General News in the 316

[SubGod22]

The Outback news really surprised me. Never would have imagined that location would close

[WstateU]

The Outback news really surprised me. Never would have imagined that location would close

[Ted Lasso's Neighbor]

The Outback news really surprised me. Never would have imagined that location would close

Same here. Looks like from the article the lease was up. I imagine either rent went up quite a bit or it wasn't as profitable as in the past and wasn't a good location anymore. I'll have to go to the one on the west side to get my fix of some Outback in the future :)

Wasn't there another restaurant there or maybe it was next door where the On The Border is located that was popular but then closed a few years back when it's lease was up?

[SubGod22]

I can't recall any restaurants in that area leaving, but I know where Trader Joe's is now has had a lot of different businesses. I bought a couple of TVs there years ago. Can't remember what all its been since then.

[WstateU]

Same here. Looks like from the article the lease was up. I imagine either rent went up quite a bit or it wasn't as profitable as in the past and wasn't a good location anymore. I'll have to go to the one on the west side to get my fix of some Outback in the future :)

Wasn't there another restaurant there or maybe it was next door where the On The Border is located that was popular but then closed a few years back when it's lease was up?

Macaroni Grill? One of my favorites.

[Eric]

The Lion King is in town at Century II through May 8 - https://lionking.com/tour/wichita-ks/

Looks like the Outback Steakhouse on Rock Road has closed - https://www.wichitabyeb.com/2022/04/...as-closed.html

The two worst steaks I’ve ever had were at Outback.

[Maizerunner08]

This is old news but along the lines of places closing…I was surprised to see Sprouts leave so quickly. They were honestly a solid grocery option. A Whole Foods without the insane markups.

[Ted Lasso's Neighbor]

Macaroni Grill? One of my favorites.

Thank you WstateU - I would have never thought of that name! From looking online it looks like it was around 2007 when it closed. Looks like the Outback opened in 1993, so I think Macaroni Grill was next to it and closed and then their remodeled it or tore it down and put in the On The Border.

[SHOCKvalue]

Thank you WstateU - I would have never thought of that name! From looking online it looks like it was around 2007 when it closed. Looks like the Outback opened in 1993, so I think Macaroni Grill was next to it and closed and then their remodeled it or tore it down and put in the On The Border.

Barnes & Noble sits on the site of the former Macaroni Grill. OTB and MG used to be neighbors.

The whole shopping center used to look much more pleasing from Rock in that area. Now all you see is the fat a** of the B&N building that's trying to fit into too small of a space, and blocking all kinds of RE frontage in the process.

That Outback used to be THE place for a semi-cheap steak, but went downhill badly many years ago. Used to be managed remarkably well for just being casual dining.

New owners of Bradley Fair are going to need to figure out their plan soon. So far all they have done is run off some pretty significant tenants so that they can be replaced by higher-paying tenants that don't yet exist. Strange business model. Lot of empty storefront and SF at Bradley Fair. Not high from a regional or local perspective, but all time high for Bradley Fair.

[Ted Lasso's Neighbor]

Barnes & Noble sits on the site of the former Macaroni Grill. OTB and MG used to be neighbors.

The whole shopping center used to look much more pleasing from Rock in that area. Now all you see is the fat a** of the B&N building that's trying to fit into too small of a space, and blocking all kinds of RE frontage in the process.

That Outback used to be THE place for a semi-cheap steak, but went downhill badly many years ago. Used to be managed remarkably well for just being casual dining.

New owners of Bradley Fair are going to need to figure out their plan soon. So far all they have done is run off some pretty significant tenants so that they can be replaced by higher-paying tenants that don't yet exist. Strange business model. Lot of empty storefront and SF at Bradley Fair. Not high from a regional or local perspective, but all time high for Bradley Fair.

Thanks - I didn't realize all three restaurants were there together. For some reason I was thinking there was just two and B&N. But after seeing your post I found the press release from 2007 where they announced they were going to tear down MG and put in the B&N.

[SubGod22]

In trying to bring more positive news...lol

I'm always excited about startups and the potential they bring as you never know which ones will find success, but they call Wichita (or the area) home.

WBJ - Wichita startup PLOT launches its tech platform for construction industry

This nifty little venture is designed to help both general contractors and subcontractors streamline communication to help improve construction efficiency and has been assisted with the backing of Koch Industries.

Chris Callen who started this company says he's solely focused on the construction industry for now, but believes that it could be expanded in the future to assist in other fields.


WBJ - Fair Market Health aims to transform how you pay for health care

By partnering with health-care providers, FMH is building what its leadership says is a price-transparent marketplace that runs the full spectrum of health-care services. That, they say, is proving beneficial to not just consumers, but also to employers.

After starting in Wichita, FMH has rapidly expanded across Kansas and, Jargo says, it will look to launch in adjacent markets later in 2022.

They're all about full price transparency and cutting out third party costs, such as insurance providers, to bring costs down. As they say, and they're not wrong, insurance doesn't really need to be involved in every health-care transaction.

Let's be honest, transparency isn't a bad thing. I like the potential here to shake some things up.


A new local non-profit is helping people. WBJ - Inno Madness profile: Co-Immunity

This non-profit started this year and is geared towards connecting the chronically ill with much needed resources. Sometimes, finding the right information on you illness can be difficult.

