City Hall, 22nd floor • 414 E. 12th St. • Kansas City, MO 64106 • Phone: (816) 513-1616 •
Fax: (816) 513-1612 • Assistant: Jim Giles • jim_giles@kcmo.org |
In March 2007, Beth Gottstein was elected to the City of Kansas City, Mo., City Council, as its 4th District at large representative. She won by nearly 10 percent of the vote, with a dedicated team of support, an impressive list of endorsements and a passion to serve. Her campaign platform included open, transparent government, fiscal integrity and strengthened infrastructure.
The mayor appointed Beth to the council Finance and Audit Committee and the Council Planning and Zoning Committee. Other City appointments include the Municipal Arts Commission, Health Commission, Small Minority Loan Development Corporation, Global Economic Commission and the Economic Strategic Policy Task Force. She recently joined the City Investment Committee.
Since her election, Beth has focused her attention on small business development, neighborhood improvements and City responsiveness, oversight of City expenditures and crime reduction. Beth remains committed to prudent use of our economic incentives, building from the successes our developments have generated. She cites the Shoal Creek TIF, Crossroads PIEA, Westport CID and the Downtown Library TIF as just a few examples where careful investment works.
Her professional experiences range from healthcare funding and advocacy to economic development and City service, always with an emphasis on the nonprofit sector and the underserved. Her tenure includes Kansas Legal Services, Jewish Heritage Foundation and Hispanic Economic Development Corporation. Each of these opportunities uniquely contributed to her drive to serve and vision for Kansas City’s future. Her time spent as an administrator at City Hall in the late 90s, in City Planning and Development, the City Manager’s Office and Neighborhoods and Community Services Department, sealed her passion for working within Kansas City’s local landscape. While working in Neighborhoods, Beth received the City’s Employee Recognition Award: Best Team Performance honor with the City of Kansas City, Mo., Fire Department for their work on children’s safety prevention programs.
Beth attained her master of public administration degree from the Henry R. Bloch School of Business and Public Administration and a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She is completing her master's of business administration from the Bloch School. Beth was the American Society of Public Administrators, Stanley Fisher Graduate Student Honoree, in 2000. She is a 2003 graduate of the Helzberg Leadership Institute.
Beth’s volunteer service includes the American Red Cross, Coalition of Hispanic Organizations, Friends of Young Audiences, Ivanhoe Neighborhood Council, Missouri Community Development Society, University Academy and the Women’s Employment Network. The Wyandotte County United Way honored Beth in 1995 as one of its Agency Volunteers of the Year.
Beth is past president of the Greater Kansas City Women's Political Caucus and a past board member of the Committee for County Progress. In 2000, the Women’s Political Caucus honored Beth with its Torch Award, as a young woman of promise.
Beth arrived in Kansas City, Mo., in August 1988, settling in the Plaza/midtown area. From the moment she arrived, Kansas City became home to Beth. A native of Des Moines, Iowa, Beth remains close to her parents who reside in the midtown Des Moines home in which they raised her.
