Kansas City

An Initiative to Improve Street Safety through Public Art

Officials used street murals and planters to transform a hazardous intersection in Kansas City, Missouri, tapping grant funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies' Asphalt Art Initiative.

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

How Downtowns Can Rebound After the Pandemic

They have to offer more than office space.

  • By Katherine Barrett & Richard Greene

Hospitals, ICU Beds Reach Capacity Across U.S. as Pandemic Surges

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | DOJ investigates Kansas City’s contracting policies… cities expand pilot programs providing guaranteed income... Mississippi prisons deal with understaffing.

  • By Andrea Noble

Shrinking State and Local Government Office Space

COMMENTARY | With states and local officials searching for ways to cut budgets, many are looking to reduce how much real estate they occupy.

  • By Katherine Barrett & Richard Greene

Kansas City Government Employees: 'Please Don’t Rush to Reopen'

COMMENTARY | What are public sector employee concerns about the return to work? Kansas City has a better idea than many other local governments based on multiple employee surveys.

  • By Katherine Barrett & Richard Greene

Where in the World is Kansas City?

President Trump’s congratulatory message for the Kansas City Chiefs included a common mistake.

  • By Andrea Noble

Kansas City Sues Gunmaker and Others Over Alleged Firearm Trafficking

The lawsuit by the Missouri city is the first one a municipality has filed against the gun industry in over 10 years, officials say.

  • By Bill Lucia

Why Kansas City’s Free Transit Experiment Matters

The Missouri city is the first major one in the U.S. to offer no-cost public transportation. Will a boost in subsidized mobility pay off with economic benefits?

  • By Laura Bliss, CityLab

Kansas City Votes to Remove Martin Luther King Jr’s Name from Historic Street

Residents voted overwhelmingly to restore MLK Jr. Boulevard back to its original name, The Paseo.

  • By Andrea Noble

A City Votes on Whether to Undo Naming of MLK Jr. Blvd

Months after Kansas City lawmakers voted to rename a historic boulevard for Dr. Martin Luther King, voters will decide whether to restore the roadway’s original name.

  • By Andrea Noble

Kansas City Region Selected as New Home for USDA Research Agencies

The move is expected to bring 550 jobs to the Kansas City region. Officials have not decided whether the USDA facility will be located in Missouri or Kansas.

  • By Andrea Noble

How a Measles Quarantine Can Lead to Eviction

Without paid sick leave, workers who are quarantined for health reasons face job loss and worse.

  • By Olga Khazan, The Atlantic
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What to Think About Next With Opportunity Zones? Community Input For One Thing.

“If you simply try to impose something on a community, you do so at your own peril,” says one mayor. This and other themes emerged this week at a summit focused on the program.

  • By Bill Lucia

Kansas Firefighters Accused of Harassing Former Mayor

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Proposal would cut size of Pennsylvania legislature; 75% spike in Los Angeles homelessness; a ‘permanent pollutant’ in Minnesota’s lakes; and an Oregon mayor’s gig-economy sidegig.

  • By Michael Grass

Kansas City Enters ‘Phase 2’ of Its Smart City Transformation

“There is a greater value to the data we maintain as a city than we anticipated,” according to the city’s chief innovation officer.

  • By Dave Nyczepir

The Next Step in Kansas City’s Push to Become a ‘Smart City’

In the months ahead, local government leaders plan to build upon technology now deployed along the downtown streetcar line.

  • By Bill Lucia

Missouri Mayors Look to Expand High-Speed Internet Access

“It’s becoming quite obvious that if you’re not connected, you’re falling behind,” Kansas City Mayor Sly James said.

  • By Bill Lucia

Download Our New Ebook: Challenges and Opportunities for Data-Driven Local Governments

Included are stories about the use of data in the governments of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania; Kansas City, Missouri; Syracuse, New York; and New Orleans.

  • By Michael Grass

Kansas City’s Free Transit Plan for Election Day; Jackson, Miss.’s Pothole Payouts

Also in our State and Local Daily News Digest: Feds vs. polygamous towns in Ariz. and Utah; Standing Rock Sioux tribe’s appeal in N.D.; and N.Y.C.’s Second Ave. Subway nearly ready.

  • By Route Fifty Staff

Route Fifty Roadmap: Visiting a Kansas City Suburb Where Google Fiber Hit a Roadblock

Municipal rules about undergrounding utilities proved to be too great a challenge to overcome in Leawood, Kansas, back in 2014. Could new models to expand connectivity bridge those barriers?

  • By Michael Grass

Navigator Award Finalist: Jean Ann Lawson, Chief Performance Officer, Kansas City, Mo.

Looking to improve agency customer service? The City of Fountains provides great case studies that showcase an impressive transformation.

  • By Michael Grass