Not sure if this is in the right forum or not. I posted this on the Post-Dispatch forum, asking about it, so if it looks familiar I also posted it there. It includes KC metro as well as STL Metro, so I wasn't really sure where it belonged. Sorry. Please move it if necessary.



On a different forum I heard that there is a fair amount of animosity between KCMO and KCKS. I haven't noticed the same between STLMO and STLIL (St. Louisans in Illinois). Is this the case? On the site the forums are divided by state, with St. Louis and Kansas City in the MO forum, but I see no problem talking about the entire metros of both. If someone is looking to move to KC and they ask in the KCMO subforum, anyone who suggests living anywhere in Kansas City, Kansas gets jumped all over. That's not the case on the St. Louis subforum.



Here's one of the Kansas City, Missourian's posts (backing up a similar post by someone else):

Great post. People do want to know about KC and it's ok to tell them about Overland Park, Olathe, Lenexa, Leawood, Shawnee and Mission.



As long as you also tell them about Lee's Summit, Blue Springs, Belton, Raymore, Liberty, KC North, Gladstone etc.



The schools are no better in Kansas than they are in Missouri.



You have Shawnee Mission, Olathe, Blue Valley in Kansas.



You have Blue Springs, RayPec, Lee's Summit, Independence, Fort Osage, Park Hill, Liberty, Platte County, North Kansas City in Missouri.



Kansas people want people to move to "KC" and live in Kansas, work in Kansas, go to school in Kansas and play in Missouri at the expense of Missourians.



There are reasons people on the MO side have issues with Kansans.



If you move to KC, try to make the MO side work first. That is where you will be a true Kansas "Citian", not just a Kansan. If you move to the KS side, you will find you have to go against the grain if you want to like KCMO or Missouri even though that that what KC is all about. KC is about the MO side. There is nothing on the Kansas side except suburbs and a racetrack.

I didn't realize Kansas City, Kansans were not really Kansas Citians (try typing that five times fast). I still consider people living in Edwardsville, Collinsville, Alton, etc to still be St. Louisans. They can come into MO "at our expense" all they want. In fact, Illinois people who come to Missouri are helping the city as far as activity and economically. Whatever money they spend helps the city and the state, even though their property taxes support Illinois. There are great towns in the Illinois side of St. Louis as well as on the Missouri side. If someone from Alton (for example) wants to come to a Cards game and eat out afterward, fine. What does it matter they don't live in Missouri?



I live an hour from Arkansas. I often shop half-an-hour from Arkansas in Poplar Bluff. I see cars from Arkansas. I don't stop the people if I see them and tell them that they're shopping at the expense of our state. Their groceries are taxed, and those taxes, in some shape or form, help our state.



I just don't get it. Why does it matter so much? Is that just Kansas City or do most people in St. Louis (on the MO side) feel the same way about Illinois?



It just doesn't seem like that big of a deal to me.

Illinois isn't drawing people, businesses, and money away from Missouri yet the way KC, KA is. A better analogy here would be St. Louis City and County vs. St. Charles. There is the same kind of talk about people from St. Charles driving inward and using city and county institutions without paying for them. The old mayor of St. Peters referred to this as "the best of both worlds". People who live in St. Louis City and County can't think of anything out in St. Charles County worth visiting, so it is kind of a one-way street.



I think it would be good for St. Louis if Illinois could start attracting people and businesses East to generate the same kind of arguments KC is having. It would re-center the metro area around downtown. Unfortunately, Illinois is still regarded as old and crumbling by many people on West side of the Mississippi, although they may have heard of activity around Shiloh. It is starting to look like people will go South into Jefferson County, before they go East, which further isolates downtown. That's why it would be good for the East side to create attractions that get people over there so they could see themselves living there, like the soccer park. Or if Mid-America could start getting a few flights from a mainline carrier.

I think Gary's got it right. Missourians just don't feel economically threatened by the East Side. In fact, it's somewhat looked-down on.



I think that perception will soon be changing, as all of those East Side cornfields are turned into shops, subdivisions, and office parks. It'll be interesting to see how our attitude towards Illinois changes in the next decade or so.

Framer wrote:I think Gary's got it right. Missourians just don't feel economically threatened by the East Side. In fact, it's somewhat looked-down on.



I think that perception will soon be changing, as all of those East Side cornfields are turned into shops, subdivisions, and office parks. It'll be interesting to see how our attitude towards Illinois changes in the next decade or so.

I think within the real estate and building community that sentiment is already starting to emerge. Whereas west county and St. Charles county real estate developers previously didn't give a second thought to Illinois being any kind of competition they are realizing that with high fuel prices and highway shutdowns that the Metro East doesn't look like such a bad deal for those who want the suburban lifestyle but don't want hour long commutes and spending three figures a week on gas.

I don't see any problem locating the soccer stadium in Illinois.



There was some backlash a few years ago when it was mentioned that new Busch could be located in Illinois, but I can see why. The Cardinals have always been in Missouri and a lot of the sports-related joints are on the Missouri side. It makes good business sense.



And I think if people really want to see an MLS team they'll go to Collinsville. From what I understand it's safe.

Little Egyptian wrote:The backlash over the Soccer Stadium locating in Illinois sort of brought out a lot of the feelings of people in Missouri toward Illinois where I saw statements like "I am not risking being robbed just to see soccer."

lol. Robbed in Collinsville?

Shimmy wrote:

Juice13610 wrote:

Little Egyptian wrote:The backlash over the Soccer Stadium locating in Illinois sort of brought out a lot of the feelings of people in Missouri toward Illinois where I saw statements like "I am not risking being robbed just to see soccer."

lol. Robbed in Collinsville?

Eh, you'd be surprised. But in that part of town? The part of town that is barely in town? No.

Im sure stuff goes on, but their crime rate is lower than my town of 7000 downstate, and its almost half the national avg.