Independence Missouri

Between spring and fall (and sometimes year-round), farmers markets around Kansas City offer fresh produce, flowers, artisan-made goods and treats. Find out how to shop local in towns and neighborhoods across the metro.

In Independence, Missouri, an emergency response program called ARCH pairs social workers with paramedics to better address 911 calls. By focusing on specialized immediate care and long-term support, ARCH aims to meet people where they are — and free up police and fire services for other emergencies.

Missouri will hold municipal elections on April 8. Voters across the Kansas City area will weigh in on issues like investing in public safety, improving infrastructure and electing their school board members. Here's a guide to what's on your ballot, plus what you need to vote.

Voters in Independence, Missouri, will consider whether to approve a $197 million general obligation bond on April's ballot. The majority of the money would fund building a new police campus, but money for infrastructure and the city's youth sports complex are also under consideration.

Independence's Twin Drive-In, owned by the B&B Theatres chain, is shutting down after its landlord increased its rent by 350%. Its absence will leave just one drive-in movie theater in the Kansas City region.

Tenants in Quality Hill Towers and Independence Towers have dealt with deteriorating living conditions that have gone unaddressed for years. With no commitments from their landlords, the two tenant unions voted to begin withholding their rent this month.

At SantaCaliGon Days, Independence’s annual festival, a troupe of dance moms serves soft pretzels to help pay for expensive competitions and costumes. Their salty, pillowy pastries have gained a following of their own.

The city of Independence, Missouri was famously the starting point for the Santa Fe, California and Oregon Trails, as well as the hometown of President Harry Truman. These days, it boasts a a thriving arts scene and charming historic downtown.

Mayor Quinton Lucas has sponsored an ordinance that would combine the KCPD and KCFD communication centers. Neither police nor fire are enthused.

Clinton’s Soda Fountain in Independence, Missouri, is beloved by regulars and tourists alike for its homestyle ice cream and its connection to former President Harry Truman. Plus: Looking back on when a group of Kansas counties tried to secede and form their own state called West Kansas.

Clinton’s Soda Fountain has been a pillar of the Independence community since the 1980s for its ice cream and nostalgic feel. As a teenager, President Harry Truman worked in the same building at a different ice cream shop.

The Neck was the largest Black neighborhood in Independence, but was demolished in the 1960s as part of the city’s urban renewal efforts. The city dedicated granite markers honoring the former neighborhood as part of its efforts to right the past.