Kansas City Today

The Kansas City, Kansas, Street Blues Festival was created as a place for a small group of influential blues artists from northeast Kansas City, Kansas, to share their music with their community. Now, however, so many of these artists have died that the event organizer doesn’t believe he’ll be able to continue the festival. KCUR's Zach Perez visited with blues enthusiasts ahead of this year's festival — which could be the last.

A few steps away from Martini Corner and historic Union Hill, the 816 Bike Collective is building a community one refurbished bike at a time. As KCUR’s Lawrence Brooks IV reports, Kansas City’s first community-based bicycle shop is celebrating their 15 year anniversary.

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Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

Bringing bison back to the prairie transforms the landscape in ways that may make it more resilient against climate change and benefit other wildlife. Celia Llopis-Jepsen of the Kansas News Service reports on a rare three-decade study by scientists at Kansas State University.

The Farm Bill is a giant piece of legislation that sets policy on everything from food benefits to crop insurance and how the agriculture industry fights climate change. But with a divided Congress taking office next year, it's difficult to predict how the bill will pan out. Harvest Public Media’s Jonathan Ahl breaks down the biggest issues facing lawmakers as they take on the massive task.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

The idea of a Royals stadium in downtown Kansas City has been thrown around for years, but Royals owner John Sherman recently said his team is finally moving towards a downtown "ballpark district" that will include housing, shopping, hotels and restaurants. With a speculative price tag of $2 billion, do the pros outweigh the cons, and who will end up footing the bill? Up To Date's Steve Kraske spoke with Field of Schemes editor Neil DeMause and "Ballpark" author Paul Goldberger about the idea.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

With rising rent prices, an affordable place to live is out of reach for many families. If families with school-aged children can’t find stable housing, federal law requires school districts to identify them and provide certain services.

But what happens when a district doesn’t identify all of its houseless students? KCUR’s Jodi Fortino tells us why students at one Kansas City-area school district may be falling through the cracks.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

The U.S. Department of Labor is investigating the potentially illegal use of children working dangerous jobs at meatpacking and slaughtering facilities in at least three states, including Missouri. A federal court complaint was filed in Nebraska to stop Wisconsin-based Packers Sanitation Services Inc. from committing what the agency called “oppressive child labor” violations.

Steve Vockrodt of the Midwest Newsroom explains that minors can hold certain jobs, but federal regulations prohibit them from working in positions deemed “particularly hazardous” and detrimental to their health and wellbeing.

Republican Eric Schmitt will soon be heading to Washington, D.C. as Missouri’s junior U.S. Senator. From the moment Schmitt entered Missouri politics — first as a state senator, and most recently as Attorney General — the Republican Party always called the shots. But that won’t be what he’ll encounter in the U.S. Senate, which will remain controlled by Democrats. St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum reports.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

According to an expanded federal indictment filed Monday, former Kansas City, Kansas, police detective Roger Golubski was allegedly paid to help protect a sex trafficking operation of underage girls run out of an apartment complex. The new charges involved "involuntary servitude" of two teenagers who were held captive and allegedly raped by the traffickers and other men, including Golubski.

KCUR reporter Peggy Lowe talked more about the case with Steve Kraske on Up To Date.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

Missourians voted last week to require Kansas City to spend even more money on its police department. The Kansas City Police Department will now receive 25% of the city's general fund. But voters in Kansas City actually rejected the amendment by 61%. KCUR’s Celisa Calacal tell us why Kansas Citians and Missourians differ on the matter, what state control means for the department and whether it might change in the future.

A shortage of health care workers in Kansas has forced some nursing homes and other long-term care facilities to close, even as the state’s population continues to age. Homes that remain open are more than twice as likely to see staff shortages as the country overall. Rose Conlon of the Kansas News Service reports.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

The passage of Amendment 3 last week paved the way for the legal sale and consumption of recreational marijuana in Missouri. But there also are all sorts of questions about the constitutional amendment itself and how its many provisions will now be carried out: How soon will you be able to shop for edibles or retail weed? And how soon will those convicted of marijuana use or possession see their criminal records cleared?

On KCUR's Up To Date, host Steve Kraske spoke with Jack Cardetti, spokesman for Legal MO 2022, to get some answers.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

Urban farms on vacant lots would seem like a win-win-win for the farmers and the city: Urban farmers can bring more food security to their neighborhoods, the vacant lots are taken care, and the city gets more greenspace. But as Harvest Public Media’s Eva Tesfaye reports, urban farmers in the Midwest often struggle to acquire that land.

North America is home to more than 10,000 varieties of mushrooms. More than 2,000 types are found in Missouri, where morels popping up in the springtime marks the beginning of the mushroom season. But in the fall a variety of wild, edible mushrooms start to appear beginning in late September. KCUR’s Julie Denesha takes us on a hunt to find them.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

After the midterms, Kansas' government is a great example of how the rest of the nation looks: divided. Gov. Laura Kelly narrowly won her reelection bid, giving solidly-red Kansas another four years with a Democratic governor.

Meanwhile, the conservative firebrand Kris Kobach, who made national headlines during his two terms as secretary of state, secured a comeback by winning his race for attorney general. The Kansas News Services' Dylan Lysen talks about the journey these two took to win their races.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love, Trevor Grandin and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate