Sorry, critics: KC is better place to live than 25 years ago
Yael T. AbouhalkahKansas City has changed a lot since late 1987, when I began writing about local issues for the Opinion page.
Critics point to problems with public schools, pockmarked streets, costly sewer repairs and corporate welfare run amok while contending the city has changed for the worse.
The facts show otherwise. Take a look at key indicators to really evaluate how Kansas City has fared over the last 25 years. Here’s my appraisal, based on a five-star system. The more stars, the more progress the city has made.
Agree or disagree? I’d like to get your thoughts in an email.
Downtown: 4 stars
In 1987 the city’s core was an ugly mess with empty buildings and dark streets. But in 2012 the major pluses include the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, Sprint Center and the Power & Light District, Ilus W. Davis Park, plus reinvestment that’s brought in a new grocery while turning older buildings into lofts, apartments and the popular Central Library. Challenges remain, including high office vacancy rates and lack of population density.
Violent crime: 3 stars
Make no mistake: Murder and violent crime rates are far too high for a city our size. However, the rates have fallen significantly over the last quarter century — down by almost 50 percent for aggravated assault and robberies. The city, as a whole, is safer than it once was.
Population: 3 stars
Kansas City had just under 440,000 people in 1987, down from 507,000 in 1970. But over the last 20 years, led by strong growth in many attractive Northland neighborhoods, the population has risen to just over 460,000. Kansas City is gaining people, not losing them, as are some other major cities.
Inner-city neighborhoods: 1 star
The real tragedy — when it comes to loss of people, businesses and hope for a positive future — has occurred in lower-income East Side neighborhoods since 1987. Thousands of people have left, and thousands of houses are vacant. Public initiatives under five different mayors have failed to improve the situation.
Public schools: 3 stars
Why the positive rating? First, the poorly performing, unaccredited Kansas City Public Schools district that had 35,429 students in the 1987-88 school year has less than half that number now, at just under 17,000. The faults of the district simply aren’t harming as many students as they used to. Second, the surging Northland growth means more Kansas City children are enrolled in the high-performing Park Hill and Liberty school districts, and in the still-solid North Kansas City district.
Country Club Plaza: 4 stars
Some traditionalists lament the closings of local stores over the last 25 years. The upbeat flip side? The area has seen remarkable upgrades in trendy new shops (think Forever 21 replacing Mark Shale) plus new cinemas, restaurants, landscaping, office buildings and even local shops since 1987. Just a few blocks to the east, the Bloch Building at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art has drawn international praise.
Liberty Memorial: 5 stars
Kansas City’s rather simple tribute to World War I veterans had a slowly crumbling deck in 1987. But after tens of millions of dollars (including too much public money) was pumped in over the next 20 years, the memorial now boasts a first-class museum that richly tells the story of that war.
Kansas City Zoo: 4 stars
Attendance at the zoo was 525,000 in 1987 but headed down, prompting a 1990 tax increase to expand the facility. Attendance rose for awhile but was falling another decade later. Now the zoo’s best days are ahead of it since voters in Jackson and Clay counties in 2011 approved a sales tax dedicated to numerous worthwhile upgrades.
Truman Sports Complex: 5 stars
Both the Royals and Chiefs are badly managed franchises right now. But the public places they play in have been renovated with hundreds of millions of public dollars to provide the teams with first-class stadiums.
Notice a constant theme? Kansas Citians have shown resilience — and stepped forward with large amounts of public revenues — to address crucial issues since 1987.
No doubt: Plenty of future challenges remain. Summed up, though, Kansas City is a better place than it was 25 years ago.
Reach Yael T. Abouhalkah at 816-234-4887 or abouhalkah@kcstar.com. He blogs at voices.kansascity.com and appears on “Ruckus” at 7 tonight on KCPT. Twitter @YaelTAbouhalkah
Richard L Wagner
5 months, 3 weeks agoHa Ha. Yell actually gives stars to the School District simply due to the fact that they have less students to harm.
And in regard to Downtown; yes I would give stars to a tepid improvement. Yet, the P & L District is vastly over-rated. How many local people actually return after the first time? From what I can tell, most of the crowd is made up of out of towners, few if any of the bars and restuants are local, drinks and food are too exspensive for the average person, and parking is at a premium at best. Dowtown leaves a lot to be desired. Parking is still a major problem, public transportation is not a realistic alternative, bicycles are still resisted by the majority of property owners, traffic engineering is confusing.
Suzuki Ishikawa
5 months, 3 weeks agoI’m confused, you rate KC highly but another article posted last week stated that KC needs at least 10 billion to renovate our inner cities.
which one is it?
Tyler Smith
5 months, 3 weeks agoDid you see he rated inner city neighborhoods only 1 star? *
Richard L Wagner
5 months, 3 weeks agoGood catch, Tyler. I wonder if the folks who live in the inner city neighborhoods feel that way.
Mark Hastert
5 months, 3 weeks agoFirst let’s consider the premise. Of course KC is a better place than it was 25 years ago on almost every level. Do we have improvements yet to be made? Of course, but the trend is positive.
Downtown permanent population is surging and it’s become a nighttime destination again with good and plentiful entertainment venues, restaurants, and attractions and improving services. Public transportation is better and will likely continue to improve. The Max bus lines and growing trail system are good examples. There are truly good charter school options for families in the city core. We have good universities too. UMKC, Rockhurst, Avila, the Junior colleges all offer quality education and attract international students. We have added the Stowers Institute and Kauffman Foundation. We also have quality affordable housing stocks. Over the next 25 years we’ll tackle our problems and build on our strengths. We’re truly lucky to has a metropolitan community that offers diverse living environments from urban to suburbs all within a few miles radius of the city center. My friends with hour+ commutes in other cities are envious.
Dear Mr. Abouhalkah: Yes, KCMO is a good place to live!! One thing to remember about our city’s crime situation. Yes, we are at lower rates of violent crime than in the early 1990’s. But, and here is what is rapidly giving KCMO the reputation as the new “Murder City USA”, in virtually every other major city in the country homicide rates have fallen much further in the past 20 years than they have in KCMO. In NYC there were 2250 homicides in 1992—this year they will probably end the year with around 500 homicides. In DC in 1992 there were 450 homicides—this year they will probably end the year with 90. And KCMO? In our worst year, homicide-wise (1993) we were at 153 homicides—this year we will probably end up with 115 homicides. This contrast in the decline of homicides in KCMO compared to other cities is why, as of today, KCMO has the fourth highest per capita homicide rate in the nation. So, despite marginal improvements since the early 1990’s, KCMO still has a most serious crime problem. Take care!! Sincerely and REspectfully, Ernest Evans