Grassroots actions shaping Kansas City’s future

Grassroots initiatives and community actions that respond to local needs in Kansas City and are reshaping neighborhoods.

Neighbors, officials, and organizations address issues such as drugs, access to green space, and the arts. They take proactive steps to improve or defend their communities ahead of large events like the World Cup.

Residents in Gladstone push to ban a synthetic drug sold in gas stations, working with law enforcement to remove it from shelves. While students join efforts to protect a local orchard from being converted into a parking lot by testifying at city meetings and documenting the garden’s value.

Kansas City launches a program to fill empty storefronts and support local entrepreneurs, artists, and small businesses in time for the 2026 World Cup.

Musicians partner with senior living communities to bring live performances into retirement homes. Each example shows neighborhood voices shaping the city’s future through collaboration and direct action.

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Graduate piano student Naren Palomino Pardo, who is an artist-in-residence at Claridge Court, a senior living community, played the piano for residents on Monday, October 13, 2025, in Prairie Village. Resident Jim Hotchkiss, 97, was among those watching the performance. Palomino Pardo, a native of Bolivia, is studying at the University of Missouri–Kansas City Conservatory and lives within the senior community. By Tammy Ljungblad

NO. 1: WHY A UMKC PIANIST LIVES ALONGSIDE RETIREES IN JOHNSON COUNTY: ‘MUSIC CHOSE ME’

When Narem Palomino Pardo isn’t studying for his master’s at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, performing with the UMKC Conservatory Wind Symphony or practicing the piano, you might find him in an unusual position: | Published October 19, 2025 | Read Full Story by Joseph Hernandez

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Dozens of parents attended Monday’s Blue Valley School Board meeting in support of Sunset Ridge Kindergarten Teacher Barbara Hart. By Taylor O’Connor

NO. 2: BLUE VALLEY PARENTS OUTRAGED AFTER DISTRICT FIRES BELOVED KINDERGARTEN TEACHER

Dozens of Blue Valley School District parents flooded Monday night’s school board meeting to support and advocate for a beloved kindergarten teacher who was recently terminated for violating the district’s policy around when physical contact with a student is acceptable. | Published October 14, 2025 | Read Full Story by Taylor O'Connor

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Kansas City hopes to fill empty storefronts with businesses during the World Cup through a program that would subsidize their rent and offer grants of up to $10,000. By Eric Adler

NO. 3: KC TO PAY FOR BUSINESSES TO OCCUPY EMPTY STOREFRONTS AS WORLD CUP PROGRAM BEGINS

Are you an artist, maybe a chef, or small business looking for a place to put your wares before what is expected to be Kansas City’s thousands of World Cup visitors? | Published October 15, 2025 | Read Full Story by Eric Adler

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Pendleton Heights Community School student Jenny Haluck hugs a fig tree at the community orchard on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, in Kansas City. Students are advocating to preserve the orchard, which could be replaced by a parking lot. By Emily Curiel

NO. 4: STUDENTS PICK PAWPAWS AT THIS ORCHARD IN KC. IT COULD BECOME A PARKING LOT

School kids who walk to their local orchard in Pendleton Heights to pick pears, figs and pawpaws could soon see the community garden get paved over with a fresh parking lot. | Published October 20, 2025 | Read Full Story by Chris Higgins

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Samantha Silvey attended a trunk-or-treat event with her son, Brooks, 8, Saturday in Overland Park. Brooks, who is on the autism spectrum, will carry a blue pumpkin for trick-or-treating as a way to signal to homeowners that he has special needs. By Tammy Ljungblad

NO. 5: THINGS TO DO IN JOHNSON COUNTY: HAUNTS AND HAYRIDES, ORCHIDS AND AN ORCHESTRA

A Balinese orchestra with dancers, an orchid show and plenty of spooky October fun can be enjoyed this upcoming week in Johnson County. | Published October 15, 2025 | Read Full Story by Debra Skodack

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“Kansan Printer” (2006) by artists Joe Faus and Alisha Gambino in downtown Kansas City, Kansas, at 901 N. 8th St. The building housed the Kansas City Kansan newspaper for decades. By Sofi Zeman/ The Star

NO. 6: SIGN UP TO GET THE STAR’S NEW, FREE WYANDOTTE COUNTY NEWSLETTER: IN THE DOTTE

Hey ya’ll. | Published October 17, 2025 | Read Full Story by Sofi Zeman

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Amanda Gehin, an assistant natural history biologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, spotted this rare white Monarch butterfly in her backyard in Kansas City Friday, Oct. 3.

NO. 7: RARE BUTTERFLY FOUND IN KANSAS CITY: A GHOST OR GENETIC ANOMALY?

A member of the Missouri Department of Conservation spotted an animal in Kansas City that’s can usually beseen 4,000 miles away. | Published October 18, 2025 | Read Full Story by Joseph Hernandez

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A customer making a purchase at Vapor World, a Northland smoke shop. By David Hudnall

NO. 8: THIS KC SUBURB JUST TRIED TO BAN ‘GAS STATION HEROIN.’ HERE’S HOW IT’S GOING SO FAR

I drove to Gladstone Thursday afternoon. | Published October 20, 2025 | Read Full Story by David Hudnall

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Arrow Dart Club offers 10 high-tech dart lanes. By Jenna Thompson

NO. 9: LOOKING FOR A DARTS BAR? NEW CROSSROADS SPOT PROMISES ‘NOT YOUR GRANDPA’S DARTS’

When customers reserve a dart lane at Kansas City’s newest entertainment bar, they’ll likely find it’s not quite the same game they once played in their basements. | Published October 17, 2025 | Read Full Story by Jenna Thompson

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A COVID-19 vaccination booster shot at the clinic in Kansas City, Kansas. By Rich Sugg

NO. 10: FLU, WHOOPING COUGH CASES ON THE RISE IN KANSAS CITY

The Kansas City Health Department is urging residents to get vaccinated against influenza and pertussis as cases rise in the city. | Published October 18, 2025 | Read Full Story by Caroline Zimmerman

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.