City buses plowed through the white blankets thrown over the streets by a suspicious morning snow. Defying predictions, the front lasted into the afternoon and held on overnight, dumping several inches of temporary purity onto the downtown area. By morning, salt spread by street crews along with thick bus wheels had turned the fresh white layer into narrow canals standing in the gutters. This is how I found 12th Street in mid-January when I interviewed City Manager Wayne Cauthen for the story in which he was named Urban Times Person of the Year. (more…)
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Tags: Politics
Something I wrote on this site a few days ago is now seeing light of day on PresentMagazine.com. Until recently, I hadn’t weighed in on the various controversies surrounding Kansas City Mayor Mark Funkhouser and some serious new allegations regarding his ethical conduct that were made by his former communications point person last week. I’ve never met the mayor and I make a point of mentioning so in my piece. I decided to write about the differences in sitting down for a conversation with him as opposed to his predecessor, Kay Barnes, as we did just before she left office in 2007. That was really the genesis – this idea of a comparison – that prompted me to chime in. Really, it’s the only angle through which I am able to comment. I hope to meet Mr. Funkhouser some day, though it’s looking increasingly likely that he will not be mayor when such a meeting occurs.
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Before she left office, Kay Barnes and I sat down in velvet-covered chairs in her office on the 29th floor of City Hall and chatted about what drove her personally. Remarkably, the subject hadn’t been explored in any great depth during the eight years she served as Kansas City’s mayor. Other journalists instead chose to focus on her political savvy, her internal drive and even the bravery she displayed as a woman that could compel prominent local business leaders – predominantly men – to rejuvenate development in the urban core. (more…)
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