Ahead of Friday’s Raucous Caucus, here’s The Pitch‘s candidate roundup
April 7, the Mission Hills City Council race drew more than 50 percent of the registered voters in that tiny community to the polls.
By contrast, only about 10 percent of registered voters showed up to Kansas City, Missouri, polls for the most recent council primary.
That’s a shameful electoral failure, especially because the stakes in local government have rarely been higher.
Kansas City has been slow to emerge from the morass of recession, but the past four years at City Hall have been relatively innovative. There is now, for instance, a five-year plan (something most cities do but that Kansas City has historically lacked), and leaders can point to a proper statistical analysis of the city’s performance.
Those are positive factors, but Kansas City remains burdened by an increasing tax and fee structure, and the local economy’s growth lags behind peer cities even as major decisions loom on basic services, infrastructure and transit.
So it’s time to elect some new voices. But how do you choose when the field seems packed and many of the candidates are unfamiliar?
The Pitch has set out to contribute information to your selection process by putting together this election guide to City Council candidates. (We figure that you know the mayor and know also that the race in which he’s running for re-election is a dud.)
And Friday, June 12, The Pitch is a partner in a free public forum, the Raucous Caucus, at Barney Allis Plaza. Every candidate has been invited to attend and to participate in an evening designed to be far less structured and scripted than your typical candidate event. And, in theory, every voter can be there, too — be there to meet the candidates who show up, gauge for yourself their positions on the issues that matter to you, and challenge them face to face.
What follows is our primer to the candidates (in district order), edited and condensed for space. The full versions of each candidate’s questionnaire (edited for clarity) are at pitch.com.
Now you have no excuse not to get yourself to your polling place June 23. If Mission Hills voters can do it, what’s stopping you, Kansas City voter?
DICK DAVIS (1st District)
One-line bio: former Mid-America Regional Council CEO, former Kansas City Area Transportation Authority general manager
Electability: He barely escaped the primary and finished well behind Heather Hall, but he may be the favorite to pick up votes cast for primary candidates who didn’t make the cut.
If he gets elected: Davis would quite possibly chair the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which would steer a likely streetcar expansion (which Davis supports) and substantial contracts to water and sewer overhauls.
Political indignity: Davis was the lone vote against a $225,000 settlement to an aide of disgraced Councilman Michael Brooks (accused of choking that aide), saying he didn’t think the city should have been on the hook.
Legislative achievement: Davis has been a leading advocate of pension reform, a crippling line item on the city’s ledger. Also, he helped reshape Chouteau Parkway.
Donors: Lawyer Jim Polsinelli ($1,000), transit activist Kite Singleton ($250), Lathrop & Gage ($1,575), Heavy Construction Laborers’ Union ($500)
Base of support: Davis is the establishment pick in this race, picking up endorsements from the likes of former Mayors Charles Wheeler and Richard Berkley, former Mayor Pro Tem Bill Skaggs and businessman Charles Garney.
About transit, Davis tells The Pitch: “I strongly support an orderly expansion of the downtown starter line with the Main Street extension from Crown Center to the Plaza/University Complex as the first step.”
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HEATHER HALL (1st District)
One-line bio: tourism and marketing executive, Liberty Public Schools Parent Teacher Association member, and conservative activist
Electability: Hall frightens Kansas City’s entrenched political establishment, which is lobbying hard for Davis’ re-election.
Political indignity: Hall was admonished by Commerce Bank executive Jonathan Kemper at a Citizen’s Association screening; he said she had offered vague answers to detailed questions about the city budget and infrastructure needs.
Big idea: Hall is ambivalent about renewing the earnings tax. She says the city needs to plan for a new revenue stream in case the earnings tax ever gets voted down. She also wants to tamp down City Hall spending while holding public safety harmless.
Donors: Missouri Sen. Ryan Silvey ($500), conspiracy theorist Jack Cashill ($200), Kansas City Public Library CEO Crosby Kemper III ($200), City Hall rabble-rousers Dan Coffey and John Murphy ($250 each)
Base of support: Kansas City Police union (her husband is a KCMO officer), Clay County Republicans
On taxes and wages, Hall tells The Pitch: “High taxes and regulation discourage growth. The city can work with the private sector to research ways to help spur growth and keep wages appropriate for the standard of living.”
