Springfield Report
August 14th, 2007
The Springfield trip is finished and it was much fun. I was in meetings all day so my exploration was limited to the evening, but I was very impressed with the dramatic change since I was in the city years ago. Downtown is jumping with all kinds of bars, clubs, restaurants, shops, etc. They have quite a nightlife scene. I’d estimate their downtown bar district is bigger than Westport. And there were condo and loft conversions all over the place. It’s a lot like Downtown KC right now, a giant construction zone. It appears that gentrification has hit the Ozarks.
Apparently at least a few folks aren’t too happy with Springfield getting all sinned up. All night long a couple of old kooks stand around in the middle of all the bars and hold up a rotation of signs like “man shall rule over woman”, “marrying the divorced is adultery” and the like. Good times!
Bicycling is a joy in Springfield. They have a great network of bike routes all over the city, including a few bike lanes and lots of sharrows. Springfield already has a law that KC is now considering, which requires new businesses to provide bike parking. This means the city has bike racks all over the place, at most bars, restaurants, shops, etc. Plus, the city is completely flat. It’s in the Ozarks, but up on a plateau of some sort. This was good because it was toasty hot. I was sweating like a whore in church.
4 Responses to “Springfield Report”
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don’t keep us hanging! it was…WHAT???
no joke! what’s the cliffhanger? i’ve been dying for some spfd. news.
oh crap the last bit got cut off. it was supposed to read “it was toasty hot. I was sweating like a whore in church.”
Springfield’s downtown has a lot going for it. I moved back to KC from Springtown in June. I love being in Kansas City but there is something about Springfield that is a nice draw. Downtown is a lot like Westport…you don’t have to be quite as afraid of getting shot. Which is nice.