Kansas City’s bi-state geography is a ‘two-fer,’ with a multidue of cultural and entertainment options straddling the state line. Here are the 10 Places to Go in Kansas City according to Relocating in Kansas City (magazine).
1. Power & Light District
Eight-blocks and a half-a-million square feet dish up an epicenter of dining, drinking and shopping. The Power & Light District, a primary revitalizing force for downtown retailers, happening restaurants and a gourmet grocery store. Smack in the center of it all is Kansas City Live!, otherwise known as “The Living Room,” designed for outdoor music and festivals.
2. Sporting KC at Livestrong Sporting Park
Ushering in a new era for soccer, the Kansas City, KS, Sporting KC soccer stadium, Livestrong Sporting Park, opened summer 2011. Joining Kansas Speedway and the CommunityAmerica Ballpark Village West, the 18,500-seat stadium features the best of European and American professional league play.
3. Liberty Memorial
Recognized by Congress as our country’s only WWI monument, the Liberty Memorial, originally opened in 1926, has the largest and most comprehensive collection of World War 1 artifacts, relics and archival materials in the world. The newly restored museum and tower were rededicated and reopened on May 25, 2002. Two more expansions have followed, including a 230-seat auditorium and an education center beneath the memorial.
4. Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
Thanks to the internationally known design team of Moshe Safdie & Associates, Theater Projects Consultants and Nagata Acoustics, Kansas City’s skyline boasts a stunning new world-class performing arts center. The center will host Kansas City’s acclaimed ballet, opera and symphony companies in two spacious performance halls designed to delight audiences.
5. The Block Building at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
Acclaimed architect Steven Holl’s five interconnected glass lens structures are the competition-winning addition to the iconic, neoclassical Nelson-Atkins building. Opened June 2007, the addition offers new spaces and angles unparalleled by almost any other structure in the Midwest. Named in honor of longtime benefactor and museum trustee, Henry Bloch, and his wife, Marion, the new building complements the original museum building, picturesque lawn and sculpture park.
6. Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art
Named in honor of local art collectors Jerome and Margaret Nerman, the glass and limestone Nerman Museum opened in spring 2007 on the Johnson County Community College campus in Overland Park. Designed by Cambridge, Mass. – based architect Kyu Sung Woo, the 36,000-square-foot museum features nation, regional and local exhibitions, in addition to a comprehensive arts education program.
7. Sprint Center
Downtown KC’s $285-million Sprint Center, one of the finest, state-of-the-art arenas in the country, hosts basketball, hockey, concerts, family shows & special events. As the cornerstone of downtown Kansas City’s revitalization, the gleaming 18.500-circular-seat structure underscores why Kansas City is a national sports and vital entertainment hub.
8. 18th and Vine Jazz District
From the 1920s to the ’40s, this jazzy neighborhood paid tribute to African-American culture, commerce and entertainment. Tribute to the heart and soul of this area is thriving in a $24-million, 50,000-square-foot complex housing the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, the Blue Room nightclub and American Jazz Museum.
9. The Country Club Plaza
The Plaza is an outdoor museum/shopping area featuring 15 blocks of romantic Spanish architecture and European art, where people actually live, work and shop. It was designed in 1922 as the nation’s first suburban shopping district. Since then, this retail and artistic venue has continuously attracted visitors with fountains, sculptures, distinctive shopping and fine dining.
10. Powell Gardens
Thirty miles east of Kansas City, a bountiful botanical garden is blooming. Powell Gardens treats visitors to 915 acres of perennial gardens, shady rock and waterfall trail, wildflower meadow and new island garden set on a 12-acre lake. Explore more than 6.000 varieties of plants on vibrant display. Be sure to visit Cafe Thyme then discover garden treasures in the visitor’s center.
