© 2025 Kansas City Public Radio
NPR in Kansas City
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

There's no such thing as free parking

Parking at Kansas City's River Market used to be free on the weekends, but city officials are now raising prices with the hopes of cutting down on congestion. Plus, how one Kansas City broadcast pioneer started the nation’s longest-running Black-owned radio station.

Parking on the weekends at the City Market has long been free, but a recent change has done away with that. KCUR's Celisa Calacal reports that Kansas City officials are rethinking free parking across the city.

Right in Kansas City, radio pioneer Andrew "Skip" Carter started the nation’s first Black-owned and operated station west of the Mississippi River, KPRS AM, now known as Hot 103 Jamz. For KCUR's podcast A People's History of Kansas City, Suzanne Hogan looks back at how the Carter Broadcasting Group broke through.

Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR onTwitter andFacebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love, Trevor Grandin, and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

As KCUR’s public safety and justice reporter, I put the people affected by the criminal justice system front and center, so you can learn about different perspectives through empathetic, contextual and informative reporting. My investigative work shines a light on often secretive processes, countering official narratives and exposing injustices. Email me at lowep@kcur.org.
Trevor Grandin is a contributing producer for KCUR Studios.
KCUR prides ourselves on bringing local journalism to the public without a paywall — ever.

Our reporting will always be free for you to read. But it's not free to produce.

As a nonprofit, we rely on your donations to keep operating and trying new things. If you value our work, consider becoming a member.