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Hello everyone and welcome back to Straight From The Heart. I am so excited today. You know, I'm always excited. Every time I come on, I just love, love, love to be able to speak and be straight. Before I start though, I wanna remind us, we are in Black History Month and I my queen today to remind us that sisters, we are all queens. And today, especially today, I happen to have a queen in her own right, right here in our studio. So today, I want to talk to you about a lady that I met pre-COVID, and I mean very pre, because right after that, we went straight into the pandemic. And from there, she has worked in the city council. She has been on a lot of committees. She's uh championed a lot of causes. She's very active with public safety in the Kansas City, Missouri district. And I want to welcome councilwoman, Mayor Pro Tem. Brena Park Shaw. Boy, that's a mouthful. It is. Yes. Yes. Thank you so much, Kim. I appreciate it. I appreciate the opportunity to be here with you. You know what? The good thing about this is normally I ask and you say yes. I don't know why, but hey, thank you for doing that. I haven't told you no. Never. don't think so. Never. You never have. I just want to start off, you know, because it's really interesting how you meet people and in the settings and the timing that you meet them. And you had just become the councilwoman. And I think we had gone to lunch maybe once or twice before COVID hit. We had had a couple of conversations because I lived in the fifth district at that time. And I've always been one that says, if we have legislators or people that are representing us, I want to know what I can do to help. And I think that's how we got started. And right after that COVID hit and you called me and said, I got something I want you to do. And so at the time you had an aide named Angela and you put our feet to the ground and had us up and down truced ah during the COVID pandemic trying to find out about the small businesses. Tell me what that was like. I just can't imagine my freshman year as a politician and a pandemic kid. Yeah. Well, so the truth was this was my first time serving as an elected official. So I really didn't know what I didn't know. And so had I maybe been in office prior to that, maybe I would have probably felt overwhelmed, but because I didn't know any different, we just went to work and I'm a worker. So. ah It was challenging, especially the times that we were in quarantine, but ultimately I recognized that we had needs in our community. don't know if you remember at the time we couldn't find toilet paper and we couldn't find hand sanitizer. uh so ultimately, because I was still working with the seniors and I served on the... the board of the Ken City Shepherd Center. And I found, you know, heard that there were so many of our seniors that didn't have toilet paper, then they were homebound. So I actually started working and when we distributed 20,000 rolls of toilet paper and hand sanitizer through our Meals on Wheels program, the first responders, the fire department actually helped us on the ambulance service. They helped us to distribute those all throughout the community. And, you know, it's funny that it seems like so long ago, but Truly it was almost just like yesterday. Yeah, and the crazy thing is think about this From the very beginning you had to go straight into action mode You didn't have time to to read the playbook or say what am I supposed to do as the council person? You were already dealing with the community and you went straight into Okay, I'm a mama. I'm going into mama mode. I'm gonna do I'm gonna make it work You know, that's what mamas do. They make it work. And you made it work. I remember we had, you had an event up at um Rockhurst and it was on a Saturday. And I was like, boy, this lady right here, she want me to get up and come up here on a Saturday. But I was not going to let you down. I was going to be there on that Saturday. And the, and the good thing was you never ask anybody to do something that you weren't going to do yourself. That's true. And you not stop. I mean, I've watched you for a god years now. Six and a half years. Six and a half years. Six and a half years. Nonstop. let's move. your freshman year was kind of almost like, cause we're both divine nine. And so, you know, you kind of get thrown out there and you just got to do what you have to do. And so you just went out and you did what you knew to do. And what the community needed. Yeah. You know, I think we had so many, you know, the businesses were struggling. We had our, the neighborhood, you know, in our communities, we already don't have a lot. And so to go out, you know, and have to deal with the pandemic. And we know that many of our loved ones, I think back to how many in my family were lost during that timeframe. And so, you know, just understanding the challenges that every family, every individual was going through. And I firmly believe that if you know, while I'm in this role, if I have an ability to help somebody, then I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna leverage the position to help as many people as I can. I mean, we had so many food giveaways. I stopped counting. Yeah, we were doing it every month because there was so much need in our community. But that actually set it up for us to do this annual back to school giveaway. where we give out, you know, four to 5,000 backpacks to help our kids go back to school. And the biggest thing, to my surprise really, is that we still have a lot of people that need the food. We partner with different oh organizations to give out fresh fruits and vegetables. And these families need it, you know? So, yeah. one of the things that I think you and I used to talk about a lot was the Fifth District and the work that needs