Kansas City

The Royals have pitched a $1.9 billion stadium. That's twice as expensive as Atlanta's Truist Park and quadruple Denver's Coors Field. But it's not clear what's driving up the cost.

An influx of visitors from countries where tipping isn't a cultural norm could mean a pay cut for some Kansas City hospitality workers. Several restaurants are adding auto-gratuity to be safe, but many in hotspots like Westport and Power & Light are waiting to see what happens.

Bluffs up to 120 feet tall once hugged the Missouri River by Kansas City, making it difficult to traverse the landscape and expand the growing town. So in the mid-1800s, a Catholic priest named Father Bernard Donnelly recruited hundreds of Irish immigrants for a dangerous but critical task: digging streets for the city from rocks and mud.

A special program is bringing empty Kansas City storefronts back to life by placing entrepreneurs in prime downtown spaces to show off for an influx of international visitors. City leaders hope the program leads to long-term opportunities for small businesses and building owners.

The FIFA World Cup is rolling into Kansas City, Missouri, and with it, over 650,000 visitors. Not only can the city expect an economic boom, but the impacts will be seen in surrounding areas — including Maryville.

It's not just Kansas City's airport that expects to see an influx of visitors for this summer's World Cup. St. Louis also expects to field travelers, who will then need to trek across the state by car, Amtrak or bus.

A free event Friday at Westport Plaza in Maryland Heights will give soccer fans the chance to get an up-close look at the World Cup trophy, ahead of the international tournament's kickoff next month. The trophy tour visits Kansas City over the weekend.

Missouri lawmakers argue that the state education officials must make it easier for families to understand students' academic performance. Educators believe it disproportionately punishes districts serving socioeconomically disadvantaged students.

The Netherlands are the third World Cup country to pick Kansas City as its home base this summer. The Dutch men's national team will play a group stage match at Arrowhead Stadium in June.

Missouri voters enshrined the right to an abortion in 2024, but several abortion restrictions remain state law. A Jackson County judge temporarily blocked those laws, and Planned Parenthood is now seeking to permanently strike those laws to ease abortion access.