Kansas City Council

Kansas City adopted stricter energy conservation codes in 2023, hoping that neighboring cities would follow its lead. Instead, it may have become a competitive disadvantage, as Kansas City saw a drop in building permit applications while its neighbors saw big spikes.

Legal settlements paid by the Kansas City Police Department for fatal shootings and other excessive force cases are among the reasons Chief Stacey Graves has called for “drastic” cuts. The mayor and city council will soon attempt to take back some control of the purse strings.

An ordinance set to go before the Kansas City Council would ban small and individual bottles of alcohol and malt beverages to help lower crime in targeted areas of the city. The owner of one convenience store says limiting sales only hurts his business and customers.

Kansas City, Missouri, became the first major city in the U.S. to repeal its anti-jaywalking ordinance, after research found that tickets were being disproportionately issued to Black men. It’s a full-circle moment, because Kansas City was also the first city to criminalize jaywalking more than a century earlier.

A group of Kansas City musicians has been tasked to review a city-wide music strategy and draft recommendations for how to implement it. One of the goals is to enhance Kansas City’s music economy — and that includes possibly standardizing much musicians get paid for live performances.

Port KC commissioners voted to terminate and refrain from any negotiations with Platform Ventures. The company owns a south Kansas City warehouse rumored to be part of a federal plan to convert such spaces into immigration detention facilities.

On Thursday morning, officials from the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement toured a warehouse in south Kansas City with aims to hold detainees there. By the afternoon, city lawmakers put in place a measure to stop such detention centers from being approved.

Kansas City elected officials are bracing for a challenging 2026 legislative session. Here’s what they hope to see passed — like World Cup funding — and what looks unlikely — such as local control of the KCPD.

The Kansas City Council created a Housing Trust Fund seven years ago to support the development of more affordable units. In 2025, the city saw some of its first projects come to life — but the money is running out next year.

Kansas City Council is considering a plan to overhaul the Country Club Plaza, with much taller buildings and a new public square. But not all residents are convinced — and now Lockton Companies is moving its headquarters to Leawood.

The city is giving the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority an additional $13 million as part of a contract agreed on in August. But the KCATA still plans to cut two bus lines and limit hours on more than a dozen others.

Under the new ownership of Dallas-based Gillon Property Group, a plan to revitalize Kansas City's Country Club Plaza is underway. Now, city officials and community leaders are facing a massive tax incentive request that they worry could hurt Kansas City Public Schools and other government services.