to be done in the Fifth District. And the one thing that I can honestly say that I know for a fact that during, I mean, even now, you can, they have meetings at the Southeast Community Center. And for some reason, just like whenever I see it, cause I'm no longer in the fifth district, you're always there. And that makes a difference. It means a lot to the community when their representative is available. So now we're in our second term and The second term hit us hard too because public safety just went off the Richter scale. It was like we started having murders like we have breakfast. Unfortunately. Unfortunately. And a lot of it was occurring in our, and at the time our district. And you went to work. You immediately went to work. You immediately became a part of the public safety task force and you have not let up. You know, you have not let up. How do you balance that? know? Well, that's a great question because I don't know, I just do. I just keep moving. It takes some good vitamins. Good vitamins. some of those. But, you know, like I said, it's all about trying to serve while I'm here and just doing everything that I can, everything in my power. And, you know, ultimately I'm a problem solver. I'm here to find solutions. when I, know, one of the things that I do is I do these neighborhood walking tours, where, you know, cause I believe elected officials, we're all going to change, especially because we're term limited. So we all will change, but it's important to me to empower the residents with the, with the information and the education they need so that as problems arise for them, they know who to contact. They know these city leaders that are making things happen at the city. And so I started doing these neighborhood walking tours and really identifying, you know, hearing from them, from their mouths, what the priorities are. And of course, across every corner, every block in this city, public safety is the number one issue. People want to feel safe where they live, work and play. And, you know, it really is difficult to scroll through the phone or watch the news to see yet another young life. And I had really just got to the point where I had had enough like everybody else. And I felt like, you know, somebody needs to do something and we need to do something here in Kansas City, unprecedented to address it. And that's where the $30 million for violence prevention came from. And I'm, you know, it's $6 million over five years and just really proud of the work that I was able to do to get that passed by the council. as well as the work we're now actually, they're getting ready to release the two year results of the program. Kind of where, what we've been able to accomplish. And I just actually just had a meeting this morning. I haven't seen the report yet, but they told me that the numbers look really good, that we are truly investing those dollars in getting a good return for the taxpayer. So anyway, I don't know when this is going to air, but. that information will be out soon. Okay, great, great. So it will probably be out before this airs, because this will either air next week or the following week. But when it does air, you know, it's still going to be important, because a lot of people don't follow or listen to the news. And I'm going to say with you going in the neighborhood tours and talking to the people, you're actually giving community civics. One of the things that I noticed at being in this position, m was that most residents don't have civics. They don't understand how our leadership works. ah I've been in uh a setting where Congressman Cleaver was the guest speaker and they opened it up for questions and people were asking him about city things like, uh Well, what are y'all gonna do about these potholes in the road or the streetlights on my block? And I'm like, oh no, we really don't know. It's not that they didn't mean well, they had good questions, but they don't know who to talk to. And so ah I think that was important. So before we go into your next journey, I wanna talk a little bit about, because I got to know you as a mom, a wife, and even as a uh Christian, your faith is very important to you. And I know you're very proud of your family. So let's talk about them. You know, I can't get you get away without talking about Mike Shaw. Right, right. Because he'll remind me. You had her on the show? Yeah, he sure will. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So, you know, I will say that he actually you know, because he's been a public servant and he's worked for the city for about 28 years now. He really showed me what true, what a true public servant does and how they respond. And what, you know, we work really hard for this city. Um, you know, and I would, many times would, would be there on Saturdays and Sundays when the, when the, the council people would call and ask for trash to be picked up in their neighborhood. And he would literally get up to go themselves on Saturday and Sunday. Sometimes I would ride with him and he would be picking up or making sure that things got picked up to make sure that those council members in those districts got what they needed. Well, I'll say this, shout out to the reason I had to do that. Shout out to Mike Schalk because never once in all the years that I've known you guys have I not been able to call him and say, hey, I remember at one time I stayed up. I I raked like 19 bags of leaves and set them out and didn't realize they don't pick up leaves. And so I'm like, what am I supposed to do with all these leaves? They're going to end up being wet bags all over and I called him and sure enough, the next day the leaves were gone when I came from work. The one thing I can say is you all as a family care about the city. It's not one or the other. mean, you all both care about the city and your children