Prairie Point-Wildberry - Kansas City, MO

This beautiful area north of Kansas City became settled by the Hopewell Indians several thousand years ago. Weatherby Lake, just west of the neighborhood, became a city in 1959 when retirees looked for leisurely activities after a life of hard work. Kansas City's parks department acquired Wildberry Park, the cornerstone of this unincorporated neighborhood, in 1979. Houses within Prairie Point-Wildberry began to be built in the early 1970s before the rest of the houses filled in during the 1980s and 1990s. Zona Rosa came about in 2004.

Plenty of cultural events happen at Zona Rosa. Bring your dogs to the annual Whisper Walk to benefit ovarian cancer research. The Zona Rosa Arts Festival features three days of artists' booths, live music, dances and community group performances. The Microbrew Festival brings dozens of smaller, local breweries together in one place for attendees to sample the best beer in the area.

Zona Rosa characterizes the retail hub of Prairie Point-Wildberry. The architecture draws its inspiration from the neighborhood of the same name in Mexico City. Rounded, red roof tiles remind you of a classic Mexican villa in the old country rather than the busy metroplex of Kansas City. Access the open-air marketplace by foot, car or bicycle. More than two dozen restaurants await you, from ethnic cuisine, seafood and barbecue to deserts and pastries. A couple of bars satiate your thirst for a relaxing weekend after a hard week of work.

Hereford House has succulent weekday barbecue creations to go along with children's selections and even a high school dance menu. Try the Sea Hogs as an appetizer with six huge grilled shrimp wrapped in bacon and served with horseradish sauce. The Herf Burger features 10 ounces of steak, ground in the restaurant, and topped with applewood bacon, cheddar cheese and a fried egg. Pan-seared pork chops come with a poached pear and wrapped in thyme after cooking in a root beer reduction. Save room for dessert with Hereford House's signature bread pudding.

Swagat Fine Indian Cuisine caters to hungry patrons with a taste for the elegant. The restaurant welcomes you to a Mughal palace full of tapestries, savory spices, tile mosaics and intricate archways in the main dining hall. The lunch buffet occurs seven days a week. Owner Gurdev Choong strives to bring the best Indian cuisine to your table with every upscale dish. Spiced pickles introduce you to several fruits and vegetables in a spicy pickling oil. Chopped chicken breast meat in the chicken tikka appetizer gets marinated in yogurt, herbs and spices before cooking in an authentic clay tandoor oven. Choose chicken, lamb, seafood or a combination of the three, cooked in a light mango sauce for the sweet subtlety that typifies Indian cooking.

Stone Canyon Pizza has been in business since 1995 thanks to handmade crusts and delectable ingredients such as asiago cheese, honey mustard sauce and sautéed shrimp. The Scampi Blanca special contains garlic and olive oil sauce covered with three cheeses, diced tomatoes and grilled shrimp. Enjoy the Honey Jack, with sliced chicken breast, smoked bacon and jalapeños on top of honey mustard sauce and covered with mozzarella and pepper jack. Honey wheat crust provides customers with a sweeter dough to make your meal a flavor extravaganza.

Bar Louie serves as the neighborhood's night spot as it stays open until 2 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays, and then until 3 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. The menu features 20 appetizers before you even consider the main course.

Fat Fish Blue has live music at least once per week with local acts in an intimate setting. The Kansas City Improv Comedy Club & Dinner Theatre dials up laughs six nights per week until 9 p.m. when cast members take audience ideas and leave them in hysterics. Guest comics come into the place every week for special events.

Plenty of sidewalks let you walk through Prairie Point-Wildberry to Zona Rosa. Cars make their way through wide avenues that have ample room for bicycles. Zona Rosa and nearby shopping centers contain tons of free parking places, and apartment complexes paved plenty of spots for residents and guests. Two taxis frequent the Northlands area, and you can call Uber for a ride at any time.

Travel by car to the east to reach Interstate 29, the major north-south route through the metro area. East-west road State Route 152 bifurcates the neighborhood in half just north of Zona Rosa. KCATA has two routes through the area: Route 231 with stops on Barry Road, 89th Terrace and Prairie View Road, and Route 142, which goes into Zona Rosa after a stop on Barry.

Wildberry Park features an outdoor play place for kids and concrete walking trails on more than seven acres of land. Just to the west, Amity Woods Nature Park has miles of nature trails through 48 acres for hikers and cyclists.

Barry Road Park Trail lies south of Prairie Point-Wildberry and next to two schools. The loop trail makes a great place for your leashed pooch to exercise, and the tennis courts have ample space for a Saturday afternoon game. Two playscapes give your kids something to do.

Apartment living costs much higher in this neighborhood than in Kansas City, with a one-bedroom apartment coming in at $757 per month. A one-bedroom flat from The Lakes Apartments is $675 per month for 683 square feet. Several apartments cater to young singles, college students and retired seniors. Affordable single-family homes come in all varieties for any budget.

A day pass on KCATA runs $3 for a trip to center city, and gas prices settle around 18 percent lower than the national average. A pint of draft beer costs between $3 and $4 at a local watering hole.

Zona Rosa contains several national chains and a few local boutiques among the 100 retailers in the open marketplace. Dick's Sporting Goods, Barnes & Noble, Michaels and Old Navy anchor the east side of the development. Dillard's forms the northern border of Zona Rosa. Several national retailers, and a few local boutiques, fill in the gaps.

Par Exsalonce Salon & Day Spa invites you to lose yourself for a few hours of serious pampering. Get your hair done, relax with a massage, and get a facial all in the same place. Par Exsalonce opened its first location in 1984, and the 10-chair salon in Zona Rosa opened in 2008.

Across I-29 from Zona Rosa sits a Walmart Supercenter for all of your grocery needs. Parkville hosts the closest farmer's market from 7 a.m. to noon every Saturday from April through October.