KC’s economic development study parroted exactly what the city wanted
The following commentary also appeared in the Kansas City Star. Businessman John Wannamaker famously quipped, “Half the money I spend on...
Follow-up on Kansas City Population Trends
The other day we published a post about some Brookings Institution data suggesting the Kansas City was doing well with...
Kansas City’s Unrelenting and Unaddressed Homicide Problem
Four years ago, when Kansas City’s homicide rate was down, City leaders were eager to let people know. “There is...
Kansas City’s Economic Diversion
City leaders are still pointing to Kansas City’s downtown as an economic development success story. Taxpayers lose millions each year...
Creating a Field of Dreams for the American Royal
With the World Series in full swing, I’m reminded of a quote from one of my favorite sports movies, Field...
The Great Urban School District That Wasn’t, but May Be Soon
What if I told you that you could have access to nearly unlimited resources, the counsel of top experts, and...
Working in Kansas City: The Rise of Johnson County
Living in a quaint, leafy suburb and commuting to a bustling downtown for work is an enduring image of American...
How Bad Policy Survives
In modern politics, combatants like to paint those around them as evil or ignorant. The practice is as old as...
You will be made to care: Sex Ed Edition
Conservative columnist and radio host Erick Erickson coined the phrase “you will be made to care” to describe the tendency...
Map Series: IV. Kansas City Area Travel Time to Work
The map above shows the mean travel time to work per census tract in the Kansas City area. The dark...
Where Is Kansas City’s Recovery?
Whither Kansas City? According to local media outlets, the city is clearly on this rise. Millennials are moving downtown, residential developments...
The Ghost Of Airport Terminals Yet To Come
When the Kansas City International (MCI) Airport Advisory group begins it public meetings in Johnson County, Kan., early next year,...
Is Kansas City A ‘Low Tax’ City?
The conventional wisdom seems to be that Missouri is a “low tax state,” but to come to that conclusion, you...
On Tax Policy And Iocane Powder
Last week, our friend and fellow blogger Dave Helling at the Kansas City Star wrote a critique of my post...
You Can Call Them Buzzards, But That Makes Missouri The Carcass
Another day, another governor courting — or as some are saying, “trying to poach” — Missouri’s businesses. This time, it’s...
Taxes Do Harm Growth
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, in its Sat., Feb. 2, 2013, editorial, attacked Rex Sinquefield, the Show-Me Institute, legislators, and anyone...
Another Missouri Company Leaving for Kansas, Citing, in Part, Kansas City’s Earnings Tax
Tax. Policy. Matters. We make this point all the time, but if skeptics needed another real world example to hammer...
