Most Kansas City reporters won't remember it because they were living somewhere else at the time but a big part of the plan behind the Power & Light District is the gamble that Electric Avenue will provide tourists, residents and other visitors a place to congregate before and after events at The Sprint Center and this is the same strategy that failed when KC first built Kemper Arena.
Not only is this assumption completely wrong but it also represents a step backward by using the same tactics that didn't pan out previously.
Again, you might not remember this but when Kemper Arena was first constructed there were restaurants, clubs, bars and other "attractions" which developers (mistakenly) believed would cater to the convention and/or sports crowd housed in the arena. Turns out that concept was a complete failure because folks going to see any event at an arena (for the most part) only want to go home afterwards.
Already, the delay in construction of the P&L District has brought so many doubts to the surface but a proven fact of this kind of close relationship between an entertainment district and a large stadium is that the "spillover" won't sustain any neighboring property. In this instance, The P&L District will have to survive on its own merits which includes very little connection to KC proper.
And while Kansas City has bet so much on Electric Avenue it's a shame that the opening of the place is going to coincide with what many people believe will be an economic downturn during which shopping, eating out (he-he) and luxury living space might not be in such high demand.
I stole this post directly from: http://www.tonyskansascity.com/
1 comment:
And look where Kemper Arena and its surroundings are now. This is the same place I expect Electric Avenue to be a few years down the road...just as it was a couple of years back.
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