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Council presses to boost LCRA and neighborhood reinvestment for northwest Independence
Summary
Council members urged renewed focus on neighborhood tools such as Chapter 353 and the LCRA to address concentrated poverty and blight in northwest Independence, noting the LCRA was authorized in 2021 but has not been fully activated due to funding and board-activity issues.
Several council members used the economic-policy discussion to press for greater emphasis on neighborhood reinvestment and the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority. One member noted a 17% poverty rate in parts of the city and said that focusing incentives and LCRA funding on northwest Independence could accelerate visible neighborhood rehabilitation.
Tom Skenel confirmed the LCRA apparatus and bylaws exist but said the authority has been limited by lack of funding and an active board. Council members referenced the LCRA authorization date as Sept. 20, 2021, and said they would pursue how to get the mechanism active and better capitalized to target blight remediation and residential infill projects.
