City of Fountains (Kansas City, Country Club, Center: neighborhoods, subdivisions, quality of life)

[Rwarky]

I think its a wonderful concept for a city to impose water features throughout the municipality, one such city (obviously) is Kansas City, Missouri. However, I often wander how Kansas City came up with this concept? How were these beautiful pieces of public art funded? Are they operated year-round or just during warmer seasons? Further, does the implimucation of such works (fountains) enhance a cities quality of life and create a sense of place?

[kcmo]

Well, it all started as part of the parks plan back when the city first began to expand from the downtown core. I won't go into details of that, but KCMO had and still has a wonder boulevard and parks system which included many fountains. Most are funded, or at least maintained, by the parks department. Most of the new ones are built with private money and maintained with private money or turned over to the parks department after they are built.

Some are totally private like the ones in the Crown Center complex.

Many are year round, either heated, or they freeze over.

I think they add to the quality of life in KC. Fountains are very inviting and they really are a unique thing to KC as far as how many there are around town.

[smellykat]

Kansas City is a very aesthetically pleasing city with the wide boulevards, graceful mansions, Spanish architecture of the Plaza, and of course, the lovely fountains.

[skrazzle]

I love our fountains.

List of fountains in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Rwarky]

Originally Posted by skrazzle

I love our fountains.

List of fountains in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thank you for the link and image.

[TabulaRasa]

The fountains are one of the coolest aesthetic features of KC.

[skrazzle]

too bad I just read on kansascity.com that this summer they plan to keep the fountains turned off to save money in KC.... its gonna make a lot of the fountains look meh IMO.

[luzianne]

kcmo, do you have a photo of the Ward Parkway/Meyer Blvd fountain? That is my favorite fountain in KC; it is beautiful!

[luzianne]

Originally Posted by Rwarky

I think its a wonderful concept for a city to impose water features throughout the municipality, one such city (obviously) is Kansas City, Missouri. However, I often wander how Kansas City came up with this concept? How were these beautiful pieces of public art funded? Are they operated year-round or just during warmer seasons? Further, does the implimucation of such works (fountains) enhance a cities quality of life and create a sense of place?

If I'm not mistaken, most of the fountain areas of KC were designed by J.C. Nichols. He had visited Europe and was inspired by what he saw there. The communities in KC that were developed by JC Nichols are still thriving - the Country Club Plaza, the Country Club District, and Prairie Village that I know of; there may be others. Prairie Village was once named the best-planned community in America.

Jesse Clyde Nichols - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Anyway, a lot of what Kansas City is noted for, I think, we owe to J.C. Nichols. I saw a documentary about him that was fascinating. Wish I could find that same information online.

http://commerce.uli.org/Content/Navi...ls/default.htm

"Wayne Nichols, the grandson of J.C. Nichols, says his grandfather understood the diverence between simply building subdivisions connected by streets and utility lines, and building neighborhoods connected by community events and shared amenities. Indeed, J.C. Nichols never described his developments as subdivisions. "J.C. Nichols believed that you must create the software of communities as well as the hardware. In this respect, he was very much a visionary. His imprint, his giving the community an identity, is still alive," Wayne Nichols says. "It's that sense of community, of togetherness, that makes J.C. Nichols' work so important to modern community planning."