BUZZ: Parks conditions worst in 30 years

Absolutely shameful. The abject laziness and uncaring attitude exhibited by KCMO Parks and Rec Employees charged with keeping Kessler Park mowed and free from trash is, as a tax paying citizen, absolutely mortifying. 

Pictured are three separate trash cans near the Concourse Fountain. Normally, a brand new Parks Department trash truck rolls through on Monday to empty barrels of heavy weekend trash. Never mind that frequency needs to be doubled or tripled in order to keep up, but that’s a sermon for another day. 

This week however, Concourse Park was skipped and this is the end result. Trash and litter. Left by park users on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, blowing everywhere through the overgrown weeds in the park. 

Which brings us to another issue, the length of the grass throughout Kessler Park. According to Parks officials, Kessler is on track for 20 cuttings per year as per a contract that pays out roughly $240,000 per annum to a mowing contractor. That’s roughly $11,800 per cutting by this Dog’s math. Nice work if you can get it, huh! 

This News Dog says that’s highway robbery given what this community is being subjected to in terms of the abhorrent and absolutely intolerable conditions in Kessler Park. Given what’s pictured here, would you want your kids playing in this park? Maybe Director Rynard’s pending retirement isn’t such a bad thing after all. The department desperately needs a new paradigm at the top and it needs to happen in short order. A continuation of the status quo is unacceptable. 

Here’s the bottom line in this News Dog’s eyes. The City just spent upwards of $23 million in renovation and restoration funds at the Kansas City Museum, creating a regional history and culture gem right in the center of Cliff Drive and Kessler Park. Subjecting Museum patrons to the drive through the overgrown, blighted and trashed conditions in Kessler and Concourse Parks is absolutely reprehensible. The Mayor, the Council, the Parks Board and Parks staff should be ashamed of themselves. You can bet Ward Parkway sure doesn’t look like this. Neither does Brookside Boulevard or Tiffany Springs Park. 

The Kansas City Museum reopens in less than 120 days and will do so to great fanfare.  Maybe a permanent reallocation of resources is in order. Northeast Parks have gotten the short end of the stick for too long. Time to get it right. Madame Director, our community awaits your response.

Want Northeast News articles sent straight to your inbox each week? Subscribe below!
Enter your email address and click on the Get Instant Access button.
We respect your privacy

Comments are closed.

  • Publisher’s Perspective

    November 23rd, 2022
    by

    Welcome to the November 23, 2022, edition of Kansas City’s Northeast News. This issue is somewhat of a milestone for […]


    House of News scores big at MO Press Convention

    September 21st, 2022
    by

    Michael Bushnell Publisher Once again, Kansas City’s Northeast News has raised the bar for Community Journalism in Kansas City’s Historic […]


    The Fourth Estate

    September 14th, 2022
    by

    by bunny the news hound Thomas Jefferson once said, in defense of the press, “Were it left to me to […]


    The lack of black players in American soccer

    August 17th, 2022
    by

    by Aniaya Reed Can you name a black female or male soccer player? I’ll go first, Crystal Dunn, United States […]


    An open letter to our readers, advertisers and the Historic Northeast community

    May 4th, 2022
    by

    From the Publisher of the Northeast News On July 1, 1998, Pinnacle Communications LLC assumed ownership of The Northeast News […]


    Buzz: The end of an era

    April 27th, 2022
    by

    And just like that, the Chief Richard Smith era is over at the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department. No fanfare, […]


    News Dog Speaks: What happened to NoVA?

    April 20th, 2022
    by

    People traditionally have short attention spans and short memories, something politicians like to capitalize on when speaking to key voter […]


    News Dog Speaks: Time for change

    February 23rd, 2022
    by

    This critically thinking News Dog thinks a change in paradigms is highly necessary in how the City deals with the […]


    Buzz: Reasonable expectations

    December 29th, 2021
    by

    The News Dog would like to talk a little about Community Journalism and reasonable expectations. When a citizen picks up […]


  • The time for strong neighborhoods is now.

    November 3rd, 2021
    by

    In 1995, Historic Northeast Kansas City boasted one of the strongest coalitions of neighborhood associations in the city. Under the […]


    Northeast News secures more Awards in Missouri Press competitions

    September 29th, 2021
    by

    Once again The Northeast News came away from the annual Missouri Press Association Convention at the Elms Hotel in Excelsior […]


    Shoot, don’t shoot: A Day in the Life of a KC Cop

    August 31st, 2021
    by

    Recently the News Dog was invited by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department (KCPD) to participate in their officer-involved shooting […]


    Marriage: A Bad Idea

    August 18th, 2021
    by

    Lexi GarciaEditorial Assistant One of the many things people think about when they get into relationships is whether or not […]


    The coronavirus is far from over

    August 11th, 2021
    by

    by Tatum Goetting The COVID crisis is not over, and Missourians should not act as if it is. We’re tired […]


    The Northeast community should care more for its high school facilities

    August 4th, 2021
    by

    by Corbin Smith For many high school students, sports are an integral part of their lives. Some students even rely […]


    Effects of a blank page

    June 2nd, 2021
    by

    Roughly 60 days ago, the team here at the House of News made the bold decision to publish our March […]


    Pet ownership comes with responsibilities

    May 26th, 2021
    by

    Nikki Lansford Editorial Assistant If you’re an avid Facebook user who consistently peruses any page pertaining to the Northeast, then […]


    Mayor Q’s Corrupt Cronies Volume I

    May 26th, 2021
    by

    Once again, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has shown his true, City-Charter-shredding, open-meeting-violating colors by deliberately making backroom deals with […]


  • Northeast Newscast


  • Remember This?

    Remember This?

    May 24th, 2023
    by

  • Want articles sent directly to your inbox each week? Subscribe below!
    We respect your privacy and will not distribute your information.