In addition, more than 30 full-time merchants are open year-round and offer specialty foods, fresh meats and seafood, restaurants and cafes, floral, home accessories and much more.

[5] Downtown Kansas City is an area of 2.9 square miles (7.5 km2) bounded by the Missouri River to the north, 31st Street to the south, Troost Avenue to the East, and State Line road to the West.

It was the first suburban shopping district in the United States,[7] designed to accommodate shoppers arriving by automobile,[8] and is surrounded by apartments and condominiums, including a number of high rise buildings.

The associated Country Club District to the south includes the Sunset Hill and Brookside neighborhoods, and is traversed by Ward Parkway, a landscaped boulevard known for its statuary, fountains and large, historic homes.

The compact gives the KCATA responsibility for planning, construction, owning, and operating passenger transportation systems and facilities within the seven-county Kansas City metropolitan area.

On December 12, 2012, downtown Kansas City voters approved[10] construction of a $102 million, 2-mile modern streetcar that will be operational by 2015.