KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Visit KC leaders say there has never been a better time to be in Kansas City.
New events are coming to the metro and they’re seeing record-breaking tourism numbers.
But Visit KC President & CEO Kathy Nelson is keenly aware of how rising crime can impact what they’ve done to get the city where it is.
Nelson says right now is a unique time where Kansas City will get to shine on the biggest of stages and the work to get where we are hasn’t been easy.
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In 2023, the city saw the most visitors in its history, 28.4 million people, pulling in almost $4 billion. The total economic impact with direct and indirect spending brought in almost $7 billion.
“We used to be intimidated but now we’re that city that is becoming intimidating to other cities which is a really fun place to be,” Nelson said.
All of that can be gone in a flash if the city is not safe.
“It’s just going to take one horrific situation and we’re going to lose convention business which is a massive driver of economic development or economic impact in our community,” Nelson continued. “Unfortunately we are seeing some of that tick of well. My attendees didn’t feel safe, or someone had a car stolen or someone had their purse stolen we make sure to share that information because it’s becoming more prevalent.”