Living in Liberty

• Our People
• Housing
• Doing Business
• Transportation
• Health Care
• Education

Our People

Liberty, the county seat of Clay County, is a quick drive to Kansas City, yet has a small-town flavor all its own. Young families find this dynamic and growing community an ideal place to call home. Liberty was ranked by Family Circle Magazine as one of the 10 Best Towns for Families and Best Places to live by CNNMoney Magazine. The median age of the community is 38. The median household income of the 11.1k households grew to $76,577 in 2019.

Housing

The Liberty area offers a wide assortment of housing choices, from beautiful historic homes to new construction. The recently completed $28 million multi-family development, Copper Ridge Apartments, includes 292 luxury one and 2-bedroom units in 6 buildings. A new residential development, Homestead, is under construction along Withers Road and will connect to the city’s trail system and Community Center.

Additional housing developments are also under construction north of town off Nashua Road and east on H Highway. With a large variety to choose from, you are sure to find your dream home in Liberty.

Doing Business

Three major grocery stores serve the Liberty community, numerous banks, and a credit union. Two newspapers inform residents: the KC Star is available daily, while the CourierTribune is delivered weekly – serving residents for over 160 years.

In addition to a thriving retail community, the city boasts four industrial and one business park. RockTenn anchors the Liberty Industrial Park with space for smaller facilities and businesses. Heartland Meadows is a 260-acre light industrial park located near the 1,750,000-square-foot Hallmark Distribution Center. Liberty Logistics Park is located directly adjacent to the Ford Assembly Plant and offers immediate access to I-35 and Hwy 69. The Liberty Commerce Center will consist of 3.6 million square feet of industrial space south of Liberty Parkway between Hughes and Campbell roads. There are 12 buildings at Oak Wood Business Park; several are used for industrial purposes, while others are customer-facing office buildings. The park can be seen from I-35, with quick access using the frontage road.

Transportation

Connection to transportation outlets makes Liberty an excellent choice for businesses. Kansas City International Airport is 15 miles west of the city and the nearest rail facility is ten miles away. A major north-south interstate (I-35) runs beside the city, and a major east-west interstate (I-70) is 12 miles away.

Health Care

Now in its 48th year of serving the health and well-being of our community, Liberty Hospital has more than 1,700 employees and 330 physicians who deliver compassionate, high-quality care using state-of-the-art technology. Liberty Hospital’s expansion in recent years includes 15 primary and specialty care clinics, as well as affiliations with MU Health Care for orthopedic surgeons, Children’s Mercy for neonatal care, and Saint Luke’s Cancer Institute. The hospital holds the unique distinction of being the only hospital in the Northland to receive Level 3 Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation and is only one of four hospitals in the state to attain this accreditation in addition to Level II Time Critical Diagnosis in trauma, stroke, and heart attack. For more information, visit www.libertyhospital.org.

The Excelsior Springs Hospital is the cornerstone of healthcare in Excelsior Springs. The facility has modern surgical services, critical care unit, 24-hour emergency care, comprehensive laboratory, home health & hospice care, cardiopulmonary, radiology services, rehabilitation services, outpatient specialty clinics, and Senior Life Solutions. The medical staff includes more than 100 physicians, and the hospital employs more than 300 people. ESH also has three physician clinics and a Health Express Clinic (located inside Price Chopper.) ESH provides Excelsior Springs and the surrounding communities with quality healthcare close to home.

The Clay County Public Health Center offers various health education, disease prevention, and treatment services to promote good health. Many services are available to everyone, while others are based on income guidelines and available to uninsured, underinsured, or on Medicaid.

The Liberty area also offers numerous nursing-care facilities to service elderly and disabled patients.

Education

The Liberty Public School district serves the residents of approximately 85 square miles in Clay County.  Located just northeast of Kansas City, the school district serves more than 12,000 students in preschool through12^th grade.  The district has seen rapid growth over the past several years, so much that it has become the 2^nd fastest-growing school district in the state.

Liberty School District has 11 elementary schools, four middle schools, two high schools, an alternative secondary school, and an early childhood center.  LPS was recognized as a high-performing school district for all 12 years that the State of Missouri presented the Distinction in Performance Award, making it one of only 6% of Missouri districts to be placed in this category.

Liberty is home to St. James Catholic School, which has been providing students aged two years – 8^th grade throughout the Kansas City/Liberty areas with an education based upon the Catholic faith since 1955.

The Northland Catholic Schools include six grade schools and one high school.  They focus on each child’s total personal, intellectual, spiritual, moral, physical, and social development.

This area is fortunate to have several opportunities for higher education.

William Jewell College, The Critical Thinking College, is a nationally recognized undergraduate liberal arts college founded in 1849, is located just blocks from the historic Liberty Square. Jewell is consistently ranked for value and academics by The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Washington Monthly, Money, U.S. News and World Report, The Princeton Review, and Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. As a part of William Jewell College, the Pryor Center for Leadership Development was created to help businesses and their employees succeed by offering a wide variety of leadership seminars and on-site classes. The center is also home to the Tucker Leadership Lab that features a one-of-a-kind challenge course.

Just minutes away is Maple Woods Community College, offering day and evening classes and many continuing education classes.  Northwest Missouri State University provides Graduate Studies at its location on the Maple Woods campus.