What is wrong with this image?
It is 11:16 AM on Sunday, August 22, 2010, the weather is great, but where are the people? The few that I met on the path along the bank of the Missouri River in downtown Kansas City appeared to come from the warehouse condos in the area.
Some efforts are being made to open up the area - see the next photo. This underpass is around the Lift Bridge shown above - made by engineers to be as 'safe as houses.' Try it at 90 or 95 degrees without sunglasses - it's like a tanning bed.
Or how about the fishing facilities? The River is deep and fast moving, the engineering solution appears to be to cut people's access to it, but they do not succeed - the now limited access is itself a hazard.
Concrete and stones do not by themselves make for a nice environment. Let's get some people focussed reconstruction going. More information, dynamic if possible, about what is going on and what went on in the past, exercise equipment, a fishing pier, better areas to view the trains, pedestrian walkways across the bridges, organized parking, and a bus route or two. There is no place to get even a drink - there will be a need to subsidize and otherwise nurture any commercial activities until the place gets going. I did see one 'Johnny on the Spot!'
Bridging the Missouri River was the challenge and Kansas City grew because it provided it. The River, the Kansas River that joins it here, the bridges, and the location in the middle of the United States are the reasons the railways focus here, and Kansas City is what it is today.
Why are there no museum facilities down here building on this? Why are the railway companies so silent? The City Market is close by. Are its merchants encouraged to extend their commercial interests down to the river bank? What about art and craft fairs, or the involvement of the nearby artist community? Why not create a Center with the involvement of all the organizations that I have mentioned and more? If one is in the planning stages why not broadcast it in the area? It would be something to be proud of.
To my mind the area ranks two out of five stars for the first, non-photographic visit, but nothing for return visits until it is improved. As for photographic opportunities, it does rank higher, say three or four stars out of five as the area offers some opportunities for interesting photos, particularly when the visit is extended into the The Bottoms, the original industrial/commercial heart of the city nearby. Visit my web site to see what I mean.
Bridging the Missouri River was the challenge and Kansas City grew because it provided it. The River, the Kansas River that joins it here, the bridges, and the location in the middle of the United States are the reasons the railways focus here, and Kansas City is what it is today.
Why are there no museum facilities down here building on this? Why are the railway companies so silent? The City Market is close by. Are its merchants encouraged to extend their commercial interests down to the river bank? What about art and craft fairs, or the involvement of the nearby artist community? Why not create a Center with the involvement of all the organizations that I have mentioned and more? If one is in the planning stages why not broadcast it in the area? It would be something to be proud of.
To my mind the area ranks two out of five stars for the first, non-photographic visit, but nothing for return visits until it is improved. As for photographic opportunities, it does rank higher, say three or four stars out of five as the area offers some opportunities for interesting photos, particularly when the visit is extended into the The Bottoms, the original industrial/commercial heart of the city nearby. Visit my web site to see what I mean.
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