Somewhere to live between St. Joseph and Blue Springs

[Rocket Dog]

Originally Posted by Okiegirlfriend

As I recall, when I lived in the KC area, North KC was always flooding, especially around Riverside Red X.

You are so right, Okiegirlfriend. I don't know when you were here last, but in the past two years, the entire area around Riverside Red-X has been torn up with new construction and the river banks shored up. Riverside is starting to spend Argosy Casino's tax revenue now and they are sprucing up the town. For a while, it was quite difficult to use Highway 9 through that area because of all the new construction. Now there are quite upscale shops and restaurants up on the hill across from Red-X called Briarcliff Village. We've had some torrential downpours in the past couple of weeks, and there was some flooding on some of the roadways (all over the city) but for once, Red-X didn't flood!

[Okiegirlfriend]

It's probably been 50 years! My dad and neighbors from the Kansas side used to go there to buy beer. I still remember seeing the flood pictures on TV. I remember the 51 flood too. My dad and 2 older brothers helped with the clean up in Fairfax. You could see the high water marks for years afterwards.

[Rocket Dog]

Oh yeah, okiegirlfriend, I remember the BIG flood of '51, too. I tend to forget there might be people on these forums who are as old as I am. (lol) Riverside has flooded many times since then, but not as badly as '51.

So sorry, I think we have gotten off topic from the op's question. I don't have a clear answer for that one. There are many places to choose from, and I think everyone in the KC area has their preferences, so it's all subjective. Personally, I would not want to live in Liberty, Independence, or Lee's Summit. However, that being said, depending on which of you votes to subject themselves to the longest commute, I would suggest staying in either Platte or Clay counties, and stay out of Jackson County. Jackson County covers a large area and the county government is a mess.

[northbayeric]

Originally Posted by jdinkc

So sorry, I think we have gotten off topic from the op's question. I don't have a clear answer for that one. There are many places to choose from, and I think everyone in the KC area has their preferences, so it's all subjective. Personally, I would not want to live in Liberty, Independence, or Lee's Summit. However, that being said, depending on which of you votes to subject themselves to the longest commute, I would suggest staying in either Platte or Clay counties, and stay out of Jackson County. Jackson County covers a large area and the county government is a mess.

Thanks for all the feedback! You know, if I could ask you a question (even though I'm not the OP!), do you have any impressions of the Blue Springs city government? Kind of a long-shot question, but I thought I'd throw that out there.

[northbound74]

Originally Posted by northbayeric

Thanks for all the feedback! You know, if I could ask you a question (even though I'm not the OP!), do you have any impressions of the Blue Springs city government? Kind of a long-shot question, but I thought I'd throw that out there.

I know that the streets not maintained by the state are in very bad condition. Lots of potholes, and really bad patch jobs.

[Rocket Dog]

northbayeric,

I don't know a lot about Blue Springs except that it is a suburb of KC, more of a bedroom community, the typical overpriced housing developments, etc. Personally I would not want to live there because it is in Jackson County. I do try to avoid having to go there for any reason because of the usual traffic mess on I-70. Seems there is a daily major accident or ongoing construction that backs up traffic. Each to his own, but Blue Springs isn't for me. I live North of the River in Clay County, and everything I want or need is in either Clay or Platte counties. Of course, Clay and Platte counties have their share of overpriced housing as well, but the county governments are much better managed than Jackson County. The "Northland" is growing by leaps and bounds, and those of us who live here are hoping the Northland area does not start to become heavily congested like other areas of KC.

I might add that the gas price crunch is having a particularly difficult effect here. Although KC gas prices are relatively low compared to the rest of the country, KC is a very large city geographically. KC and all its incorporated suburbs is so very spread out that if you live in one end of the city and work in the other end, it could be many miles and lots of travel time between, moreso than in most metro areas even though our population might be lower than other cities.

Did I answer your question at all, or did I wander somewhere else?

[northbound74]

^Lee's Summit is in Jackson County, and it's easily one of the nicest, well-managed towns in the metro.
I live in Independence. I-70's a cake walk. The short-lived rush hours are nothing compared to other cities... or even Johnson County, KS, for that matter. The Northland is great, but not drastically better than the rest of us.
I agree, though, that KC is very spread out. I'd want to find some way to drive as little as possible.

[northbayeric]

Hey, you changed your handle to Rocket Dog! To you and everyone else here, thank you so much for the info on North KC and Blue Springs. Dog, you're right about the KC metro area being quite spread out. If you include the Kansas side, it's almost as spread out as the LA Basin, but with a considerably lower population. For StJoeFanatic's sake, it kind of seems like Liberty might offer the best combination of housing and location. It's about 50 miles from there up to St. Joe, but less than 25 miles from there down to Blue Springs.

[Rocket Dog]

Hey Northbayeric. Yep, I changed it. I am such a fan of Meerkat Manor, I just couldn't resist changing my user name.

Liberty is good. It is in Clay County, which makes it less of a hassle when you need to renew drivers license, pay personal property tax, etc. Usually no long lines, as in Jackson County. It can be a bit of a commute to Blue Springs, though, depending on the traffic issues on any given day. There is a lot of interesting history in Liberty.

One thing I should probably point out, because it can really be confusing to anyone who doesn't live in the KC area. Heck, it's confusing to some of us who DO live here! North Kansas City and Kansas City North are two different places. I know, I know, it sounds crazy, but the powers that be at KC City Hall . . . well, what can I say. On the north side of downtown Kansas City (in Jackson County) are several bridges that cross the rivers. When you cross the bridges, mainly the Heart of America Bridge, you are suddenly in the City of North Kansas City, which is in Clay County. North Kansas City is a city unto itself, with its own little government, etc. If I remember correctly, it is only about 4 square miles in size. It is an old, historical town along the river, has some heavy industrial area, but also quaint residential and retail area as well. Since Harrah's Casino was built on the River with the limits of North Kansas City, the City has recived tons of revenue from the casino; thus, many, many town improvements. The cool thing about NKC is that it can never, ever grow geographically, as it has a river on two sides and is landlocked on the other two sides by Kansas City, North, MO. After you leave North Kansas City, you are then in Kansas City, North. Sooooo confusing, particularly because you will be in and out of Kansas City, North all the way to the airport on I-29 or to Liberty on I-35, as there are other smallish towns along the way; e.g., Gladstone, Pleasant Valley, et al. I promise, you do get accustomed to it, but it is really confusing for a newcomer. Just try not to call Kansas City, North North Kansas City or vice versa (or is it vise versa . . . dunno) 'cause some people will think you are talking about one when you are really referring to the other one. Oh well, I guess I have confused you enough for one night. However, if you have any other questions, just ask and I will attempt to keep my answers brief!