Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I don't follow Wichita business or development much, but may be going there for some work soon. Can somebody fill me in on what has occurred there in the past 4-5 years? I’m especially interested in the downtown area, new office buildings, hotels, major civic projects etc. I have always found Wichita to be a nice small city/metro so I’m hoping it’s changed for the better.
I don't follow Wichita business or development much, but may be going there for some work soon. Can somebody fill me in on what has occurred there in the past 4-5 years? I’m especially interested in the downtown area, new office buildings, hotels, major civic projects etc. I have always found Wichita to be a nice small city/metro so I’m hoping it’s changed for the better.
Thanks in advance!
Downtown Wichita has changed quite a bit in the last 5-10 years. The biggest change in the downtown area has probably been the construction of the new arena, Intrust Bank Arena. The arena is mostly used for concerts and sporting events. It seats about 15,000. A lot of the streets and parking areas around the arena were redeveloped, so the area looks a lot newer and cleaner than it did before the arena was built. The arena does have a permanent tenant, the Wichita Thunder hockey team, and also brings in some fairly high-profile concerts and sporting events. For example, next week the arena is going to host a preseason NBA game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks.
The Broadview Hotel underwent a major renovation within the last couple of years. This is one of the historic hotels downtown, at the corner of Douglas and Waco. It is now called the Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview and is owned by the Drury hotel firm. It has a really beautiful lobby and historic ambiance throughout. From what I have heard, the renovation maintained the ambiance of the old hotel, but modernized some of the features, basically making it even better than it was before. If you're going to stay a few nights in Wichita, the Broadview would be a good place to stay if you like historic old hotels in downtown areas. The Hyatt Regency Wichita is also a good place to stay if you want a luxury hotel downtown, but the Hyatt doesn't have the same historic ambiance as the Broadview.
The riverwalk is next to the Broadview and Hyatt hotels. It's basically a concrete walking/biking trail right next to the Arkansas River. You can take this trail from the area just south of the Hyatt, north to the area around Riverside Park. The Keeper of the Plains statue at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas rivers was renovated a few years ago and a foot-bridge was built across the river from the riverwalk trail to the statue. So if you're on the riverwalk, you can take the bridge across the river and check out the statue.
Wichita also completed the Central Rail Corridor project in 2009. This was a major project to elevate the railroad crossings in the downtown area. There are no at-grade railroad crossings in downtown Wichita anymore, all the railroad crossings are elevated above the streets. Prior to this, there were at-grade crossings which would hinder traffic flow downtown as trains passed through.
I know that there have been several new apartment buildings constructed in the downtown area within the last 5-10 years. Many of them are in or close to the Old Town area, which is a historic warehouse district just east of the downtown core that has been renovated with bars, shops, a movie theater, and loft apartments. Eaton Place and 250 Douglas Place are two of the bigger apartment buildings in the downtown area. Eaton Place is just north of the arena and is located in the old Eaton Hotel/Carey Hotel. 250 Douglas Place is in the old Holiday Inn building, the second-tallest building in Wichita.
The Delano district on the west side of the river seems to be doing well. It's a quieter area of shops, bars, and restaurants along Douglas Avenue west of the Arkansas River. I know of at least one new apartment building in Delano constructed within the last few years.
As far as the rest of Wichita, most of the new development seems to be occurring on the northwest and northeast fringes of the city. The main areas are 21st and Maize Road in the northwest, and along 21st, Rock, Webb, and Greenwich roads on the east side. Residential development continues to expand in those areas as well. On the east side, a lot of residential development is spilling over into Butler County. On the west side, residential development is expanding toward the Maize, Colwich, and Goddard areas.
There are probably a lot more things going on that I didn't mention, but those are the main things that I can think of at the moment. The Wichita subforum does not have a lot of activity. Wichita is not a bad city. The city is approaching 400,000 in population, with a metro area approaching 700,000. The aircraft industry has been hit hard since the early 2000s. I think that's the main reason why Wichita's economy and unemployment rate has been lagging behind other similarly-sized regional cities like Omaha, Des Moines, Tulsa, and Oklahoma City.
