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  #1  
Old Posted Dec 7, 2018, 4:25 AM
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Wichita - Downtown

Wichita is the 50th largest city in the United States by population (390,000) and is the largest city of the Wichita-Arkansas City-Winfield Combined Statistical Area (645,000) in Kansas.

This thread will focus on a variety of features in downtown, including the stretch of the Arkansas River that forms its Western boundary.

Exploration Place:
This striking hands-on science and natural history museum sits on the Western bank of the river within walking distance of the downtown; it was designed by Moshe Safdie.































The Keeper of the Plains:
Located at a convergence in the river near downtown, this monumental sculpture sits in a rocky plaza and is connected to the banks by two pedestrian bridges.



















Eastern bank of the Arkansas River:
A pedestrian path runs along the bank, punctuated by several plazas, memorials, fountains, and underpasses of a few small bridges that cross the river.































Hyatt Regency:
The remainder of this thread will show many of the notable buildings in the core of the city, which is not very dense, starting with this riverside tower.



YMCA:





INTRUST Bank Arena:







Epic Center:
This is Kansas' tallest building at 385'.



Wichita City Hall:





Wichita Public Library:
The central library of the city is recently closed and replaced with a branch that is across the river from downtown (not shown here).





The Garvey Center:





Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center:











Various houses of worship:























Wichita Scottish Rite Center:





Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum (originally city hall):







Old Sedgwick County Courthouse:









Old City Library:



Wichita U.S. Courthouse and Post Office:











Various historic buildings:

























































All photos taken by geomorph in 2018.

Last edited by geomorph; Dec 7, 2018 at 4:35 AM.
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  #2  
Old Posted Dec 7, 2018, 5:32 AM
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Great stuff...
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Old Posted Dec 7, 2018, 1:15 PM
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Great shots and beautiful buildings. What's going to happen with the recently closed central library building?
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Old Posted Dec 7, 2018, 3:05 PM
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Very nice. I really enjoyed my stay in Wichita a few years back.
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  #5  
Old Posted Dec 7, 2018, 9:40 PM
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Wow! That's nice.
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Old Posted Dec 7, 2018, 11:59 PM
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Impressive
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  #7  
Old Posted Dec 9, 2018, 10:16 PM
BigDipper 80 BigDipper 80 is offline
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I really like Wichita, it's a great little city. It's crazy that the city proper is larger than Cleveland these days, although its metro area is still smaller than Dayton's or even Toledo's MSAs.
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Old Posted Dec 9, 2018, 11:11 PM
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Great tour! Looks like Wichita has a large variety of quality buildings. All the sculptures and parkland you showed adds a lot to the city's attractiveness.
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Old Posted Dec 10, 2018, 1:29 AM
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Nice!
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Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 4:07 AM
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Old Town

Here are some additional photos; these are from Old Town, which is an historic district with some modern in-fill adjacent to downtown across a railroad right-of-way.

























All photos taken by geomorph in 2018.
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  #11  
Old Posted Dec 24, 2018, 5:30 PM
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Great thread!! Wichita does seem to have a nice central downtown core, although I am somewhat disappointed that it doesn't seem to attract more development for downtown living, lofts and whatnot. While the Old Town looks pretty nice, you'd think there would be a lot more to offer in the realm of entertainment. Maybe they do, and I just don't pay enough attention. I haven't been there in quite a long time, and I don't live very far away!! Love to see a few more office towers go up!!
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  #12  
Old Posted Jan 6, 2019, 1:27 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lakelander View Post
Great shots and beautiful buildings. What's going to happen with the recently closed central library building?
I have not found any news of a new purpose for the old building, nor for any demolition. Just a few articles from the summer saying that some of the old furniture and shelves were for sale and needed to be removed by October 2 of 2018.
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  #13  
Old Posted Jan 6, 2019, 5:54 AM
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Nice to see Wichita on here. It looks a little better than I expected. It is definitely as "low" as I figured, but I also assumed it would have a pretty pathetic Downtown.
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  #14  
Old Posted Jan 23, 2019, 11:34 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kcexpress69 View Post
Great thread!! Wichita does seem to have a nice central downtown core, although I am somewhat disappointed that it doesn't seem to attract more development for downtown living, lofts and whatnot.
Yes there was very little downtown living here, but a large condo or apartment project was being constructed along the river on the opposite bank from downtown and it looked like it would add some vibrancy.
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  #15  
Old Posted Oct 28, 2020, 5:17 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by geomorph View Post
Yes there was very little downtown living here, but a large condo or apartment project was being constructed along the river on the opposite bank from downtown and it looked like it would add some vibrancy.
Yes, Wichita does need a little bit of a makeover in terms of downtown. It needs a couple skyscrapers to really beautify it. A skyscraper around 40-45 stories and 550-600 feet tall near Century 2 and a 30-35 story 450 foot tall high rise near the Epic Center would be great. The Epic Center is like 22 or 23 stories and 320 feet to the top floor and is close to 400 feet to the tip. https://www.penumbrariverwalk.com/. I am still hoping this company is going to bring change to Wichita.

Here is a nice picture of the Epic Center in Wichita at full height. https://images.app.goo.gl/EcPhA7oAJ7WYx7TJ8

Last edited by Shakespeare2016; Oct 28, 2020 at 5:43 AM.
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  #16  
Old Posted Oct 28, 2020, 1:18 PM
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High quality buildings. I like the brutalism on the plains.
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  #17  
Old Posted Oct 30, 2020, 6:31 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pj3000 View Post
High quality buildings. I like the brutalism on the plains.
With the exception of North Dakota and South Dakota, Kansas has one of the smallest skylines in the Midwest. Des Moines, Iowa which is half the size of Wichita, Kansas has a 45 story building 630 feet building. They have had it since 1991. I am hoping for a building that will be closer to 600 feet tall. Even at 600 feet Wichita would still be the smallest skyline in the Midwest with the exception again of North Dakota and South Dakota.
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  #18  
Old Posted Nov 17, 2020, 8:14 PM
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Originally Posted by Shakespeare2016 View Post
Des Moines, Iowa which is half the size of Wichita, Kansas has a 45 story building 630 feet building. They have had it since 1991.
Des Moines metro ~700k is slightly larger than Wichita metro ~640k
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  #19  
Old Posted Dec 10, 2020, 5:23 AM
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Really enjoyed the tour. Used to drive past all the time back in the 80's. Fine architectural examples. Really fine. I loved all the sculptures. I wish those things were incorporated throughout all cities en mass.
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  #20  
Old Posted Jun 16, 2022, 8:53 PM
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https://chng.it/Fp7mJjXx

I am trying to bring something taller to downtown Wichita. I call it The Wichita Aerospace Needle. It would be at least 500 feet to the observation deck and 550-600 feet to the tip. I started a petition a couple weeks ago. Feel free to sign and share. It costs nothing and donations are optional.
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