Inside East/West
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
The Kansas City Zoo is holding an Earth Day party on Saturday.
East and West of Lawrence
SEE PAGE 10B
Wednesday
April 14, 1999
Page 6 B
WWW.KANSAN.COM/SPORTS
LEAVIN' LAWRENCE
When Lawrence ceases to be entertaining, many KU students and faculty hit the highways and head to Topeka and Kansas City.
Topeka mall competes for KU student dollars
Stores' popularity plays large role in shopping choice
By Kris M. Elliott Special to the Kanson
Much of the controversy lies in the removal or absence of popular stores.
The West Ridge Mall in Topeka, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, remains, in some KU student's eyes, in fierce competition with Kansas City's malls and Lawrence's downtown stores.
"What happened is back 10 years ago when we opened, most places did 10-year leases," said Vicki Hosman, marketing director for the mall. "It's a natural thing. What was popular 10 years ago, those stores aren't popular now."
The mall, at 1801 SW Wanamaker Road, has 115 specialty stores open and five anchors: The Jones Store Company; Dillard's; Montgomery Ward; Sears, Roebuck and Company; and J.C. Penney Co. Inc.
Starting in November, several stores began closing in the mall. The Limited Inc., Express and Structure stores
closed, and were replaced with S&K Men's Wear, Parade Shoes and Contempo Casuals. A new IHOP—International House of Pancakes —should open outside of the mall at the end of this month.
Some stores' leases were not renewed to get new stores in, Hosman said.
For some University of Kansas students, the changes taking place at the West Ridge Mall mean they will not shop there as often, especially with Kansas City malls only slightly farther away.
"There are always millions of people there making the lines for things horrendous and not worth it," said Abbey Baker, Topeka sophomore. "I would much rather drive to eight different stores than stand in line for an hour at each store at the mall."
Angie Bezdek, Topeka Junior, said the biggest problem with West Ridge Mall is the lack of variety of stores.
"I've heard a lot of complaints," Bezek said. "Some friends still just go there because they don't want to drive to Kansas City, but they're just not pleased with the overall variety."
Baker said she had heard of the stores moving out of the mall and thought that it was a reflection on the
mall's inconveniences.
Both shoppers said one store in particular could really help boost West Ridge Mall's popularity - Old Navy.
"I know that they were supposed to have an Old Navy go in," Bezdek said. "I don't know if that is going to go through or not, but I think that would help a lot."
Baker said she sometimes drove to Kansas City just to go to Old Navy.
Hosman said she thought there were several stores at West Ridge Mall that would tract college students, including American Eagle Outfitters, GAP, Eddie Flauer Inc., and Bath and Body Works. Hosman also said the mall had 14 movie theaters.
Hosman said she could not release the names of stores that were thinking of joining the mall until a contract had been signed.
Another aspect of the mall that is becoming more popular is the Mall Perks program, which is a reward program for shoppers. Shoppers pay $5 to enroll in the program, and then every dollar spent in the mall earns points toward discounts at stores.
West Ridge Mall is open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sundays noon to 5 p.m.
- Edited by Jodi Smith
Topeka's West Ridge Mall has been open for 10 years. Its stores compete against trendier Lawrence and Kansas City businesses for the patronage of younger shoppers. Photo by Gus Koffler/KANSAN
The Tapete Performing Arts Center is host to a variety of shows, from musicals to rock concerts. The center will feature acts such as Don McLean and the Beach Boys this year. Photo by Roger Kemer/NKANSAN
Jazz, rock highlight season of Topeka music shows
By Allan Davis
Don McLean is coming to the center. The Beach Boys Family and Friends may be coming, too.
McLean, famous for his hits American Pie and Vincent, will appear May 21. The center is hoping to add the Beach Boys Family and Friends to its schedule soon. Carnie and Wendy Wilson of Wilson Phillips are a part of the Beach Boys Family and Friends show. Brian Wilson, their father, is one of the original Beach Boys.
The Topeka Performing Arts Center, a half-hour west of Lawrence, features acts you cannot catch at a local club or at the Lied Center.
