Kansas City (KC) is commonly referred to as the City of Fountains, and for good reason: the city has over 200 of them, including one of the world’s largest at its baseball field, Kauffman Stadium. But nestled among the flowing water is KC’s true calling card: barbeque. Many restaurants and residents specialize in the American outdoor tradition of slow cooking meats in tangy-sweet sauces. Their recipes and cuts are world famous.
KC offers more than food and aesthetics, though. It’s the largest city in Missouri and one of the largest in the Great Plains region, making it a major economic and cultural player in America.
Kansas City’s Layout
Kansas City is located at the intersection of the Missouri and Kansas Rivers. The city itself is on a high bluff overlooking the rivers. The surrounding terrain is largely flat and covered in the low-lying grasslands characteristic of the Great Plains region. Interestingly, Kansas City is the closest major city to the geographic center of the continental US.
The KC metro area includes cities in both Missouri and Kansas. Some of the largest ones are Overland Park (Kansas), Kansas City (Kansas), and Independence (Missouri). The metro is home to 2.2 million people.
Positives of Moving to Kansas City
Barbeque – You can’t talk about Kansas City without talking about barbeque. The city has 90 establishments serving the meat-centric cuisine, and it’s home to a number of barbeque cook-offs and contests.
Agriculture – KC is a major city for the agricultural industry. In the past, it was the second-largest cattle producer, behind only Chicago. Today, it is home to many large companies, notably in dairy and grain production. The city is also the location of the National Bio and Agro Defense Facility, which aims to prevent devastating diseases to US and world produce.
Economy – Kansas City is headquarters for a number of large corporations, including Hallmark Cards, Applebee’s and AMC Theatres. The IRS also maintains a large office in KC, employing thousands of people.
Negatives of Moving to Kansas City
Weather – Located on the plains, Kansas City can get hit hard by wind and cold weather, though temperatures stay more moderate than further-north cities, like Chicago and Minneapolis. Summers can see extremely hot and humid temperatures.
Tornadoes – Kansas City is located in the middle of Tornado Alley, making its tornado-prone status worthy of its own “bad weather” section. The metro was hit hard by tornadoes in 1957 and 2003.
Transportation – Kansas City is considered a poor place for pedestrians. It suffers from massive suburban sprawl and is generally not walkable. Though it has a public transit system, which includes a rapid bus system (MAX), it does little to relieve most from having to drive. That being said, its highway system runs smoother than most.
Downtown in Decline – Kansas City’s downtown has suffered from the quick and big expansion to the suburbs that the metro area has seen. Though the city is currently trying to revitalize, it lacks the offerings of similarly-sized cities across the nation.
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