A look at Kansas City's progress when it comes to urban development using this town's favorite dead art form:
KCTV5 examines the redevelopment of Kansas City's historic 18th & Vine Jazz District. Fifteen years after work began, district leaders reflect on the progress already made while some frustrated business owners push for more change.
TKC Spoiler Alert . . . Kansas City and just about everybody else is losing money on the never-ending deal and nobody is happy.
Cleaver is a fucking idiot.
ReplyDelete"We've done everything we said we were going to do."
Except eliminate the blight, restore the sense of community and bring 18th and Vine back to life. But I guess you got to pass out lots of goodies to yourself and your cronies. If that's the measure of your success, i gess you're right. By the way, how's that Green Impact Zone workin' for ya?
Need a new marketing plan? Get real real Gilmore. This is NOT about doing a better job of selling fake facades. Even the best marketing campaign won't save this place. You need to step back and fundamentally change the whole concept of what's going on down there.
18th and Vine is what you get when you allow politicians promoting a handout agenda to play developer.
Time for these losers to step aside.
Interesting article from earlier this year in The Atlantic about the Jazz District.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theatlanticcities.com/arts-and-lifestyle/2012/02/kansas-city-jazz-district-authenticity-problem/1284/
Here's an assessment from the Pitch's David Martin from 2010.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.pitch.com/kansascity/emanuel-cleavers-inattention-to-detail-sent-18th-and-vine-down-disappointment-boulevard/Content?oid=2197475
KC Star, 1997-
ReplyDeleteCleaver is euphoric about the project.
"I don't think there's anyone on the planet that has the same level of satisfaction I feel," the mayor said. "I guess I've got to say there's a little bit of `in your face' moving around my heart and soul. There were throngs of naysayers who didn't want it to happen."
Is there a car wash down there?
ReplyDeleteAnybody who knows anything could see this coming. An entertainment district in a black neighborhood? Ain't gonna work. All we heard was how good this would be for the hood and how blacks would support it. Of course this never happened and everybody knew it wouldn't. It just lined the pockets of the usual politicians and developers at taxpayers expense. The perfect microcosm of giving the black community something and they don't support it.
ReplyDeleteFrom the beginning 18th and Vine has been an opportunity for a handful of people to fight with each other over who was going to get the money and call the shots, even though most of them had no expertise or experience at doing anything like this. Sort of a mini-Citadel Plaza. And the infighting continues to this very day and the same old names are still involved. What's going on with the $1 million renovation of a few "historic" houses?
ReplyDeleteUntil we get over the "I want my fair share" mentality, we'll just keep on dumping money into these east side projects, most of which disappears into thin air, and the results will be just like 18th and Vine.
If you want to see the old victimization/entitlement mindset of the '60s, just watch and listen to Cleaver. Then drive around the east side and see the results.
we need a smok shop to buy weed, a conveniance store to rob and buy drank, a Churchs o Popeyes, and a ambolance service an maybe a cheap funeral palor.
ReplyDeleteThe city did its best...but the business community didn't see the promise of the tourist area. Too bad. Obviously nobody wanted to invest in the black community there, didn't want to be the first to invest.
ReplyDeleteIt could have been a very New Orleans type attraction for KC. Why didn't Ollie Gates move in there? And Church's. And other attractions and eateries? And more jazz nightclubs? Why isn't it a little bit like downtown Louisville with music, food, safety and plenty of parking? And bus service to there from 5pm to 3am?
I wish Sly would spend more time thinking about 18th and Vine and less time thinking about the one stop All Star Game, and a toy train from crowncenter to downtown.
8:39 The word is safety. KC can't even keep Westport and the Plaza safe. How are they going to keep an area surrounded by crime safe?
ReplyDeleteUh, 8:39- you ever seen something Ollie Gates developed? Not exactly tourist material (except for his BBQ).
ReplyDeleteDon't forget, the majority owner of real estate in that district is the City of Kansas City, MO. Until ownership changes and the City doesn't make it hard for people in the area to do so... it's just another failed project. The Blue Room has managed to survive, the Baseball museum is on life support and the other businesses that were housed there have mostly faded away. Big beautiful buildings and its a ghost town. So much for the "build it and they will come" theory.
ReplyDeleteI issue is this place is in a bad area of town. You can't expect that a bunch of people are going to line up and go into that area. Next time this city want to create something for tourism, I would suggest that they put it in an area where your chances of getting mugged, shot, etc. are pretty low. Either that, or clean up the area you want to put it in.
ReplyDeleteLets just keep throwing Good money after BAD. That area is DEAD NOW. It's time has passed and the town has moved on
ReplyDeleteIf I were Mayor, 18th and Vine would be wide open, like when the area was great. Keep the rents reasonable. Let the jazz clubs stay open as late as they want. Of course there will be some crime, so turn one of the empty buildings into a police station.
ReplyDeleteThe tourists want the real thing.
Not lame, 12th St. Jump/Cordishy/white Worlds Of Jazz bullshit.
Why would you refer to the REVEREND Cleaver in a derogatory fashion? He is a man of the cloth, a man among men and above all, a NIGGER! He is certainly not a loser. We the people are the fucking LOSERS, for electing this cretin. Oh yeah, he'll keep getting elected and keep on fucking the citizenry out of buckets of money because he is, the REVEREND Cleaver, NIGGER!!
ReplyDeleteMaybe 1:54 is onto something. Do blacks not like 18th and Vine, either? We need way more than just the Blue Room, which is a nice place to visit. There should be a DOZEN places to visit over there, including places to eat.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I think Gates should be there and other music, eating, drinking venues as well.
And yes, the cops, well lit parking, et al. Nobody ever brought it up to critical mass so it would become a destination.
@
ReplyDelete@ Get Heather Brown back on the job! Thank God she's with the EDC. Maybe she fuck up some more contracts and generate some business in the form of lawsuits.
No stupid, she ain't with the EDC. Try the TIF commission....
ReplyDeleteAs a small business owner, I wanted to open a dry cleaners in the area several years ago when the district was just being formed. I met with local officials who seemed interested but never followed through on getting a deal done. Needless to say the area is still lacking small business and I bet I know why. The leadership of the district needs to be removed and replaced by people with a real interest in developing the area.
ReplyDeleteIf I remember correctly this was the identical complaint of previous business owners..Some were crucified by the black community for speaking out against the disparity at 18th and Vine and the effect on their businesses...the 18th and Vine board members don't give a dam about the blight at 18th and Vine. The board members don't reside at 18th and Vine with zero monetary investment in 18th and Vine.
ReplyDelete