As a result of meetings with community leaders, city staff, elected officials locally and Cabinet and administration officials in Washington, D.C. an idea has advanced that will target stimulus investments in a way that maximizes and deepens the impact of every dollar.
Resolution No. 090254 has been introduced to the Kansas City Council to focus a portion of millions in stimulus funds in a hard hit area of Kansas City. This designated section of the City is bounded by 39th Street on the north, 51st Street on the south, Troost Avenue on the west and Prospect Avenue to 47th Street over to Swope Parkway on the east. Directly effected are the neighborhoods of Ivanhoe, Blue Hills, 49/63 and Manheim and Town Fork Creek, some of the City’ strongest neighborhood organizations. The area is called the “Green Impact Zone of Missouri.”
Through community discussions convened by the Mid-America Regional Council, an overarching goal of training and putting residents of these neighborhoods to work weatherizing every home that is eligible within the Zone has been suggested.
This is no small task, but has the potential of reducing utility bills, conserving electricity and creating sustainable jobs for a portion of the City where unemployment is hovering between 20-50 percent.
As the discussions of the Green Impact Zone have progressed, excitement has built and partnerships have been forged. Kansas City Power and Light has stepped up to the plate and committed that, if the city is willing to adopt this plan, KCP&L is willing to invest and deploy a “Smart Grid” in the Zone. A Smart Grid provides enhanced reliability and efficiency through real-time information about electricity supply and demand. It also allows consumers to manage their electricity use, and save money, by providing useful information about electricity prices. Perhaps most importantly, a Smart Grid allows for renewable energy sources, such as the power that will be produced in the Green Impact Zone, to seamlessly feed into the energy grid. KCP&L’s commitment is to create a model of the energy grid of the future unlike any in the country.
Commiting to making neighborhoods east of Troost that have been historically last now be first is long overdue.
The Partners
a cooperative effort of the State of Missouri, City of Kansas City, Mid-America Regional Council, Kansas City Power & Light, Ivanhoe Neighborhood Association, Blue Hills Neighborhood Association, Manheim Neighborhood Association, 49/63 Neighborhood Association, Town Fork Creek Neighborhood Association, Brush Creek Community Partners, University of Missouri Kansas City Center for Economic Information, Metropolitan Energy Center and the Kansas City Crime Commission
