If one wanted to go grocery shopping or pick up a quick bite to eat 15 years ago, he or she would have to drive outside the Piper district to get what was needed.
There was no such thing as spending a Saturday night watching the local independent baseball team play, battling race-weekend traffic or screaming on the top of your lungs at the home of the MLS Cup champions.
Flash-forward to 2014.
Kansas Speedway. The Kansas City T-Bones. Sporting Park. The Legends. Schlitterbahn Water Park. Cerner Corporation.
Now, it’s hard to imagine life before the noisy car engines were being revved up on race weekend, sitting in the driveway to watch the T-Bones’ firework show and going to a midnight movie premier at the Legends 14 Theater. As hard as I try, I have trouble picturing what the community looked like before the Legends was built. For most of the student body, this serves to be true as well.
Kansas City, Kan. has even received some international attention recently.
Mayor Mark Holland spoke in a press conference April 25 at Schlitterbahn Water Park for the official measuring of Verruckt, the tallest water slide in the world. A representative from the Guinness Book of World Records was present at the event.
“Kansas City, Kan. is the No. 1 tourist city in the state of Kansas,” Mayor Mark Holland said.
The “international attraction” will bring many things to the area. With the expansion of the park, more jobs are needed, many of them being filled by students.
Also, the city is bound to expand due to all of the tourists pouring in.
The surrounding area has become a part of each student. It has provided job opportunities, brought more people to the area and gives students something to do every weekend. For young students, life before the Legends and Schlitterbahn is ancient history.
It’s hard to say what will pop up next in the area, but one thing is for sure: Kansas City, Kan. is a bold dot on the map.