SCOTT WAGNER (1st District at-large)
One-line bio: marketing executive and first-term councilman who had to move out of the Historic Northeast due to council redistricting
Electability: Wagner has been a popular representative for the 1st District and is considered a possible contender for Kansas City mayor in 2019.
Base of support: Northeast Kansas City; engineering, construction and architecture firms
Donors: Real-estate broker Greg Patterson ($100), Dave Frantze ($500), BNIM ($250), Burns & McDonnell ($2,625)
Strengths: Wagner is a thoughtful politician who can answer direct questions without canned speech. He also called bullshit on the American Royal’s posturing over Kemper Arena, saying the organization’s raison d’être no longer really exists.
Weaknesses: Political insiders say Wagner isn’t good at saying no when he needs to.
Big idea: About transit, Wagner says, “I hope our streetcar lines expand but not because we need to create a transportation alternative to buses or cars. Rather, they will only expand as a result of increasing density and the need to more easily link destinations.”
JEFF ROBERTS (1st District at-large)
One-line bio: No one knows. Roberts has run an invisible campaign, not showing up to forums, building zero online presence and not responding to requests for comment. He lists himself as a clerk for NFM. Nebraska Furniture Mart?
Electability: Slim to none. Few seem even to know what he looks like.
Donors: Himself ($100). That’s it.
Roberts hasn’t replied to The Pitch‘s questions.
DAN FOWLER (2nd District)
One-line bio: business lawyer, Northland civic activist, former Port Authority commissioner
Electability: Fowler is assured a term in office after retired pipe fitter Bill Super decided that he wasn’t up to running for office.
Trivia: Fowler represented current 2nd District Councilman Russ Johnson in Johnson’s divorce.
Donors: Construction magnates Steve and Terry Dunn ($500 each), real-estate lawyers Dave Frantze ($500) and Jerry Riffel ($250)
Base of support: Fowler enjoys broad backing from Northland civic institutions, including Northland Neighborhoods and Forward Kansas City.
Big idea: Developing a high-tech industrial zone around KCI
Fowler answers one of The Pitch‘s questions, about the regional economy, this way: “I believe that we need to address the border-war issues and try to work cooperatively with all regional governments to attract business to the area, not just to part of it.”
TERESA LOAR (2nd District at-large)
One-line bio: former Kansas City councilwoman, former North Kansas City school district board member, business development officer for various companies
Electability: Loar won decisively in the primary.
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Risk factors: Loar was accused of encouraging a female employee of Tetra Tech to hook up with politicians to help win contracts. A lawsuit surrounding the accusations was settled.
Trivia: Current Kansas City Councilman Ed Ford was Loar’s attorney in the Tetra Tech lawsuit.
Sworn enemy: Jeff Roe. Loar and political operative Roe have locked horns since Loar unsuccessfully challenged Roe’s old boss Sam Graves for Congress. Roe’s firm temporarily worked with Loar’s opponent in this race, Jay Hodges.
Donors: Country Club Plaza owner Highwoods Properties ($2,625), mortgage mogul Jim Nutter ($250), Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders ($1,000), Kansas City Southern ($2,625)
Strengths: During her prior term on the City Council from 1995 to 2003, she was in charge of the Aviation Committee when KCI underwent $200 million in renovations, imbuing her with knowledge about the airport, a subject that will resurface during the next election.
Loar tells The Pitch: “By offering abatements, we can require developers, as part of incentive packages, to build more affordable housing structures that meet the needs of the overall population, especially the middle and lower classes.”
JAY HODGES (2nd District at-large)
One-line bio: former senior adviser to Kansas City Mayor Sly James
Electability: By his own admission, Hodges lacks the name recognition that his opponent enjoys. It showed in the primary. Large business interests wary of Loar have tried to help him catch up.
Base of support: City Hall employees, Boulevard Brewing Co. workers, all manner of unions
Donors: John McDonald, former owner of Boulevard ($500); Kansas City AFL-CIO ($2,625); Larry Jacob, Mayor James’ political consultant ($250)
Relationship with James: Hodges is insistent that he won’t be the mayor’s yes-man on the council. Hodges was James’ point man on the idea for an extensive refashioning of KCI.
Campaign tactic: Hodges has been persistent in unearthing unsavory moments from Loar’s past, which are many (including obscuring campaign contributions to then–mayoral candidate Brice Harris, which resulted in her indictment, as well as her husband having gotten a job with the city while she was on the council).
