Neighborhoods surrounding Union Station preparing for parking, congestion on narrow streets

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - With 300,000 people coming to the city this weekend, the downtown area and its surrounding neighborhoods will get a little crowded.

The NFL has encouraged visiting fans to use its OnePass app to find parking, but some surrounding neighborhoods are expecting visitors to find their side streets and fill up their narrow streets with their cars.

Tom Garrett, who is part of the Union Hill Neighborhood Association, said major events downtown and near Union Station typically bring a lot of additional traffic to their normally quiet street.

“Whenever we have a big event at Union Station or the World War I Museum and Memorial, we feel the parking impact here,” Garrett said.

Garrett said his driveway has been at least partially blocked in the past, making it difficult for him to get out. He said the narrow streets in Union Hill can also become difficult to navigate if people don’t park against the curb.

“We’re really hopeful that people will be courteous and not block our driveway,” he said.

But, as a precaution, the neighborhood association purchased a batch of cones for people to put at the ends of their driveways as a reminder to visitors. They distributed them Monday night in preparation for the busy week ahead.

“Be courteous to the public space in the neighborhood,” Garrett requested. “As long as we approach things with a spirit of cooperation, life will be fine.”

Others, like Amelia Harshfield, planned to use a different approach.

“I’m taking the precaution of just being okay with staying in this weekend and hunkering down,” she said.

Copyright 2023 KCTV. All rights reserved.