infrastructure

Bruce R. Watkins Drive took three decades to build, and resulted in the destruction of 2,000 homes and the displacement of thousands of Black residents. Kansas City officials and longtime residents hope a new federal grant can reconnect the neighborhoods torn apart by Highway 71, but mending old wounds won’t be easy.

The Moody Hills neighborhood, once shaded with towering trees, is now lined with stump after stump. It’s part of a street reconstruction project that will also completely overhaul other infrastructure in the northern Overland Park neighborhood.

Bruce R. Watkins Drive took three decades to build, and resulted in the destruction of 2,000 homes and the displacement of thousands of Black residents. Kansas City officials and longtime residents hope a new federal grant can reconnect the neighborhoods torn apart by Highway 71, but mending old wounds won’t be easy.

Former U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt was instrumental in securing funding for the project to cap a portion of I-670 downtown. But construction on the park is delayed, which means it likely won’t be completed by the 2026 World Cup.

The Kansas Department of Transportation said that federal steel and aluminum tariffs, which are already in place, are going to make it more expensive to work. Another wave of tariffs are expected on April 2.

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.

The Kansas City Council passed a $2.5 billion budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, its largest ever. The police department will get even more money than before, while council members will discuss a proposal next week to fully fund the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority in the short term.

Kansas City officials unveiled a $2.5 billion budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year that reveals its spending priorities. Under the new system, the city will evaluate each program based on its importance to the community, not just carry it over from the previous budget.

Several city projects that received federal funding are in limbo after a slew of executive orders targeting clean energy and diversity efforts.

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly said funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would enable the state to overhaul the Kansas Crash Data System and better integrate the system with law enforcement agencies statewide.

Kansas City set a goal to end all traffic fatalities by 2030. The Vision Zero program has worked block by block to make roads throughout the city safer, but officials say it needs more money to reach its goals.