Other than the new arena and some minimal surrounding development, not much has changed in the last 4-5 years. Due to many factors, almost all growth and development has occurred on the fringes of the city and the rush toward a mini-sprawl continues. As a result, Wichita especially the downtown area has begun to really suffer from age and crumbling infrastructure. Many of the downtown buildings are empty and falling apart. The out of state developer that was supposed to serve as downtown's white knight is bankrupt and cannot even afford to maintain the buildings in their current state of decay. Crime in the area is up and many people no longer consider nearby neighborhoods safe. There is a growing split between the quality of life in the suburbs and inside Wichita itself that reminds me a great deal of Detroit and the inside vs. outside 8 mile divide.
I used to dismiss the people that would consider only living in the Wichita suburbs vs. Wichita proper as paranoid white flighters, but I am beginning to see the wisdom in their statements. Previously safe neighborhoods and areas are now becoming decrepit and sketchy.
Downtown Wichita has changed quite a bit in the last 5-10 years. The biggest change in the downtown area has probably been the construction of the new arena, Intrust Bank Arena. The arena is mostly used for concerts and sporting events. It seats about 15,000. A lot of the streets and parking areas around the arena were redeveloped, so the area looks a lot newer and cleaner than it did before the arena was built. The arena does have a permanent tenant, the Wichita Thunder hockey team, and also brings in some fairly high-profile concerts and sporting events. For example, next week the arena is going to host a preseason NBA game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks.
The Broadview Hotel underwent a major renovation within the last couple of years. This is one of the historic hotels downtown, at the corner of Douglas and Waco. It is now called the Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview and is owned by the Drury hotel firm. It has a really beautiful lobby and historic ambiance throughout. From what I have heard, the renovation maintained the ambiance of the old hotel, but modernized some of the features, basically making it even better than it was before. If you're going to stay a few nights in Wichita, the Broadview would be a good place to stay if you like historic old hotels in downtown areas. The Hyatt Regency Wichita is also a good place to stay if you want a luxury hotel downtown, but the Hyatt doesn't have the same historic ambiance as the Broadview.
The riverwalk is next to the Broadview and Hyatt hotels. It's basically a concrete walking/biking trail right next to the Arkansas River. You can take this trail from the area just south of the Hyatt, north to the area around Riverside Park. The Keeper of the Plains statue at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas rivers was renovated a few years ago and a foot-bridge was built across the river from the riverwalk trail to the statue. So if you're on the riverwalk, you can take the bridge across the river and check out the statue.
Wichita also completed the Central Rail Corridor project in 2009. This was a major project to elevate the railroad crossings in the downtown area. There are no at-grade railroad crossings in downtown Wichita anymore, all the railroad crossings are elevated above the streets. Prior to this, there were at-grade crossings which would hinder traffic flow downtown as trains passed through.
I know that there have been several new apartment buildings constructed in the downtown area within the last 5-10 years. Many of them are in or close to the Old Town area, which is a historic warehouse district just east of the downtown core that has been renovated with bars, shops, a movie theater, and loft apartments. Eaton Place and 250 Douglas Place are two of the bigger apartment buildings in the downtown area. Eaton Place is just north of the arena and is located in the old Eaton Hotel/Carey Hotel. 250 Douglas Place is in the old Holiday Inn building, the second-tallest building in Wichita.
The Delano district on the west side of the river seems to be doing well. It's a quieter area of shops, bars, and restaurants along Douglas Avenue west of the Arkansas River. I know of at least one new apartment building in Delano constructed within the last few years.
As far as the rest of Wichita, most of the new development seems to be occurring on the northwest and northeast fringes of the city. The main areas are 21st and Maize Road in the northwest, and along 21st, Rock, Webb, and Greenwich roads on the east side. Residential development continues to expand in those areas as well. On the east side, a lot of residential development is spilling over into Butler County. On the west side, residential development is expanding toward the Maize, Colwich, and Goddard areas.
There are probably a lot more things going on that I didn't mention, but those are the main things that I can think of at the moment. The Wichita subforum does not have a lot of activity. Wichita is not a bad city. The city is approaching 400,000 in population, with a metro area approaching 700,000. The aircraft industry has been hit hard since the early 2000s. I think that's the main reason why Wichita's economy and unemployment rate has been lagging behind other similarly-sized regional cities like Omaha, Des Moines, Tulsa, and Oklahoma City.