Likes: Krav Maga, tattoos
Dislikes: Loar
On the growing cost of living in Kansas City, Hodges tells The Pitch: “If you love higher water bills, thank former council members.”
JERMAINE REED (3rd District)
One-line bio: recent graduate from University of Missouri—Kansas City, youngest KCMO council member ever, Alvin Brooks protégé, Volvo driver
Electability: The incumbent faced a crowded primary field but still emerged with 57 percent of the vote.
Base of support: Ollie Gates and his family, construction firms
Donors: Real-estate developer Don Maxwell ($200), the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce ($1,575), Polsinelli ($1,000), J.E. Dunn executive Gordon Lansford ($150)
Point of controversy: Reed was strongly criticized by East Side activists who felt that he didn’t stick up for his constituents when he cheer-led the construction of the police department’s East Patrol Campus. The project razed several homes in the Wendell-Phillips neighborhood, some by way of eminent domain.
Nice try: Reed wanted to increase Kansas City’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020. He introduced an ordinance to that effect in March but hadn’t considered that a state law prohibits cities from doing that on their own.
What he has that his opponent doesn’t: A hefty war chest. From the last reporting period, Reed had raised nearly $130,000. As an incumbent, Reed figures to have a leadership position on a committee if he wins a second term. As a current member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, he may well get a chair or a vice-chair position there, hence all the support from construction firms.
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JAMEKIA KENDRIX (3rd District)
One-line bio: Kansas City Public Schools activist, Oak Park neighborhood resident, mother of two
Electability: Without wide financial help from typical establishment types, Kendrix is relying on grass-roots 3rd District support.
Base of support: KCPS followers
Donors: KCPS board president Jon Hile ($100), Jennifer Wolfsie ($1,000), KCPS Advisory Committee, Greater Kansas City Women’s Political Caucus ($300)
Thoughts on Troy Schulte: Kendrix criticized the KC city manager in a questionnaire for Freedom Inc., saying some of his decisions haven’t reflected the will of East Side residents. She cites the awarding of a contract to Intermedix to outsource ambulance billing.
Proud moment: Kendrix repudiated an insane idea proffered by the NRA in 2012 that suggested the schools needed more armed guards. “I think it’s ridiculous,” she told The Kansas City Star. “The answer to the issue with guns is not to give more people guns. You actually make it worse.”
Surprise potential: Kendrix entered the council race with little background in City Hall matters, but she emerged as a solid and informed candidate at forums.
QUINTON LUCAS (3rd District at-large)
One-line bio: Raised on Kansas City’s East Side, Lucas graduated from law school at Cornell, returned to Kansas City in 2009, worked for a law firm, and now is a professor at the University of Kansas School of Law.
Electability: Lucas dominated the primary election and enjoys broad support.
Base of support: business community, lawyers, unions, East Coast friends
Donors: Burns & McDonnell CEO Greg Graves ($250), former YRC executive Bill Zollars ($1,000), Heavy Construction Laborers’ Union ($500), General Services Administration honcho Jason Klumb ($500).
First foray into politics: In 2006, while in St. Louis, he did door-to-door campaigning for Jeff Smith in support of his run for the Missouri Senate. Smith later resigned amid an investigation into violations of campaign finance laws.
Before he was famous: Lucas volunteered to mentor inmates at the state prison in Lansing, Kansas, an effort that helped lead to his hiring at the KU law school.
Criticisms: Lucas has received flack for being out of touch with his district, even though he has lived at 19th Street and the Paseo since 2009 and has dwelled largely on the East Side since third grade.
Strengths: Lucas brings a fresh perspective for a 3rd District candidate and may be about to wield clout in council chambers if elected, something the district often lacks.
Lucas answers The Pitch‘s question about KC’s workforce: “The city can attract STEM-qualified professionals [Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics], like all professionals, by continuing to address basic quality-of-life priorities in the city, such as public safety; parks-and-recreation investments; and policies that support modern planning and zoning, targeting walkability, efficient transit options in all parts of the city, and non-burdensome taxing schemes.”
STEPHAN GORDON (3rd District at-large)
One-line bio: ordained minister, avid campaigner, car-rental employee
Electability: Gordon faces a steep challenge against Lucas. His attendance at forums has been spotty, and his campaign hasn’t been terribly visible.