Co-Immunity has recently launched a new CoVstat Symptom Tracking app now available in both the Apple and Android store.

Shonka has also started a podcast — ChronicILLS — which features guests from the chronically ill community.

In addition, Co-Immunity has boosted its social media outreach and education by 400 people in the past three months and also started a community on instant messaging platform Discord to help further connect and educate.

[Ta Town Shocker]

As someone who has had a few emergency room visits over the past couple of years, the whole process is awful. It needs a complete overhaul and transparency would be a good start. Looking forward to hearing more about Fair Market Health.

[SubGod22]

WBJ - The show will go on: Music Theatre Wichita season still set to kick off in Andover

Despite damage to parts of Andover Central Park from Friday's EF-3 tornado, a multi-Tony Award-winning show will still be coming in two weeks to the Capitol Federal Amphitheater.

Music Theatre Wichita announced that its 2022 season will launch as planned with the debut of "Jersey Boys" from May 18-22.

[SubGod22]

Derby continues to make an effort to be more than just a sleepy little suburb and hopefully it pays off and inspires more surrounding towns to think outside of the box a bit and be more.

WBJ - Derby city council approves final STAR bond project phase

The plan, which passed 8-0, includes a family entertainment and multi-sport area featuring a man-made public access lagoon, a six-acre "glamping" (glamorous camping) site, a 150-room hotel and space for restaurant and commercial development.

.....

According to a city of Derby document, the final phase is projected to bring 248,000 visitors each year to the city, with 50% of those coming from more than 100 miles away.

Derby Destination Development, LLC is the master developer behind the project around Rock Road and 63rd St. South. The plan includes $32.25 million in new STAR bonds and $130.37 million in new capital investment in Derby (75% private and 25% public).

I've praised Derby for years for at least trying to be more self sufficient than most of the metro. Goddard has started making some efforts and I've heard Andover is beginning to look into more than just residential growth. Wichita as a whole would be better off and more attractive to businesses and professionals if we had a little more of a KCish feel, where we aren't almost completely reliant on Wichita proper and there's a more symbiotic feel to the community as a whole. When most of us go to KC, I think we're rarely actually in KC. I know I generally spend most of my time in KC in Olathe, OP and Lenexa. Wichita will always be the major hub of the area, but the more self sufficient and attractive the surrounding communities are benefits everyone.

So this Derby project which is adding what I assume will be a nice Senior Living addition, 300 apartments, 150 room hotel, the lagoon/beach area, a new destination sports complex and who knows what else, to go along with the potential of Field Station: Dinosaur gives them some opportunity to draw people in and help retain others. And these sports facilities can generate a lot of revenue for area businesses, no matter the sport. Some of these tournaments that are put on draw teams in from all over. I've been to a lot of area softball tournaments over the past 15 years or so and of course you see a lot of KS teams, but also quite a few from OK and MO with some IA, NE, CO, TX and AR thrown in. When I used to work MAYB, you'd see all of those states frequently. I can only assume baseball and soccer are similar.

I come from a tiny town that has nearly doubled in size since I was a little lad, but we only just broke 1000 in the last census. The town is currently caught in a bad place with regards to size as they're actively seeking out new business opportunities but are considered to still be a little too small and they're struggling to find a developer who will come in and help grow the residential population which will lead to a few more business opportunities within. Most developers don't want to build anything under 300k and while the city would like that in the future (we have million dollar homes already), right now they're trying to finish off a few areas with a little more reasonable housing prices to grow the population size so they can better grow in both areas in the future. The bright side is they have quite a bit of land for future growth and development, but they're struggling to find someone to help them get there. This town is never going to be Derby, but it already has an attraction that draws people in from all over the state. So I know it's not as easy as just wanting it to happen, but there are towns that are better positioned to do more.

Sorry for dragging this on. I get a little passionate about my hometown and have long wanted it to have leaders that would push for growth rather than just accepting the status quo. We have some people in place that are doing what they can, but it's been a struggle.

To sum up, I like that Derby has tried thinking outside of the box and has been working towards growth in all areas.

[SubGod22]

WBJ - The show will go on: Music Theatre Wichita season still set to kick off in Andover

And by the way, if you haven't been out to the Cap Fed Amphitheater for a show, look into it. I went to a concert there a few years ago with a couple of friends and it's really a nice setup. Bring your own blankets or lawn chairs and enjoy a show. Multiple food trucks were available and adult beverages as well. It was a really good time and just a nice overall environment. I believe they try to do a series of concerts every summer. We went and enjoyed The Plain White T's along with Vertical Horizon, which for a bunch of kids raised in the 90s, was a feel good show with a lot of nostalgia.

If you're into Country, Chris Janson will be headlining a show June 24th.

I haven't gone to one of their Movies in the Park nights, but they have three on the calendar. Iron Man on July 9th, The Mighty Ducks on August 13th, and Casper on October 22nd.

As previously mentioned, The Jersey Boys is running from May 18th thru the 22nd.

And Taco Fest is being held June 25th with live music, taco's, jalapeno eating contests, alcohol and some lucha libre wrestling.

https://www.andoverks.com/612/Capitol-Federal-Amphitheater

I feel weird pimping Andover as they were once a rival of Circle, but it is what it is.