STL vs KC (Kansas City, St. Louis, Benton: transplants, real estate, how much) - Missouri (MO) - City-Data Forum

brewcrew1000 · 10-16-2011, 07:54 PM

I was just in St Louis for the weekend and I cannot believe how much cooler St Louis is compared to KC. I am assuming it all has to do with St Louis being a much older city but the city is so much more walkable. So many cool/walkable neighborhoods that blow KC out of the water. A small hood like Benton Park, Morgan Ford or The Grove is way cooler then most of the hoods in the River Market to Waldo corridor and even the First Ring Inner Suburbs are way nicer then the crap KC has.

We even sneaked into the private streets of Portland Pl and Westmoreland Pl in CWE next to the Forest Park, huge homes.

The Metrolink Lightrail is a great system and people do use it, you really don't even need a car in the Urban Core of the city

kcmo · 10-16-2011, 08:59 PM

^ yep. KC has some great things, but StL is still the better "city". It just feels more like a major city to me and it's not near as fragmented as KC is. I mean half the entire metro is in StL County/City, something I really like about STL. But the city and many inner rings burbs are awesome and even west county is about 1000 times better than johnson county.

TabulaRasa · 10-17-2011, 05:52 AM

Having grown up in Illinois, St. Louis was the Missouri city I spent my time in, not KC...KC was off my radar essentially until I met a guy from here and moved here. That said, the two cities are pretty equivalent, to me, in terms of what's a "better" city. To me, each has strengths the other doesn't, and in the end, it's pretty much a draw. Once I get past architectural differences, to me, the differences aren't really that notable.

smellykat · 10-17-2011, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kcmo

^ yep. KC has some great things, but StL is still the better "city". It just feels more like a major city to me and it's not near as fragmented as KC is. I mean half the entire metro is in StL County/City, something I really like about STL. But the city and many inner rings burbs are awesome and even west county is about 1000 times better than johnson county.

I would have to disagree. The real estate prices are higher in STL especially in west county, and the housing stock really can't compare with Kansas City or Johnson County. Zoning is poor in many areas. The STL medical and academic communities are far superior to KC, and the city's amenities are awesome, the Zoo, Missouri Botantical Garden, Forest Park. Many would agree that St. Louis is the "better" city, but I feel that Kansas City trumps St. Louis in livability and definitely in friendliness and acceptance of transplants. From my experience only, as I know many of the regulars on this forum are young singles with a different agenda and perception of the two cities. That said, STL is a great vacation destination for singles and families.

brewcrew1000 · 10-17-2011, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TabulaRasa

Once I get past architectural differences, to me, the differences aren't really that notable.

Yeah, i was really basing this off Architectural Differences, neighborhoods and their walkability and even regional food like STL style pizza, Gus's Pretzels, Gooey Butter Cake, etc. I couldn't really compare it if i was living there, the schools, hospitals, etc.

jaxontwinz · 10-17-2011, 07:49 AM

I think St. Louis is the better city for tourists and single people who live and work in the core. But I think Kansas City is very family-friendly in terms of quality living.

PVPete · 10-17-2011, 08:56 AM

We have the better downtown IMO, but they have the better urban hoods.

That city is hemorrraging population though. Ours has stabilized and is growing, but they are fleeing to the burbs at a rapid rate.

aragx6 · 10-17-2011, 08:57 AM

I came here and tried very hard to have an open mind, but if you're an urbanite like I am STL will always beat out KC. The SO is from KC and has just fallen in love with St. Louis. It's got that urban grit, gorgeous red brick architecture and old-school walkability that KC frankly lacks.

I also can't imagine arguing that JoCo has better housing stock than West County, but that's really outside my central concern.

To us, St. Louis feels like the farthest west Eastern city, while KC feels like the farthest east Western city. Totally different vibes.

aragx6 · 10-17-2011, 08:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PVPete

We have the better downtown IMO, but they have the better urban hoods.

That city is hemorrraging population though. Ours has stabilized and is growing, but they are fleeing to the burbs at a rapid rate.

This is incorrect -- If St. Louis had 150 sq/miles of suburbs attached to its city limits as KC does, it wouldn't be "hemorraghing" population -- it's losing many black residents as they move to the burbs and empty out dangeous neighborhoods. But tons of STL neighborhoods have successfully gentrified in a way completely foreign to KC in the last decade and a half.

And I think Wash Ave kicks P&Ls tooshie. And having downtown baseball makes my heart happy.

TabulaRasa · 10-17-2011, 09:18 AM

I think the fact that I'm essentially a rural girl at heart (despite having lived in Chicago pre-KC, I spent my entire childhood and teenage years on a farm) gives KC an ever-so-slight edge to me. While I enjoy having access to urban amenities, I always find it comforting that in KC, I don't have to go very far at all to be in wide open spaces that aren't a city park. For me, it represents the best of both worlds. Apart from architectural style differences, STL has a greater sense of density, KC, even at its most urban, has more space. It's the first thing that friends and relatives who are accustomed to Chicago and eastern cities, and SO's New York family note when they visit...how much open space there is...while it's not some people's bag, to me, it's a real bonus. Before I moved to KC, it never even occurred to me that one could own an urban home and have more than a postage stamp-sized yard, if any yard at all, to be honest. The "Westernmost Eastern City and Easternmost Western City" description of the two is pretty apt, to me.

I do enjoy St. Louis as a destination, and my SO and I did consider locating there, to be closer to my family in IL...it's still on the table, if we choose to go that route in the future, but for now, KC is happily our home.

Oh, and I'll also buck the trend and say that I actually prefer our ballpark to Busch Stadium...having grown up with Wrigley Field and having adopted Kauffman Stadium as my new baseball home, in retrospect, I'm pretty lukewarm on downtown ballparks. I've certainly had far more fun tailgating at the K than I ever had in the bars in Wrigleyville. To be fair, though, I can't really speak to watching baseball at Busch, because I've only experienced it as a concert venue. And, as regional foods go, I'll take KC BBQ any day over STL-style pizza. I'll actually take frozen Totino's Party Pizza over STL-style, come to that. Just not a big fan of Provel.