Jul

17

Grand Boulevard of the Americas!

July 17, 2007 |

The Kansas City City Council’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is expected to approve $60,000 this week to fund new street signs and flags celebrating member states of the Organization of American States (OAS) along Grand Boulevard — now known officially as Grand Boulevard of the Americas. Curious to see if the “Evil Empires” of Venezuela or Cuba will make the cut (yes and no), or whether the Parks Board will have anything to say about non-native flags abutting a designated Boulevard (probably no). While things that make downtown streets flashier are generally good, the “See!-We’re-Just-Like-Manhattan!” naming of things is getting tired (see East Village, Avenue of the Americas).


Comments

11 Comments so far

  1. Tim on July 17, 2007 9:58 am

    Anything that makes KC seem or feel more cosmopolitan is a good thing and a selling point…

  2. ChrisM70 on July 17, 2007 11:26 am

    it is if it doesn’t make Kansas City look like followers and a city without it’s own ideas.

  3. mainstream on July 17, 2007 12:27 pm

    “Grand Blvd of the Americas”? What a bad idea, and what a waste of $60K.

  4. Fumes on July 17, 2007 9:54 pm

    Wasn’t there a old couple in Manhattan who did alot of darn orange flags in the park. Alot of people did come to see it.

  5. Tim on July 17, 2007 11:05 pm

    What can it hurt?

  6. Joe Medley on July 18, 2007 9:10 am

    ‘“See!-We’re-Just-Like-Manhattan!” naming of things is getting tired’

    Old story. I just found out that Hyde Park is named Hyde Park because we wanted to be like Chicago. (I don’t know why their Hyde Park was so named.)

  7. Joe Medley on July 18, 2007 9:22 am

    I just read the ordinance (070764)(http://cityclerk.kcmo.org/liveweb/Documents/Document.aspx?q=1N%2bbX8URSgTz5rU%2bT4wLKvurSW3WvCir38Cxa0ZgM9h%2b1PkqpFsYh9BFE%2fNgBe40). It looks like $15k of that $60 is coming from funds earmarked for capital improvements in the 4th district.

    I won’t actually be able to make out the flags because my car will be bumping up and down from the pot holes. (I know, $15k probably doesn’t fix that many pot holes. It’s the principle I’m grousing about.)

    “WHEREAS, the City Council of Kansas City, Missouri, on April 26, 2007, by Ordinance No. 070570 approved an additional $15,000.00 contribution from the Citys Capital Improvement Sales Tax Fourth District Neighborhood funds for the purchase of hardware needed for the installation of the banners on City owned poles;”

  8. Tim on July 18, 2007 12:30 pm

    It’s about making the city a destination and convention central. If we do everything right, out-of-town business and tax dollars will pay for the amenaties.

  9. Tom Pendergast on July 18, 2007 4:01 pm

    looks like the downtown council will be fronting the maintenance of the banners for a 10-year period, according to today’s meeting. the committee approved and the ordinance advances to tomorrow’s full council meeting.

  10. Fumes on July 18, 2007 5:47 pm

    Joe between Gillham and Troost Hyde Park was first called Kirkwood.
    Hyde Park took the name from Old Hyde Park which was the original Hyde Park.

  11. Tim on July 18, 2007 9:34 pm

    People: talk up your city instead of talking it down. This goes a long way since “perception” is soooo important. Great things are happening in KC; bigger things than have happened in decades. Sprint Center will open in October with Elton John as the inaugural act, in a special taped for CBS celebrating the opening of the new arena, followed by a big write-up in The New York Times. This coming on the heels of all the coverage the NYT gave the Bloch Building as an architectural marvel (even though the locals all thought it looked like shit). Be proud Kansas Citians. You have a lot of reason to be. Everything will soon be in place to make KC the jewel of the Midwest. You’ll discover it was all worth it…

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