News

Red-light traffic cameras got a contract renewal. And even a single-party's super-majority didn't produce agreement on a tax plan for Kansas. KCUR's Steve Bell recaps on those and other top stories of the week on the KCUR Saturday News Review.

Next week, while the NBA and NHL playoffs drag on, ESPN will turn its attention to the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Many will again wonder, "What's a kid's classroom activity doing on the quintessential sports network?" Commentator Victor Wishna has an answer, in this latest edition of "A Fan's Notes."

In the acoustic landscape of organized competition, there are those iconic sounds that separate the hope of victory from ultimate defeat: The buzzer. The horn. The final whistle. But none may be more chilling and spirit-draining than this one: Ding!

Jackson County officials are acknowledging that new valuations on 18,000 residential properties may not be accurate and need additional review.

  Looking for a great film to see this Memorial Day Weekend, May 24-27, 2013?

If the only six-pack you have is sitting in your fridge, some local bodybuilders might have some advice for you. 

The Kansas City council votes to extend the red light program but puts off a vote on a new ethics code.  The Kansas City Ballet name Devon Carney as its new artistic director.  Officials will break ground for the National Bio and Agro Defense Facility next week.

The full Kansas City city council followed through on plans to extend the red-light camera program for another five years Thursday, but a vote on a new city ethics code will wait till next week.

The Kansas City Ballet has named Devon Carney as the company's new artistic director. For the last decade, Carney has worked with Cincinnati Ballet; since 2008, he's served as associate artistic director.

The latest report from the Kansas City Regional Association of Realtors suggests that the average sales price of an existing home is up 15 percent from a year ago, and the average sales price of a new home is up about 16 percent from December 2011.  On the other hand 4% of homes currently on the market are in foreclosure.  As the housing market begins to recover from the Recession, those buying and selling houses are facing different issues. Mary Hutchison, a Kansas City relator and Mike Cash, Senior Loan Officer at a1 Mortgage talk about this shift on this Central Standard. 

It’s swimsuit season and many are looking to shed a few pounds gained over the winter. But losing weight is a challenge and current research shows the odds are stacked against us when it comes to overcoming the mental obstacles of weight loss. With one third of children in the United States and two thirds of adults who are obese or overweight, it seems there is a huge challenge when trying to stay healthy. Amanda Bruce, a Childhood Obesity and imaging specialist at UMKC and  Jennifer D. Lundgren, Clinical Ph.D. Associate Professor and at UMKC both work on the issue of how psychology plays into childhood and adult obesity.

Groundbreaking for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility will take place next Tuesday in Manhattan, Kansas according to a release from Senator Robert's office.

Cost sharing for this phase of the animal disease lab will be about equal - 50/50- for the independent power plant required on the 48 acre site at Kansas State University. Both Kansas and the federal government are putting in roughly $40 million.

Would you pay more for an article of clothing if it meant the person who made it worked in safe factory conditions and earned a fair wage?