Kansas
An insider’s guide to the architecture of Kansas City’s Country Club Plaza
![An insider’s guide to the architecture of Kansas City’s Country Club Plaza An insider’s guide to the architecture of Kansas City’s Country Club Plaza](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0dc9ef9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1600x840%200%20114/resize/1200x630!/quality/90/?url=http://npr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com/f7/18/f62b31b04d638aa50dca85abd8c5/plaza-night-18.jpg)
This story was first printed in KCUR’s Artistic Journey e-newsletter. You may signal as much as obtain tales like this in your inbox each Tuesday.
The Nation Membership Plaza celebrated its a hundredth anniversary final month, and wrapped up in that milestone are 100 years of structure, festivities, and even bizarre historical past. KCUR’s podcast A Individuals’s Historical past of Kansas Metropolis not too long ago commemorated the event by exploring the difficult legacy of the famed district.
When J.C. Nichols developed his plan for the Plaza within the early Nineteen Twenties, he envisioned greater than a mere purchasing heart. “Nichols’ imaginative and prescient for a much bigger purchasing vacation spot crystalized right into a plan to remodel that swamp mattress property alongside Brush Creek,” host Suzanne Hogan describes within the episode.
Nichols’ difficult legacy of racist actual property practices has resulted within the renaming of the fountain and parkway that bore his title. Regardless of this historical past, Nichols’ preliminary imaginative and prescient for the Plaza stays, as many see it as a vacationer vacation spot or a spot to have a good time household occasions.
One draw for locals and vacationers alike stays the Plaza’s distinctive Spanish-style structure. The Plaza has modified immensely over the course of the final century, however there are a variety of architectural gems that date again to the district’s basis. Others have been constructed within the many years since.
Be taught extra concerning the historical past of those locations you’ll have handed dozens of instances with out figuring out their significance.
Mill Creek Constructing
State Historic Society of Missouri
/
Opened in 1923, the Mill Creek Constructing was J.C. Nichols’ first industrial constructing on the Nation Membership Plaza. It nonetheless stands at present at 4646 Mill Creek Parkway, throughout the road from the fountain at Mill Creek Park.
The constructing was initially referred to as the Suydam constructing after its unique occupants: Suydam Integrated, a purveyor of high-end “objets d’arts” and inside items.
It was the primary instance of the Plaza’s notable Spanish-style structure, a marked departure from conventional native conventions. “Kansas Metropolis builders up to now have been afraid of coloration, within the sense, for example, that it’s being utilized in California,” famous a 1923 Kansas Metropolis Star article.
Applauding architect Edward Buehler Delk’s design, the identical article famous that “unstinted reward from architects has been gained by the enterprise construction.”
The constructing has housed an assortment of tenants over time and is now residence to the locally-owned restaurant Rye Plaza.
Nelle Peters District
Eric Bowers
/
http://weblog.ericbowersphoto.com/
One other notable section of Plaza structure has much less to do with Spanish affect, and extra to do with the essential lady behind the buildings.
Famed Kansas Metropolis architect Nelle Peters is believed to have designed round 1,000 buildings within the Kansas Metropolis space. This makes her “one of the vital prolific architects in Kansas Metropolis through the Nineteen Twenties,” in line with Jason Roe of the Kansas Metropolis Public Library.
Peters achieved this wonderful feat at a time when feminine architects had been uncommon, and developed her personal model. “She was the native pioneer of sitting flats round a central courtyard,” describes Jill Canon in a 1995 Kansas Metropolis Star article.
The Nelle E. Peters Thematic District in West Plaza was designated in 1989. It consists of six condominium buildings named after literary and inventive figures together with Mark Twain, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Paul Cézanne. Peters designed these buildings in 1928 and 1929.
Cezanne, pictured above, is at 712 W. forty eighth Avenue. The Peters Thematic District is at forty eighth Avenue, with buildings on Jefferson Avenue, Roanoke Parkway and Ward Parkway.
In 2016, three of Peters’s tudor-style condominium buildings on the 4700 block of Summit Avenue had been demolished. Whereas many fought to protect the landmarks, the Kansas Metropolis Council voted down a proposal to grant the buildings historic preservation standing.
Seventh Church of Christ Scientist
Kevin Collison
/
CityScene KC
Perched on the hill on the northwest nook of forty seventh and Pennsylvania Avenue sits the Seventh Church of Christ, Scientist, opened in 1942. The church is “thought of one of many metropolis’s most interesting examples of Romanesque Revival structure,” in line with Kevin Collison.
The church was designed by Indianapolis architect G. Wilbur Foster to “harmonize with the Spanish structure of the Nation Membership Plaza district,” in line with a 1941 Star article.
