I am baffled by the "acres of parking lots" criticism. I am not bothered by it, I just find it to be ridiculous.
The "acres of parking lots" is not a bad thing, IF they are entirely full with joyful celebrating fans, displaying an ocean of school pride. Which, our parkings lots have been since the fall of 1993, without interruption.
eff, on every NFL broadcast of a Chiefs game (basically the second favorite team of every KU fan on earth), they gush over how wonderful a scene the tailgating is at Arrowhead. Kansas State tailgating is more collegial and festive than Chiefs (Raytown) tailgating...there is more pride for the team, more camaraderie, more visual displays of "Team/Community/Appreciation."
Now, when it's not game day, it's not picturesque. That's why it's built on one edge of campus....so that we can accomplish the goal of creating a massive, wonderful, tailgating environment, without needlessly compromising valuable land for the education of students.
In contrast, KU's basketball location is vastly superior to Kansas State. On cold Kansas nights, it's wonderful to allow students to easily walk across campus to Allen Field House. At Kansas State, I would prefer that. However, I will settle for the fact that not one human being inside even a completely full Bram goes without a parking spot...even when arriving at the last minute....it's the worlds easiest commute.