
City Market: Chalk and Walk, Farm to Table Dinner this month
On Sept. 2-3, imagine artists young and old, professional and amateur, displaying their talents by drawing directly in front of a visiting audience rather than in the solitude of their studios. Artists start with empty squares of asphalt and by the end of the weekend, those squares will be transformed into magnificent pieces of artwork.
Then, on Sunday, Sept. 17, Dig In! is Cultivate KC’s annual farm-to-table benefit, and is one of the most talked-about dinner events in the area, famous for its amazing multi-course meal created by local chefs, using local ingredients. As a supporter of local food, urban agriculture and food access for all, join others at the City Market for an elegant evening with live music and an amazing meal under the stars.
LINK: Kansas City Chalk and Walk
LINK: Dig In! Farm to Table Dinner
NLBM: Hall of Game Ceremony Sept 9
Pitching greats Vida Blue, Al Downing, Dwight Gooden, Mike Norris and Dontrelle Willis to be inducted into the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum’s Hall of Game; ceremonies planned for September 9 at the Gem Theater. Tickets that include dinner and the ceremony are $150; a ceremony only ticket costs $75. Proceeds benefit the NLBM.
LINK: Tickets to the NLBM Hall of Game Ceremony
Instagram: SNL’s Heidi Gardner spotted Downtown
Actress and KC native Heidi Gardner visited the folks at Belger Arts Center in the Crossroads Arts District yesterday afternoon for some pottery practice and an art tour.
LINK: Belger Arts Center
Bringing you some of the most interesting properties for sale or lease in and around Downtown Kansas City….
Shirtwaist in Longfellow
2618 Charlotte
Property presented by: Shynise Spencer
Brokered by: Keller Williams Platinum Partners
Price: $399,900
See the property online HERE
Homes and buildings featured in The Loop are not necessarily recommendations or endorsements, but rather illustrations of interesting properties for sale or lease in the vicinity of Downtown. Properties may or may not remain available at time of publishing.
c. 1892-1907
Q. On today’s date in 1896, Elmer Pierson was born in Kansas City. Forty-one years later, Pierson and his brother John founded the Vendo company, with headquarters in the Downtown area for many years. A world leader in its industry, what exactly did Vendo do?
A. Vendo was an innovator in refrigerated vending machines and by 1940 was endorsed by Coca-Cola, with Pepsi and RC Cola following in the 1950s. It was the largest vending machine producer in the world for many years. In 1988 the company was merged with the Sanden Corporation of Japan, and in 2005 the headquarters was moved to Dallas.
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