This is a great overview.
The downtown/Old Town/Delano areas are steadily improving, especially within the last 1-2 years, with redevelopment of streetscapes, new hotels/lofts, and new bars/clubs/restaurants and other businesses. A lot of the older buildings and vacant warehouses are now being filled by those businesses, which is really cool to see in an area that was run-down 15-20 years ago.
Downtown Wichita has changed quite a bit in the last 5-10 years. The biggest change in the downtown area has probably been the construction of the new arena, Intrust Bank Arena. The arena is mostly used for concerts and sporting events. It seats about 15,000. A lot of the streets and parking areas around the arena were redeveloped, so the area looks a lot newer and cleaner than it did before the arena was built. The arena does have a permanent tenant, the Wichita Thunder hockey team, and also brings in some fairly high-profile concerts and sporting events. For example, next week the arena is going to host a preseason NBA game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks.
The Broadview Hotel underwent a major renovation within the last couple of years. This is one of the historic hotels downtown, at the corner of Douglas and Waco. It is now called the Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview and is owned by the Drury hotel firm. It has a really beautiful lobby and historic ambiance throughout. From what I have heard, the renovation maintained the ambiance of the old hotel, but modernized some of the features, basically making it even better than it was before. If you're going to stay a few nights in Wichita, the Broadview would be a good place to stay if you like historic old hotels in downtown areas. The Hyatt Regency Wichita is also a good place to stay if you want a luxury hotel downtown, but the Hyatt doesn't have the same historic ambiance as the Broadview.
The riverwalk is next to the Broadview and Hyatt hotels. It's basically a concrete walking/biking trail right next to the Arkansas River. You can take this trail from the area just south of the Hyatt, north to the area around Riverside Park. The Keeper of the Plains statue at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas rivers was renovated a few years ago and a foot-bridge was built across the river from the riverwalk trail to the statue. So if you're on the riverwalk, you can take the bridge across the river and check out the statue.
Wichita also completed the Central Rail Corridor project in 2009. This was a major project to elevate the railroad crossings in the downtown area. There are no at-grade railroad crossings in downtown Wichita anymore, all the railroad crossings are elevated above the streets. Prior to this, there were at-grade crossings which would hinder traffic flow downtown as trains passed through.
I know that there have been several new apartment buildings constructed in the downtown area within the last 5-10 years. Many of them are in or close to the Old Town area, which is a historic warehouse district just east of the downtown core that has been renovated with bars, shops, a movie theater, and loft apartments. Eaton Place and 250 Douglas Place are two of the bigger apartment buildings in the downtown area. Eaton Place is just north of the arena and is located in the old Eaton Hotel/Carey Hotel. 250 Douglas Place is in the old Holiday Inn building, the second-tallest building in Wichita.
The Delano district on the west side of the river seems to be doing well. It's a quieter area of shops, bars, and restaurants along Douglas Avenue west of the Arkansas River. I know of at least one new apartment building in Delano constructed within the last few years.
As far as the rest of Wichita, most of the new development seems to be occurring on the northwest and northeast fringes of the city. The main areas are 21st and Maize Road in the northwest, and along 21st, Rock, Webb, and Greenwich roads on the east side. Residential development continues to expand in those areas as well. On the east side, a lot of residential development is spilling over into Butler County. On the west side, residential development is expanding toward the Maize, Colwich, and Goddard areas.
There are probably a lot more things going on that I didn't mention, but those are the main things that I can think of at the moment. The Wichita subforum does not have a lot of activity. Wichita is not a bad city. The city is approaching 400,000 in population, with a metro area approaching 700,000. The aircraft industry has been hit hard since the early 2000s. I think that's the main reason why Wichita's economy and unemployment rate has been lagging behind other similarly-sized regional cities like Omaha, Des Moines, Tulsa, and Oklahoma City.
Thanks for the comprehensive response. I was looking for more in just the past few years, but you really summed it all up nicely. It honestly doesn't look like a lot has changed since the arena opened, which is surprising, but at least things are improving. I do have to keep things in perspective though. I'm used to bigger cities and most have experienced a tremendous boom and are still goring through huge changes. Wichita seems a bit sleepy, but it seems far from dying.
