Financial disaster strikes Kansas City.
THANKS TO THE GREATEST TKC TIPSTERS OF ALL TIME readers of this blog have advance notice that later today Kansas City Chief Financial Officer/Director Jeffrey A. Yates is expected to issue a press release providing details regarding a recent downgrade in Kansas City's bond rating.
This post filed 06/24/09 at 4:05 a.m. offers some of the most important news that Kansas City has ever faced because this downgrade impacts virtually every facet of life and local government at the City level.
A lower bond ranking means higher interest rates which means it will cost more to do everything in Kansas City. Progress in this city will be impeded.
KANSAS CITY IS QUICKLY GOING BROKE AND THAT'S WHY THE BONDS HAVE BEEN DOWNGRADED!!!
This unfortunate situation has been a long time in the making and there is more than enough blame to go around for everyone. But just as much as everyone else this cataclysmic failure belongs to Mayor Mark Funkhouser.
Funkhouser was swept into office by a thin margin promising desperately needed TIF reform and claiming that he would be "smart with the money." Two years later the Mayor has produced nothing but controversy, divisive rhetoric and one hypocritical statement after the next. The Mayor's financial credentials as a former auditor are now nothing more than a bad joke. The Mayor started his term by pushing forward a Super-TIF for a soccer stadium, he then failed to push through a pricey light rail scheme and on the way he went along with one horrible TIF deal after the next with a sweetheart Savoy TIF deal serving as his latest disgrace. During all of this the Mayor has chased away business from this town, he has been a horrible salesman for the City and he is incapable of inspiring anyone but a small cadre of loyalists who are either directly or indirectly connected to his payroll.
This bond ranking downgrade is a slap in the face to every Kansas City resident who has pleaded for fiscal responsibility year after year to no avail.
And yet week after week there are more pork projects and cash giveaways on the table. Mayor Funkhouser has done nothing but extend the legacy of Former Mayor Kay "Credit Card" Barnes.
And now Kansas City is paying the price.
But after two years in office and NOTHING to show for it in terms of fiscal responsibility this failure rests squarely on Mayor Funky's shoulders.
Kansas City's financial peril has been well publicized but only a few voices on the City Council have heard the call.
Today Kansas City suffers the consequences for a lack of leadership. Today Kansas City's free wheeling spendthrift days should come to an end.
Damn good stuff T.
ReplyDeleteold news
ReplyDeleteLink please?
ReplyDeleteI remember that the outlook was moved to negative last year but the bonds had yet to be downgraded. Sad day for Kansas City.
ReplyDeleteJOCO Wins Again.
ReplyDeleteSuckers.
I like the way you highlight the "cliffs notes" in your articles Tony. Because you know 95% of the fucking degens who read this shit are borderline illiterate so you break the notes down in a 3rd grade level so they can understand enough of it just to get "MAD AS HELL" LMFAO. Nice job Ton.
ReplyDeleteListen. If Tony is right about this it's a bad fucking deal and we need to find a way to get out of this mess quick and I mean by next quarter. The economy is showing signs of rebounding and there's go to be away to unburden our debt load.
ReplyDeleteThe Star reported this two days ago!
ReplyDelete(Not true but that is what they will claim)
I don't give a fuck who reported it. The most important thing is what we're going to do about it.
ReplyDeleteSomebody should ask Gloria Squitiro!
city council deserves an equal share of the blame. the city council are the ones that run the city not the mayor.
ReplyDeleteanon @ 6:14
ReplyDelete"The economy is showing signs of rebounding"
LMAO!
7:04 is correct. Tony lets the City Council off the hook here. They are the biggest TIF lovers of them all.
ReplyDeleteI like calling the mayor's wife G-Squirt.
ReplyDeletethat sounds gross.
ReplyDeleteBreaking stories a few hours early is only an ego trip for YOU, my friend. News isn't that someone's going to make news in six hours. That's like hearing a whistle and stopping your car five seconds before the gate goes down. Good for YOU!
ReplyDeleteNews is something that newsmakers don't want other people to know about.
You're made radioman jealous Tony. He seems at a loss for words which is a rarity. I thought his comment needed another 5 paragraphs of tripe to skim.
ReplyDeleteThe only way to save KC is to give some taxpayer $$ to Ron Jury so that he can ERECT another downtown hotel.
ReplyDeleteHis "broad smile" gets me hard:-)
http://www.kansascity.com/501/story/1253796.html
@Radioman
ReplyDeleteThe Newsmakers don't want us to know about this!
Anyway, why use this money to create low-paying retail jobs when it could go a looong way towards creating good-paying jobs? We need businesses in Kansas City that create value not just shuffle it around while siphoning it upwards!
Kansas City is a microcosm of the larger national picture. Individuals in the US go to jail when they are irresponsible with money be it theirs or someone else's but a city council, state legislature, us congress, President, and financial bigwigs can do ANYTHING and it's just no big deal?????
NOW I'M FUCKING PISSED JUST THINKING ABOUT ALL THIS SHIT WHY AREN'T WE ON BLOGS INSTEAD OF OUT IN THE FUCKING STREETS????!!!!
it's ok. i'm ok....hufff....puffff.....ok off the soapbox aaaaandddd....NEXT!
I meant "why ARE we on blogs"
ReplyDeleteFitch
ReplyDeleteNice work Tony.
ReplyDeleteSo remember to vote NO on everything from here on out or we will slide into the hole deeper.
ReplyDeleteNo on COMBAT that is for sure
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the bond rating would be if the Grand Funk Railroad's Light Rail Initiative that he tried to cram down our throats with lies, evasion, deception and delusion had actually passed????
ReplyDeleteLong Live the Orange Revolution, the Orange Revolution is dead :(
Not exactly one of Smart With Nothinghouser's smartest proposals, won't you say?
When Funk wins the next election, what is his winning strategy? Will he promise to stay out of City Hall and go on lots more of those fact finding trips to Argentina?
ReplyDeleteIf he promised that he would execute his wife if he wins, He would absolutely win that election.
The funny thing is you are all treating this as though Kansas City is the only place this is happening.
ReplyDeleteNot fucking even remotely correct.
Get some perspective.
The fact that a lot of major cities are poorly managed shouldn't be an excuse. This problem has been coming on for years and anyone with an ounce of brains knew it.
ReplyDeleteHey Mr. Anon 4:56, you really shouldn't post stupid assumptions like this one.
ReplyDelete"The funny thing is you are all treating this as though Kansas City is the only place this is happening".
We're not treating this as something that only happens in K.C. We are treating it like everyone else does in their cities with the same problem. We're calling for some heads and maybe even a little help from a few of those Revenue Enhancement Agents, formerly known as "The Po-Lice" and includes the FBI and the Justice Department.
Sigh. I'm going to go watch a rerun of Seinfeld and hope this crap just goes away. Yeah, head in the sand, because it's just one thing after another in this town. I've lived here almost all my life and for every step forward, we take two back. Why is that?
ReplyDeleteAnd to the person who asked a rhetorical question "after Funk gets reelected"... are you friggin' crazy or just stupid? that loser is NOT getting reelected.
to 4:46, my apologies for my 6:16 post. i didn't read your post fully.
ReplyDeletethat dude is done no way will they ever be re elected
ReplyDelete