Two events to tell you about, both happening Saturday:

The Brookside Farmers’ Market is heading indoors this Saturday, Nov 17, 2018.  You’ll find it at Research Medical Center, 6675 Holmes, open from 9am-noon.  Enter parking lot B near the Curry Education Center.

Also…if you are looking for a unique, handmade gift for someone special this holiday season, check out the Academie Lafayette Art Market–also this Saturday from 10am-5pm.  Over 20 vendors will be there, offering home made jewelry, soaps, jams, Christmas ornaments, pillows, leather goods, etc.  The Art Market is at the school located at 3421 Cherry St.  Food trucks will offer coffee, pastries and crepes!

Halloween is today…and that means it’s time for the annual Trick or Treat Street in Brookside!

From 4-6pm, costumed little kiddos and their parents will be walking along 63rd St, collecting sweet treats from our local merchants. Please be aware of the hundreds of people who will be out at this time, strolling along 63rd from Wornall east to Oak St.  If possible, try to avoid this area altogether Halloween afternoon!

Thank you to the Brookside Business Association for keeping this family friendly event happening every year in our neighborhood.  Please support our Brookside merchants.

Have some spare time and want to give back to your community?  Waldo Serve Day is this Saturday, Sept 8, 2018.  There will be several places where you can volunteer for a few hours to help improve our local area.

Meet at HJ’s Youth and Community Center, 6425 Wornall,  at 8am for breakfast; there you will be assigned a project location…  possibly be Hale Cook Elementary, Cleaver YMCA, graffiti clean up, etc. Work till 11:30am, then back to HJ’s  for lunch if you like.  

There are a few more details on the  HJ’s event calendar. This event is hosted by Restore Community Church in Waldo.

Today’s blog is about a locally owned business at 8320  Wornall Rd:  Big Splash Car Wash.  The business is under new ownership and recently celebrated a grand ‘reopening’. 

Claire Cunningham and her husband Jason own several of these car washes around the KC area—other locations include Overland Park,  Westport and a new site opening in Grandview this Fall.  Claire explains the design of the property is for “easy in and easy out to get your car washed. There are three entrance lanes including a special lane for members only”.  Drivers stay in the vehicle as it goes through the wash, and free DIY vacuums are available.  The car wash is designed to service up to 150 cars an hour (!!).  I used the wash a couple of weeks ago and was finished up, including vacuuming my car interior, within 20 minutes.

At Big Splash, you can stop in for a one time wash or purchase a membership and they have several packages available.  I did a quick run through called the “Splash ‘N Dash” for $8, which washed the outside with a jet dry.  The machines did a pretty good job for the price of the wash.

One thing to note if you want to try Big Splash:  the never ending road construction along this part of Wornall can make it tricky to find the entrance to the business.  It’s been frustrating for the owners!  So be aware of the road blockage and work vehicles as you get closer to the location. Big Splash is located on the west side of Wornall, near McDonald’s.

Big Splash Car Wash  is a good alternative to the total self-service wash farther north on Wornall at 74^th St, and less expensive than the full service Waterway on State Line Road.  Stop in and try it—support our locally owned Waldo businesses!

The popular Brookside women’s clothing store, Shopgirls, is now located in the fast-growing Brookside East area of Brookside, at 6215 Oak.

You may remember late last year, the landlord for the previous Shopgirls location at 6245 Brookside Plaza (near Foos) declined to renew the lease.  (Another women’s clothing store, Lady Bye, is now in the old Shopgirls spot.)  During the busy holiday shopping season, Shopgirls had a temporary pop up store above Jalapeno’s.  

If you are looking for the  new Shopgirls spot, note that the signage above the awning visible to the street says HAMILTON.  However, inside you’ll find the same unique jewelry, accessories and fashionable women’s casual clothes that were in the old location…and of course, the same personable service!

Thanks for supporting locally owned businesses in Brookside and Waldo!

Wonderful Waldo finished the year strong in terms of rising home values…will report on those stats in the latter part of the blog.  Prices have been on a steady rise the past few years.  First, let’s examine the figures for December 2017 with comparisons to last year.  I’m using the boundaries of Gregory to 85th St, State Line to Holmes:

December 2017                                                     December 2016

Median list price:       $164,950                          Median list price:    $179,900

Median sales price:     $161,500                         Median sales price: $179,000

No. of homes sold:      32                                     No. of homes sold:    17

Days on market:          37                                     Days on market:       21

Although the median price dropped compared to 2016, more home sold that were in the lower price range for Waldo. That affects the median sales price.  

Here are 2017 the year end stats:  Continue reading →

UPDATE 12/31/2017

DUE TO THE EXTREME COLD, THE WALDO BALL DROP HAS BEEN CANCELLED!  CELEBRATE AMONGST YOURSELVES AS YOU WELCOME 2018!

It’s the last blog of 2017!  And what a year it has been for our Brookside/Waldo neighborhood.  Home prices have been way up, and we welcomed many new small businesses!

Yes, it’s going to be frigid cold on New Year’s Eve this year however–you are welcome to bring a warm beverage and ring in 2018 at the annual Waldo Ball Drop.  Meet your friends and neighbors at 75th and Wornall by the fountain just before midnight–and watch the lighted ball drop down.  

Thank you for reading my blog, thank you for supporting local Brookside/Waldo businesses and …happy 2018 to all!

This is the 25th year for the annual Kristkindl Markt at the Country Club Congregational United Church of Christ in Brookside at 205 W 65th St.  Everyone is welcome!

If you’ve never been to this event–you are in for a good time.  Authentic German food is available for purchase, plus (of course) there is a biergarten!  Local vendors host several craft and gift booths, and the live music and caroling will get you in the holiday spirit. One of the more popular activities is the make-your-own gingerbread house for the little ones, with proceeds going to Operation Breakthrough.

The church is located in surrounded by homes and narrow streets, so please plan accordingly–walk there accessing the Trolley Track Trail or MAX bus; or plan to park a few blocks away.  Hours are Friday Dec 1, 2017 5-9pm and Saturday Dec 2 10am-7pm.