By Joe Jarosz
Northeast News
October 1, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Missouri – On Oct. 6, the Kansas City, Mo., Municipal Court will begin collecting new court fees to help restore the aging courthouse and will increase the fee it collects to support domestic violence shelters.

The new funds will come from new and increased court costs approved unanimously by the City Council last Thursday and pursuant to legislation passed by the Missouri General Assembly earlier this year. When they take effect, the court costs for moving and general ordinance violations will go from $41.50 to $48.50. The court costs for non-moving violations will go from $19.50 to $22.50.

An increase in the existing domestic violence fees are expected to raise an additional $72,464 a year to support area domestic violence shelters. The new courthouse maintenance fees are expected to generate about $400,000 annually to be used exclusively for restoration, maintenance and upkeep of the municipal courthouse.

The Municipal Court building, 1101 Locust St., was constructed in 1973 and has had few significant upgrades since. The first step will be to hire an architectural firm to design a master plan for the courthouse. The structure suffers from crumbling concrete walls, falling ceiling tiles, a four-decades-old mechanical system and worn window glazing that allows cold air to seep into the building. The court’s escalator is so old that replacement parts for it are no longer manufactured. The structure also no longer fits the way the court operates since going paperless in 2011 and disposing of thousands of paper tickets.

Also on Oct. 6, the Municipal Court will begin charging 10 cents per page for copies plus an incremental charge for duplicating time and a $2 fee for certified records. The charges will help recover the costs of larger copy requests and are authorized by the Missouri Sunshine Law. There are no plans to charge individuals for single copies of their own tickets unless they request certified copies.