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I know that's in jest, but it's obvious that you haven't spend much time in Kansas City. Kansas City is more or less equal to Denver in terms of sporting venues and enthusiasm. It's park system, especially throughout suburban Johnson County, is very strong, it's politics are very similar to the Denver area's (liberal city, conservative suburbs), and it is every bit as sprawling as Denver. The idea that Denver is a bastion of high-density, urban smart growth is every bit as ludicrous as the idea that it's similar to Seattle in any meaningful way.
As I said, Denver has the mountains and therefore a more robust park system, recreational opportunities, and outdoorsy culture than Kansas City. But otherwise it's more or less the same sort of city.
I have spent quite a bit of time in Kansas City, actually. I'm not dissing KC's sporting enthusiasm or *lack* of venues...merely the fact that getting to Arrowhead or Royals Stadiums is like driving out to DIA from downtown Denver, as opposed to Pepsi Center, Mile High, and Coors Field, all within a long walking (or easy transit) distance from downtown Denver.
In a second post you state:
Quote:
But Denver and KC a are both sprawling, predominantly suburban cities with surprisingly vibrant urban cores. And Denver's light rail is almost as non-existent as Kansas City's truly non-existent system. If you haven't been watching the news lately, Fastracks isn't scheduled to be built out until 2040 because they can't fund it--and they know that voters won't give another dime.
Kansas City has turned down transit improvements multiple times, and clearly you've never tried to ride the busses in the Metro KC area. Not efficient, and never on time. Denver continually provides additional options for getting around (light rail, busses, B-Cycle, pedestrian driven development), while Kansas City is only now beginning to return to it's more pedestrian roots. Denver's light rail system, though not extensive, is still within a few years of having a line reaching out west and only another year or two after that from having an airport corridor...EVEN WITH CURRENT FUNDING ISSUES. That may not be extensive, but it is significant. In addition, the SE and SW corridors will be upgraded to four car trains by the end of the year. Rail here is popular and peak times are packed. Personally, I'm willing to wait and see which of the three options RTD proposes to put on the ballot. I hope for the larger increase (which I think is something like 0.4 percent) because I believe getting the system done sooner rather than later will in fact save us a tremendous amount of money in the long term. More likely is that they will propose the increase that is only half of that simply due to the political expediency you mention.
On review, you call me out fairly regarding the parks. KC proper does have an extensive park system and well maintained park system, though not quite as large as the City of Denver proper. Johnson County, however, which does have it's own park system (and again, you are correct, a quite large and well maintained system), is not Kansas City proper...if we were to compare them fairly, Metropolitian Denver overall far outweighs Metropolitan KC overall when it comes to parks and public spaces. In addition, I've always found Denver's parks to be far more accessible. Having lived in Overland Park I can say that typically, a trip to the park involved driving. In Denver, I can easily walk or bike from almost anywhere in the city and be at a park in very little time.
Kansas City's cultural institutions and nightlife are far more spread out...though that's rapidly improving. Living in suburban KC reminded me a lot of living in suburban Phoenix...or suburban anywhere, for that matter. In Denver, if we head downtown for the night, there's no shortage of things to do. In addition, within a thirty minute walk of downtown, their is an even great abundance of nightlife, free events, parks, restaurants. In KC, this is only now beginning to be the case.
Never said Denver was a bastion of high density and urban smart growth, but we certainly are better at it than KC. Denver's density is around 3900 / sq mi as opposed to Kansas City's 1500 / sq mi. In addition, KC and it's suburbs rarely play nicely together (transit being a prime example.) Denver and Aurora do frequently come to loggerheads about development, but usually there is far less friction between Denver and other surrounding areas. Denver has the stronger housing market with a higher number of home sales and a more stable median housing price. (KC's median price, aside from a recent price spike, is generally much lower than Denver's.)
It could be fair to say that KC is becoming more like Denver, but to suggest that they are so similar is something I strongly disagree with. KC is slowly starting to come back into it's own after decades of urban neglect, but I definitely think Denver is the stronger of the two cities right now, and it shows.
Last edited by zenkonami; 02-03-2011 at 02:06 PM..
