Country Club Plaza

Ward Parkway and JC Nichols Parkway
Kansas City, MO

The Nation's first shopping center designed in 1922 and built by J.C. Nichols.

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Why It Works

Pedestrian oriented shopping district made up of 1920's Spanish style architecture with towers, domes, iron and brick details, and public plazas filled with fountains and sculptures. It attracts 300,000 people for the lighting of the plaza Christmas lights (since 1925) on Thanksgiving Eve each year and holds an Easter parade and other public events.

What Makes Country Club Plaza a Great Place?

Historic residential buildings are interwoven into the commercial so that it is an active and alive place. It attracts people from all walks of life. Parking is hidden under and behind buildings. The scale is definitely pedestrian. Details are exquisite! Brush Creek meanders through the Plaza with walkways on each side, with pedestrian bridges over it and tour boats along it. Transit serves the plaza, as well as the city's most prestigious boulevard, Ward Parkway (also designed and developed by JC Nichols).

Architecture, fountains, sculpture and people create Kansas City's premier urban space. People feel safe and refreshed here.

Pedestrians use sidewalks extensively. Sidewalk cafes, coffee houses, live music on various corners, plazas, and people from all walks of life abound. The adjacent Mill Creek Park along JC Nichols Parkway has become "the place" to jog, exercise, walk your dog or sun. The JC Nichols fountain is the city's "speaker's corner" with numerous political rallies and demonstrations.

The Plaza has become a tourist attraction as well as a gathering place where Kansas City residents take friends from out of town, etc. People, from homeless, art punks to Armani and Saks customers, to the city's "elite", interact here. It is the place Kansas Citians love to show off, to gather and to live, work, shop and dine.

History & Background

Historic residential buildings on the Plaza are currently threatened with demolition due to intense development pressure. No preservation controls exist on the Country Club Plaza. The Park Lane apartments (built in 1925 by JC Nichols and designed by the George Post Firm, who designed the Wisconsin State Capitol and the New York Stock Exchange) are currently threatened with demolition and all residents have been evicted.

Contact Info:

Eric Youngberg: 816-714-1221
The Country Club Plaza Association: 816-753-0100
Historic Kansas City Foundation: 816-471-3391
protectparklane@hotmail.com

User Comments:

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09/05/02 Ryan Anderson said:

The Plaza has so much charm it is difficult to do it justice in words. Anyone and everyone visiting Kansas City must visit to truly enjoy their visit to the city. One aspect that adds to the charm of the Plaza is the amount of public art. Multiple sculptures, both large and small, as well as fountains galore and tile mosaics from Seville, Spain make this the most beautiful space in KC.

The space is highly used by KC residents. Beyond the "official" uses (shopping, dining, theatres etc.) people love to people watch and just stroll. It makes a great first impression! I think the gender ration is fairly even (possibly more women on weekdays). Public seating is not too prevalent; it's more of a walking area. Cleanliness, maintenance, and safety are all superb.

02/25/04 Frank Miller said:

I agree that the Country Club Plaza deserves to be on the list of America's great public places, but every time I am there I am disappointed that it is not more pedestrian friendly. There is a lack of traffic calming and it can be unnerving trying to cross the street. When buildings are renovated, the sidewalk is closed off without any alternate connection provided around the construction work. One summer that I was there, it was difficult to get around the plaza because of all the closed sidewalks.

01/25/05 Rich Hedges said:

I grew up in Kansas City. I remember riding by bike to the "Plaza", as we called it, when I was pre-teen. I did not live in a neighborhood nearly as nice as the Plaza, but it was a quiet outlet for a young person to window shop and have a safe afternoon. Later it was a place to meet friends or loved ones for dinner or drinks. We have always loved the area. I fear that we no longer have the vision to create places like this. Please someone reassure me that we do.

Sincerely,
Rich Hedges

02/28/06 deron denton said:

The Country Club Plaza, despite its "old world architecture" and fountains, has become like Everywhere, USA. Sadly, unique shops have been replaced by the generic conglomos that are found anywhere. Had we blocked chains from moving in, THEN we might have had something special. Oh well, KC isn't exactly known as a forward-thinking, progressive city.

12/26/07 Marlene looney said:

I am not a KC native but lived there for 13 years. I have traveled around the world and in the US extensively and I can't wait to return to KC to spend time on the Country Club Plaza. It is more than a shopping district. Seville is KC's sister. I have been to both places and can't believe how true to Spain the feel of the Plaza gives me every time I visit. There are still some of the original one of a kind stores such as 'Halls'. The most original of merchandise is to be found here-from china to original christmas ornaments. There is no place like the Plaza.

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