as well. And you have how many sons? two sons and a daughter. Yeah, and our daughter lives in Atlanta. But yeah, you know, they, our kids come by it honestly, just from, you know, seeing him uh working for the city on behalf of the city and doing whatever's necessary. I remember back, you know, I forgot what year it was, but the ice storm that we had where power was out for about a whole week. And he, you know, ultimately was working every day and every night trying to get those tree limbs cleaned up. I think it was like a six or eight weeks. initiative that they had to work on. And so, you know, our kids understand. And now, you know, they're adults now, but, you know, watching me and helping me even to identify issues. And it's funny to have our son or call and say, hey, dad, it's a pothole on such and such. Or here's some trash that needs to be picked up. yeah. But you know, what a lot of people don't know, I think people make assumptions about how we function, but it's really about giving our all to the city. And on Sundays after church, we literally, like we don't have anything else to do, we will literally ride around the city and he'll be looking to try to address issues that council members are concerned about. I'm looking for constituent issues and we ride around the city trying to come up with solutions. you know, as strange as it sounds, it's actually brought us closer together because it gives us more, you know, we're working harder together on behalf of the city. Well, and that's called serving leadership. You get out of church, you know, and you go straight into serving, continuing to serve the community and the people. And that is, will segue me into, so why, why, what made you decide that I want to be the mayor of Kansas City? I want to do this. I have the heart for it. So. As I said, I have a heart to say, as you said, I have a heart to serve. And for me, it's about really being the change that I want to see. And I have dedicated just about every waking hour to this city and trying to do my best to make it better. And I believe I've been able to implement a lot of great policy and made a lot of change in the timeframe that I've been here. Well, because we are term limited. I really have no choice. If I want to continue doing this great work for the city, I've got to be the mayor. So I think, you know, the things that I've been able to accomplish uh and actually I don't even really take that credit for myself because the solutions that I brought really are for me partnering and listening to the residents, listen to the community because many times they have the solution. They just need somebody to listen to them and help them, connect them to the resources, connect them. to ensure that it gets done. And so you talked about the multidisciplinary public safety task force, which actually that was a concept that came out of my work as a uh healthcare professional. um But listening to the community and understanding, kind of looking at it from a process standpoint and looking at how we can improve our processes in the city. because one of the things that had occurred that really started that was we had had a mass shooting on Prospect. And in the investigation of that, there were about nine people that were shot. After that, as we were investigating, and I actually was talking with Melissa Johnson, she was in the mayor's office at the time, and what we found is that there were issues that had occurred with that business. and many different departments were actually working. There were violations that they had and the different departments actually were looking at those things, but the right hand didn't know what the left hand was doing. And I said, you know, we possibly could have had a way to, could have possibly prevented something had we been talking. And when you think about it, when you're, if you're at, go to the hospital or if you're sick, you have a... a multidisciplinary team that helps you. The doctor, you've got the nurse, you've got the social worker, you've got the pharmacist. And all of those people come together to fix the problem. So ultimately that concept really was born out of that. And it has been very successful as we have been able to prevent some of the crimes before they even start because... those departments are working together. And so it's those type of solutions that I know I can continue to bring to the mayor's office and lead our city into additional improvement. Yeah. Yeah. You know, in addition to growth, think Kansas City is prime for growth right now. Oh, absolutely. And we have an excellent opportunity to continue to expand that through additional housing. And my role that I play as the chair of our Neighbor Planning Development Committee really gives me an opportunity to see how we can adjust and expand our growth here in Kansas City. So anyway, I know I've got a lot of uh great support systems that are working in partnership with me. And I think taking that information and being the calm servant leader that this city needs, I think I'll be right for that. I like that calm servant leader. Yeah, you got to stay calm. You definitely have to stay calm because you constantly are faced with uh adversity and people complaining or someone mad because you didn't look at them. But um there's so much um that can happen when you have the right leader in place. And so I'm looking at several things. So let's talk World Cup. We're like days away from World Cup, not months. Not where we are months, but days. And you can look at days. We're less than 365. So I think we're like 120 or 118, 119. We're somewhere in there. It's right around the corner. It's here. And so when we start thinking about this, we should have been building this a long time ago. And I know that they, the endeavor was to do so, make this one KC. We still have this divided