Kansas City Coming Into Its Own

[TabulaRasa]

Originally Posted by kcmo

MarketStEl, I honestly don't think people on either coast care one bit to even waste their time "thinking" about Kansas City. They just don't care and never will care about KC. KC is never going to be on people's radar out here unless the Chiefs are playing one of their teams or the Royals make it back to the world series and even then they don't think about the city, they only think about the sports teams.

And why this matters remotely to anybody, I will never personally understand.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by TabulaRasa

And why this matters remotely to anybody, I will never personally understand.

I have never said it did matter. I do enjoy showing off KC to people when I get the chance. Even though it won't make anybody move or even visit there, people are almost always impressed and interested in knowing more about the city.

However, you still want to do things that make your city more interesting and inviting to potential tourists, businesses and residents. You want to sell the city to people that book conventions, you want the city to have an image of offering a great urban lifestyle for those that have looked into relocating for a Cerner job or any other job. You want to create a great first and last impression with the airport, you want the people that do pass through KC or do come to KC for an interview to like the city. 15 years ago, KC did not do this well and was not able to compete with many other cities out there. That's changing. KC is now very much an up and coming city. People actually WANT to live there now and they actually have choices outside of the suburbs and the Plaza.

I will never personally understand why so many people in KC are so stubborn and stuck on not wanting to impress outsiders. KC is still like that for the most part.

[rwiksell]

Originally Posted by TabulaRasa

And why this matters remotely to anybody, I will never personally understand.

I can see why some people can't relate to the issue of what people from other cities think about your home city. But I'm pretty sure you can at least understand it.

People's identities are often wrapped up in their place of origin, and it's only human to care whether outsiders think your place of origin is good or not. Hopefully we're all maturing beyond this, but we will never fully recover from it, in my opinion.

------------------

"You think I'm small-town?"

"I think Bomont's a small town."

-from Footloose

[twan2001]

You don't understand it? Let's say that you invite friends to your house and it's dirty and cabinets are falling from the wall. Your friends then go and tell their friends that you house is disgusting and then they tell their friends. You now have the reputation of keeping a filthy home and everyone knows it. No one wants to come to your house and if by chance they do, they form a similar opinion and they do the same as your other friends.

I can form the same analogy for you house being bland with all white walls and no furniture and decorations or in a location that no one wants to be in. I might not agree with everything said here but I do understand the need to be looked at in a positive light by others. Kansas City is our home and it's good to have others think of our city in a positive light.

[MarketStEl]

Originally Posted by kcmo

I have never said it did matter. I do enjoy showing off KC to people when I get the chance. Even though it won't make anybody move or even visit there, people are almost always impressed and interested in knowing more about the city.

However, you still want to do things that make your city more interesting and inviting to potential tourists, businesses and residents. You want to sell the city to people that book conventions, you want the city to have an image of offering a great urban lifestyle for those that have looked into relocating for a Cerner job or any other job. You want to create a great first and last impression with the airport, you want the people that do pass through KC or do come to KC for an interview to like the city. 15 years ago, KC did not do this well and was not able to compete with many other cities out there. That's changing. KC is now very much an up and coming city. People actually WANT to live there now and they actually have choices outside of the suburbs and the Plaza.

I will never personally understand why so many people in KC are so stubborn and stuck on not wanting to impress outsiders. KC is still like that for the most part.

Well, and I think you've heard me voice this before, my forever and adopted hometowns share world-class municipal inferiority complexes, and (I guess I should be addressing this comment to TabulaRasa, not you) concern for what outsiders think is a presenting symptom.

What you all may not appreciate is that up until about 10 years or so ago, Philadelphia wasn't a real tourist destination either. Yes, we're the Birthplace of the Nation, but a typical traveler's visit to Philadelphia usually had this for an itinerary:

• Head into the city from your overnight stay in (Pennsylvania Dutch country | New York | Washington).
• Hop (off the [train | bus] | out of your car).
• Head over to Independence Mall. See the Liberty Bell. Tour Independence Hall. Maybe grab a meal somewhere close by.
• Go back to (your car | the [bus | train] station). Proceed to your next overnight stop in (New York | Washington | Pennsylvania Dutch country).

Visiting from abroad? Your East Coast swing, if you visited more than one city, would usually consist of visiting New York and DC and nothing in between.

That's changed now, thanks in large part to the heroic efforts of our tourism marketing organization, which began with ads just encouraging the nearby folks to stay the night (one of them featured the guy who was mayor at the time in his pajamas in a hotel elevator). Now it's gotten to the point where Visit Philadelphia can also point to rising international tourism to the city.

I guess this may reinforce your point about the relative profile of KC vs. other cities, but IMO, the opposite's the case: there's even more to hang tourism on here than in Kansas City, and yet we were overlooked. Now it's gotten to the point where the most popular tourist destination in the city is not the Historic Square Mile but our beloved food emporium, the Reading Terminal Market. And most of the people who make life miserable for me by clogging its aisles on some weekends are here for a convention or trade show.

KC used to trade on its central location to draw convention business. It's not doing that any more? Or has it gotten less effective? We've had two national political conventions here (Republicans, 2000; Democrats, last year) since the last one to be held in Kansas City (Republicans, 1976, during which I was a summer intern at The Kansas City Star).

Maybe I misread it, but I considered the (seemingly) greater indifference to What Others Thought About KC as a sign the city had Gotten Past It. Was I right or was I wrong?

I evangelize for KC for the same reason you do. Maybe you're right about what happens once they've taken the leaflet from me.