Welcome to La Placita Market at Bethany Park!

 

What is La Placita?

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         La Placita is a bi-monthly Market at Bethany Park. It features vendors, entertainment, and the opportunity for members of the community to connect.

 

The market is 100% secured and promoted by CABA with the extraordinary help of the Unified Government’s Parks and Recreation Department. La Placita enjoys the help from many community volunteers, community conscious businesses and organizations the same.

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The potential for the extended success of La Placita reaches all Central Avenue Commercial Corridor. The project is greatly scalable. In past years, we have experienced the energy generated during each event and we know this energy has inspire even greater grassroots participation.

 

Older folks, single parent families, single mothers and abused, neglected members of our community are searching for direction, knowledge, experience, and opportunity. We believe the low income/hard working people of our community need a place to expose themselves to non-threatening, low at-front investment business opportunity surrounded by friends and family with a chance to explore commerce and meet new people.

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The highs and lows of working life makes it difficult to enjoy recreational time. The success of our program comes from marring the need to generate income with the opportunity to enjoy time with family and friends. With everyone’s help in making the Market/Business Incubator a success we bring our community together.

 

As CABA does not collect any moneys from the vendors in the way of fees or dues, they enjoy 100% of their profits and, we enjoy seeing them become financially independent.

 

We are simply too enthusiastic of a community to allow the opportunity to change things in a positive direction slip away, so we created La Placita Market and gave it the strength of a Grassroots Business Incubator to help our community help itself!

 

Mission

La Placita shall be an open-door venue for community members to explore their ability to produce and commercialize any given product without the pressure of major at front investment. 

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Vision

Within La Placita's operation, each vending start-up shall be guided and prompted to engage in learning the commercialization of products and services. Product presentation, market analysis and forward planning are imbedded in the process for learning how to build a path to financial success.

 

Project’s History

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It all began when graduate students from the KU School of Architecture conducted a survey with residents of the Central Avenue area during the annual Central Avenue Parade in 2013.

 

Members of the community were asked what they liked and did not like about Kansas City/East Wyandotte. Unsurprisingly, home and church were some of the most liked areas. However, what came as a shocking surprise was that Bethany Park earned the sad title of “the least liked” place in Kansas City!

 

Instead of ignoring the negative results of the survey, CABA embraced the opportunity for positive change.

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In 2014, CABA developed an idea to enhance Bethany Park as the community thought it was time for something to be done to change the Park’s image. It was CABA’s desire to change the park into a place that inspired the community and serve as a positive location once again. Bringing to everyone the opportunity for furthering the financial growth La Placita was born.

 

During the same year CABA hosted 6 events where more than 25 vendors participated. Each vendor benefited financially but, the community benefited much more by rescuing the Park for its members.

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This year we are producing a larger number of events in hopes that we can host the market every weekend sometime soon.

 

There is no denying the fact that Bethany Park is at the “heart” of the Central Avenue Commercial Corridor, thus our program’s venue is very well located. Just as our bodies are only as healthy as our heart is, our community’s hearth can prosper with a healthy Grassroots Business Incubator. 

 

Business Incubator

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La Placita is CABA’s Grassroots Business Incubator designed to invigorate, revitalize, and rebrand Central Avenue’s Corridor by empowering underserved residents to test their business dreams in a real-time market, giving them the opportunity to learn the intricacies of administrating a business while minimizing their at-front investment.

 

Our final goal is to help them generate wellbeing for themselves and perhaps, opening a front door in our commercial corridor.

 

Highlighting under-utilized Bethany Park in the popular Kansas City Kansas area, the program’s goal has been to create positive economic impact which benefits everyone in our community; The neighborhoods, residents, local businesses, potential businesses, corporations, Wyandotte County, and you.

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Thanks to the community’s help and support, Central Avenue Betterment Association is willing and, has been able to sponsors as many as 10 Micro Start-Ups each session. Our sponsorship program includes an umbrella structure for:

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• La Placita Market Permits. 

• La Placita Vendors Insurance. 

• La Placita Vendors Food Handlers Training. 

• La Placita Market Branding and Advertising.

• La Placita Market Community Promotion.

• La Placita Vending Tents and Amenities. 

• La Placita Market Music and Entertainment.

• La Placita Business Administration Booth Camp. (on going off season)

  • Vendors Business Plan. 

  • Vendors Marketing Plan.

  • Vendors Catering Plan.

  • Vendors Mobil Service Structure Financing (by external fundraising).

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CABA Pledges for your help and support in making sure our production is a sign of excellence and continues with its programing. We pledge for you to volunteer in its production and donate funds for our program to continue giving.

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