If you wish to see the church, you’ll have to behave rapidly, because the constructing’s future is in limbo. “Drake Growth, of Overland Park, needs to tear it down and substitute it with a nine-story constructing that can home eating places, luxurious condominiums, and leisure,” as KCUR’s Jacob Martin reported in April 2022.
The group Historic Kansas Metropolis Basis is advocating in opposition to the demolition of the historic church.
Nation Membership Plaza Theater Constructing
State Historic Society of Missouri
/
Kansas Metropolis Public Library Digital Archives
With its tower and ornate stonework, the previous Nation Membership Plaza Theater Constructing on the southwest nook of forty seventh and Wyandotte Streets is a sight to behold in and of itself. The movie show was a essential attraction within the Plaza’s early days, however the constructing additionally has a lot earlier historic connections.
Throughout its 1928 building, employees uncovered a 2.5-pound mastodon tooth.
The previous Plaza Theater embodied the district’s Spanish theme each in and out. It contained “two parking stations, handled in a completely new approach, with a low tile cap wall, previous Spanish gates, fountains, shrubbery and bushes,” in line with a 1928 Star article.
The constructing had a protracted life as a theater, working till 1999 when the competing (and now closed) Cinemark movie show moved close by into 526 Nichols Street. The theater was additionally the house of the Kansas Metropolis Philharmonic for a interval within the Sixties.
Although the constructing is at present closed, indicators point out {that a} retailer referred to as KC Type Haus will open in late spring 2022.
Plaza Medical Constructing
Upon its 1937 completion, a Jack Henry’s commercial excitedly dubbed the Plaza Medical Constructing “Kansas Metropolis’s most stunning construction!” Positioned at 315 Nichols Street, the constructing’s essential entrance is flanked by colourful tiled murals. Its second story is adorned with a tower and tiling across the home windows.
Because the 1937 Star commercial detailed, the constructing comprises “brilliantly coloured tile from previous Mexico … attention-grabbing plaques … vintage iron balconies from Spain … gentle tone, hand-made tiles in variegated colours.”
Earlier than the Plaza Medical Constructing’s building, the land was as soon as the positioning of the Plaza canine mart. On September twenty second, 1934, “Nation Membership Plaza retailers sponsored a canine mart the place individuals eager about shopping for a canine might see and examine many breeds of canine,” in line with the State Historic Society of Missouri – Kansas Metropolis.
Boy and Frog Fountain
There are after all many statues and fountains to see on the Plaza. In style locations embody The Neptune fountain close to forty seventh and Central Avenue, the Ben Franklin statue close to forty seventh and Jefferson Avenue, and the Wild Boar of Florence close to forty seventh and Wornall Street.
One small fountain so as to add to your listing is immediately throughout from the Plaza Medical Constructing. The Boy and Frog fountain sits proper exterior of the Starbucks at 302 Nichols Street. The statue was designed in Florence by Raffaello Romanelli, and was dropped at Kansas Metropolis in 1929.
“Although it seems the chubby youngster is gleefully peeing into the frog’s mouth, the amphibian is definitely the one spitting the water,” comically describes the positioning Atlas Obscura. “Crouching under the boy and his frog good friend is a grumpy trying faun [sic] driving atop a dolphin who seems to be none too happy to be caught holding up the marble basin.”
Atlas Obscura additionally particulars that the fountain was not too long ago the topic of drama. It reported that the frog went lacking in February 2021, and that by June 2021, “the frog is again, though lacking its proper entrance leg.”
This isn’t the primary time the fountain was concerned in a theft. The infant was stolen in 1960, however was happily discovered later in close by bushes, reported the Star in 2016.
This compilation solely scratches the floor. You probably have the time, the Nation Membership Plaza has created a number of themed scavenger hunts. The William T. Kemper basis has additionally put collectively a 36-page Plaza strolling tour with historic reflections on the district. It comprises 50 notable sights to see within the district.
Need extra adventures like this? Join KCUR’s Artistic Journey E-mail.
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/np-logo.png)
Kansas
Kansas State players of the game vs UT-Martin
![Kansas State players of the game vs UT-Martin Kansas State players of the game vs UT-Martin](https://on3static.com/uploads/dev/assets/cms/2024/08/31201911/Tobi-UTM-1-1.jpeg)
Kansas State offensive MVP: DJ Giddens
It was another nice and easy day at the office for Kansas State running back DJ Giddens.
The Junction City running back went over 100 yards for the fifth consecutive game. His five game streak of going over the century mark is tied for fourth in K-State school history. Giddens finished the game with 124 rushing yards and added six receiving yards.
Dylan Edwards provided a nice spark for the Wildcat offense in his first game after transferring from Colorado. Edwards scored multiple times in the contest Saturday night with one on the ground and a receiving touchdown.
