Kansas City, Kansas, United States

🇺🇸 Kansas City (KCK) is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. It is one of four principal cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area. It is situated at Kaw Point, the junction of the Missouri and Kansas rivers. It is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the "Unified Government". It is the location of the University of Kansas Medical Center and Kansas City Kansas Community College.

History In October 1872, "old" Kansas City, Kansas, was incorporated. The first city election was held on October 22 of that year. In March 1886, "new" Kansas City, Kansas, was formed through the consolidation of five municipalities: "old" Kansas City, Armstrong, Armourdale, Riverview, and Wyandotte. The oldest city of the group was Wyandotte, which was formed in 1857 by Wyandot Native Americans and Methodist missionaries.

In the 1890s, the city saw an explosive growth in population as a streetcar suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. This growth continued until the 1930s. It was one of the nation's 100 largest cities for many U.S. Census counts, from 1890 to 1960, including 1920, when it had a population of over 100,000 residents for the first time.

As with adjacent Kansas City, Missouri, the percentage of the city's most populous ethnic group, non-Hispanic whites, has declined from 76.3% in 1970 to 40.2% in 2010. In 1997, voters approved a proposition to unify the city and county governments, creating the Unified Government of Wyandotte County.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 128.38 square miles (332.50 km²), of which, 124.81 square miles (323.26 km²) is land and 3.57 square miles (9.25 km²) is water.

Neighborhoods Neighborhoods of Kansas City, Kansas, include the following: • Downtown • Argentine – former home to the silver smelter for which it was named; it was consolidated with Kansas City in 1910 • Armourdale – formerly a city, it was consolidated with the city of Kansas City in 1886 • Armstrong – a small town sitting on the northern bluff of the Kansas River, absorbed in the merger of Wyandotte, Kansas City, and Armourdale • Arrickary Subdivision • Bethel – a neighborhood located generally along Leavenworth Rd., between 72nd and 77th Streets. It was never incorporated as a municipality • Fairfax District – an industrial area along the Missouri River • Hanover Heights • Historic Westheight • Muncie • Maywood – until the late 1990s, Maywood was a quiet, isolated residential area; it is now part of the "Village West" project that includes the Legends shopping and entertainment district, the Children's Mercy Park soccer stadium, Monarchs' Community America baseball park, the Kansas Speedway racetrack and Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway • McGrew Grove • Nearman • Northeast Neighborhoods • Parkwood • Piper • Polish Hill • Pomeroy – a late-19th—early-20th-century Train Depot, Trading Post, Saw Mill, and river landing for barges to load and unload • Quindaro Bluffs • Riverview – like Armstrong, a small town on the northern river bluff, absorbed in the merger of Wyandotte, Kansas City, and Armourdale • Rosedale – consolidated with Kansas City in 1922 • Stony Point • Strawberry Hill • Turner – community around the Wyandotte-Johnson County border to the Kansas River north-south, and from I-635 to I-435 east-west • Vinewood • Wolcott • Welborn

Parks and parkways • City Park • Wyandotte County Lake Park • Big Eleven Park • Boston Daniels' Park (Dedicated to the first Black Chief of Police in the United States) • Kaw Point Park

Demographics The 2020 United States census counted 156,607 people, 57,079 households, and 36,392 families in Kansas City. The population density was 1,255.5 per square mile (484.7/km²). There were 63,446 housing units at an average density of 508.6 per square mile (196.4/km²).

The U.S. Census accounts for race by two methodologies. "Race alone" and "Race alone less Hispanics" where Hispanics are delineated separately as if a separate race.

The racial makeup (including Hispanics in the racial counts) was 40.98% (64,177) white or European American (34.46% non-Hispanic white), 21.53% (33,715) black or African-American, 1.14% (1,786) Native American or Alaska Native, 4.85% (7,590) Asian, 0.24% (370) Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian, 16.07% (25,172) from other races, and 15.2% (23,797) from two or more races.

The racial and ethnic makeup (where Hispanics are excluded from the racial counts and placed in their own category) was 34.46% (53,962) White alone (non-Hispanic), 21.14% (33,105) Black alone (non-Hispanic), 0.40% (619) Native American alone (non-Hispanic), 4.80% (7,512) Asian alone (non-Hispanic), 0.22% (347) Pacific Islander alone (non-Hispanic), 0.34% (537) Other Race alone (non-Hispanic), 4.07% (6,381) Multiracial or Mixed Race (non-Hispanic), and 34.57% (54,144) Hispanic or Latino.

