Latest From Ask Funk

Have a Question ForMayor Funkhouser?

Making Kansas City The Safest Big City In America

For decades, Kansas City leaders have pursued the glitzy “deal of the day” instead of focusing on basic services and neighborhoods, and this bred conditions that produce crime.  Public safety is the most basic job of city government.  It is critical to quality of life and to economic development.  Investors won’t invest, customers won’t shop and employees don’t want to work in areas that are unsafe. My commitment to you:

My Highest Priority Is To Make Kansas City The Safest Big City In America
This is an absolutely achievable goal. Other cities have done it, and we can too. A summary:

• Substantially increase the number of cops on the street.
• Hold command staff accountable for dramatically improving the homicide case clearance rate – currently that rate is a dismal 42 percent.
• Focus on “quality of life” crimes like vagrancy, prostitution, vehicle break-ins, graffiti, and disorderly conduct, similar to the “Broken Windows” strategy that reduced violent crime in New York City. (New York City has a much lower crime rate than Kansas City.)
• Continue my initiatives that prevent crime by revitalizing neighborhoods: Zone 2-7, Anchor of Hope, New Tools, A City that Works, and Schools First.
• Provide our police with state-of-the-art facilities, equipment, and technology.
• Give our officers the community and moral support they need to do their jobs well.

I Promise To Keep My Eye Sharply Focused on Spending and Basic Services
Your tax dollars are too valuable to waste on pet projects that serve only the well-connected few. I will continue to be a good steward of your money by keeping the debt level steady, by sane budgeting, and by keeping reserve funds at a safe level.

I Promise to Promote Real Economic Development And Job Growth
Long term, true economic growth will come from attracting middle class residents by focusing on spending, crime, basic services, and schools.  Short term, we will use the Port Authority to export Kansas City-made goods in order to become a key player in the global trade market. And we will secure a Chamber of Commerce that focuses on Kansas City first to strengthen our ability to attract and retain businesses and jobs.

I Promise To Reform Our Tax and Revenue System
I intend to lead the community in a careful, comprehensive, open and transparent redesign process that results in a tax structure for the 21st century that is family friendly, business friendly, easy to understand, and easy to enforce.

I Promise To Finish What We Started With Schools First
Schools are vital neighborhood anchors and critical to the city’s ability to retain and grow its middle class.  I will continue to focus dollars on creating islands of safety, cleanliness, and stability around each and every single school in Kansas City.