In the first home start for Avery Johnson, there were some ups and downs.
However, Johnson still finished with two touchdowns through the air and added some nice runs as well. Jayce Brown was a major bright spot receiving as well with 71 receiving yards. The true sophomore led Kansas State in receiving and had the most receptions with five.
Defensive MVP: Tobi Osunsanmi
For defense there was a few different options for MVP. I really wrestled back and forth between two.
Ultimately, I decided on Tobi Osunsanmi. The Wichita native was a man possessed in his snaps. He showed his elite burst and was able to get to the quarterback at a very high clip. Osunsanmi finished the game with 1.5 sacks (2.5 if he completes one instead of letting the quarterback escape).
He also added another quarterback hit to go along with the sacks.
Desmond Purnell was also flying around the field Saturday evening. He led K-State in tackles with seven and was tied for first in tackles for a loss with 1.5.
K-State special teams MVP: Ty Bowman
Anytime you can create a touchdown on special teams, it is an easy choice for special teams MVP. Ty Bowman blocked his second career punt in the season opener versus UT-Martin. The beneficiary of Bowman blocking the punt was Colby McCalister who returned the ball one yard for a touchdown.
Chris Tennant was also perfect on all of his kicks. Tennant knocked in a 45 and 43-yard field goal and was perfect on all of his extra points.
Kansas
Tulane Football’s Path to Victory Must Exploit Inexperienced Kansas State
![Tulane Football’s Path to Victory Must Exploit Inexperienced Kansas State Tulane Football’s Path to Victory Must Exploit Inexperienced Kansas State](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4096,h_2304,x_0,y_268/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/tulane_green_wave_on_si/01j6mvw0vcfqn9xhqdjr.jpg)
The stage is set for Tulane football’s highly anticipated Week 2 matchup against the Kansas State Wildcats as they seek to become contenders on a national stage.
Intriguingly, the Green Wave and the Wildcats have some parallels on offense. Kansas State kicks off the season Saturday against FCS opponent UT-Martin, much like Tulane opened against Southeastern Louisiana.
Sophomore quarterback Avery Johnson will make his first regular season start, much like redshirt freshman Darian Mensah led Tulane to their 52-0 victory Thursday night. Johnson did appear in eight games as a true freshman and started for the team in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, beating North Carolina State.
However, he did so behind an offensive line that looks nothing like the one that will take the field next Saturday at Yulman Stadium. The Wildcats must replace four of five starters, including third-round draft pick Cooper Beebe. Just as Tulane had to find Vincent Murphy to take over for Sincere Haynesworth.
Though the group of returners isn’t exactly inexperienced, they don’t have any time playing together in concert. The lone starter remaining is right guard Hadley Panzer, who likely is starting this season at left guard. Presumed starting left tackle Easton Kilty is making his first FBS start.
It helps that Kansas State’s offensive line coach, Conor Riley, was promoted to coordinator. He has pieces to work with that have credible game snaps. The challenge is whether they can come together as a unit.
While Avery Johnson has more experience than Darian Mensah, Mensah benefits from a much more stable offensive line. Tulane returned both starting guards and right tackle and brought in key transfers to fill the remaining holes. In their season debut, they gave Mensah time in the pocket, but the run blocking left much to be desired.
Tulane brought in transfers on the defensive line to bolster their pass rush. They got to the quarterback twice with two sacks last Thursday, but the Bandit role was a point of concern. Their three-man front is spaced to spread out their top playmakers, Adin Huntington at defensive end and Patrick Jenkins at tackle.
With Huntington to the field and Jenkins to the boundary, it forces defenses to either focus attention on one side of the line or just shut down the best two players. That awards a lot of one-on-one opportunities for the rusher at Bandit. The players who rotated in the first game didn’t make much of a case.
Terrell Allen didn’t make any standout plays, nor did Matthew Fobbs-White, though the latter showed some disruptive abilities off the line of scrimmage. Frankly, Shi’Keem Laister was the most productive in a packaged role. Laister had a hurry and forced Southeastern to throw quickly, leading to incompletions on the drive.
Tulane doesn’t need the Bandit to be the hero, but they need a player to step up and credibly command attention to open up lanes for Huntington, who only recorded one hurry in his debut for the team.
Importantly, the team likely didn’t show their cards on the ways they might get to the quarterback. It might come from the second level. Linebacker Sam Howard had more pressure snaps than Fobbs-White and Allen, and he recorded a hurry and beat his blocker on another.
Could Tulane rely on blitzing and utilizing defensive backs and linebackers as rushers? Not all season. But creativity and confusion might just be enough to rattle the Wildcats as both teams race to figure out what the other is made of with merely one game of film.