Special to the Kansan
The center's regular season runs from September through April, but events can be announced at any time during the year.
"Just because we're in our season doesn't mean that we won't add a good show if it's made available to us, and we like it," said Kate Hastings, director of marketing for the center. Hastings also said the center planned its seasons with the intent of finding things that appealed to a wide variety of audiences.
Hastings also said the center's Partners in Education program offered groups from schools like the University of Kansas 50 percent discounts for up to 100 of the lowest priced tickets to most shows.
"That really takes the school saying they want to do that," Hastings said. "So, if you have an instructor at the school (who) says I've got 10 students who want to come' to whatever show it is, we could tell you whether we're running that. We do run it for most of the shows that we produce."
Hastings said the center was under contract with the city to produce shows. The center, a nonprofit organization, leases its building from Topeka. The building used to be the Topeka Municipal Auditorium. It was renovated about nine years ago and opened in 1991 as the Topeka Performing Arts Center.
Bryce Miller, Topeka resident, said he was pleased with the conversion. Miller said he saw the Dukes of Dixieland at the center, and the acoustics were excellent. He also said he
The center features a mixture of theater, song, dance, jazz, classical and pop music. Coming events include The Lettermen, a vocal group most popular in the early '60s. They will appear at 8 p.m., April 17. Tickets are $25,$20 and $15.
used to go to Starlight Theatre in Kansas City, Mo., but he had not been there since Topeka's center had opened.
The center's Georgia Neese Gray Performance Hall seats 2,600. Wheelchair seating also is available. The building also houses the Hussey Playhouse Theatre, also called the Black Box because the room is entirely black. It seats 136.
That is what happened with McLean and may happen with the Beach Boys Family and Friends.
"That's something that anybody who likes world-class jazz would be really interested in." Hastings said. "The lineup for the show is phenomenal. The best jazz — straight-ahead jazz musicians from around the world."
All-session three-day packages are $165,
$300 and $1,000. Single-session passes for Saturday
and Sunday are $50. The single ticket
for Monday is $60 and is good for all sessions
that day. Group rate prices are also available.
Interstring, a part of the center's Best of Kansas City Jazz series, will perform at 3 p.m.. April 25. Tickets are $12 each.
There are also treats for younger audiences. A children's show, "101 Dalmatians," will be performed at 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., April 16.
"Freedom Train," a part of the Center's Youth Educational Programs, will be performed at 10 a.m., April 29. Tickets are $5 each. "Freedom Train" tells the story of Harriet Tubman, an African-American woman who led runaway slaves to freedom via the Underground Railroad.
The center is offering student-rate ticket plans.
"On our group discounts, whenever you can get 20 people together, there's some pretty good discounts to almost every one of our shows." Hastings said.
The 1999 Topeka International Jazz Festival will be Memorial Day weekend, May 29 to 31.
—Edited by Juan H. Heath
Don McLean will perform May 21. Students can check with the center's box office for time and ticket prices.
TOPEKA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
■ Next season's schedule will be announced
■ Man 1. Season tickets for next ses
around May 1. Season tickets for next season will be available in June or July. AllICKets can be purchased at the TPAC box office or ordered by mail, fax or phone.
■ Mail inquiries should be sent to The Topea Performing Arts Center, 214 S.E. 8th St., Topeka, KS 66063. The center's box office is open 10:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. Monday through Friday. Outside Shawnee County, the telephone number is (800) 949-8722. The telephone number in Shawnee County is (785) 297-9000. The fax number is (785) 234-2307.
Tickets are also available through Ticketmaster. Hy-Vee and Vibes Music Store are Lawrence Ticketmaster outlets.
- To get to TPAC from Lawrence, take the Kansas Turnpike to the East Tepocha exit, then follow Interstate 70 West to exit 362B, then turn left onto 8th Street, the center is immediately on the right side. The next step is to find a parking space. Ignore the sign on -70 West that says to take exit 362C, the 10th St. exit. The sign is wrong; do not take exit 362C. Take exit 362B.
The TPAC Internet address is http://www.tpactix.org
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