Base of support: If Gordon is campaigning hard anywhere, it’s among East Side neighborhood groups. Possibly among Republicans, too, the party he identifies with.
Donors: hotelier Kevin Pistilli ($2,435), MarkOne executive Joe Privitera ($2,000), Ollie Gates ($200)
Political experience: Gordon doesn’t like being called a long shot, citing his background as a political candidate: He has run twice for Congress, losing to Karen McCarthy in 2000 and 2002. He was also unsuccessful in his 2004 run for the Missouri Senate.
Should be embarrassed by: Gordon claimed that he was endorsed by primary opponent Forestine Beasley, which Beasley denied. Also, the math in his campaign-finance disclosures never seems to add up.
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JOLIE JUSTUS (4th District)
One-line bio: lawyer, termed-out Missouri senator and, as the first openly gay member of the Missouri General Assembly, an advocate for LGBT rights
Electability: She picked up nearly 74 percent of the vote against John Fierro in the primary.
Base of support: lawyers, law firms, Burns & McDonnell employees
Donors: Kansas City Southern executive Warren Erdman ($333), Polsinelli partner Lonnie Shalton ($250), Irv Belzer ($250), the Rev. John Wandless ($1,575), retired DST CEO Tom McDonnell ($500)
Proud moment: She was a major force in passing the Missouri Nondiscrimination Act through the Missouri Senate during the 2014 session. MONA would ban discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation in employment and housing. The bill didn’t pass the House and thus didn’t become law, but getting it through the Senate was a big deal.
Strengths: Justus was a rare bright spot for the eroding Missouri Democratic Party during her time in Jefferson City, working with Republicans on key pieces of legislation.
Weaknesses: Justus has been criticized for going through the motions during this election cycle, treating the campaign as though it’s already over.
About the cost of living in Kansas City, Justus tells The Pitch: “There is no question that progress and development in Kansas City has resulted in an increase in the cost of living for all Kansas Citians. Nonetheless, Kansas City remains significantly more affordable than many major cities across the country, and quality of life is significantly better than many of our peer cities.”
JOHN FIERRO (4th District)
One-line bio: The only Hispanic candidate in the race, he runs the Mattie Rhodes Center in Kansas City and was once a Parks & Recreation Department board member.
Electability: Against a different candidate, Fierro might do well, but he faces long odds to make up a nearly 50-point gap from the primary election against Jolie Justus.
Base of support: Hispanic community, social organizations
Donors: Carl DiCapo ($100), Northland lawyer Timothy Kristl ($100), Cordish Co. ($1,500), Ajamu Webster ($100)
Once upon a time: Fierro angered dog lovers while he was chairman of the parks department, by nixing public comment about a proposed off-leash facility at Sunnyside Park.
More recently: Fierro served on a task force for KCI last year. He was among a steep majority that supported the one-terminal concept favored by City Hall.
On the streetcar, Fierro tells The Pitch: “We should engage a citizens’ group to study our financial options before proposing to the general public the expansion of the streetcar route.”
JIM GLOVER (4th District at-large)
One-line bio: A lawyer and one-time urban planner seeking a fourth term on the City Council, he once ran for mayor but didn’t make it out of the primary.
Electability: For every dollar that Katheryn Shields raises, Glover has raised about six. Glover has been criticized for being a lazy campaigner but he always seems to win when it counts.
Base of support: Hyde Park residents, development lawyers, construction firms, Costco shoppers, Union Station executives
Donors: Arthur Benson ($750), Shirley Helzberg ($500), J.E. Dunn ($2,600), Block Real Estate Services ($2,625), construction executive Jim Kissick ($2,000), real-estate law firm White Goss ($2,625)
If he’s elected: Glover’s campaign war chest, heavy with donations from development concerns, seems to suggest that he’s in line to become chairman of the Planning, Zoning & Economic Development Committee. He’s vice chairman of that committee now, which is where development projects first surface before going to the full council. His election would make him one of the most powerful people in Kansas City.
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Proud moment: During his first tour of duty, Glover shepherded the Costco and Home Depot development at Linwood and Main. Years later, Glover still never misses an opportunity to bring up the Glover Plan in conversation.
Should be embarrassed by: Glover was part of a sloppy plan to condemn a Section 8 apartment along Armour Boulevard in close proximity to pricey Hyde Park houses. That idea died in the face of withering criticism, and Glover has received flack from the black community for his part in the plan.
