City Town Info

Overland Park, KS


  • Overview
  • Almanac
  • People
  • Local
  • Schools
  • Comments

Overland Park, Kansas

Introduction to Overland Park, Kansas

Overland Park is one of Kansas' most populous cities. Located in Johnson County just 13 miles southwest of Kansas City, Overland Park is surrounded by several major highways including Interstates I-35, I-70, I-435, I-635, and I-670; and U.S. Routes 50, 56, and 69. The closest large airport to Overland Park, about a 40 minute drive away, is Kansas City International (MCI). Several smaller airports located in or near Johnson County include Johnson County Executive Airport, New Century Air Centre, and Kansas City Downtown Airport.

The origins of Overland Park trace back to 1905, when its founder William B. Strang Jr. platted a series of subdivisions whose defining characteristics would be self-sustainment and a "park-like" atmosphere. One of these subdivisions, called Overland Park, boasted continuous growth throughout the first half of the 20th century up to its incorporation in 1960. During the 1980s, Overland Park experienced a boom in both residential and commercial development, culminating in a population total surpassing the 100,000 mark by 1988. By the turn of the 21st century, Overland Park had achieved national recognition as one of the nation's premiere cities in terms of quality of life index. The city was named 2001's second-best city in America to live by Business Development Outlook magazine, "One of the Best Places to Live and Work" in 2005 by Expansion Management magazine, and one of the top six cities on Money Magazine’s 2006 annual list of "America’s Best Places to Live".

Points of Interest in and around Overland Park

Both Overland Park and nearby Kansas City offer a wealth of attractions from museums and live theater to parks and petting zoos. The Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens is a 300-acre site which includes a children's discovery garden within a natural setting complete with walking trails, flowers, and waterfalls. The Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead, where visitors can feed farm animals or enjoy a hay ride on a horse-drawn wagon, features a replica of an early-1900s farmhouse. The Nerman Museum, the largest contemporary art museum in the Midwest, features galleries for both temporary exhibitions and permanent collections. The New Theatre Restaurant, a city dining and entertainment fixture for over 30 years, has been cited by the Wall Street Journal as "the best dinner theatre in the country."

Visitors to Overland Park are only a short drive away from a wide variety of quality professional sports venues. Local teams include Major League Baseball's Kansas City Royals, the National Football League's Kansas City Chiefs, and Major League Soccer's Kansas City Wizards. Other pro sports teams in Kansas City include the Brigade of the Arena Football League (AFL), the Explorers of World Team Tennis (WTT), and an independent minor-league baseball team, the Kansas City T-Bones, who compete in the Northern League.

High Points

Overland Park strengths, compared to Peers (similar size places nationally) or State (other places in Kansas):

CategoryTrophy
Low Rate of Poverty
(vs. Peers)
Top 1%trophyOverland Park Low Rate of Poverty
People in Middle Class or Better
(vs. Peers)
Top 1%trophyOverland Park People in Middle Class or Better
College Educated Adults
(vs. Peers)
Top 3%trophyOverland Park College Educated Adults
Median Family Income
(vs. Peers)
Top 4%trophyOverland Park Median Family Income
Low Violent Crime
(vs. Peers)
Top 5%trophyOverland Park Low Violent Crime
Well-Paid Single Men
(vs. Peers)
Top 6%Overland Park Well-Paid Single Men
Well-Paid Single Women
(vs. Peers)
Top 6%Overland Park Well-Paid Single Women
Low Property Crime
(vs. Peers)
Top 13%Overland Park Low Property Crime
Racial Diversity
(vs. State)
Top 15%Overland Park Racial Diversity
Public Transportation Use
(vs. State)
Top 16%Overland Park Public Transportation Use

Comparative Profile of Overland Park, KS

Comparing Overland Park to similar size places nationwide (Peers) and to other places in Kansas (State):

Ratings range from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).


The People

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Well-Paid Single Men1010
Well-Paid Single Women1010
Age of the Population104
Female Share of the Population74
Senior Citizens62
Children Under 5 Years Old57
Male Share of the Population47
Racial Diversity19

Families

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Portion of People Married97
Average Household Size57

Wealth

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
People in Middle Class or Better1010
People Above Poverty1010
College Educated Adults1010
Median Family Income1010

Commute & Sprawl

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Working at Home1010
Short Commute Times95
Public Transportation Use19
Walking and Biking to Work17

Housing

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Housing Recently Built910
Seasonal and Vacation Housing87
People Living Alone44
Affordability of Property Taxes31
Affordability of Rents21
Studio & One-Bedroom Rentals210

Crime

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Low Violent Crime105
Low Property Crime94

Detailed pages on related topics: Overland Park collegesOverland Park travelOverland Park mortgage and property.

You are visiting:
All StatesKansas > Overland Park

Additional Details

Overland Park CollegesOverland Park Colleges
Overland Park colleges and trade schools.
Overland Park Hotels & TravelOverland Park Hotels & Travel
Overland Park hotels, landmarks, tourism, transportation.
Overland Park MortgageOverland Park Mortgage
Overland Park property, mortgage, and real estate.

Career and College Resources on CityTownInfo

Real-World Career Reports

Career Stories from workers: daily activities, job tips, best/worst job aspects, training, etc.

Career Videos. Professional videos on 800+ jobs, featuring actual employees.

Daily Career & Education News from our staff. We're an approved Google News provider!

Career Reference and Data

Resource Center. A starting point for all CityTownInfo career and college resources.

Career Overviews of hundreds of careers: descriptions, salaries, forecasts, schools, more.

Top Cities for each career. Lists and maps; salaries by city.

Top Industries. Lists of major hiring industries by career, with salaries.

City Comparisons, showing most common jobs, highest paying, etc.

Original Career Articles and Studies

Best Careers Not Requiring Degrees: Good pay, job growth, low need for degrees.

Helpful Articles, many in "how-to" format; e.g., "How to Become a Chef".

Interactive College Search Tools

College Search Scout™. Search by degree, location, major, athletics, etc.

CollegeMatch™. Find school most similar to one of interest.

College Directories and Lists

These lists link to thousands of detailed school profiles.

Colleges by State. Nearly every college and trade school in the country.

Colleges Listed Alphabetically. About 7,000 colleges & trade schools, including online schools.

Exceptional Schools. Lists of the "best/most/highest/lowest" schools.

Places Similar to Overland Park

We've crunched the numbers to create PlaceMatch™, which compares thousands of cities and towns to find the places most similar to each.

Find places similar to Overland Park

Additional Resources


Large City Map

Info for Overland Park Government Officials

Are you an official in the Overland Park government or quasi-government agency such as the chamber of commerce, visitors bureau or economic development council? If so, visit our information page for government officials to see how CityTownInfo can support you.

Spread The Word

Webmasters & Bloggers: Please link to this page on Overland Park. Just copy the HTML below and paste it into your web page or blog.


Copyright © 2004-2009, Moving Traffic, Inc. All Rights Reserved.