The secondary came together as Tulane’s season opener went on, and should be a point of strength, but the best coverage is a pass rush. Especially with an opponent that has similar turnover and areas to exploit. For the Green Wave to pull off a victory on Sept. 7, the key lies in the lane to the quarterback.
Kansas
Lawmakers plan brazen power grab, pushing aside Kansas voters and Gov. Laura Kelly • Kansas Reflector
![Lawmakers plan brazen power grab, pushing aside Kansas voters and Gov. Laura Kelly • Kansas Reflector Lawmakers plan brazen power grab, pushing aside Kansas voters and Gov. Laura Kelly • Kansas Reflector](https://kansasreflector.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/P6170288.jpg)
Let’s be clear about what Kansas Republican legislative leaders are doing with their planned overhaul of budgeting: They are launching a personal and political power grab against Gov. Laura Kelly.
They have never accepted or respected her mandate. Despite Kelly winning a second term and having two years left to go, they have continually attempted to usurp the executive branch’s authority. They have tried a constitutional amendment and prohibiting her ability to negotiate Medicaid contracts. Now they’re going after her yearly state budget proposal.
Usually, the Legislature begins its yearly budget process with a proposal from the governor. Her office submits it when lawmakers arrive for the annual session, in January. Now an interim committee wants to start the process earlier, as soon as October of the previous year.
In this new process, the governor’s budget would be a suggestion, not a starting point.
And never mind that it’s a direct attack on Kelly. House Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, assured the audience that these changes had nothing to do with the governor.
“This process has nothing to do with the governor,” he said at the meeting earlier this month, according to Kansas Reflector reporter Tim Carpenter. “If you’re going to focus on the governor, probably not the wisest thing to do, because this process has happened over time with many, many different governors.”
He was contradicted by Senate President Ty Masterson, R-Andover, who let the proverbial cat out of the figurative bag.
“You’ll have a Republican governor, for example, or somebody you trust, and you trust the administration to build the budgets, and then you kind of rubber stamp stuff,” Masterson said. “And, then, you switch, and you have (the) opposition party and then there’s all that same power.”
Oh. So it’s like that, then.
All of this might seem like so much partisan mud wrestling, except for the fact that the leaders have also decided to do an end run around Kansas voters.
Did you notice that the proposed new process could start as early as October? While details at the hearing were scarce, leaders appeared to suggest that they would start working on budget without knowing whether they would be elected. What happens if all the folks on the budget committee are voted out of office? Who takes the lead then?
Once again, we see Kansas legislative leaders trying to concentrate power. They don’t want the governor to even have the first say in the budgeting process, and they apparently don’t trust the rest of their colleagues. You know, all the people who drive to Topeka in January to actually make laws.
Sen. Carolyn McGinn, a Sedgwick Republican, raised concerns that these changes would also limit the ability of constituents to speak about budget priorities.
McGinn might have decided to retire, but she has a point. Leaders apparently don’t even trust their constituents when it comes to spending.
In there interest of fairness, I should note that the reform committee considered several worthwhile proposals. Rep. Troy Waymaster, R-Bunker Hill, discussed ending lawmakers’ de facto three-day work week. Yes, they usually take Mondays and Fridays off, at times slowing progress to a crawl. The panel also targeted budget earmarks for favored programs that don’t go through a regular committee process.
In the interest of perspective, however, I’m not falling over myself with gratitude. It’s obvious that legislators should work throughout the week, and it’s obvious they shouldn’t be larding up the budget with unvetted spending.
It’s like going through life without running over someone with your car. I mean, I’m glad that you didn’t, but surely you don’t deserve a plaque.
Lawmakers might still be able to make worthwhile changes to the budgeting process. They could start with increasing transparency, which Carpenter noted wasn’t discussed by members of either party. But until they stop jostling for partisan advantage and making themselves look foolish, don’t expect much.
Clay Wirestone is Kansas Reflector opinion editor. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.
-
Connecticut1 week ago
Oxford church provides sanctuary during Sunday's damaging storm
-
Technology1 week ago
Breakthrough robo-glove gives you superhuman grip
-
Politics1 week ago
2024 showdown: What happens next in the Kamala Harris-Donald Trump face-off
-
News1 week ago
Who Are Kamala Harris’s 1.5 Million New Donors?
-
Politics1 week ago
Trump taunted over speculated RFK Jr endorsement: 'Weird as hell'
-
Politics1 week ago
Vivek Ramaswamy sounds off on potential RFK Jr. role in a Trump administration
-
World6 days ago
Portugal coast hit by 5.3 magnitude earthquake
-
Politics1 week ago
House GOP demands elite universities counteract 'dangerous' anti-Israel protests in the fall semester