Glover tells The Pitch, about the streetcar: “Supporters of the streetcar in City Hall and from the private sector must do a better job explaining those benefits to citizens in the neighborhoods who would be served by expansion lines.”
KATHERYN SHIELDS (4th District at-large)
One-line bio: The controversial former Jackson County executive wants to complete a political comeback with an election to the City Council.
Electability: Shields’ name recognition propelled her to a respectable primary result against Glover, but it won’t be easy to beat such a well-funded incumbent.
Base of support: old-line Kansas City political movers and shakers, unions
Donors: Citizens Association’s Dan Cofran ($107), former Congressman Alan Wheat ($1,000), retired Jackson County Judge Ann Mesle ($200)
Political indignity: When Shields was last involved in politics, it was a 2007 run for mayor. Her campaign started the day after she was indicted for mortgage fraud. It was a bullshit indictment, and she was eventually acquitted. Meanwhile, the feds, in their zeal to convict a high-profile candidate, let the actual criminals in that case walk.
Political legacy: Shields for a time was a force in Jackson County politics and figured to be Kansas City’s mayor at some point. But the second half of her tenure as Jackson County executive was marred by questionable contracts under her watch. Shields kept quiet for years and has resurfaced in this election as an amiable candidate, with a seemingly fresh perspective.
Shields addresses the growing cost of living in Kansas City in a response to one of The Pitch‘s questions: “One way of mitigating rising rental rates is to insist that any tax-incentivized developments include mixed-income units, as has been the case in San Diego and elsewhere. The failure of the city to require the Armour Boulevard developers to do so has had the undesirable effect of concentrating and isolating low-income housing and creating unnecessary problems.
ALISSIA CANADY (5th District)
One-line bio: an assistant Jackson County prosecutor making her first run for political office
Electability: Canady was in a virtual tie with Ken Bacchus as the top-two vote-getters in the primary election. This may be one of the closer competitions among council races in Kansas City this year.
Base of support: Kansas City police, unions, Chamber of Commerce, lawyers
Donors: Pete Levi of Polsinelli ($200), Burns & McDonnell ($1,575), former Judge Jon Gray ($139), Jim Nutter ($500)
Trivia: Canady was in the pages of the Star in 1991, in a story describing how former NBA player Clarence “Foots” Walker once convinced her to go to weekend reading classes, transforming her C’s at Bingham Middle School into B’s.
Why she’s running: Canady works as the community justice coordinator for the Jackson County prosecutor’s office, giving her a look at how neglected housing, basic services and unemployment lead to crime.
Achievement: Worked on the Kansas City No Violence Alliance, a crime-fighting program credited with reducing the homicide rate last year.
Big idea: Wants to reignite Kansas City’s moribund housing program to spark home ownership in the inner city.
On transportation, Canady tells The Pitch: “I like the idea of a regional transportation authority to plan and collaboratively seek funding to pay for improved transportation access to connect residents to work. Any additional investment in rail transportation must serve a broader purpose.”
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KEN BACCHUS (5th District)
One-line bio: He has 30 years of community involvement to his name, including a stint on the City Council from 1991 to 1999, a short stint as a Jackson County legislator, as well as an appointment to the Tax Increment Financing Commission for ages, and leader for a time of a city housing agency.
Base of support: Bacchus has entrenched support in the 5th District, including from Freedom Inc., Terry Riley and an array of East Side ministers.
Donors: political operative John Carnes ($500), the retired Rev. Sam Mann ($100), Clinton Adams ($100), Freedom Inc. executive Gayle Holliday ($275), real-estate guru David Block ($200)
Alternate history: Bacchus lost a close election to Michael Brooks in 2011. Brooks would later resign in disgrace.
Should be embarrassed by: One of his fundraiser hosts is Breman Anderson, the former president of the Hickman Mills school district who, by all accounts, did a terrible job of running the school board during his term.
Bacchus tells The Pitch: “Going forward, any plans for a streetcar extension should …include: a comprehensive public transportation plan based upon the needs of Kansas City and how it may integrate and support a regional public transportation system.”
LEE BARNES (5th District at-large)
One-line bio: Former Kansas City Public Schools board member, current Planned Industrial Expansion Authority chairman, founding member of the National Society of Black Engineers at Kansas State University
Electability: Barnes is a heavy favorite against the lesser-known Dennis Anthony.