I'm not sure I should say much though. As they say, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it? I'll just make people mad that won't want to hear what I might say.
But to sum it up. The urban cities in Kansas (KCK, Topeka, Wichita) are just a mess. I'm not sure there is a state that has let nearly all of its urban areas deteriorate so much. I was really expecting more out of Wichita since it's been several years since I have been. It has to be one of the most lifeless cities of its size in the country.
Kansas really needs to figure out how to rebuild its cities and find other priorities other than subsidizing office parks and retail develoments in Johnson County and western KCK because when you leave those areas it's just not a very good situation at all.
I'm going to try to back up what I just posted so I'm not just called a kansas hater.
I spent two days in Wichita and a day in Topeka.
Topeka is a lost cause and I think most people know that so I won't even go there.
But here are my thoughts on Wichita.
First off, I did not spend any time in the outlying areas of Wichita (suburban parts) other than driving through parts of them. I would assume they are pretty much the same as any city though and decent places to live.
I also want to say that I do think Wichita has put quite a bit of effort into the water walk, new arena etc. but for the most part, these attempts have fallen far short.
I'm not sure there is a more ignored urban waterway than riverwalk (KCMO's brush creek on the plaza may be second). Now, I'm trying to keep an open mind and think that it may be because there is no water in the freaking thing right now. But even so, there were no people. I can count on one hand the people I saw in two days of walking around the river and most of those were homeless looking people often on bikes. The parking lots were empty with broken glass I guess from car burglaries. Even the beautiful keeper of the plains pedestrian bridge was a ghost town although the abandoned mini golf course was interesting.
I think the problem is mostly that people are just not interested in this type of stuff in Wichita. A similar sized city with a similar riverfront (Harrisburg, PA) would have thousands of people walking and biking along the river and using the bridges on a similar nice weekend day. Parking lots would be packed.
Also, downtown has either dated 1950's looking buildings or vacant older buildings. Just a lot of vacant buildings. The Drury Inn is nice though. The entire area seemed to have a lot of police activity.
Was it just bad timing. Is Wichita really this desolate?
Was it just bad timing. Is Wichita really this desolate?
Honestly, I think it was probably bad timing. I get to Wichita maybe once or twice a year for a couple of days. I have never seen the river packed with recreational users, but its never been anything like desolate either. The park at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas is always fairly active, especially in the summer, and I generally see cyclists and people strolling around the Keeper. Downtown proper is sleepy, even in the daytime, but the Delano is usually quiet but kind of cool and Old Town is generally fairly active, if never really hopping. Those are the only areas I'm ever in, though. It seems like a lot of the rest of the town is fairly rough, and my memories of Wichita as a child were that it was basically like 2 Topekas. Topeka is a lot like many, many capital cities I have been to, from Lansing, MI to Salem, OR. Just about the only capital cities I can think of that are not the dumpiest cities in their respective states are either the only city in the state or a college town/capital combo.
Honestly, I think it was probably bad timing. I get to Wichita maybe once or twice a year for a couple of days. I have never seen the river packed with recreational users, but its never been anything like desolate either. The park at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas is always fairly active, especially in the summer, and I generally see cyclists and people strolling around the Keeper. Downtown proper is sleepy, even in the daytime, but the Delano is usually quiet but kind of cool and Old Town is generally fairly active, if never really hopping. Those are the only areas I'm ever in, though. It seems like a lot of the rest of the town is fairly rough, and my memories of Wichita as a child were that it was basically like 2 Topekas. Topeka is a lot like many, many capital cities I have been to, from Lansing, MI to Salem, OR. Just about the only capital cities I can think of that are not the dumpiest cities in their respective states are either the only city in the state or a college town/capital combo.
I hope so. I also hope they can get some water back into that river.
I do think Wichita has tried to bring back it's downtown. The arena, the new Hyatt, the waterwalk development, the river walk and pedestrian bridges and several historic downtown buildings and Old Town.
I mean, they could be doing all that stuff out in some middle of nowhere development like kck.
But I just couldn't believe the lack of people. Last time I was there it was bustling quite a bit more and I was thinking that maybe it just never caught on.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
