‘City Within a City; Kansas City Meeting Site Offers Abundant Choices

Participants at the Association’s Fall Convention need not go far to find fun. The Sheraton Kansas City is part of Crown Center, an 85-acre “city within a city” in downtown.

Crown Center is home to three live theaters, a movie theater, 300,000 square feet of shopping space, and more choices for meals than time to eat them, including The American Restaurant, rated by Forbes as a four-star dining experience.

And, Crown Center tells a great story. The development was the brainchild of Joyce C. Hall, the founder of Hallmark Cards, Inc., who through great personal investment led a concept decades ago that reversed the decline of downtown Kansas City. He conceived of one of the nation’s first mixed-use redevelopments—a combination of offices, condominiums, shops, restaurants, and entertainment.

Of course, there is much to explore beyond Crown Center. Among easy-to-reach destinations from the hotel are the National World War I Museum & Memorial, Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, the College Basketball Experience in the trendy Power & Light District, and the historic 18th and Vine Jazz District. S