Like it or not, life in Kansas City during The Great Recession has become an exercise in watching one longstanding institution after the next die a slow and painful death.
The Kansas City Star seems to be in a state of denial as their employees and advertisers disappear one by one and the most profitable method of delivery for their content (i.e. the dead tree newspaper) becomes more outdated everyday.
In much the same way Union Station is
Roger
Do what should have been done in the first place, lease it to private developers.
Anonymoose
You are so pessimistic and cynical. You aren’t helping Kansas City.
JoJo
turn it into a casino/shopping/tourist
venue…use some imagination and let the
money roll in.
Hall killed the best idea…didnt want the
gambling…now the city should say to hell
with hall and his outdated crown center
and let someone take it over…
slots/booze/tables/entertainment/…let
it roll.
newbaum turk
Perfect place for a world-class aquarium but you know the city would F–k it up.
The Heebie Jeebies
“And in fact that has proven to be profitable for us with nearly $200 million in ad revenue from the Internet at a higher profit rate than our print model.”
– McClatchy CEO Gary Pruitt, Jan. 27, 2010.
I’m sorry you can’t accept the fact The Star is going to be around for a long time, in print and online, but there’s some more proof for you today. Its parent has found a way to make online profitable.
So go ahead and take your cheap little pussy squirts at The Star. It’s not going anywhere. They’re all laughing at you and your made-up Power and Light story today.
Rainbow Man
Union Station feels like an airport without the free wi-fi. You eat your $12 Caesar salad, and you want to get the hell out of there.
They need to get lenient on letting in a lot more small businesses and “grit it up.” The charity ball set has been running this place for too long. More booth type vendors, more beer, more hot dogs, more Gyros, more 20 and 30 somethings, more bars, and more edge. Set up an indoor walking track. Put in a weight room. Have boxing matches. Allow roller skates.
Let some of those good old boy North End types have a piece of it. Those guys know how to make money.
You will still have the beautiful main halls for the special events.
The people running this place now are probably trying to figure out how to install a “Union Station Dog Park.”
Hell, put a hotel in there. Crown Center wants none of it… do they…
gecko
Who cares about Union Station?
Uncle Dick
I like the involvement of the North End guys. Place would make one hell of a casino/whorehouse.
bschloz
How bout a joint venture with Cordish….lets create some jobs via building a tram between P&L and Union Station.
How bout that IPAD….Holy Cow put an Apple store down there….talk about a game changer.
When will Kansas City learn that with out open parking all of these developments will suffer
DPW
I predicted that Union Station would fail during the debate over the Bi-State Tax. Thanks for wasting my tax dollars on this. Once again this proves that government cannot run a business.
craig glazer
Lets see Union Station, l8th and Vine, River Market, The Zoo, Downtown Power and Light and New Areana…hmmmm….Like I said in 2001…in The Star when looking at the Mayor’s spot….SPEND THE MONEY TO FIX AND ADVANCE THE PLAZA(Which, case you didn’t know, our downtown),Waldo,Bookside and Westport…make Westport the Plaza’s entertainment arm, put new hotels there and on the Plaza…thats where, Westport, all the new bars should have gone instead of Downtown, making it new and nicer would have driven off the riff-raff…all this for under 200 million, oh yeah a new arena, put that next to the Plaza…then you would have an NBA team etc…see you need to build things where people live and work…not in a ghetto…fix the areas that do ok, make them do great…instead we did the above mentioned all failed and you know the rest..great leadership from City Hall going back to Clever…sorry but true.
Johnny Utah
The train display over christmas did well. both times we took the kids the place was packed.
why does it have to be a money maker anyway? lots of things the city maintains aren’t moneymakers. consider it like the parks: something the city pays for (with our tax dollars) that make the city a better place to live and visit.
Robertoe
Casino! Casino! Casino!
Problem solved. Hall was and is wrong to oppose this. It would vastly help his Crown Center. There’s no reason these casinos have to be on the river. Use that vice money to save a landmark! And to explain it to Johnny Union Station has to make money to keep their doors open and pay the heat bills because they are about tapped out.
Rainbow Man
Rent every square inch of space in there to the highest bidder. Go with temporary tenants, businesses, flea types, offices, elvis paintings, cart vendors. The parking lot is giant. Have swap meets there on weekends. I have heard the acoustics in there suck for live concerts
JoJo
rainbow man…you’re the only guy i really
respect on here…briliant ideas especially
the massacre reenactments….you should run
for mayor.
You would beat any of the clowns who have
already announced.
Andy
jojo’s in love. How cute. Did he respect you in the morning? Mean people suck. jojo swallows.