Kansas: My impressions (Overland Park, Shawnee, Leawood: low crime, house, to buy)

[Repubocrat]

I visited Kansas for the first time this weekend via KCMO and I really liked it. I thought Johnson County was really NEAT especially compared to the MO side of KC and I felt right at home. People were extremely friendly and incredibly helpful and it felt a lot like here in MN. We drove down to the Paola area and unfortunately, the place we were looking for was closed on Sunday, BBQ Shack, Why? I liked the Paola area because it sits in the "middle of nowhere" but it is really convenient to Overland Park and other suburbs. Anyways, I did not know anything about KS but I really liked what I saw, can anybody tell me what it is like living in a place like Paola and surrounding communities?

[nicname]

Kansas is awesome, but how is JOCO neat in comparison to KC?

unless of course you mean lilly white, and uber suburban.

[luzianne]

Originally Posted by Repubocrat

I visited Kansas for the first time this weekend via KCMO and I really liked it. I thought Johnson County was really NEAT especially compared to the MO side of KC and I felt right at home. People were extremely friendly and incredibly helpful and it felt a lot like here in MN. We drove down to the Paola area and unfortunately, the place we were looking for was closed on Sunday, BBQ Shack, Why? I liked the Paola area because it sits in the "middle of nowhere" but it is really convenient to Overland Park and other suburbs. Anyways, I did not know anything about KS but I really liked what I saw, can anybody tell me what it is like living in a place like Paola and surrounding communities?

I live in Johnson County, grew up here and have lived here most of my life. I lived near Osawatomie, just past Paola, back in the early 70s. I hated it there but back then, it seemed a lot further from the city than it does now. Paola is bigger and has more going on and is closer to the city. I think you'd probably like living near Paola just fine. A lot of people are moving further and further in that direction. My husband and I would like to buy some land at some point, and since rural Johnson County is so expensive we would probably head somewhere between there and Paola.

Next time you are in KC try Fiorella's Jack Stack BBQ. There is one in Overland Park at 95th and Metcalf and some on the Missouri side in different locations too.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by Repubocrat

I visited Kansas for the first time this weekend via KCMO and I really liked it. I thought Johnson County was really NEAT especially compared to the MO side of KC and I felt right at home. People were extremely friendly and incredibly helpful and it felt a lot like here in MN. We drove down to the Paola area and unfortunately, the place we were looking for was closed on Sunday, BBQ Shack, Why? I liked the Paola area because it sits in the "middle of nowhere" but it is really convenient to Overland Park and other suburbs. Anyways, I did not know anything about KS but I really liked what I saw, can anybody tell me what it is like living in a place like Paola and surrounding communities?

JOCO and the MPLS suburbs have little in common IMO. I guess we will disagree on that one. In terms of areas that I like in JOCO: I like Shawnee, Lake Quivira, old Leawood, Prairie Village, Fairway, Westwood, older areas of Overland Park, and some areas of De Soto. Paola is just an average town with some very low density sprawling house developments. In the new era of higher gas prices and energy costs I would not recommend Paola as much as I would most of JOCO. Sure, you can buy a house for "cheaper" out there, but you are going to do A LOT MORE DRIVING. Also, you are much further from KC, MO and KCI Airport from Paola (Miami County). These are some things to consider if you are interested in relocating to the KC metro area on the Kansas side. My knowledge base comes as a 20+ year former resident who still has family living in the metro area.

[Repubocrat]

Originally Posted by nicname

Kansas is awesome, but how is JOCO neat in comparison to KC?

unless of course you mean lilly white, and uber suburban.

Why everything has to be about race? I don't care if people that live in JOCO are green, yellow or blue, as long as the place is nice, clean and low crime, that is the kind of quality of life I look for. What I was trying to say is that I saw a lot of parts of KCMO that are obviously lacking in infra structure, terrible roads and lots of urban decay. As soon as I crossed over to KS, everything looked cleaner, newer and more convenient. The race of the people who live in JOCO was the LAST thing that crossed my mind to be honest with you

[averagejoe76]

Head deeper into Kansas next tripYou have barely scratched the surface!

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by Repubocrat

Why everything has to be about race? I don't care if people that live in JOCO are green, yellow or blue, as long as the place is nice, clean and low crime, that is the kind of quality of life I look for. What I was trying to say is that I saw a lot of parts of KCMO that are obviously lacking in infra structure, terrible roads and lots of urban decay. As soon as I crossed over to KS, everything looked cleaner, newer and more convenient. The race of the people who live in JOCO was the LAST thing that crossed my mind to be honest with you

JOCO is much better than Miami County, which is the county that is directly south.

[luzianne]

Originally Posted by Repubocrat

Why everything has to be about race? I don't care if people that live in JOCO are green, yellow or blue, as long as the place is nice, clean and low crime, that is the kind of quality of life I look for. What I was trying to say is that I saw a lot of parts of KCMO that are obviously lacking in infra structure, terrible roads and lots of urban decay. As soon as I crossed over to KS, everything looked cleaner, newer and more convenient. The race of the people who live in JOCO was the LAST thing that crossed my mind to be honest with you

The things you mention are exactly why I love Johnson County. And it goes beyond that. For years I lived in Johnson County and worked in Jackson County (Missouri). If it snowed and I headed for work, the roads were clear until I hit State Line Road and then they were horrible - snow covered, ice covered, not cleaned off yet, etc. Nice, clean and low crime are exactly the reasons that Johnson County is so popular.

I agree with GraniteStater than Johnson County is much better than Miami County where Paola is.

[chele123]

Originally Posted by Repubocrat

I visited Kansas for the first time this weekend via KCMO and I really liked it. I thought Johnson County was really NEAT especially compared to the MO side of KC and I felt right at home. People were extremely friendly and incredibly helpful and it felt a lot like here in MN. We drove down to the Paola area and unfortunately, the place we were looking for was closed on Sunday, BBQ Shack, Why? I liked the Paola area because it sits in the "middle of nowhere" but it is really convenient to Overland Park and other suburbs. Anyways, I did not know anything about KS but I really liked what I saw, can anybody tell me what it is like living in a place like Paola and surrounding communities?

I lived in St. Paul for short time; the people were extremely friendly and incredibly helpful and it felt a lot like here in KS!! I couldn't believe the "small town" feel. I also couldn't believe the winter weather and the story goes "as soon as the roads cleared I got the heck outta MN!"

[AnywhereElse]

Impressions of Kansas? Not exactly. Johnson County really doesn't represent the entire state of Kansas - completely the opposite.