Sylvia Maria Gross

Over the past few weeks, Kansas City Public Schools held community forums to discuss the reorganization of the district’s middle grades, and possibly returning to the concept of stand-alone middle schools.  The district’s tweens have been bounced around quite a bit over the past few years. 

Cellist Sascha Groschang and violinist Laurel Morgan Parks have been good friends since they trained together as classical musicians at UMKC’s Conservatory of Music and Dance. They perform around the region, and internationally, in symphony orchestras and chamber groups.  They’ve also delved into traditional folk, rock and jazz genres.  (Parks plays in the Kansas City folk-rock band, In The Pines.)

The heavy snow last week caused several roof collapses around the Kansas City area. And several more buildings were evacuated for fear of a collapse, including a Macy’s in Overland Park.  KCUR’s Dan Verbeck sat down with Overland Park Code Administrator, Tim Ryan, to find out more about addressing and preventing roof collapses.

Update Tuesday, 7:30 a.m. Due to the weather, polling places have been consolidated in both Wyandotte and Johnson Counties. Find polling places for Wyandotte County here and Johnson County here. 

Local and federal officials are trying to piece together exactly what happened last Tuesday evening, when a natural gas leak led to an explosion just west of the Country Club Plaza. The explosion and resulting fire at JJ’s restaurant killed one woman, and injured 15.

The victim is presumed to be 46-year-old Megan Cramer, a native of Springfield, and a longtime resident of the Plaza. Staff and regulars of JJ’s are not only mourning her loss, but the loss of a community that had formed around drinks and meals at the restaurant. 

The redevelopment of each closed school building in Kansas City, Mo. tends to draw a small group of concerned residents.  And that was the case for the old Bingham Junior High School property, at 77th and Wyandotte in Waldo. Until Walmart came knocking.

Across the Kansas City area, communities are debating the drawbacks and benefits of having the world's largest retailer as a neighbor: Walmart. In Lee’s Summit, a group of residents showed up at a recent city council meeting wearing red, to oppose the construction of a $25 million dollar Walmart Supercenter.