Diverse Northland neighborhoods deserve a louder voice on the Kansas City Council

The special commission recommending new maps for the Kansas City Council is expected to make its final choices Monday.

While the full council has the final say, the commission’s opinion will be critical. It must decide how to represent the interests of voters, including those north of the river.

For years, the Northland has been split into two council districts, one east of North Oak Trafficway, roughly, and the other west of it. The commission will consider a map that generally continues this east-west configuration.

But some Northlanders, and some commission members, have argued for a fundamentally new approach. They want the Northland split more or less along Barry Road into north and south council districts.

East-west, or north-south? Lobbying on both sides has been intense, and is continuing.

We think proponents of the north-south configuration have the better argument. By splitting the Northland districts along Barry Road, the full council would be more inclusive and less dominated by special interests.

That would make the entire City Council more cohesive and end the wacky secessionist talk that pops up from time to time.

The Northland’s political voice is now dominated by residents north of Barry Road. All four incumbent Northland council members live north of that thoroughfare, the maps show. The area is wealthier, more conservative, more suburban.

It’s also pretty good at city politics. That new multimillion-dollar sports complex? North of Barry Road.

Residents south of Barry Road, on the other hand, are younger, less wealthy and more diverse. It’s hard for those residents to crack the entrenched political structure north of the river. Creating a district for these neighborhoods would give them a better chance of being heard.

Some Northland interests are fighting hard against the north-south plan. David Mecklenburg, the president of Northland Neighborhoods, Inc., recently wrote Mayor Quinton Lucas to say the plan was not acceptable: “We do not see how this change benefits any district, or Kansas City,” he wrote.

We do, because a map that truly represents all of the Northland is preferable to one that reinforces an exclusive power structure north of Barry Road, or represents wealth at the expense of the middle class.

We are disappointed in other parts of the redistricting process. The chances of Latino representation on the City Council will remain slim no matter which map gets final approval. The districts south of the river are so twisted they make no sense.

The case for 12 individual council districts, or nine districts with three at-large members, is strong. We urge the commission to recommend a charter review process next year, with the goal of submitting a revised council structure to the public in August.

But meanwhile, the city charter requires a new council map this year. That means the commission must give council members something to work with, just a few weeks before the holidays interfere with work schedules.

With that in mind, we urge the Redistricting Commission to recommend the so-called 8.4.2 map on Monday. We recommend the full council adopt it. The map will provide a fresh breeze to Northland politics, and make Kansas City a better place.