Tunnel coming to Kansas City potentially

[PhreeZone 20]

http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/community/joco-913/article4390820.html

IFly Indoor Skydiving wants to open an Overland Park center.

The company is in negotiations to build a 6,000-square-foot building — 60 feet tall — in the Met at 435 shopping center at 10975 Metcalf Ave. If the deal is completed it would open in late 2015.

The company was founded in 1998 in Orlando, Florida and now has 35 locations and a history of more than 6 million fliers. It says anyone from ages 3 to 103 can feel the rush of freefall skydiving without having to jump out of a plane.

Customers have a brief training session, then they are outfitted with a jumpsuit, helmet and goggles before entering a wind tunnel with their certified instructor.

First-timers will float on a column of air and learn basic flying skills, including moving forward and back and turning. On additional visits, customers can progress to group flying and even advanced aerial gymnastic maneuvers.

Customers of iFly include families, companies for team-building events, skydivers who want to improve their skills and military service members learning to skydive.

The company said it uses a number of U.S. and international patents to create the skydiving experience. Four high-efficiency axial fans are mounted at the top of the building to channel air through a 14-foot-wide circular glass flight chamber.

The column of air extends fully from one wall of the glass flight chamber to the other and supports fliers as they float, spin, turn and move in all three dimensions.

The business will have 25 to 30 employees.

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[sirenoremac 0]

Woohoo! 15 minutes from me :) This would be awesome...

[kcjen24 0]

Don't hold your breath... this isn't the first time we've been promised a tunnel. I'll believe it when they break ground.

[vincearnone 0]

an update regarding concerns about the facility: http://www.kmbc.com/news/plans-for-indoor-skydiving-complex-draws-concerns-in-overland-park/31078322

Indoor Skydiving Source - The Leading Indoor Skydiving Resource

[kcjen24 0]

I went to the Overland Park City Council meeting on Monday night where this project was discussed again.

Since the last meeting, the Council decided to educate themselves (or were educated by someone else) on what the tunnel was... and what kind of revenue it could bring to the city. And lo-and-behold... the Council was unanimously on board at Monday night's meeting.

The tunnel is going to be built... and in talking to the iFly rep that was at the meeting, they want to be open by the end of this year. They have some designs issues to work through with regards to signage and the design of the parking lot, but IT IS HAPPENING!

I'm preparing to be perpetually poor.......

[vincearnone 0]

Awesome news!

Indoor Skydiving Source - The Leading Indoor Skydiving Resource

[sirenoremac 0]

YES!!! I was pretty upset at the previous council response... it seemed like the Google Fiber debacle again...

[kcjen24 0]

Yeah - you just never know with those government types in Johnson County. I heard this was the same City Council that wanted an off-white White Castle!!

[sirenoremac 0]

Very last item in the council meeting summary is the approval:
http://apps.opkansas.org/City-Government/Agendas-and-Minutes/City-Council/Action-Summaries/2015/20150216COAC.pdf

[sirenoremac 0]

Looks like this is gonna be a ground level flight chamber model. These drawings were approved on May 1st. Building permit is submitted and currently under review :)

http://opdocs.opkansas.org/City%20Docs/021615_rez1984-13.PDF

[kcjen24 0]

Construction fencing is in place!

[sirenoremac 0]

iFly Kansas City is open for business as of yesterday afternoon! Got to pop in for a short block, running like a dream.

[Skydivesg 7]

I'm eager to conduct my FS camp there this weekend. And another in April.

Juts a short drive - yay!!

Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.