situation. Let me say that. I think there's things happening that are making it better or trying to make it better. But as the mayor, as the mayor, are there any like uh innovative ideals that you can share with me if you became mayor? This is something that I would endeavor to do to even bring more unity to our community. So I really think uh the challenges that we have are about uh building bridges. We need to continue to build bridges throughout our community and establish more collaborative relationships, which is one of, actually some of the strategies really I'm already working on. I serve as the uh co-chair of the Regional Housing Partnership. I've been doing this for two and a half years. When I talk about Kansas City being prime for growth, we know we need 64,000. housing units in our city and across our region. And so I've been working with our counterparts across the state line and in other cities as well, Independence Lee Summit to address some of the housing challenges that we have. homelessness and housing, they don't stop at the state line or the city line or the county line. We're all having to address those. The other issue that we have is workforce. have, Kansas City, Missouri is the economic engine. We are the largest city, but if we do not continue to be uh nimble and adjust as we need to, Kansas City will stay stagnant. And so we, with the World Cup and all these great things that we've been able to accomplish, we are on a great trajectory to really grow Kansas City. And so being able to take the information, the connections, the collaboration that I've established uh to create a workforce that will lead us into the next generation. So a workforce talent pipeline, so the small businesses, the large businesses have uh the employees that they need to be able to grow Kansas City in a way that we know that it can grow. So those are the strategies that I'm really looking to implement is in building those relationships, even at the state. We know we're a democratic city and a Republican. with the Republican legislature. But we've got to still build bridges where we can because ultimately, I think there's alignment there. You just got to find it. That there's alignment. Everybody wants to feel safe. Everybody wants to grow. So you just have to find out what are the priorities and how do they align and figure out how you can move this city forward. And I believe I am primed and ready to do that. I hear you now. She said, I am primed and ready to do that. Let's march on down to the election coming up. ah What do we need to know about it? So the election coming up in April. So definitely the earnings tax. The earnings tax will be on the ballot. And you know, the earnings tax is a significant portion of our general fund. And it's important because it covers our public safety, covers our first responders, the trash, solid waste, the streets, roads. There are many departments that are funded out of the general fund. uh So renewing that, so I want to make sure your viewers know that it's a renewal, it's not a new tax, it's not an increase. We are seeking to renew that. You talked about people not understanding or not knowing everything civically. So I want to make sure that I point out that only that 50 % of that earnings tax is actually paid for people that don't live in Kansas City. Because if you work in, you know, if you work in Kansas City, matter wherever you live, you actually, that 1 % of your earnings actually goes to the general fund. And so it allows for Kansas City residents to be able to spread the love, so to speak, to others to our city, to help fund the baseline of our city. So I am strongly supporting the earnings tax and would ask your viewers and voters to... to support the earnings tax, renewing the earnings tax. Okay. Now, I wanted to kind of throw in some of the big things that everybody's sitting on pins and needles about. Stadium. know you've Kaufman Stadium. The rules, yeah. You know, the thing is, and I've heard this a lot, uh a lot of times decisions are made that affect the East Side uh that don't include the East Side. And I find it probably problematic, more problematic when we don't include the people that it's going to affect, but also being able to have um new voices. And when I say new voices, there is a world of young people that are intelligent and educated and civic minded. and very interested in wanting to sit down and have conversation and be heard. And um they feel like that the oligarchs holding it down and probably part of the problem that we haven't moved the needle. Will you be a mayor that allows the next generation an opportunity to speak? Of course, 100%. One, for one, because my kids are part of that generation and they are working very closely with me on my campaign and helping to guide me through that from their eyes, from their lens. But I tell you, less than 24 hours ago, I actually was uh with your sorority and the Dee Foundation. We love you. Working with the youth on the cotillion. Okay. And I'm gonna tell you, I was so impressed. It brought tears to my eyes. I was so impressed with those young people that- because we did a mock city council meeting. So we had council members and the mayor and mayor pro tem, and we talked about, we came up with an ordinance that I had them to create, and they asked such great questions. And I think unfortunately there are some people that believe, that maybe believe this new generation is lazy and they feel entitled and all of that. You just need to be open-minded and give them a chance and talk with them and listen. And I think people will feel differently. I was so impressed and just really excited about what about the future of Kansas City when these leaders start taking over. Absolutely. So the short answer to your question is yes. You know, I believe that our democracy will be