Crossroads progress

[ShowMeKC]

For those of you that don't know, the Crossroads in Kansas City falls between the Loop and Crown Center. You can see it in the foreground in the picture below the article.

A stroll in Crossroads is proof of progress

By KEVIN COLLISON The Kansas City Star

There's been a lot of talk lately about big-ticket downtown ideas: A convention center ballroom, a performing arts center, corporate headquarters, an arena, a ballpark, etc.

Critics of these proposals often fall into two camps. First, there are people who rarely, if ever, come downtown and are cynical about any redevelopment effort. Then there are the downtown purists who believe grass-roots, building-by-building reclamations are the only true way. To them, big projects are bad and phony.

There's not much that can be said to persuade those who have turned their backs on downtown. For many, their memories are stuck in a bygone day when it was the only place to shop and/or do business. That isn't coming back.

As for the purists, their hearts are in the right place but their vision is too exclusive.

The Kansas City Star's series