What Kansas City cares about. Up To Date brings people together for daily conversations about what’s happening in our region and how it affects our lives. Featuring interviews with artists, lawmakers, experts and everyday residents, plus original reporting from the KCUR newsroom, Up To Date keeps our city connected. Email the show at uptodate@kcur.org
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Located just north of the Missouri River, North Kansas City has grown by more than 20% since 2020. Mayor Jesse Smith says it’s time to make updates while maintaining the community’s “small-town feel.”
On his new album “Dear City,” Jeff Shafer’s socially-conscious hip hop celebrates what makes Kansas City great, but also reflects on what changes are needed to make the city even better.
The public agency voted to issue nearly $1.5 billion in bonds and tax breaks to Gillon Property Group early this week. Jon Stephens, the president and CEO of Port KC, says the deal is critical to the revitalization of the historic Plaza neighborhood.
As students across the Kansas City metro dust off their books and head back to school, our literary experts recommend titles perfect for reading deeply, just like you’re in English class yourself.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas joined KCUR's Up To Date to discuss the city council's $600 million funding package for a new Royals ballpark, what he'd like to see in the city's next police chief, the future of the Country Club Plaza and more.
Lake, an attorney who won the Democratic primary for Jackson County executive, is running against Republican Alan Rohlfing in November. The county has struggled under a dysfunctional legislature, and the interim executive was recently indicted on federal bribery charges.
Johnson County Parks and Recreation Department got money to restore a range of habitats in the region — including prairies, woodlands and wetlands — to strengthen natural prevention against flooding and pollution.
Two new grants received by the University of Kansas — worth $50,000 and $7,500 — will help train the next generation of Indigenous journalists.
After the Kansas City Council approved $600 million in funding for a new Crown Center ballpark on Thursday, Councilmember Crispin Rea called the deal a major accomplishment for the city. It will hold the Royals to $55 million over 30 years for community improvements, but some community groups say that's not enough — and want a public vote.
The public radio music station first went on air 25 years ago Wednesday. The Kansas City broadcaster has become a champion for local artists and music discovery, and serves as the home for Current matches on the radio.
With Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves retiring after four years, leaders around the metro say the next top cop will need to build on progress in addressing violent crime and repairing police-community relationships. They also want the Board of Police Commissioners to open the hiring process more to the public.
“Think And Drink” talks are hosted by experts who have covered everything from the Red Scare to the history of Santa Claus. The series is a collaboration between the popular Crossroads brewery and several other local partners, including Linda Hall Library and UMKC.
In “Opinionated: Kansas Journalists Who Proved Why Commentary Matters Then and Now,” Clay Wirestone, opinion editor of the Kansas Reflector, tells the stories of the writers who came before him, and contemplates the importance of the form today.
The GOP has dominated U.S. Senate elections in Kansas since the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt. But Washburn University political scientist Bob Beatty says Democrat Adam Hamilton could make this November’s election against incumbent Republican Sen. Roger Marshall unusually competitive.
The 6th district council member told KCUR's Up To Date on Thursday that his constituents want the city to negotiate a stadium deal that is more beneficial to residents. He said they also want more transparency from Kansas City's leaders.
Strawberry Hill in Kansas City, Kansas, has perhaps the most concentrated collection of dive bars in the metro. But no matter what neighborhood you’re in, Kansas City has a place for drinkers and diners looking for a low-key hang with decent food and cheap drinks.
Independence's superintendent said the district still needs to hire two elementary teachers, while Kansas City Public Schools has around 13 vacancies in "core content areas." Improving literacy and math comprehension remain top priorities.
Some immigrants in Kansas City are changing their work hours and shifting other parts of their daily routine to avoid encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. A new study found last year’s surge of immigration enforcement resulted in nearly 8,000 jobs lost in Kansas City.
Jackson County government has developed a reputation for pervasive corruption. The most recent blow was the federal indictment of Interim Jackson County Executive Phil LeVota, who is accused of trying to bribe a rival candidate.
The episode was filmed in Kansas City last summer, and the production team worked directly with the city’s film office to select locations and recruit a primarily local crew.
The ninth studio album of the Lawrence, Kansas, band The Roseline, was a piecemeal project a year in the making. The band’s founder, Colin Haliburton, hopes people will relate to the lyrics that touch on personal experiences.
Some patients will soon have to meet new criteria to be eligible for Medicaid under the president’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Some experts fear the new requirements could result in millions of people losing coverage and higher costs for healthcare providers.
A group of parents in the Shawnee Mission School District are happy about a new Kansas law banning cellphone use during the school day, but they want even more done about access to digital media. Now the district is restricting the use of school-issued iPads during recess and at home.
Multidisciplinary artist Kasim Hardaway reflects on the first year of “Take What You Need,” an interactive public art installation that pops up around Kansas City and invites people to pause and reflect on their lives.
Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins refused to certify a ballot initiative aimed at undoing the new congressional maps drawn by Republican legislators. Those maps carved up Kansas City in an effort to oust Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II, and this rejection sets up another legal battle ahead of November’s high-stakes midterms.