Anyway good luck selling the whole KC is similar to Denver thing....LOL
If tofu were sourced from cattle fat instead of soybeans, I suspect no-one would be complaining. In fact, the people I work with would probably be raving about it Frankly, I'm happy Denver, definitely a beef town mind you, makes more of an effort at vegetarian options than KC does (and as poor as our veggie options are here, they hands down beat KC, where I was once told that BBQ chicken is vegetarian, right?)
While it certainly has been entertaining and I see nothing wrong with a true discussion, obviously the locals here see it for what it is worth...another troll thread at best.
Sometimes even a troll thread can provide information and entertainment!
Not only have I been to Denver, but I actually live here. In fact, I was born and raised in the Denver area. And I've also lived in the Pacific Northwest, and I can tell you that what you claim Kansas City is to Denver, I think Denver is to the PNW. Seattle/Portland is incomparably more progressive/arsy/urban/dense/liberal/ than Denver. Say what you want about Kansas City, but it's a little silly to portray Denver as the zenith of Progressive culture in America when, in fact, there are cities like Portland and Seattle which are much more like what you're talking about. It seems to me that you're taking Olathe, Kansas and comparing it to Capitol Hill or the Golden Triangle. Kansas City is a much bigger place than just Olathe, and Denver is a much bigger place than Stapleton. If you compare apples to apples, and take both metro areas at face value, it's hard to argue that Kansas City is completely unlike Denver. Though, I'm sure, you'll try.
Denver's not as progressive/artsy/urban/dense/liberal as the PNW? Hmmm...don't care. Let me see...title of the thread...Denver vs Kansas City. Yes, that's it.
And I don't think anyone was completely excluding their respective metropolitan areas, but if we were going to go there, I'd love to hear how Tacoma, Aurora and Overland Park stack up against each other. Oh wait, I wouldn't. Why? Because there is very little fundamental difference between sprawly suburb cities whether you are in Jersey, Seattle, Phoenix, LA, KC, Denver, Chicago, Atlanta or Houston. Sometimes you get lucky and get an old town Arvada or Golden, but usually those are cities that, if THEY didn't grow to meet the primary regional center, had other sprawly cities grow into them. Instead, we're talking about the regions' respective cultural and business centers...which in our case would be Denver and Kansas City.
And in a Denver forum, I think Denver wins This was a competition and not a civilized discussion, right?
• No. 188: Qwest Communications International Inc. (NYSE: Q), $12.311 billion, No. 197 in 2009, No. 187 in 2008.
• No. 200: Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH), $11.664 billion, No. 231 in 2009, No. 240 in 2008.
• No. 210: Liberty Global Inc. (NASDAQ: LBTYA), $11.110 billion, No. 257 in 2009, No. 292 in 2008.
• No. 227: Liberty Media Corp, (NASDAQ: LINTA, LINTB, LCAPA, LCAPB, LSTZA, LSTZB), $10.398 billion, No. 265 in 2009, No. 275 in 2008.
• No. 295: Newmont Mining Corp. (NYSE: NEM), $7.737 billion, No. 400 in 2009, No. 430 in 2008.
• No. 307: Ball Corp. (NYSE: BLL), $7.345 billion, No. 336 in 2009, No. 336 in 2008.
And true, not all of them in are in the City and County of Denver proper, but by your own criteria, most of them are in the metro area. That would be more than ZERO. Troll on, my friend.
If you want to find some legitimate complaint about Denver, let's put it in a "Complaints about Denver" thread rather than a thread comparing Denver to Kansas City.
• No. 188: Qwest Communications International Inc. (NYSE: Q), $12.311 billion, No. 197 in 2009, No. 187 in 2008.
• No. 200: Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH), $11.664 billion, No. 231 in 2009, No. 240 in 2008.
• No. 210: Liberty Global Inc. (NASDAQ: LBTYA), $11.110 billion, No. 257 in 2009, No. 292 in 2008.
• No. 227: Liberty Media Corp, (NASDAQ: LINTA, LINTB, LCAPA, LCAPB, LSTZA, LSTZB), $10.398 billion, No. 265 in 2009, No. 275 in 2008.
