Voters in Jackson County will decide Nov. 3 whether to keep paying a quarter of a cent anti-crime sales tax for the next 10 years. COMBAT — short for community-backed anti-crime tax — appears on the ballot as Jackson County Question 1. A “yes” vote extends the sales tax for 10 years, while a “no” […]
Kansas City
Posted inBehind the Beacon
September community feedback: How your voice goes beyond a published story
Stories about health care options can leave people with a very practical worry: What happens when I need care that isn’t covered? That question came through in September’s reader feedback through our reader survey at the end of each story on our website, “I have Medicare and a Medicare supplement. Many health care providers don’t […]
Posted inBehind the Beacon
A reader’s question sparked our latest event about Flock cameras
A small camera along the side of the road led to some big questions from a Kansas City, Kansas, resident. What information do automated license plate readers collect? Who can search or share that information? How long is it stored? And what oversight exists when local police officers use these cameras? Those questions led a […]
Posted inEconomics
Moving goods is one of KC’s biggest industries. Record diesel prices make it hard to keep trucking
Ryan Schmuhl started his trucking business — Schmuhl Brothers Inc., based in Kansas City, Kansas — in 1995 with his brother Ty and two big rigs. In 2000, he estimates, a 360-mile round trip cost about $90 in diesel. He said that the same trip, on the same lanes, costs about $490 today. “I used […]
Posted inLabor
‘We are human beings’: UMKC workers take their fight for higher pay public
Belkis Cabrera has worked as a custodian at the University of Missouri-Kansas City for 16 years. Each time she and her co-workers earn a merit raise, she said, increasing healthcare costs and inflation swallow it. “We are not asking for much, just respect and enough pay to get by,” Cabrera said through an interpreter at […]
Posted inBehind the Beacon
48 residents from 33 ZIP codes learn how to make local government easier to follow
On Aug. 26, The Beacon hosted its second Documenters training class located in Kansas City, Kansas — and fourth total — welcoming communities from across the state line. The response reminded us how many people across the metro want to better understand the decisions shaping their communities. Forty-eight people from 33 ZIP codes attended the […]
Posted inBehind the Beacon
Kansas City readers want us to follow the money
August feedback shows readers are looking beyond announcements and votes. They want to know who pays, who benefits and whether public promises are kept.
Posted inElections
Kansas City election results: 5 questions sought $1.7 billion in bonds and a sales tax renewal
Five city questions on the Aug. 4 ballot covered water and sewer infrastructure, affordable housing, aging civic buildings and a sales tax for development in the urban core.
Posted inElections
FAQ: Kansas City Question 3 sales tax renewal explained
Question 3 asks Kansas City voters to extend the one-eighth-cent Central City Economic Development tax that helps fund projects in the urban core.
Posted inHousing
A $100 million fund could spell more affordable housing in Kansas City
Financing affordable housing is difficult, but a new regional housing fund backed by local foundations hopes to create or preserve thousands of homes across the nine-county area. A similar fund in Cleveland offers an early look at what to expect.