Base of support: Freedom Inc., development lawyers, construction firms
Donors: Bill George, local Yellow Cab owner ($1,000); Mike Burke, development lawyer ($150); Mike Sanders ($750); Kelvin Simmons ($250)
Political history: Barnes served one term on the KCPS board, during which the board fired then-Superintendent Benjamin Demps. Barnes was accused by Dennis Bonner, a former Missouri representative from Independence, of patronage when Linwood Tauheed was hired as an assistant to the KCPS superintendent at a salary of $90,000. Both were members of Black United Front. Barnes was cleared of wrongdoing.
Annoyances: Barnes spoke up at a transit forum in May about the ongoing narrative that East Side voters rejected the streetcar because they didn’t understand it. Barnes said that East Side voters did know what they voted on, but didn’t like what they saw.
Campaign tactic: Barnes cleared a strong competitor from the race when he challenged Teresa Garza Ruiz’s residency. Barnes took her to court. Shortly afterward, she withdrew from the race.
Barnes tells The Pitch: “The EDC must do a better job of promoting Kansas City to potential companies. We must also make sure that our regulatory agencies are not an obstacle to business growth.”
DENNIS ANTHONY (5th District at-large)
One-line bio: Political newcomer, retired codes enforcer, served in the Navy for 28 years, generally nice guy
Electability: Anthony lacks name recognition but has been a hard campaigner.
Base of support: unclear
Donors: Anthony has raised $853, most of it from himself and his wife. Neighborhood activist Carol Winterowd donated $100.
Walks the walk: Anthony has plenty of ideas about education, as do many candidates. But Anthony worked a year as a substitute teacher to learn firsthand about education issues.
Sells himself short: On his campaign page that solicits donations, he says the maximum donation for his race is $2,500. It’s actually $2,625.
Big idea: Anthony wants KCMO schoolchildren to have a healthy breakfast before school. Also has said that two at-large council members should receive appointments to the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners.
Anthony tellsThe Pitch: “In spite of what we hear, IT jobs are not everything. Who will be the plumber, or the man who drives the trash truck?”
KEVIN MCMANUS (6th District)
One-line bio: Young lawyer and Missouri legislator gets elected to another term in Jefferson City but quickly turns his attention to a bid for the KC City Council.
Electability: McManus grabbed nearly 70 percent of the vote in the primary against Terrence Nash and Henry Klein.
Base of support: McManus is well-supported in Brookside, south Kansas City and among Kansas City’s civic elite.
Donors: Jim Nutter ($250), lawyer George Wolf ($100), Polsinelli ($1,000), J.E. Dunn ($1,500), outgoing Councilman John Sharp ($100)
Thankless task: When Jason Kander became Missouri secretary of state, McManus more or less became the Missouri Democrats’ standard-bearer for ethics reform. Earlier this year, he tried to introduce limits to Missouri’s notoriously uncapped campaign contributions. The measure failed to get the attention of now-disgraced Missouri House Speaker John Diehl.
McManus tells The Pitch: “We need folks on the council who will be stewards of our tax dollars and ensure that revenues are spent wisely for their intended purpose.”
TERRENCE NASH (6th District)
One-line bio: Wonky neighborhood activist and accountant, sick of City Hall shenanigans, mounts a second run for public office.
Electability: Nash is a long shot to beat McManus.
Base of support: south Kansas City neighborhood groups
Donors: himself ($4,067)
Likes: Troy Schulte, state control of the police department, KCI the way it is now
Dislikes: community-improvement districts, the streetcar, plans to pay for the water and sewer overhaul entirely on the backs of ratepayers
Known for: Nash was a chief opponent of the sales tax for the Truman Sports Complex. He and his crew were partly successful. A tax passed to renovate the stadiums for the Chiefs and the Royals, but the pie-in-the-sky idea of a rolling roof died at the polls.
On luring talented workers to KC, Nash tells The Pitch: “With the new Cerner and Burns & McDonnell projects in south Kansas City, the demand for STEM workers will never be greater. I’m sure Cerner and Burns & McDonnell have a strategy to fill the new positions. Although we would like to believe that most new employees will live in Kansas City, many will live in other local communities because of their quality schools and neighborhoods.”
For a look at the ballot, see MySidewalk.com’s Election Center. See Pitch.com for complete candidate questionnaires.
