It’s great to watch all the progress being made in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. But does the city have to rip up every street at the same damn time?
I’m not the first person to notice all the detours and “road closed” signs. But a short trip this afternoon provoked unprecedented levels of aggravation.
The odyssey began on 9th Street, where I had parked curbside to visit the Central Library. I made a left turn on Wyandotte, which is closed for construction at 12th Street. I turned left on 12th and then took a right on Baltimore in an effort to get back to the Pitch office at 17th and Main.
But Baltimore is closed, too. So I made a U-turn and got back on 12th. I then turned right on Main. After passing the new H&R Block building and the future home of Tipsy McStagger's (or whatever chainpub will tenant the entertainment district), I found Main closed at 14th. So I turned right and got back on Baltimore.
The section of Baltimore that hovers above the freeway is under repair, so I waited for a spiky-haired construction worker to wave my car through the intersection. Having made it through that gauntlet, I wanted to turn left on 16th. But the street is closed between Baltimore and Main.
Finally, after I turned left on 17th , the Pitch building appeared. On my way to the parking lot, I passed the torn-up section of Main in front of our office that workers have been jack-hammering for what seems like eight weeks.
In addition to feeling like a mouse chasing a sadistic piece of cheese, I got a parking ticket during an earlier visit to City Hall. I usually look for the generous 10-hour meters around downtown. But today I decided to take a chance and park at a coin-gobbling 2-hour meter closer to City Hall.
The ticket writer beat me to my car by three minutes. – David Martin
Comments (0)