Kansas City, MO, has a new flag. But don’t just look at it on the surface. A lot of thought and meaning about what the city reflects went into the design. Every aspect of the flag has meaning.
The flag is a “refresh” of the city’s existing flag adopted in 1992 and maintains some of that flag’s main elements: a red panel, a blue panel and the fountain graphic.
Yes, for those who didn’t know, that sprouting graphic is designed to represent Kansas City’s recognition as the City of Fountains.
What didn’t make it from the old flag to the new is the wording:
“City of Fountains
Heart of the Nation
Kansas City, MO”
The words weren’t considered Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant. They were seen as too much text and not easy to read.
Here’s a deeper look at the meaning of each component of the flag.
The fountain/heart remains a celebration of the city’s heritage as the City of Fountains and the outward shape of the graphic – a heart – reflects Kansas City as the Heart of the Nation.
The red panel represents the “warm hearts of the people of the Midwest and celebrates Kansas City kindness.”
The blue panel represents “the city from river to sky.” The city is situated on the banks of the Missouri River. In addition, the blue represents “the expansive possibility of prosperity. “The positioning of the red and blue is designed to reflect Kansas City’s “welcoming spirit.” Finally, the three colors combine to create Kansas City’s position as the model American city, “where kindness, prosperity and legacy are part of the landscape.”
