Northeast News
August 6, 2014

The debate rages on. Streetcar v. infrastructure. Some would say the two are synonymous. This smart lil’ pooch disagrees strongly.

The streetcar proponents are all agog with a glitzy, new form of trendy, hipster transportation that promises all sorts of ec-devo all along its two plus mile route on Independence Avenue. Basic city infrastructure proponents point to an Avenue in dire need of repair complete with crumbling sidewalks and a driving surface that resembles more of a moonscape than it does a city street.

But one thing missing from the conversation is why. Why do we have such an ardent need for an antiquated and dated form of mass hipster transit? Why are proponents hell bent on ramming this down the taxpayers’ throats at almost any cost? Croney capitalism for one. Burns and Mac has already been awarded millions in city contracts for design and engineering on the toy train streetcar project even before a single ballot was cast for the expansion lines. The fact that this didn’t send red flags flying should be a very bad sign that the game is rigged and Kansas City’s poorer neighborhoods will be taking it on the chin for decades, all in the form of new taxes.

Additionally, the make-up of the taxing district is a gerrymandered mess. Another question that isn’t being asked is why city residents in Clay or Platte Counties aren’t being included in the TDD! Because some of us are apparently more equal than others when it comes to taxation! The taxing district includes some of the city’s poorest neighborhoods. Why is that Mr. Mayor? Mr. Glorioso, you’re the mouthpiece for this train-wreck, maybe you can bring some cognitive reason for why some of us get the privilege of paying extra for the Mayor’s pet project while basic infrastructure in the urban core goes largely ignored again and again. As the ATA continues to invest in CNG technology that has a proven track record of providing a cleaner and more efficient energy source, the city, led by this mayor, continue to tout an antiquated technology along with a regressive tax to support it. Rest assured that if the initiative fails on Tuesday, another scheme, er, proposal, will be advanced. It might look a little different but it’s the same scam. Watch for it. It’s coming.