Moving to KC in October. (Independence, Lee's Summit: 2013, crime, neighborhoods)

[almazing]

Hi all!

I'm moving to KC in October for a new job. I'm wondering where a decent, 'happening', and safe place to live would be. About me:

32y/o straight male of Hawaiian descent
Single, never married, no kids, no pets
Making ~90-100k per year
Lived in San Francisco until I was 19
Then San Diego for about 8 years
Currently living in Raleigh/Durham, NC

Hobbies:
Mountain biking
Outdoors
Typical millennial hobbies

I'm not necessarily looking to live in the heart of downtown, and I'm also not looking to live in suburbia. For those that are familiar with San Diego, I'm looking for a location very similar to North Park and Hillcrest and their surrounding areas. For those unfamiliar, think hipster gentrified areas. Lots of unique and colorful stores and restaurants, but not too pretentious. People still like to party. For those familiar with the Raleigh and Triangle Area, think downtown Durham with the breweries and restaurants, not the ghetto parts.

I have an old friend who live in the KC metro area but he's married with a kid. And his ideal vision of where to live vastly differs from my own. He and his family are moving to Belton later this year. He's also informed me that a ridiculous amount of shootings occur in KC. So I'd love to avoid being shot if at all possible.

So far, he's told me to avoid Midtown, Raytown, Grandview, parts of Independence, parts of Waldo, parts of Westport. And suggested I look at downtown Lee's Summit, parts of Westport, Power and Light, Crossroads.

So this is making it hard for me to secure a location since he's also told me that shootings happen literally everywhere and that one could find bullet holes randomly like on light poles and roofs.

Can anyone point me in the right direction? I'm open to any and all suggestions that don't end in me getting shot.

[almazing]

Originally Posted by locain

I lived in Hillcrest and Little Italy. The only location I can think of that comes close to these are River Market and Westport. Both are relatively safe but Westport can be sketchy late at night. If you choose Westport, you'll want to stay as far west as you can get. West 39th would be a good fit. 51st Main/UMKC would also be a good fit. Even the Plaza District would work for you. KC has nothing even remotely similar to Balboa, but if parks are your thing the Plaza area has Loose Park which probably the nicest park in the urban core.

Traffic isn't an issue in KC so if you choose anywhere in the "River/Crown/Plaza" urban core you're only a 10 minute drive from downtown. If you're working in the suburbs, downtown has better highway access in all directions. KC and SD are very different cities. But I think you'll enjoy KC also. There are many intangibles about KC that offer a very high quality of life and big city amenities without the traffic and parking hassles.

Thanks a bunch! This'll allow me to narrow my search down. KC is a huge place!

[WiseOwlSaysHoot]

Yeah, it sounds like you and your friend are on completely different pages. I would take what he says with a grain of salt. Someone who chooses to live in Belton definitely has a different viewpoint than you.

Shootings do not happen "literally everywhere". I never see random bullet holes. Shootings are mostly concentrated on the East Side. Yes, there have been a few shootings in Westport and those get a lot of attention, but those have happened at 3am right by the bars and are not random. Since I have recently had kids, I'm not staying out until 3 in Westport anymore, but I never feel unsafe there. Midtown (which Westport is part of) is not dangerous either.

I'm not familiar with the cities you are referring to, but the neighborhoods you are describing sound most like Midtown to me. I would probably first look at the Volker neighborhod in Midtown (which includes West 39th). I would also put River Market high on my list. It is considered part of Downtown, but it's not the heart of Downtown. Crossroads is another good Downtown (but not heart of it) option. Union Hill, Westside (North), and Columbus Park are other neighborhoods surrounding Downtown that could be worth considering.

[bentodd1]

I would recommend the Plaza. It is a great place for young professionals, it is a walkable neighborhood, it has lots of restaurants and a nice park. Don't live in Westport or P and L unless late night partying is your thing. Lee's Summit is suburbia and far from where you will be working. I would look at the River Market second, but it in my option the plaza has more going on.

[almazing]

Since most of the bad stuff happens out east, how far west should I start my search?

[RadioSilence]

For decades, Troost Ave. has been the physical representation of a socio-economic divide. Most of the trouble happens east of Troost.

Starting at the Missouri River and traveling south, the neighborhoods are generally grouped like this:

River Market
|
Downtown
|
Crossroads
|
Midtown
/\
Volker/West 39th/Hyde Park
\/
Westport
|
Plaza
\
UMKC
/
Brookside
|
Waldo

All are generally safe. Downtown and the Plaza will be the most expensive. Westport will probably be the most hectic, due to the tight grouping of bars. Lots of professionals your age have chosen the River Market, especially if they are working downtown.

If you're looking for a North Park-kind of place, then Westport, Volker or West Plaza seem like matches to me.

[almazing]

Originally Posted by RadioSilence

For decades, Troost Ave. has been the physical representation of a socio-economic divide. Most of the trouble happens east of Troost.

Starting at the Missouri River and traveling south, the neighborhoods are generally grouped like this:

River Market
|
Downtown
|
Crossroads
|
Midtown
/\
Volker/West 39th/Hyde Park
\/
Westport
|
Plaza
\
UMKC
/
Brookside
|
Waldo

All are generally safe. Downtown and the Plaza will be the most expensive. Westport will probably be the most hectic, due to the tight grouping of bars. Lots of professionals your age have chosen the River Market, especially if they are working downtown.

If you're looking for a North Park-kind of place, then Westport, Volker or West Plaza seem like matches to me.

Thanks! I have a pretty good idea of where to begin my search!

[TabulaRasa]

Hipster gentrified areas are not going to be your shooting-heavy areas, generally

[rwiksell]

As a matter of nomenclature, when referring to the "heart of downtown" try the label Central Business District, or CBD. You might also safely refer to this area as the Downtown Loop. This is a subset of "Greater Downtown" which includes everything from the River Market on the north, to the Downtown Loop in the center, to Crossroads, Penn Valley Park and Hospital Hill in the south. Further south is Midtown, and further south still is Westport (which is not popularly referred to as part of midtown. Westport is essentially its own district.) As for other areas, you have good advice already.

Good luck!

[WiseOwlSaysHoot]

The regions of KC like Downtown and Midtown don't necessarily have firm boundaries, and the definitions can change depending on who you are talking to. Midtown seems to have the widest range of definitions.

I do think most people would consider Westport to part of Midtown. For me, it is the heart of Midtown.

There was actually an article about how it can be tough to define (check the video for people's responses):
https://www.flatlandkc.org/curiouskc...wered-midtown/

The official definition from the city is 31st to 55th, State Line to The Paseo. Here is a map from Midtown KC Post showing the neighborhoods in Midtown:



Personally, I think that goes too far south. I would consider Brush Creek to be the cutoff for Midtown. I think you could extend it a little further North. For me, Longfellow definitely feels like Midtown and Union Hill is more Midtown than Downtown (although I know the city considers if part of Greater Downtown).

For me, the biggest debate is whether the Plaza is part of Midtown or its own entity. I can see it both ways.

Occasionally - and this only seems to be from the media, I might see a definition of Midtown that extends much further east. This could be why your friend says to avoid Midtown. You might see a headline about a crime that happened in "Midtown", but it is somewhere like 41st and Indiana, far east of where most consider Midtown to end.