Of the 57,079 households, 34.9% had children under the age of 18; 38.2% were married couples living together; 30.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 29.2% of households consisted of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.7, and the average family size was 3.5. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 12.0% of the population.

27.1% of the population was under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 101.8 males.

The 2016–2020 5-year American Community Survey estimates show that the median household income was $46,424 (with a margin of error of ±$1,298) and the median family income was $54,955 (±$2,431). Males had a median income of $32,908 (±$1,298) versus $26,001 (±$789) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $29,809 (±$1,006). Approximately, 15.5% of families and 19.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.6% of those under the age of 18 and 9.6% of those ages 65 or over.

Economy Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that employment in Wyandotte County, Kansas, increased 4% from March 2011 to March 2012. The sharp rise in the number of workers resulted in Wyandotte County ranking 19th in the nation and 1st in the Kansas City metropolitan area for job growth as of September 28, 2012.

Kansas City is the home to the General Motors Fairfax Assembly Plant, which manufactures the Chevrolet Malibu and the Cadillac XT4. The Federal Bureau of Prisons maintains its North Central Region Office in the city. In addition, Associated Wholesale Grocers and Kansas City Steak Company are based within the city. The largest employer is the University of Kansas Hospital. The adjoining University of Kansas Medical Center, including the schools of medicine, nursing, and allied health, is also among the city's largest employers (with a student population of about 3,000).

Village West is a business and entertainment district located at the intersection of Interstates 70 and 435. Anchored by the Kansas Speedway, tenants include Hollywood Casino, The Legends At Village West, AMC Theatres IMAX, Cabela's, Nebraska Furniture Mart, Great Wolf Lodge, Monarchs Stadium, the home stadium of the Kansas City Monarchs of the American Association of Professional Baseball, over three dozen restaurants, and Children's Mercy Park, the home stadium of the Sporting Kansas City Major League Soccer franchise. Schlitterbahn Vacation Village, a 370-acre (1.5 km²) resort and waterpark, opened across I-435 from Village West in June 2009; however, it has been closed since the end of the 2018 season.

On March 30, 2011, Google announced that Kansas City had been selected as the site of an experimental fiber-optic network that it would build at no cost to the city. Kansas City was chosen from a field of 1,100 U.S. communities that had applied for the network. The network became operational in 2012. Piper, Kansas, became the first full community in the nation (based on actual residential votes and pre-registration counts) to have residential broadband internet network infrastructures using fiber-optic communication of 1 Gbit/s download and upload speeds provided by Google Fiber.

Largest employers According to the city's 2013 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the largest employers in the city are: 1 University of Kansas Hospital; 2 University of Kansas Medical Center; 3 General Motors Corporation; 4 Kansas City, KS School District #500; 5 Burlington Northern/Santa Fe Railroad; 6 Cerner; 7 Unified Government of Wyandotte Co/KCK / Kansas City, Kansas; 8 Associated Grocers; 9 Providence Medical Center; 10 Nebraska Furniture Mart.

Government Kansas City, Kansas, has a consolidated city-county government in which the city and county have been merged into one jurisdiction. As such, it is simultaneously a city, which is a municipal corporation, and a county, which is an administrative division of a state. The Kansas Legislature passed enabling legislation in 1997, and voters approved the consolidation proposal the same year.

The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department was founded in 1898. By 1918, the department had begun taking photographs and fingerprints of all the people its officers had arrested.

The Kansas City, Kansas Fire Department was founded on December 25, 1883. The fire department is part of the Firefighter's Relief Association and the International Association of Fire Fighters. IAFF Local 64 is a charter member and was organized on February 28, 1918. The department has 18 fire stations in the city and covers an area of approximately 127 square miles. The department also has specialty teams, including heavy rescue, hazardous materials, foam team, water rescue, tactical medic, trench rescue, high angle/rope rescue, and technical urban search and rescue. The fire department has four public service programs: a citizens assist program, fire prevention, safe place, and a smoke detector program.

Education: University Public • Kansas City Kansas Community College • University of Kansas Medical Center (home of KU's Schools of Medicine, Nursing and Health Professions); Private • Donnelly College.

