Jan. 6, 2010
To the Editor:

Finally, six days after the snow started to fall, a city snow plow made a single swipe down my residential Northeast Kansas City street. It’s just another abysmal example of Kansas City’s inability to provide basic city services to the residents, another example of a totally dysfunctional City Hall and their inability to focus limited resources where needed.

The mayor and City Council need to refocus their priorities and ensure basic city services are provided. Police, Fire/EMS, Public Works and the Health Department should be the priority. The council should stop trying to be the Mother Theresa of Kansas City and fund every social program that comes along with money the city does not have.

When it snows, let’s plow. If I have an emergency, answer the phone and do not place me on hold. If I need a police officer, don’t tell me it may take four hours for one to respond when I can turn on the local news and observe 15 officers standing around at a crime scene. Tell the three guys in the orange dump truck to get to work, and please, someone, wake up the Animal Control officer sleeping in the park.

To the many hard-working, dedicated city employees, I offer my apologies to you and my gratitude for all you do. I urge the mayor and council to refocus their energy and set a course for city employees to provide the citizens with the adequate, basic city services we deserve. If not, the only recourse the citizenry has is at the ballot box.

Robert Hayes

Historic Northeast