• No. 295: Newmont Mining Corp. (NYSE: NEM), $7.737 billion, No. 400 in 2009, No. 430 in 2008.
• No. 307: Ball Corp. (NYSE: BLL), $7.345 billion, No. 336 in 2009, No. 336 in 2008.
And true, not all of them in are in the City and County of Denver proper, but by your own criteria, most of them are in the metro area. That would be more than ZERO. Troll on, my friend.
If you want to find some legitimate complaint about Denver, let's put it in a "Complaints about Denver" thread rather than a thread comparing Denver to Kansas City.
The city of Denver proper has zero Fortune 500 companies. Qwest is the last Fortune 500 in Denver, and they are, of course, on their way out of town. You're absolutely correct that the suburbs are rich in Fortune 500s. I've always thought that Denver's suburbs are politically, culturally, and economically dominant in the Denver metro area. But, I suppose, that's another thread for another time.
And, before you resort to name-calling, please realize that this was actually not a thread I started. I was commenting on the Seattle vs. Denver thread, and magically my comments turned into an entirely new thread.
Quite a pssng match we have here. Having spent a lot of time in KC and living in Denver, I'd say they are more alike than they are different, compared to other US cities. They do have plenty of differences, and I favor Denver overall, but some of the posts here are a bit overboard. KottkeKU probably had the most accurate post that I read.
By the way, since when did it become desirable to live in as liberal a city as possible? Free stuff for everyone, the government is responsible for my shortcomings, hope, change, rah, rah, rah.
...And, before you resort to name-calling, please realize that this was actually not a thread I started. I was commenting on the Seattle vs. Denver thread, and magically my comments turned into an entirely new thread.
I'm the one who took this set of exchanges out of the "what's unique about colorado" thread when it morphed into this topic, which will eventually end up in the City vs City forum. The Seattle stuff was incidental and stayed in the original thread. You were the one who brought up Kansas City when you said this:
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoneNative
Denver is Kansas City with mountains and the attendant outdoorsy culture.
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I grew up in Denver then spent 7 years living in KC. Both towns have their own unique good sides. Denver is far better in public transportation. You can hop a bus and end up pretty much anywhere. KC involves driving, everywhere. Denver is definately the more denser of the two. Both have great cultural and arts. In Denver it's displayed and advertised very well. In KC you have to go looking for it. But when you find the galleries in the 100 year old warehouses, they are really cool.
The night life is very active in both cities. The food, oh the food, KC has the best food that's the absolute worst for your waist line. But I never knew food could taste that good. And it's in every resturaunt. If the resturaunts have bad food they go out of business quick. I'll give Denver it's props in the Mexican food category. It really is the tops in that category, well at least until you venture inside Casa Bonita. But who goes there for the food anyway?
The weather differnce is huge. KC has humidity, ice storms and flooding. Denver has blizzards and drought. You have to water things to get them to grow in Denver. In KC things just grow.
Both cities have tons of outdoor activities and venues close by. Really they are two very nice and very different cities.
I don't think anyone can deny (whether in KC or here) that Denver is simply a larger, more urban, higher profile national city than KC. Denver is probably more directly comparable with Minneapolis / St Paul in the Midwest than KC, or any other city in the Midwest other than Chicago (which obviously is in whole other category -- we'll leave dying cities like Detroit out of the comparison). It's not really an insult to KC to say that it's simply not a peer city of Denver.
That said, I was actually surprised at what KC DOES have to offer after visiting there. It's definitely not a dead or dying city. It does have a very impressive skyline for the profile of the city (less boxy than Denver's certainly), and some really interesting historic architecture and neighborhoods. I think most people's impression of KC is that it's bland, sprawled-out, etc -- and though it is sprawled out, once you get into the city proper there IS quite a bit there.
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Frankly, I'm happy Denver, definitely a beef town mind you, makes more of an effort at vegetarian options than KC does (and as poor as our veggie options are here, they hands down beat KC, where I was once told that BBQ chicken is vegetarian, right?)
This was a competition and not a civilized discussion, right? 