School districts Public • Kansas City USD 500 • Bonner Springs–Edwardsville USD 204 • Piper USD 203 • Turner USD 202; Private • Catholic Archdiocese of Kansas City.

Secondary schools • Bishop Ward High School • Fairfax Learning Center • J. C. Harmon High School • Kansas City Kansas Community College: Technical Education Center • Piper High School, Kansas City in Piper • F.L. Schlagle High School • Kansas State School for the Blind (KSSB) • Sumner Academy of Arts & Science • Turner High School • Washington High School • Wyandotte High School in Kansas City.

Public libraries The Kansas City, Kansas Public Library system has five branch libraries spread throughout Wyandotte County: the Main Library, South Branch Library, Turner Community Library, West Wyandotte Library, and the Mr. & Mrs. F.L. Schlagle Environmental Library in Wyandotte County Lake Park. The system was formed in 1895. In 1899, it came under the authority of the Kansas City, Kansas Public School District Board of Education.

Transport River transportation was important to early Kansas City, Kansas, as its location at the confluence of the Missouri and Kansas Rivers afforded easy access to trade. Kansas City Area Transportation Authority provides transportation for 60k riders daily. A portion of I-70 was the first project in the United States completed under the provisions of the new Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 (though not the first constructed or to begin construction).

Transport: Road • Interstate 35 – To Des Moines, Iowa, to the north and Wichita, Kansas, to the south. • Interstate 70 – To St. Louis, Missouri, to the east and Topeka, Kansas/Denver, Colorado, to the west.

Spur routes and roads • Interstate 435 – A bi-state loop through the Missouri and Kansas suburbs, providing access to Kansas City International Airport • Interstate 635 – Connects the Kansas suburbs with Kansas City, Kansas, and Riverside, Missouri, just north of Kansas City, Missouri • Interstate 670 – A southern bypass of I-70 and Southern portion of the downtown loop. Signed as East I-70 when exiting from I-35 while traveling north • US-24-40 – Combination of the US-24 and US-40 highways that pass through Kansas City • K-5 – A minor freeway bypassing the north of Kansas City, Kansas, connecting the GM Fairfax plant with I-635. K-5 continues as Leavenworth Road west to I-435 then on to Leavenworth, Kansas • K-7 – A freeway linking Leavenworth County, Kansas; Wyandotte County, Kansas; and Johnson County, Kansas • K-32 – A highway that links Leavenworth County, Kansas, Wyandotte County, and Douglas County, Kansas

Roads • US-169, 7th Street Trafficway • South 18th Street Expressway • State Avenue and Parallel Parkway • Kansas Avenue and the Turner Diagonal

Transport: Air The nearest airport is Kansas City International Airport.

Culture Kansas City, Kansas, has a number of buildings that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The city is home to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, which covers 12,500 square miles (32,000 km²) in eastern Kansas.

Memorial Hall is a 3,500-seat indoor arena/auditorium located in the city's downtown. The venue, which has a permanent stage, is used for public assemblies, concerts, and sporting events. In 1887, John G. Braecklein constructed a Victorian home for John and Margaret Scroggs in the area of Strawberry Hill. It is a fine example of the Queen Anne style architecture erected in Kansas City, Kansas.

The Rosedale Arch, dedicated to the men of Kansas City, Kansas, who served in World War I, is a small-scale replica of France's famous Arc de Triomphe. It is located on Mount Marty in Rosedale, overlooking the intersection of Rainbow and Southwest Boulevards.

Wyandotte High School is a public school building located at 2501 Minnesota Avenue. Built in 1936 as a Works Progress Administration project, the school was later designated as a Historical Landmark by the city in 1985 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 30, 1986. In 1889, the Wyandotte County Museum and Historical Society was established as a permanent repository of the county's history. The Argentine Carnegie Library, the only Carnegie library that exists in the metropolitan area, was built in 1917. The library has moved the collections and staff from Argentine to the new South Branch, at 3104 Strong Ave., a few blocks to the west and north, which opened September 26, 2012. The library has turned over the building to the Kansas City, Kansas, USD 500.

