Downtown

What The Mayor Thinks:

We have seen the resurgence of Kansas City’s Downtown. A few thousand new residents, an exciting new arena, a new hotspot for visitors and residents alike. Make no mistake; I am a big fan of Downtown. What I am not a fan of is the deals we made to spark that resurgence. The city could have been much smarter with the money for our residents as all these special interest venues were built.
Past City Councils have spent hundreds of millions of dollars in direct outlays and tax incentives to revitalize Downtown. The idea that these projects – Power & Light, the various subsidized hotels, the Sprint Center – would be “economic engines” that would benefit the city’s overall economy has obviously not held true.
The city has continually lost jobs relative to the national economy while these projects have, for the most part, not produced the predicted revenue. There is one fact of urban revitalization that has been ignored: Downtown cannot thrive as an island surrounded by decaying neighborhoods.

What The Mayor Has Done:

I have worked under the belief that we’ve put Downtown Kansas City into a position where, with the support of the regional business community, it can succeed. It can grow naturally without additional massive subsidies from city taxpayers. The Sprint Center is flourishing. Late next summer, the $413 million Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts will bring two world-class concert halls to Downtown Kansas City. We have one of the finest convention centers in the nation. We have a strong entertainment center in Power & Light.
Kansas City taxpayers have done all that they can afford to do.
Now, it’s time to shift our community’s focus to the neighborhoods that surround, provide employees for and support Downtown. It’s their turn.
That’s why I have opposed proposals for a new Downtown convention hotel that could cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars. If Downtown needs it, let the traditional financial markets decide whether such a facility is feasible or not.

What The Mayor Plans to Do:

We need to strengthen neighborhoods, provide basic services that allow Downtown to be a viable neighborhood itself, and eventually develop an integrated multi-modal regional transit system that will allow Downtown to be a stronger, and denser center for the region. The most important thing I can do to support our Downtown and ensure its long-term success is to surround it with healthy neighborhoods. I will continue to root for Downtown; I will continue to promote Downtown every opportunity I have; I will continue to urge the business community to put the proverbial money where its mouth is.
But what I won’t do, what I will work against day and night, is let your government make more bad decisions.

Citizen Satisfaction

What The Mayor Thinks:

I want to continue to work to restore professionalism and financial stability to city government and build “A City That Works For Regular Folks.” A city that works is one in which most of the citizens are satisfied with the delivery of basic services, and with conditions in their neighborhoods. For decades, Kansas City has not been a city that works.
Annual surveys showed that citizen satisfaction was below the metropolitan average for virtually every one of the 44 different services measured. Kansas City was often dead last in the metro.
This is not acceptable, and unless we change we will struggle to keep businesses and people in Kansas City.

What The Mayor Has Done:

In 2009, I started a program within City Hall called “A City that Works” that was designed to directly address the issue of citizen satisfaction. The five areas we chose to concentrate on were the ones that our residents were most dissatisfied with: smoothness of streets, code enforcement, solid waste, communications, and business climate. Since my election, we have hired a professional city manager, and made changes in other key departments.
Despite significant budget cuts and the reduction of over 500 City Hall jobs to keep the city’s budget balanced, we have improved citizen satisfaction over the last three years in street maintenance and solid waste disposal, two areas from A City that Works.
And satisfaction with our most important services, our police, fire and ambulance services has improved over that time, as well. We are finally concentrating on the things that matter most to our residents.

What The Mayor Plans to Do:

I’m not done. I am determined to continue my City that Works program and expand it to other services. Our taxpayers – our most important customers – deserve the best product we can deliver for the tax dollars they invest in their city.

The city’s 311 system has gotten better, and I will push for more improvements. Being unresponsive to the immediate needs of our citizens is not an option.
I also will push for a better online presence for the city, a Web site that will allow our residents to easily complete just about any business they need to do with the city from the comfort of their home or business computer.
And, finally, I will continue my weekly town halls, meeting with residents in all parts of the city to talk with them about how the city is really doing, and to help settle their complaints.
I am determined to continue this effort because it is essential to keeping residents and businesses in Kansas City.

Government Reform

What the Mayor Thinks:

If your city government is broken…and it has been for decades…you need someone who knows how to fix it. If your city government is broken…and it has been for decades…the last thing you need is another slick politician. If your city government is broken…and it has been for decades…the last thing you need is someone who backs down in the face of adversity.

What the Mayor Has Done:

I fought hard for a professional city manager not aligned to special interests. I have that now.
And, step by step, with the help of that professional city manager and a professional city staff, I am fixing what is broken.
I’ve fought for policies to control the previously out-of-control use of tax incentives for developers. I’ve insisted on responsible and balanced budgets. I’ve stopped the runaway borrowing that put our city in a financial hole, while doing nothing to address the $13 billion in deferred maintenance we now face.

What the Mayor Plans to Do

I’m not done yet.
With that professional city manager on the job, I will continue to work for sound budgets designed to strengthen city services for city residents. While I don’t rule out corporate tax incentives under the right circumstances, I will look closely and evaluate each request on its impact to the entire city, not on its benefit to fatten the pockets of special interests.
I’m committed to finding ways to fund much needed capital improvements long term, assuring that Kansas City will remain one of the most livable cities in the nation. It is time to do something about $13 billion in deferred city maintenance, a to-do list that fills an entire book.
The powers that like the status quo – a group primarily made up of campaign contribution hungry politicians and leaders from the suburbs – have fought back. I haven’t let their antics stop me from reforming your city government, and I will not stop.