After 2 years, a look at Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas’ record, good and bad

Mayor Quinton Lucas has been in office for almost two years. That’s a big enough sample size to judge his performance.

We endorsed Lucas in 2019, and we don’t regret the decision. Over the past two years, the mayor has succeeded more times than not, even when faced with the enormous, unforeseen challenges of a pandemic and racial unrest after George Floyd was murdered.

His public pronouncements were sometimes at odds with his private commitments. Stubborn issues including affordable housing, homelessness and violent crime remain on the agenda.

On the whole, however, Lucas has shown he can handle the region’s toughest and most important political job.

This is no small accomplishment. First terms have been difficult for modern Kansas City mayors: Emanuel Cleaver and Kay Barnes struggled in their first four years; Mark Funkhouser was so bad he lost a reelection primary.

Only Sly James avoided the first-term jinx, and he had a subpar second term. This mayor thing isn’t easy.

Regional COVID-19 leadership

“No one was ready for COVID,” Lucas told us, but “I sleep well at night, because I think we saved the lives of hundreds of Kansas Citians.”

The mayor moved aggressively in the early days of the COVID emergency. There were moments of confusion — remember the 10-10-10 reopening plan? — but Lucas helped lead the region in adopting reasonable regulations designed to slow the spread of the historic disease.

Not everyone agreed with his mask mandates, or social distancing requirements, or other steps designed to address the crisis. Disgruntled business owners launched ill-advised Lucas recall drives that collapsed of their own foolishness.

Here’s the plain fact: the COVID response became so political so quickly that no mayor would have escaped criticism for taking the steps needed to protect the health and safety of the community. Quinton Lucas did better than most, particularly in a state where the governor has been a COVID no-show.

“I think the story of these four years is COVID, and our response, and what it meant to this community,” Lucas said.

Later in the crisis, the mayor seemed less focused. Again, that may have been unavoidable, given the unprecedented nature of the disease.

Police reform is crucial

There were early missteps. Lucas proposed a nonbinding referendum on local control of the Kansas City Police Department, then withdrew the plan. His plea to maintain a residency requirement for Kansas City officers fell on deaf ears in Jefferson City, where Lucas is disliked.

His plan to attach strings to $42 million in police funding may have seemed abrupt to some, or “flawed and opaque,” as the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and the Civic Council said Wednesday.

But Lucas was right on the fundamentals. For far too long, the Kansas City Police Department has spent hundreds of millions of dollars without oversight or accountability. That has to change.

“We have real problems in how … we are actually doing policing right now,” Lucas said.

Correct. The community lacks trust in the department. Accusations of brutality are far too common, and dismissed by Chief Rick Smith far too easily. In the next two years, Lucas should work harder to see Smith removed from his post.

Violent crime remains a disturbing reality, and one that’s made worse by lack of community trust in Smith and the KCPD. In his first year, Lucas committed to fewer than 100 murders in Kansas City; instead, we set a record for homicides.

Economic development, business subsidies

Developers still have their hands out at City Hall, and the City Council is still far too eager to hand out the goodies. A major office building is under construction at 14th Street and Baltimore Avenue, subsidized by public incentives. It has no major tenant that we know of.

Lucas says he’s slowed the avalanche of public dollars for private purposes, which may be true. But it isn’t enough. Development projects must learn to stand on their own feet, and Lucas must lead that effort over the next two years.

Kansas City’s free bus service is a model for the nation, and Lucas can share credit for that. The City Council should make free service permanent. The streetcar expansion is underway, which is also good news.

Streets are being repaired, as anyone who’s tried to drive anywhere can attest. Millions of federal dollars have spared the city from serious budget pain.

Open to conversation

Lucas’ visibility and openness to conversation and debate have been a welcome change from Sly James’ thin-skinned and sometimes surly demeanor. Lucas understands criticism isn’t always a personal challenge.

At the same time, the current mayor must remember he can’t make everyone happy all the time. Compromise is an ingredient of good government, but it shouldn’t be the only goal. Keeping promises is also critical.

Mayor Lucas’ first two years have passed quickly. (Asked if he’s running again, he’ll only say it’s “very likely.”) He’s done more things right than wrong. But Kansas City’s deep concerns with poverty and inequality and violent crime are not over. He’s got more work to do.