Dear Folks,
This Week’s City News:
Of course, the big news of the week is the passage of the budget.
Before Funk became Mayor, he spent nearly 20 years examining the
finances of Kansas City’s municipal government and teaching graduate
courses in public finance. One of the main reasons that Funk ran for
office was because he was extremely familiar with the numbers, the
players and the history of the city’s budget and was upset that the
budget never seemed to reflect the values of the citizens. But with the
passage of this budget, Funk feels the council made a giant leap in
putting citizen values ahead of all else.
Funk toured Genesis School with Pat Clark this week and met with the
school’s president, Alan DuBois. Genesis School serves a youth
population that has been banned from the school district for various
infractions. Genesis seems to be the last hope for most of these kids.
Mr. DuBois should be commended and supported, physically as well as
financially, for the work that he has done in helping these children to
have a brighter future. Pat Clark deserves the same. Funk believes that
all children need a hero in their lives, and these two men have truly
become somebody’s hero.
Funk also met with Kelly Edmiston of the Federal Reserve Bank. The
meeting brought the Mayor one step closer to developing “new tools” for
economic development in the urban core. He’s calling for new measures
because the current system is geared toward big development in more
prosperous areas. This is one of the more exciting ideas that Funk has
in mind for restoring our neighborhoods.
On a More Personal Note:
The Mayor held one last press event to stump for the budget
Wednesday. He decided to convene it at the corner of 27th and Prospect,
as that was the last stop on the campaign trail a year ago to the day.
He did a great job, as he usually does when he is passionate about a
topic. It’s hard for us to believe that it’s already been a year since
the election. While the days have been long, the year went by really
fast. And although Funk being in office is nothing like we thought it
would be, we are still incredibly grateful to have the opportunity to
do a lot of good on such a grand scale. Thank you for all the support
you have given him to carry out this enormous task. We are filled with
faith that the city is turning around for the better.
The next Town Hall Meetings:
Wednesday, April 23, 6 p.m.
Central Prebyterian Church - 3501 Campbell
Host: Hyde Park Neighborhood Assn.
Tuesday, May 6, 6 p.m.
Oakwood Baptist Church - 7600 Lee's Summit Rd.
Host: Little Blue Valley
In faith,
Gloria & Mark
