Regardless of where each of us stood in the final vote, we all were working for the common good, doing our individual best to protect the interests of our constituents. We have much work to do in the coming year. In many respects, this is only the beginning. But the passage of the budget last month is a moment worthy of celebration.

Finance
With the FY 2008-09 budget we made significant strides toward restoring our fund balance, which is a vital step in ensuring that the city will maintain a strong bond rating far into the future. This will allow us to issue bonds in the future to tackle big important projects such as citywide sidewalk repair and a much-needed upgrade of our sewer and storm water system. In addition to shoring up the fund balance, we adopted a budget that plans for the actual costs we anticipate covering in the coming year. The original submitted budget did not. By planning for the costs, the City Council and I were able to be more strategic and make cuts and funding increases, which reflect our priorities.

But again, our work is not done. I have already met with Councilmembers Hermann and Marcason to discuss the next steps. They are convening weekly work sessions of the Finance and Audit Committee to monitor the implementation of the budget and discuss policies that will allow us even greater control over our finances. With the ambitious agenda they have set out for their committee, I am optimistic that by this time next year, we will be celebrating an even better budget that does more to fund the priorities that all of us share for Kansas City.

Neighborhoods
City staff is currently working on a comprehensive strategy for dealing with solid waste. This would have an enormous, positive impact on neighborhoods with more effective management of bulky item disposal, recycling and prevention of illegal dumping. Litter control and trash services are major issues for neighborhoods.

Crime
Last month, the Council and I unanimously approved a resolution to begin working toward a regional jail. This is an idea that has been around for years, and Cathy Jolly, chairwoman of Public Safety and Neighborhoods Committee, is stepping up to offer the leadership needed to see it through. The City carries an unfair financial burden by operating a municipal jail. Typically, cities don’t carry this burden. In most places, this is a county or state responsibility. By partnering with Jackson County and other governments in the metro area, we can bring economies of scale to bear. At the same time, we can continue to work to ensure public safety by having adequate bed space for offenders across the metro area.

Housing
Over the last several years, the City’s housing program has been closely scrutinized. It was first analyzed by the City Auditor’s Office (read the audit), then by a citizen task force, both of which issued reports (read the Citizen Advisory Committee Annual Report). We recently received a third report from an independent contractor (read this report). These reports share themes, and now it is time to bring these data together and begin to take action. Cindy Circo, chairwoman of the Housing Committee, has asked City staff to formulate an action plan and a timeline for its completion. She has set a deadline for the end of the month. Under her guidance, the City is beginning to make significant progress toward improving its housing program.

Transit
I believe that we have the legislation in place to pursue a regional system that would include at least the three metropolitan counties on the Missouri side: Clay, Platte and Jackson. Based on the figures I’ve seen, a half-cent sales tax in those three counties would enable us to build 40 miles of light rail. A system that large could link the airport, downtown, Independence and Lee’s Summit.

No one thing would do as much to return density to our urban core, improve our environment and build our competitiveness as a metropolitan area in the global economy.

I know this Council has committed to putting a light rail initiative on the ballot in November. I am working to make that vote a regional one and have been trying to meet with county legislators with that goal in mind. If I fail to find support, I will work to see a starter line approved by the voters in November, with a clear path toward a regional system.

Downtown
Each month, the excitement level downtown lifts higher and higher. March was no different, as throngs of people from all across the U.S. converged on our downtown to take in Big XII men’s and women’s basketball championships. I caught the Mizzou game, which unfortunately ended in disappointment for us Tiger fans (but the excitement of Colorado’s double-overtime win over Baylor was almost enough to make up for it). Regardless of which team you were rooting for, there’s no doubt it was a big win for Kansas City. The streets and restaurants were crowded with revelers and the traffic control and parking went smoothly.

Sewers
The Water Services Utility Funding Task Force that I appointed has held four public hearings about the cost of the sewer upgrades required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The task force is considering customer rates, potential tax increases and other innovative forms of financing for this multi-billion-dollar project over the next 25 years. Decades of neglect mean that our infrastructure is in drastic need of repair and replacement in order to meet the EPA's water quality standards.

One of the first things the task force did was to come up with a series of guiding principles. They are:

• Equity: Costs should be directly linked to the use of the service
• Ability to Pay: Fairness is important in structuring utility rates and funding
• Growth Pays for Growth: Existing ratepayers should not fund the extension for service to new developments
• Revenue Stability: Cash flow should be predictable and lack extreme variations
• Conservation: The efficient user of resources should be encouraged
• Prioritize: Kansas City can’t meet all the financial needs identified. Strategic financial investment should be made to accomplish community priorities and where the value gained from investment is high
• Economic Competitiveness: Decisions regarding funding strategy, rate structure and levels should be made in light of Kansas City's need to attract and retain businesses, residents and customers
• Administrative Ease: The cost of administration should be minimized, and uncomplicated processes should be used
• Public Acceptance: The public should feel confident that the rate structure and funding program is fair
• Simplicity: Residents should understand how charges and fees are determined.

These principles will guide the group as they develop a pricing strategy that will be submitted to the City Council for adoption.

Citizen Satisfaction
The city auditor has released the results from the annual citizen survey. It revealed that more than half of those surveyed were satisfied with the overall quality of life in Kansas City. However, this is a lower satisfaction rate than in other communities in our metropolitan area. There were also significant increases in satisfaction with the overall feeling of safety and with some city services such as streets, downtown, code enforcement and building maintenance improved again this year.

I’m very pleased that the survey showed significant increases in citizens' satisfaction with the availability of information about City services, the City's efforts to keep residents informed about local issues and the level of public involvement in local decision making. That said, there's still a lot of room for improvement in all of those categories. The percentage of folks satisfied with these services range from just 23 percent to 37 percent.

Education
I have been actively serving on an education reform task force that was established and appointed by Dave Smith, president of the Kansas City, Mo., Board of Education. In May we will present to the community a series of recommendations for the district. This is a very diverse group of people, representing teachers, parents, students, business leaders, clergy and elected officials. I’m confident that this broad range of perspective will yield an array of promising ideas for the entire community to build on to move our district forward.

At our first meeting, we received valuable information from the Council of the Great City Schools. Their presentation focused on several urban school districts that are national success stories – Atlanta, Long Beach, Dayton, Richmond. What these districts share in common is a high level of community support and cohesiveness. They’ve been able to reach political consensus around education and they’ve sustained it. They’ve set clear priorities and goals for their school districts. Their residents are engaged at all levels, and they work to hold education leaders accountable for results. This has brought stability to these districts, which, as a result have been able to function better. They can focus on solutions rather than chasing problems. They no longer have to wait for a savior superintendent to come along. They simply go about the work of educating their children.

Again, the common theme here is community support and cohesiveness. That’s why I continue to push for a citywide summit on education. This summit was the first recommendation offered by the Council of the Great Cities Schools when it conducted a review of the district. Last summer, the Kansas City School Board unanimously passed a resolution endorsing a city-sponsored summit. Many top-down examinations and conferences regarding the school district have been undertaken to no effect. What is needed is a broad-based, bottom-up approach that considers all aspects of the educational needs of all children living in the urban core of Kansas City, not just those served by the Kansas City, Mo., School District.

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Sincerely,