TKC EXCLUSIVE!!! MAYOR FUNKY CAUGHT LYING TO NEIGHBORHOOD GROUP, IGNORANT OF KANSAS CITY RED LIGHT CAMERA DETAILS!!!



The most important rule in politics, crime, dating and life is simple . . . People who don't know the score should keep their mouth shut.

This is a life lesson Mayor Funky never learned.

And now I'm going to correct him.

Earlier, The Mayor's blog "Funk's Front Poarch" reported that the Funkhouser recently said at a neighborhood meeting: "The money being collected from the (Red Light Camera) fines is not great enough to cover the cost of enforcing the fines and installing the lights."

That statement seemed to me like wild speculation.

Now here are some facts:

Folks AWESOME enough to talk to TKC at the Kansas City Police Department report the following:

  • The KCPD is currently receiving approx. 400 citations a day (20 cameras) which is $40,000 ($100 per plus $13 court costs) a day in fines . . . Assuming that everyone pays (More on that later).

  • The KCPD has asked the city to fund 2 full time officer's to review the citations ($150,000) due to the amount of time traffic officer's are having to spend at a desk reviewing the violations.

    After getting this awesome info, I gave Public Works Public Information Officer Dennis Gagnon a call. My conversation with him was EXTREMELY informative given the fact that he is one of the most knowledgeable people at City Hall good enough to talk with TKC.

    Here are some facts Gagnon told TKC:

  • Gagnon says that for March the City had a "pay through" rate of 75% for Red Light Camera Tickets.

  • Noted by MSM earlier, KC is seeing driver behavior modify because of Red Light Cameras at local intersections like 39th Street and Southwest Trafficway have undergone a drastic drop in red light camera violations.

  • Here is the most important detail regarding the Red Light Cameras: Over the life of the contract (5 years) even if revenue from tickets does not exceed the cost of installation and maintenance . . . Kansas City is not on the hook for anything more than the initial cost per installation: $4,500.

  • Also . . . The vendor is taking care of maintenance of Red Light Cameras over the course of the contract.

  • The most important info that Gagnon provided was word that KANSAS CITY WON'T COME TO A CONCLUSION ON A COST/BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF RED LIGHT CAMERAS FOR APPROXIMATELY ANOTHER 18 MONTHS!!!

  • While City Hall denizens can quote the initial study conducted on Southwest Trafficway during 8 of the busiest hours of the day . . . There's really a gamble going on between the vendor and Kansas City based on this town's ability to change its behavior behind the wheel. The potential of Kansas City making some cash from this only comes if this town is too stubborn to stop at Red Lights.

    So . . . What's the deal here?

    Mayor Funky didn't have hard numbers to qote when speaking about Red Light Cameras, he's simply making stuff up as he goes along.

    This is one of the many lies that Mayor Funkhouser has told to South Kansas City . . . An area still waiting for those sidewalks Mayor Funky promised during the campaign.

    The former City Hall Auditor is ignorant regarding the details of Kansas City's Red Light Camera Deal.

    MAYOR FUNKY IS LITERALLY JUST MAKING STUFF UP AS HE GOES ALONG!!!

    So I can see how it's hard for Funkhouser to be "Smart with the Money" when he doesn't really seem to grasp what's going on Downtown.

    And, in this situation Funkhouser was exposed for floating faulty and, as of yet, unproven assertions . . . I can only guess what other kind of nonsense he's pushing.

    Comments

    1. Nice footwork Tony. Better than anything the KC rag has done, however, your sniping at the end takes away from your hard work.

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    2. inafunkaboutthefunk6/30/09, 3:12 PM

      Another example of Mayor Smart With Nothinghouser being in way over his head... I wonder if he would have blundered like this during his time as Kansas City Auditor of the Century???

      Funk, did you leave your brains at the door of City Hall when you claimed the Mayor's chair???? Or were you always JUST PLAIN STUPID????

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    3. -The potential of Kansas City making some cash from this only comes if this town is too stubborn to stop at Red Lights.-

      Again, Tony misses the point and is only able to look at this one dimensionally. Red Light Cameras = fewer accidents= less police man hours spent on said accidents=more police hours man hours that can be spent on crime prevention. It's basic math.

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    4. Funk and facts. Not happening.

      The real question is how LONG has he been making shit up? 5 years, 10 years, 15 years....

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    5. You know how to talk a lot of shit Tony, but you never have facts. Go check out what Chief Corwin, City Finance Director Troy Schulte, and Councilwoman Jolly all have to say about how the city IS losing money with red light cameras... It's on primebuzz right now. Looks like funk is right on this one....

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    6. What does Beth deem to be correct?

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    7. Beth? What does CW Gottstein have to do with any of this?

      Back to the Temple Beth :)

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    8. Why does the STAR print entries from Funk's Front Porch(purportedly written by Gloria) instead of doing their own reporting? Shameful.

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    9. Funk doesn't know what he'd doing.

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    10. 4:21, seriously? These three do not need hard facts to open their mouths! they sell their souls to unions or anyone else to further their agenda. What about the fact that no real numbers will be out for 18 months?Do they have super powers to tell the future?

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    11. 3:19, red light cameras do not reduce accidents, you're acting like Funkhouser and just making things up.

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    12. this rag is the most sensationalist "reporting" I've seen in quite some time. Good for a laugh, but if you aren't damning the man and the establishment (or praising Darla J), then you aren't welcome.

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    13. i didn't know the mayor was that powerful. who else voted for the red lights? tony you are getting to sound like a broken record. the city council and the city manager are calling the shots. not the mayor.

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    14. I don't understand why so many people make excuses for the Mayor. He really doesn't know what he's doing.

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    15. The excuses for the Mayor's ineptitude and other shortcomings I presume are being handled by City Hall Staff (or maybe we should refer to the m as Library Staff since that is where the Funk has them headquartered) and some of the associates of Big Jeff Roe.

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    16. Don't criticize Beth.

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    17. Who would post at 4 am?

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    18. GIT THE FUNK OUT!!!!

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    19. What percentage of the ticket revenue does the City get vs. the Vendor?

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    20. A voter referendum to ban red-light cameras is advancing to the ballot in College Station, Texas. Rally to be held July 16. --Ben

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