Subject: Kansas City City Council

• Controversial Citadel Plaza poised to get millions from taxpayers

  September 24, 2008

• Plan for hundreds of miles of trails clears City Council

  By CAROLYN SZCZEPANSKIKnown for its nation-leading urban sprawl, Kansas City has spent almost three decades spinning its wheels when it comes to accommodating pedestrians and cyclists. As far back as 1980, the Department of Parks and Recreation put together a plan for Kansas City Bikeways. But it went the way of side ponytails and parachute pants before it could gain any traction.In 1991, the Mid-America Regional Council initiated MetroGreen, a proposed network of trails that would span seven co

  November 25, 2008

• Blue Hills housing gets national green award

  Two years ago, the lots lining Olive Street were vacant and scattered with garbage. That was before Blue Hill Community Services stepped in and replaced the urban wasteland with new, eco-friendly housing. The effort was enough to earn the group a trip to Washington, D.C., later this month, courtesy of the Environmental Protection Agency.

  March 3, 2009

• Pick One!

  February 15, 2007

• Can Kansas City turn its trash problem into an opportunity?

  April 23, 2009

• Party Crasher

  Now that she's earned her chair in AA, challengers might have a shot at Karen McCarthy's seat in Congress.

  June 19, 2003

• Promises of a really big show

  Following the yellow brick road can be a bummer; The longer it gets, the harder it is to distinguish fantasy from reality.

  February 10, 2000

• Funk, 'Hot legs' Johnson, Hermann and SSB battle over stimulus money and rules of order

  Things blew up at the Kansas City City Council meeting yesterday afternoon, when talk  turned to resolution 090436. I swear Deb Hermann was ready to eat Sharon Sanders Brooks' face at one point.At issue was economic stimulus money for Destiny Towers, a Northland senior housing project of the Harvest Church. Hermann wanted to amend the resolution and give the funding to Northland Neighbors Inc., a couple of day cares and other organizations. Of course, the issue was laced with racial tension

  June 5, 2009

• Why spend $500K to study whether building a convention hotel is a good idea? It's not

  The Kansas City City Council will vote today on whether to spend half-a-million dollars to study whether building a downtown convention hotel is a good idea. $500,000? In cash-strapped, layoff having, bad, bad, bad economic times? Tell you what. Save the $500K. I know somebody who can tell you right now -- for free -- that the idea sucks. The Pitch's David Martin has repeatedly reported (see here and here) that it's a bad idea. As he points out, the game of attracting conventioneers never ends.

  June 18, 2009

• KC Council says yes to spending $500K on convention hotel study

  Eight members of the Kansas City City Council unanimously decided to waste spend $500,000 to study whether building a 1,000 room convention hotel is a good idea. The man with the shiniest head, Terry Riley, tried to delay the hotel study vote, and councilwoman Sharon Sanders Brooks seconded. But only Riley, SSB and Deb Hermann voted in favor of waiting. Voting to spend the money on the study: Ed Ford, Melba Curls, Beth Gottstein, Jan Marcason and John Sharp. Absent were oversized novelty Mayor M

  June 19, 2009

• Still no money for Citadel Plaza

  For the Citadel Plaza development, it appears the Wednesday night curveball is now par for the course. Last week, the day before the Kansas City City Council was set to hand over $20.5 million in taxpayer dollars to the developers of a proposed $90-million shopping center at 63rd Street and Prospect Avenue, city finance director Jeffrey Yates recommended the city raid the capital improvements pot to find the cash. That didn't go over well. This week, another idea surfaced from the finance d

  June 26, 2009