TKC EXCLUSIVE AND BREAKING NEWS!!! MUST READ: ARMOUR BLVD. RESIDENTS STRIKE BACK AGAINST CITY HALL AND KANSAS CITY GENTRIFICATION EFFORTS!!!

TKC NOTE: Beyond Flimsy City Hall ordinances and legal proceedings . . . We want to feature a better perspective . . .

CHECK EXCLUSIVE WORD FROM RESIDENTS ON ARMOUR BLVD. WORKING AGAINST "ENTRENCHED" CITY HALL REPS AMID A FAIR HOUSING BATTLE!!!

Here's the word:

So, again, we don't have anything to do with the legal proceedings between Eagle Point and the city. We know only marginally more than the general public as this battle unfolds because of our on the ground efforts every day. It's my understanding that Eagle Point and the city have attempted mediation all along the way since January but that key people who've led the fight against the Section 8 buildings have refused to show up. That is why you are seeing the filing with Fair Housing now.

It appears this recent resolution, added to the agenda of the Neighborhoods, Housing and Healthy Communities Committee tomorrow, is yet another attempt at mediation, initiated by the city, to avoid further legal proceedings. My opinion is that it won't go anywhere. Given what we know about the 7-year attempt to remove Section 8 housing from Armour, and given what we now know from the 26-page Fair Housing filing, it's clear that this desire to remove Eagle Point is deeply entrenched in the minds of some of our city representatives.

No matter the public opinion on Eagle Point's management of the properties, the bottom line is that Kansas City does not have enough affordable housing available to meet the community need. Throughout this entire process, the question of "where will residents go if they are relocated from the properties and what will be the long-term effect on their wellbeing?" has never been answered. And most importantly, residents haven't been a part of the conversation.

There is a clear misunderstanding of marginalized communities, and of what studies bear out as the most effective ways to address concentrated poverty. What you have, ultimately, is a group of white men with all of the political and social capital, meeting privately for over two years, strategizing a secret plan to "deal with" low-income African Americans in their neighborhood and to hand over the properties to Antheus/MAC. Unfortunately, I don't think this is going to be resolved anytime soon--we are happy to see the process halted, but we continue to work diligently at the community level to construct positive and inclusive solutions to the issues on Armour.
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