Other points of interest in the Kansas City, Kansas, area include Fire Station No. 9, Granada Theater, Hanover Heights Neighborhood Historic District, Huron Cemetery, Judge Louis Gates House, Kansas City, Kansas Hall, Kansas City, Kansas Fire Headquarters, Great Wolf Lodge, Schlitterbahn Vacation Village, Quindaro Townsite, Sauer Castle, Scottish Rite Temple, Shawnee Street Overpass, Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building, St. Augustine Hall, Theodore Shafer House, Trowbridge Archeological Site, Westheight Manor and Westheight Manor District, White Church Christian Church, Wyandotte County Courthouse and the Muncie area.

Media Kansas City, Kansas, is part of a bi-state media market that comprises 32 counties in north-eastern Kansas and north-western Missouri. The Kansas City media market (ranked 32nd by Arbitron and 31st by Nielsen) includes 10 television stations and 30 FM and 21 AM radio stations. Due to its close proximity to the Topeka media market, most of the television and radio stations from that city are receivable over-the-air in portions of the Kansas City, Kansas, area. KCTV, the market's CBS affiliate, is licensed to Kansas City, Missouri, but operates out of Kansas City, Kansas.

Media: Print Kansas City, Kansas, is served by the Kansan, a daily newspaper which ceased its print publication and became an online-only paper in 2009. Newspapers serving the city's suburbs include The Record (serving Turner, Argentine, and Rosedale), Piper Press (serving Piper), and The Wyandotte West (weekly publication for western Wyandotte County).

Weekly newspapers include alternative publication The Pitch, faith-oriented newspaper The Kansas City Metro Voice, The Wyandotte Echo (which focuses on legal news), The Call (which is focused on the African-American community), business newspaper Kansas City Business Journal, and the bilingual publication Dos Mundos.

Broadcast media The major U.S. broadcast television networks have affiliates in the Kansas City market, including WDAF-TV 4 (Fox), KCTV 5 (CBS), KMBC-TV 9 (ABC), KCPT 19 (PBS), KCWE 29 (The CW), KSHB-TV 41 (NBC) and KSMO-TV 62 (MyNetworkTV). Other television stations in the market include Saint Joseph, Missouri-based KTAJ-TV 16 (TBN), KCKS-LD 25, Lawrence, Kansas-based KMCI-TV 38 (independent), Spanish-language station KUKC-LD 20 (Univision), and KPXE-TV 50 (Ion Television).

Sporting Kansas City The Major League Soccer franchise Sporting Kansas City (which was originally known as the Kansas City Wiz for its inaugural year in 1996 and the Kansas City Wizards from 1997 to 2010) currently plays its home games at Children's Mercy Park in the Village West district. The team originally planned to move to Trails Stadium, a planned stadium facility in Kansas City, Missouri, in 2011, but the project was scuttled in 2009. The developer of the planned venue moved the project to the Village West area, near Legends Field, and received the needed approvals in January 2010.

Kansas City Current The Kansas City Current replaced the now defunct National Women's Soccer League team FC Kansas City, which ceased operations in 2017. The Current played its inaugural season at Legends Field before moving for the 2022 season to Children's Mercy Park. The team's ownership committed to building a soccer specific stadium across the state line in Kansas City, Missouri, on the Berkley Riverfront Park, which broke ground on October 6, 2022, with a goal to open by March 2024.

Kansas City Monarchs The Kansas City Monarchs is an independent baseball team in the American Association, which moved to Kansas City, Kansas, in 2003 and, through 2019, played its home games at Legends Field, located adjacent to the Village West development in western Wyandotte County. The team was previously a member of the Northern League (which was not affiliated with Major League Baseball), until it dissolved following the 2010 season. While the remaining Northern League teams became members of the North American League as part of the Northern League's merger with the Golden Baseball League and United Baseball League, the T-Bones joined many other former Northern League teams in the relatively new American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. The T-Bones won the Northern League Championship in 2008 and the American Association Championship in 2018. The Unified Government evicted it from its stadium on October 14, 2019, for nonpayment of rent and utilities.

Auto racing The Kansas Speedway is an auto racetrack adjacent to the Village West area in western Wyandotte County. The speedway, which is used for races that are part of the NASCAR Cup Series and other racing series, is a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) tri-oval with turns which bank at a 15° angle. The track held its first race on June 2, 2001, when the Winston West Series contested the Kansas 100. The top-level NASCAR Cup Series holds the annual Hollywood Casino 400 at the track. The IndyCar Series previously ran the RoadRunner Turbo Indy 300 from 2001 to 2010, with IndyCar driver Scott Dixon setting the overall lap record for all series.