Swope Health announces a new edition of its podcast, One on One with Swope Health, featuring Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas.
Eric Wesson, founder and publisher of The Next Page KC, a newspaper focused on the Black community, hosts the show’s conversations with Kansas Citians about issues of importance to the community’s health and wellbeing.
In this episode, the Mayor and Eric discuss the year 2025 – the good, bad, and ugly. The conversation covers a wide range of topics, including accountability, housing and development, food deserts, city lawsuits and more.
The conversation starts with the recently proposed bill in the Missouri legislature to separate Kansas City from Jackson County.
“This is not a good idea,” Lucas said. He noted the bill would create redundancies, require duplication of offices, and create challenges in untangling taxing and funding commitments. “It may be provocative, it may be interesting, but I don’t think this is one that helps anyone.”
Lucas, who had suggested that his legacy would be seen in housing, discussed the increase in accessible housing and the requirement for mixed-income housing. He said he is proud to promote mixed-income housing, supporting working class Black professionals and to build community. He also spoke of the need for more residential housing and infill housing, especially in areas like 35th and Prospect.
He noted former Mayor Kay Barnes pegged her legacy to rebuilding downtown, and he argues that now it’s time to repopulate the urban core with mixed-income quality homes.
The Mayor spoke on core issues of drug use, loitering, and the closing of the grocery store at Linwood Shopping Center. Addressing drug use, the Mayor explained the proposed gas station drug bill, which would prohibit sales of drugs like Kratom, Delta 8, Delta 9, synthetic cannabinoids and other unregulated substances found at convenience stores, vape shops, smoke shops and gas stations.
He expressed frustration on the issue of loitering, noting that the city had passed a loitering ordinance earlier this year, in part to address issues at 35th and Prospect, but that the police department had declined to support the ordinance. The Mayor noted if Kansas City had local control of the police department, the KCPD would enforce the local ordinances. He also expressed a need for more community policing, with visible police patrols staying engaged with the community.
Accountability was a key topic in discussions about the police department and the fire department, and other large city departments. The Mayor shared his views on crime trends, 911 issues, budgeting, homelessness responses and more.
Listen to the full conversation here: https://youtu.be/lJULGsj9Hgk
