Park Central-Research Park - Kansas City, MO

This neighborhood began as part of a 55-acre subdivision built by J.C. Nichols in the early 1900s, when he bought smaller tracts of previously worthless swampland near Brush Creek. Kauffman Legacy Park forms the backbone of this area, and the memorial gardens grow vintage and contemporary plants. Two other parks bookend Park Central. Kansas City acquired Thomas J. Kiely Park in 1926. Frank A. Theis Park, with its fountains and waterway, was established in 1944.

Since the Second World War, several buildings developed in this neighborhood. Radio station KCUR and 41 Action News maintain offices in Park Central. The Kauffman Foundation Conference Center, a later addition to the area, welcomes more than 65,000 people each year to various gatherings of academics, thinkers and leaders.

The Kauffman Center hosts Global Entrepreneurship Week every November. The arts scene revolves around the world-class Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art just to the north.

A few fast food restaurants dot the landscape close to the parks. Travel a couple blocks west to Country Club Plaza to sample high-end eateries, great nightlife, bars and music venues. Enough restaurants locate themselves within walking distance to have dinner every night for a month and a half without visiting the same place twice.

Grand Street Cafe calls itself "modern American dining," serving up varied cuisine to tempt any palate. For an appetizer, lamb sausage meatballs come with your choice of pepperonata and goat cheese or fig gastrique. Add in pistachios, parmesan cheese and grilled bread for an appetizer that acts like a meal. Beef ribs, a Kansas City favorite, get braised in port wine and come with beef fat confit potatoes, wilted spinach, sauteed carrots and leeks. The dish arrives covered in a port wine veal reduction. An extensive wine and happy hour menu complete your dinner.

The Mixx represents a unique restaurant for sandwiches, soups and salads in the Kansas City area. Start with one of seven greens, including kale, spinach, arugula and red cabbage, and then add ingredients to mix into your garden feast. Select one of 14 light dressings, which include a lemon-mint vinaigrette, creamy gorgonzola and buttermilk ranch. The best part happens when you choose from 31 fruits and vegetables, 13 cheeses and proteins, and 15 nuts. Buy select meats, including steak, salmon, shrimp, chicken or turkey, to go on top. Several meat substitutions, such as avocados and tofu, present alternative sources of fat and protein. Choose from eight signature sandwiches to make for a quick lunch, or create your own sandwich from 44 available ingredients. When possible, owner Jo Marie Scaglia purchases local and organic ingredients.

Fiorella's Jack Stack Barbecue touts itself as Kansas City's best barbecue, and the restaurant has the moxie to back it up. Select your dinner from one of the most extensive barbecue menus in the city, which includes nine different meats. For starters, the burnt ends stew has hearty chunks of meat along with vegetables. The signature dish, called Jack's best, contains a crown prime beef rib, a rack of pork ribs and beef burnt ends. The ultimate rib dinner has four different types of ribs on one plate, including lamb ribs, which fall right off the bone when you eat them. If you love huge portions of quality barbecued meats grilled to perfection, then Fiorella's can't fail to please.

The Peanut marks itself as one of Kansas City's oldest bars. The original establishment started as a speakeasy in 1933 during Prohibition. It's Main Street location sits one block southwest of the neighborhood. The Peanut stays open until 1:30 a.m. every night but Sunday, when the building closes at midnight. Order great bar food for lunch and dinner, or attend brunch on Saturday and Sunday. Happy hour goes from 4 to 7 p.m. Regular bar activities include sporting events on big televisions and holiday celebrations the day before Monday holidays such as Labor Day and Memorial Day. Come here if you need to relax after a long week of work.

The surrounding residential neighborhoods have sidewalks, and parks contain plenty of room to walk if you feel like getting some exercise. Locals find it safe to bike through the parks along some of the concrete paths and thoroughfares that wind through them.

Main Street takes you straight to downtown, but U.S. Highway 56 serves as the major road in the area. Troost Avenue and The Paseo in the east run north and south, while Emmanuel Cleaver II Boulevard goes east and west. If you need a taxi, several cab companies service Kansas City, and Uber operates in the area. Parks and public spaces provide plenty of parking spaces for drivers.

Buses from three KCATA routes take and drop off passengers in Park Central. A bus on route 25 makes stops along Troost Avenue at 47th from 5:22 a.m. until 6:54 p.m. every weeknight. Transit vehicles for route 47 travel through 47th as an east-to-west route. Buses travel route 54 up and down The Paseo every day of the week.

Kauffman Legacy Park maintins a conference center, memorial gardens and the Anita B. Gorman Discovery Center for kids. The Thomas J. Kiely Park to the east and the Frank A. Theis Park to the west have plenty of green space for walking. Nearby Brush Creek maintains a concrete pathway for hikers and bikers. Some locals also bring their leashed canines for walks and playtime.

Theis Park hosts several outdoor events during summer months. Take part in the annual art walk, Bark for Life or the Humanitarian Games on the huge lawn just south of the art museum.

Living costs more in Park Central due to its location near other high-end neighborhoods and because of the high standard of living in the area. A one-bedroom apartment runs more than $975 per month.

The price of gas hovers around 20 percent lower than the national average, and a day pass for public transportation costs $3 to go anywhere that the buses run. When going out, a pint of beer at a local bar runs around $3.

If you love retail therapy, Country Club Plaza just to the west serves as your oasis for shopping. Several high-end national chains inhabit the 15-block development, including clothing stores, jewelry outlets and department stores. Apple Market, in the northeast part of the neighborhood, operates as the closest grocery store. To find fresh, local produce, locals visit the Troostwood Youth Garden Market just south of Park Central.

Star Beauty, near Kiely Park, sells everything you need to look and feel good. Buy hair clip-ins, exotic Brazilian hair extensions up to 22 inches long, salon products for all hair types and many different brands of high-end makeup. The store, always neat and tidy, provides customer service that no one can beat. Choose from more than 600 wig styles and the hair color to go with them.

Duke and Bob's Auto Repair characterizes your typical neighborhood repair shop. The place specializes in electronic diagnostics while providing full preventive maintenance services for your vehicle. Duke and Bob's has been a Kansas City institution since 1945, providing guaranteed repairs in a timely fashion. The mechanics give helpful, friendly tips to maintain your car, and customers always go home happy.