In Kansas City’s Columbus Park neighborhood, residents living across the street from each other now belong to different congressional districts after Missouri’s new congressional map split the historic neighborhood in two.

The divide is so sharp that the building Garozzo’s Ristorante occupies sits in a different district from its own parking lot.

Sharon Fermyn, who has lived in the neighborhood for nearly 20 years, now lives along the dividing line between congressional districts that cuts through Columbus Park after the Missouri Supreme Court upheld the new congressional maps Tuesday.

“I don’t like it,” Fermyn said. “I’m nervous about it. I know who I’m not going to vote for.”

The Missouri Supreme Court upheld the state’s new congressional map, clearing the way for Kansas City’s longtime Democratic-heavy 5th Congressional District to be split among three districts ahead of the 2026 mid-term elections. However, questions still linger over whether the map will be used in the upcoming Aug. 4 primary and Nov. 3 election.

The dividing line between the 4th District and the 6th District runs directly through Columbus Park, with neighbors in different districts depending on which side of the street they live on in some areas.

Frankie Frankovis lives further north along the dividing line between districts. She’s newer to the area, having moved from Texas roughly a year ago and is now living in the 6th District. Her neighbors directly across Charlotte Street are now in the 4th District.

Frankovis said the redistricting is clearly gerrymandering.

“What they’re trying to do is take a population and separate them so that their voices are diluted,” Frankovis said. “It’s so obvious what’s happening.”

Gov. Mike Kehoe said in a social media post Tuesday that the decision marked a huge victory for voters. The Republican governor called the map the “Missouri First Map,” a nickname coined by Republican supporters.

Columbus Park isn’t alone in being divided. Five minutes away from Columbus Park sits the intersection of Independence Avenue and Gladstone Boulevard. Depending on which corner someone stands on, they could be in one of three districts.

Many residents in the area and in Columbus Park declined to speak about the redistricting, mainly because of confusion over which district they now lived in and which candidate’s name would be on their ballot.

Debi Appleton lives in the eastern part of Columbus Park, on Pacific Avenue, now firmly entrenched in the 6th District. She isn’t happy with the maps being redone.

“I think it’s cheating,” Appleton said. “I’ve often thought, why can’t they just do some square, do a grid without all this other stuff, and just let it go.”

Appleton, who’s lived in the neighborhood off and on for nearly 20 years, said she’s angry at being moved outside of Cleaver’s district, saying he had done a fine job representing the 5th District.

The change also presents a new problem, Appleton said. The new districts combine rural and urban communities with different priorities.

“I don’t think we’ve all got the same issues,” Appleton said.

Appleton’s neighbor across the street, John Strada, said he’s glad for the redistricting and hopes it brings a change to the area.

“I’m probably in the minority part of this particular area here, but I’ve been in this neighborhood my entire life, my family’s owned this house for 117 years,” Strada said. “I’ve seen the transitions of a lot of different things in here.”

“I’m glad our neighborhood has revived again, but basically, it’s all because of our hard work. What we’ve developed over the years had nothing to do with Cleaver,” he said.

Strada said that he feels as if the neighborhood has been neglected over the years and hopes the change can bring about new developments.

“I want to see the city vibrant,” Strada said. “This area has changed a lot, but it really hasn’t changed that much.”

Ben Wheeler

The Kansas City Star