Work in Progress
Nick’s Picks | Barnes, Redistricting, Shutdown and More …
Kay Barnes Replaces White This week, former Kansas City Mayor Kay Barnes will officially roll up her sleeves to temporarily lead Jackson County government. She will take over from Frank White, who was ousted by voters in a special recall election last week. But the official handover won’t take place until the results of that…
The End of the Pesticide Arms Race?
To spray or not to spray, that’s the question for farmers. Pests can be the make-or-break factor for a season’s harvest. Between 20% to 40% of global crop production is lost to pests annually, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Conventional chemical pesticides have traditionally addressed this challenge, but their…
Nick’s Picks | Verdict, Shutdown, Buc-ee’s and More …
Frank White Recall Election Voters will finally deliver their verdict this week on Jackson County Executive Frank White. A special recall election is set for Tuesday. Recall supporters are angry at White over his handling of property assessments. Opponents counter that the construction lobby is trying to clear the path for a “sweetheart stadium deal.”…
9/11 Pain Continues as Justice System Plods Along
Every email I get from Danielle Reddan, director of the Victim Witness Assistance Program in the Office of the Chief Prosecutor of Military Commissions, starts the same way: “Dear Survivors & Families.” More than two decades after the murder of my nephew, a passenger on the first plane that Osama bin Laden’s misguided theological thugs…
Hundreds of Bee Species Face Decline in Missouri and Kansas
To Tom Schroeder, every bee is a work of art. His own words, backed up with hundreds of photos in his camera roll from the prairies and woods of Kansas City WildLands. With more than two decades of volunteering with the group, he’s become a bee enthusiast– but not an expert, he’ll clarify. “We’re the…
Nick’s Picks | Fall, Streetcar, Recall and More …
Good morning, it’s the First Day of Fall. And Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, starts tonight. Here are some of the local news and trends we’re tracking this week… New Missouri Map Awaits Governor’s Pen Missouri’s new congressional map is stuck in limbo, more than a week after lawmakers approved a rare mid-decade redistricting…
Nick’s Picks | Steak, Jail, Tower and More …
New Missouri Map Signing Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe is promising to sign a new congressional map this week that would make it tougher for Kansas City Congressman Emanuel Cleaver to win reelection. Kehoe is also expected to sign a ballot reform measure that raises the bar for passing citizen-initiated constitutional amendments. If approved by voters…
Convicted Felons and the Right to Vote in Kansas
It is true that in some states, mainly in the South, a felony conviction bars a person from voting. But the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas wants Kansans to know that felons who have served their time are eligible to vote in the Sunflower State. Anyone who says otherwise is peddling misinformation, said Micah…
Blocked from seeing her son, a Missouri mother fights to change the state’s guardianship law to help others like him
When Twila Foley brought a Christmas gift for her son, Christopher, to his nursing facility in Plattsburg, Missouri, she was not allowed to enter the building’s lobby. Instead, she watched him open his gift — a pillow with a picture of his dog, Oakley, printed on it — through a glass door. Christopher asked the…
Nick’s Picks | Gerrymandering, Brewing, Haunting and More …
Final Redistricting Vote Missouri lawmakers are expected to sign off this week on a new congressional map that could force out Kansas City Congressman Emanuel Cleaver. The full House is expected to vote on the measure today. If approved, some dramatic changes are on the way. Downtown Kansas City, the Plaza, and Brookside would all…
Many ‘Moving Parts’ Complicate Work of KC Reparations Panel
Kansas City’s history of racial division and injustice is painful and often appalling. But the city now has an opportunity through the Mayor’s Commission on Reparations to show other cities — and maybe the nation itself — how to begin repairing the vast damage inflicted on Black citizens by discriminatory, foolish, destructive, and indefensible past…
Nick’s Picks | Diapers, Troops, Fans and More …
It’s the last blast of summer for many Kansas Citians this week. Expect quiet commutes and empty desks as Labor Day’s three-day break has folks heading out early. Many area schools are also cutting the week short. Here are some other local stories we’re keeping tabs on this week… New Laws From Diapers to Marriage…
Kansas City Looks to Build On History of Philanthropy
It started with a conversation on a Lake of the Ozarks dock. Comedian Rob Riggle was describing his recent visit to Kansas City’s Children’s Mercy Hospital. “He had hosted the hospital’s annual Red Hot Night fundraiser [in 2009] and they had taken him on a tour,” Julie Riggle McKee, Riggle’s sister, said recently. Like anyone…
Nick’s Picks | Redistricting, Heat, Football and More …
Back to School Week Kansas students returned to the classroom last week, now it’s Back to School week for Missouri kids. Mayor Quinton Lucas was scheduled to greet students on the first day of class in the Kansas City school district today. In addition to the pain of getting up early, Missouri students will be…
Nick’s Picks | Buses, Schools, Eats and More …
Bus Service Shutdown? Money to run the bus service in Kansas City officially runs out on Friday, leaving thousands of riders worried about how they’ll get to work. The metro’s largest bus agency, the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) has been struggling to keep the service afloat after federal pandemic money dried up and…