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.

The project to Reconnect the Westside is a city-led initiative focused on restoring connections within the Westside neighborhood addressing historic challenges caused by the construction of I-35 and I-670. The project works in collaboration with the Missouri Department of Transportation and uses a $1 million grant for this Planning and Environmental Linkages Study.

The initiative, Selina and Josh say, prioritizes listening to the community and engaging community members in the planning. The Westside neighborhood was made up of 14,000 residents in the 1940s, when the interstate freeways were initially built; the neighborhood now contains about 3,300 people. The interstate caused the displacement of homes and businesses, while creating a physical barrier with noise and air quality issues.

The project was launched with the bipartisan infrastructure law that acknowledged impacts of interstate development. Josh said the city recognized an opportunity to correct the harm and improve safety and efficiency. With the highways now aging, there will be requirements for state investment – and this project can give the community a voice in those coming investments.

 “This is a very community-driven process, and that’s what it’s intended to be,” said Selina. “This is about the community and making the quality of life better for the West side, connecting the neighborhood.”

In community engagement sessions, the discussions are targeted to explore three broad options: should the interstate highways remain the same, be realigned or removed entirely.

• Remain: What can be done to connect if the highways remain as they are? Consider enhancing and developing viaduct space, ways to connect blocks without street access and open up Penn Valley Park to the West side.
• Realign: Based on idea that I-35 could be realigned to a different location, for example, to the west lots where rail infrastructure is dominant. This option would require federal and state funding and would have significant regional impact.
• Remove or possibly Reroute: Starts with the idea to tear down the interstate, and perhaps provide local access parkways in its place.

Josh and Selina announced the upcoming  community session at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 13, at the Mattie Rhodes Community Center. They also discussed the separate project examining reconnecting the East side, which will be the subject of a separate discussion on One on One with Swope Health.

Listen to the full conversation here: https://youtu.be/0mxVXwz93F0

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The event runs from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5 at Swope Health Central in the C building. Lunch will be available for purchase.

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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.

Johnson first participated in a One-on-One with Swope Health interview in her role as the Mayor’s director of public safety, and again in a conversation marking her first 100 days in office. At the time of this conversation, Johnson is approaching the one-year mark of her term in office.  

“I’m pretty proud of the progress we’ve been able to make,” she said. “If you know anything about crime, you know we didn’t get here overnight and so we’re certainly not going to fix it overnight. Incremental progress is still progress. Baby steps are still steps forward.”

One area of focus and progress is domestic violence. Johnson noted that in her earlier position as director of public safety she had learned that 90 percent of domestic violence cases are charged at the Municipal level. On her second week as Prosecutor, Johnson sent a letter to law enforcement and municipal prosecutors outlining the factors that could elevate a municipal charge to a state or felony domestic violence charge.

That effort resulted in a 13 percent increase in the number of cases referred to the county. She also noted the details of this increase are presented to the public on a new Domestic Violence Dashboard. Her next step is to incorporate property crime, harassment and other categories of cases that may have a connection to domestic violence.

Johnson also discusses SAVE KC, a focused deterrence strategy to identify individuals who are likely to be impacted by violence or subject to group-related violence. Those individuals are invited to a “Call In” meeting where law enforcement provides a warning of enhanced enforcement and consequences. At the same meeting, individuals formerly incarcerated or involved in criminal activity or violence share personal stories, often addressing grief and pain. Finally, social service organizations are present to offer assistance on a new path with job resources, housing, education or other services.

“We know we can’t expect you to put the gun down if we are not prepared to put something else in your hand,” she said. Early evidence is showing reductions in violence associated with these identified individuals.

The conversation also addresses actions addressing property crime, the development of the county jail, and a new program to expand diversion options while providing accountability.

Listen to the full conversation here: https://youtu.be/tiQcB0uGuo8

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Stations will be set up to distribute household goods, toiletries, blankets and a food box, including turkey, ham, or chicken for the first 500 families.

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Since 1987, Swope Health has provided services to unhoused individuals through the Outreach, Healthcare for the Homeless, program. In the early 2000s, the program

Swope Health has used multiple units over the years – including three total in Melson’s tenure – due to the high mileage it travels. The MMU is out in the community at least twice a week.

“In the past, we were out in the community three days a week, but COVID disrupted some things. As we continue to rebuild the program, the goal is to be in the community three to four days a week,” she said.

On days when the MMU is out in the community, it travels to a location in the morning and in the afternoon. Thanks to 

The MMU team has a rotation of staff members who take turns going out in the community. The team consists of a driver, a case worker, a medical assistant, and a medical provider.

“Our team works together to meet the needs of our patients,” she said. “Our case workers help enroll patients in our services and connect them to resources at Swope Health and in the community. I’m one of the medical providers and my role is to provide medical care but also to be a listening ear.”

When a patient gets onto the unit, they check in with the case worker to register 

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This drive-through event gives kids a chance to dress up and receive a treat bag of goodies.

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Join us at Legends Field for a weekend that honors the past, celebrates the now, and carries the Kansas City Sound into the future. From after-hours jams to all-star sets, this isn’t just a festival — it’s KC’s rhythm reborn.

2025 Lineup Features:

• Stanley Clarke – Grammy-winning bass legend
• Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe – Jazz-funk brilliance
• Bill Frisell – Master of genre-bending guitar
• Shemekia Copeland – Soulful, modern blues royalty
• Roosevelt Collier – Slide guitar fire
• Rell Davenport, Jackie Myers, Brody Buster – KC’s own keeping the flame alive

Tickets are available at Maxfunent.com. More details at https://monarchsbaseball.com/blues-and-jazz/.

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Swope Health’s mission has always been to deliver accessible, quality, comprehensive patient care to the community – and the health center has taken that a step further in recent years. With the acquisition of two Mobile Dental Units, Swope Health now goes directly to the underserved members of the community, primarily providing care to those in schools and homeless shelters.

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