Ex-KC manager was about to get an honorary street. Mayor, others question legality
Kansas City was set to celebrate former City Manager Troy Schulte with an honorary street Thursday, only to cancel following pushback from elected officials, including the mayor.
Schulte and proponents were expected to gather on the north side of City Hall, where one block of 11th Street between Oak and Locust streets would be honorarily named “Troy Schulte Way.” But the event was canceled Wednesday evening.
That came after objections from Mayor Quinton Lucas and one of the council members who represents downtown. While some council members signed a petition to support honoring Schulte with a street, others said they only found out about the effort when they received the invitation to the event.
The naming idea was led by Councilwoman Heather Hall, 1st District, who represents the Northland. She did not immediately return a request for comment Thursday morning.
On Wednesday, Lucas sent an email to the council, saying the honorary naming should come before the City Council.
“I’d hope supporters reconsider the designation, at least as to the procedure used, to spare this council and the city of further public discussion of this when we have other important topics to discuss before the public such as addressing fire, infrastructure, budget and other issues, respectfully, inherited from the former manager’s tenure,” Lucas wrote.
In an interview Thursday morning, he said Schulte served the city well.
“I think he’s a wonderful person,” Lucas said. “I do think that Kansas City should be a bit more methodical on any street designation or honor.”
Lucas cited the backlash after the City Council voted to rename The Paseo to honor the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., which was undone following an initiative petition and citywide vote.
“I’ll remind you we still have not named a street for Martin Luther King, nor have we for Mayor (Sly) James or others,” Lucas said.
The city’s Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners, which governs boulevards, has held public hearings on renaming Volker Boulevard, Swope Parkway and Blue Parkway for King but has yet to vote on the measure.
Councilwoman Katheryn Shields, 4th District at-large, said she found out about the proposal on Wednesday and called it “offensive and inappropriate” for Hall to attempt to name an honorary street in Shields’ district without consulting her.
Schulte served as city manager for over a decade, overseeing the creation of the city’s starter streetcar line, passage of an $800 million infrastructure package and negotiations with the firm building a new single terminal at Kansas City International Airport. He came into the job amid a recession and left after a decade of economic growth.
When he retired a year ago, Schulte said serving in the role was the “greatest and most rewarding professional achievement of my life.”
“As a result, it is only right that we express our gratitude for a man who has done so much to promote the interest of Kansas Citians,” says an application filed with the city to make the renaming possible.
Contacted Thursday morning, Schulte, who is now Jackson County’s administrator, said he was flattered by the idea.
“I’m honored that they want to do that, but I think the city’s got bigger things to worry about,” he said, adding that he found out about the cancellation Wednesday evening.
Normally, honorarily renaming a street requires a petition with at least 50 signatures, including 75% of the property owners along the road. A committee made up of city staffers has to sign off.
In this case, all of the property on the block is owned by the city. On one side sits City Hall. The other side is Ilus Davis Park, named for the former mayor.
A petition on file with the city shows numerous city staffers and several council members signed, but Lucas wasn’t sure that fulfilled the requirement. The city signing off as the sole property owner on the block would require consent of a majority of the council through a formal vote, he believes.
The petition provided to The Star named 12th Street between Oak and Locust, as the block to be renamed, not 11th Street, where the ceremony was set to take place. The Star asked city communications officials about the issue, and they said they would look into it.
