Nick’s Picks | Voting, Listening, Remembering and More …
Tuesday is Election Day It may not be a pivotal national election year, but on Tuesday, Americans head to the ballot box to decide thousands of local races and issue questions. America’s Longest Government Shutdown? If no deal is struck in Washington by Tuesday night, we’ll be living through the longest government shutdown in American…
Area crop artist’s latest work celebrates U.S.-Mexico ties
Kansas soil, cleared of vegetation to reveal a rich brownish mauve, forms the indigenous woman’s skin. Sand, mulch, woodchips, and compost are layered and sculpted to form the rest of the portrait titled “Young Woman of Mexico.” Stan Herd has sculpted similar images for more than 30 years in places like Brazil, China, and Cuba….
Nick’s Picks | Furloughs, Fans, Fright and More …
Shutdown Gets Serious We’re about to start week five of the federal government shutdown. With no clear end in sight, the impact is about to get even more serious. Stadium Decision? Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has scheduled meetings this week with leaders from the Royals and the Kansas City Chiefs. Is a deal finally at…
Taking ‘Bold Political Stances’ To Fight Injustices
It didn’t take long for the new Greater Kansas City Pastors Association to spring into action. As The Kansas City Star reported in early September, just one “day after thousands of people descended on the Missouri Capitol to demonstrate their outrage over congressional maps aimed at minimizing Kansas City’s voting power,” the new pastors’ group…
Nick’s Picks | Streetcar, Shutdown, Voting and More …
Big Streetcar Opening Ceremony After more than three years of pain and disruption, Kansas City’s new streetcar extension line finally opens this week, allowing passengers to ride all the way down to the Country Club Plaza and on to UMKC. A grand opening ceremony is planned for 10 a.m. on Friday at the new Plaza…
Nick’s Picks | White, Shutdown, KCI and More …
Frank White’s Replacement We may find out today who is replacing Frank White as Jackson County executive. Two weeks after voters ousted him from office, county lawmakers are scheduled to meet this afternoon to consider their pick for the job. Nearly a dozen candidates have applied for the interim leader post, which will last only…
Two Documentaries In The Works About KC’s Historic Northeast
Those seeking to find Kansas City’s Italian-American community can start at Holy Rosary Catholic Church. Inside, at 526 Campbell St., stand statues of canonized historical figures — Frances Xavier Cabrini and Francis of Assisi among them — venerated by the immigrants who worshipped on this very spot upon their late-19th-century arrival. Inscribed on the walls…
Missouri Food Assistance Applicants Hit ‘Bottleneck’
Imagine you have just been evicted, and that any documentation you had regarding income, health care expenses, utility costs, or other relevant paperwork got lost in the shuffle. That is a problem in and of itself. But the lack of information is a bigger barrier when it stands between you and gaining eligibility for the…
Blue River Cleanup Targets Trash, Invasive Species
A restoration project is underway along the Blue River watershed, a collaborative effort by four nonprofit partners: The Heartland Conservation Alliance, Bridging The Gap, Deep Roots, and Mid-America Regional Council. The groups signed the contracts officially in May. “The day that we got our signed contract sent to us from the city kind of felt…
Nick’s Picks | Barnes, Redistricting, Shutdown and More …
Kay Barnes Replaces White This week, former Kansas City Mayor Kay Barnes will officially roll up her sleeves to temporarily lead Jackson County government. She will take over from Frank White, who was ousted by voters in a special recall election last week. But the official handover won’t take place until the results of that…
The End of the Pesticide Arms Race?
To spray or not to spray, that’s the question for farmers. Pests can be the make-or-break factor for a season’s harvest. Between 20% to 40% of global crop production is lost to pests annually, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Conventional chemical pesticides have traditionally addressed this challenge, but their…
Nick’s Picks | Verdict, Shutdown, Buc-ee’s and More …
Frank White Recall Election Voters will finally deliver their verdict this week on Jackson County Executive Frank White. A special recall election is set for Tuesday. Recall supporters are angry at White over his handling of property assessments. Opponents counter that the construction lobby is trying to clear the path for a “sweetheart stadium deal.”…
9/11 Pain Continues as Justice System Plods Along
Every email I get from Danielle Reddan, director of the Victim Witness Assistance Program in the Office of the Chief Prosecutor of Military Commissions, starts the same way: “Dear Survivors & Families.” More than two decades after the murder of my nephew, a passenger on the first plane that Osama bin Laden’s misguided theological thugs…
Hundreds of Bee Species Face Decline in Missouri and Kansas
To Tom Schroeder, every bee is a work of art. His own words, backed up with hundreds of photos in his camera roll from the prairies and woods of Kansas City WildLands. With more than two decades of volunteering with the group, he’s become a bee enthusiast– but not an expert, he’ll clarify. “We’re the…
Nick’s Picks | Fall, Streetcar, Recall and More …
Good morning, it’s the First Day of Fall. And Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, starts tonight. Here are some of the local news and trends we’re tracking this week… New Missouri Map Awaits Governor’s Pen Missouri’s new congressional map is stuck in limbo, more than a week after lawmakers approved a rare mid-decade redistricting…