What are people in metro Kansas City like? (St. Louis, Denver: schools, living in)

[WestCoDude]

Conservative....or liberal? Adventurous....or family-centered? Laid back....or super-ambitious? Or....maybe none of the above?

I just want to know what people in Kansas City are like. What makes the people in KC so special...or so not-so-special? How are people there different from a lot of other cities? I'm from Denver and living in St. Louis....so if you could offer any comparisons I would appreciate it......

[northbound74]

Originally Posted by WestCoDude

Conservative....or liberal? Adventurous....or family-centered? Laid back....or super-ambitious? Or....maybe none of the above?

All of the above, actually. There's a good bit of variety here. As a whole, the people seem to be friendly and polite. Sometimes aloof. Sometimes they talk your ear off in the check out line.
Typical of many places, the city core is more liberal, and the suburbs tend to be conservative.
I've never really been to Denver, but when compared to St. Louis, it doesn't seem that drastically different. There's a strong rural and southern influence around here, but there's also a good bit of cosmopolitan urbanism.
St. Louis seems to have a lot of eastern U.S. traits. KC is on the edge of the western frontier. Although those influences go back over 100 years, you can still see it in the people who's families go back a few generations in the prospective areas.
KC is progressive in many ways. The arts are well supported, we love our sports teams, to a fault... lately, we haven't hesitated to take big leaps to fund various projects all over the area. We hope it doesn't come back to bite us.
We are proud of our suburban schools, and many of them have no problem getting the money they ask for. Some are considered best in the nation. People often move to this area to raise their family. It is very family friendly for a larger city.

I want to avoid any "us vs. them" arguments, but when I moved here, it was a tossup between Kansas City and St. Louis. I've been to St. Louis countless times, and enjoyed it. But I'm glad I chose KC, because it is a good fit for me and my family.

[christina0001]

I'm a recent transplant from the east coast. In my experience so far, Kansas City folks are friendly and chatty...if they are from the surrounding rural areas, they are VERY chatty. More conservative than liberal, but not overly so. I would say, very family centered, and less ambitious than what I am used to.

[mercedes1]

Kansas Citians seem to be more accepting of others, courteous (most) and friendly. Many St. Louisans are rude and cliquish, but this is just my opinion and experience.

[illini84]

Are most people tolerant of other lifestyles (interracial couples, gays, etc.) or is there still that "southern influence" that just doesn't accept this? Just curious...I think that's my only bit of leeriness that lingers about KC...

[RjRobb2]

Originally Posted by illini84

Are most people tolerant of other lifestyles (interracial couples, gays, etc.) or is there still that "southern influence" that just doesn't accept this? Just curious...I think that's my only bit of leeriness that lingers about KC...

I think this city is fairly open-minded. I have a few gay friends that they dont have many issues. I also have a married couple as friends that are interracial and they dont have problems either. Of course, the further you get from the core of the city the less tolerant people seem to get.

[GraniteStater]

The suburbs on the Kansas side can be ridiculously conservative. Some to avoid if you aren't conservative would be Olathe, Gardner, and the far outer suburban areas.
Most of the established suburbs and urban areas are more liberal.
I would say the majority of the metro is far more family centered compared with being ambitious. This generally goes along with being a lot more traditional and conservative, especially in those outer suburban areas.
I think most people in the area are generally laid back and friendly.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by RjRobb2

I think this city is fairly open-minded. I have a few gay friends that they dont have many issues. I also have a married couple as friends that are interracial and they dont have problems either. Of course, the further you get from the core of the city the less tolerant people seem to get.

I agree with this. I think KC is as open minded as any major city, but the urban core is much less conservative than the suburbs.

As far as the people? I think KC is about as average as you can get. It's not south or north or east coast or west coast. I'm not even sure you could call it midwest. KC is just average. No accent, people are from everywhere etc.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by kcmo

I agree with this. I think KC is as open minded as any major city, but the urban core is much less conservative than the suburbs.

As far as the people? I think KC is about as average as you can get. It's not south or north or east coast or west coast. I'm not even sure you could call it midwest. KC is just average. No accent, people are from everywhere etc.

I think in general more people move to KC from larger southern metros compared with other areas based on personal experience.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by Plains10

The suburbs on the Kansas side can be ridiculously conservative. Some to avoid if you aren't conservative would be Olathe, Gardner, and the far outer suburban areas.
Most of the established suburbs and urban areas are more liberal.
I would say the majority of the metro is far more family centered compared with being ambitious. This generally goes along with being a lot more traditional and conservative, especially in those outer suburban areas.
I think most people in the area are generally laid back and friendly.

I'd have to agree with that. My parents live in Olathe and it's crazy conservative. Even my own parents tell me I'm going to hell! Seems like lots of nutty churches out there - far right evangelical mega churches, Kay O'Conner, etc. People are friendly, but if you're gay or liberal, you'll probably get the cold shoulder in many KC suburban areas. Urban KCMO is a totally different story - it seems to me that in KC as a whole, urban people keep more to the urban areas and suburban people avoid the urban core. But overall, in both environments people are friendly and laid back.