better when all voices can be heard, young, old, no matter what race they are. And so I will be a mayor that will listen and that will welcome. welcome all of that diversity. And we need that. We need it because you were the next generation at one time. And there's gotta be a next generation ready to come and ready to move in and carry the torch. We will not be in these seats forever. And if we leave the seat empty, then shame on us. I don't know. uh You know that being the chamber, we open our table and our mics to all candidates. So any candidate that feels like they want to come on the show and talk about it, they are more than welcome to reach out. And I'll say this, that whoever you are, you need to be able to lead Kansas City into the next, um to the next, to the future, into the next journey. We are a city that are coming from being known as a cow town to being a city that people want to come to. Yeah, we're known internationally, the world. Across the world. And uh one of the things that I would like to see us do more of is uh be intentional about us investing. And us, uh when I say us, I mean the black community being able to say, we have an investment, we want to have a voice. And so being able to say, we want to come in with our investment, let us know what we need to bring. know, sometimes we don't know what we don't know. So if we don't know that there's this big development that's going to affect Kansas City, and even though it's going to affect the East side, nobody bothers to ask, is there any money in the East side that wants to invest in this whole pie? or we just gonna make the pie and give you a piece? So I think you really, what you mentioned really that makes me think about another issue that we have in Kansas that I really work to address and it's budget season. They just rolled out our budget on Thursday. And many people don't understand that the budget process actually starts the year before. unfortunately the city's way of communicating and engaging the public really hasn't been complex enough or comprehensive enough to engage people in the process. And so they don't even know. And so I actually worked with staff and they went out for about a year, almost a year and a half, going out to the community to find out what's the best way for the city to engage and educate you about what's happening with the city. And that process, they actually came up with a comprehensive plan. If there's a best practice that other cities are using nationwide. And I'm hoping that us implementing that under my leadership, actually under my leadership, it should the city manager is working to implement that now that more people will be educated about everything with the city. So if there are opportunities for, you know, to partner with the city or invest in different projects that individuals are. or businesses, whatever community is, will have more information and know how they can get involved in that. Because I think, you know, sometimes I can just tell because I've worked in the private sector, they get so busy kind of working on the issues that they don't necessarily, hadn't necessarily worked to engage the community in the manner that was sufficient enough. And just to bring it home. So in our budget sessions, We have hundreds of people that show up and tell us how they, you know, so in those public hearings, tell us how they would think the money should be spent. But in the summer before the budget is released, literally this particular year, we had 25 people show up in these six sessions across the whole city. When you look at how many were, because they did it online as well, I think they were like 30 people. And I know in a city of over half a million people, more than those few people care about it. And it's evidence. by how many people show up in the public hearing. They just don't know when to show up. They just don't understand the process. So I feel like it's our duty, it's our responsibility to make sure that we get that information out to the residents, because we're using their taxpayer dollars. We're here to serve them. So how can we adequately serve them if they don't even know? If they don't even know. And so anyway. Well, that's one of the things that I'm hoping to start working with the city closely with, would be able to put that kind of information on our platform. Because I think the part of what we should be doing is making sure that we're touching the complete ecosystem and that we're convening all of our residents and our small businesses and our corporate partners and our government. We should be convening everyone in a space where the information is there. ah There's something coming up. It's called Roundtable with Reina. Tell us a little bit about that. I can't talk about it because, you know, it's here. So actually the uh round table is small business round table. Actually it addresses really what you just said. uh It is my attempt to really work with our small businesses because I know collectively our small businesses actually are the number one employer in our city, in many cities across the country. And so I'm hosting these round tables or requesting these round tables so that I can really talk with the small businesses to understand how the city can be a better partner with them? What are the barriers? What are the challenges? And then how, as I'm looking to build out my administration and my strategies as Kansas City's next mayor, what are the things that they think we should be focusing on and how can the city reduce some of the red tape? You know, I'm a small business owner. I've actually opened a business in Kansas City and I've opened one in two other cities actually across the state line and one in Independence as well. And so I, I have the perspective, I can see how the struggles that many of our Kansas City businesses face because I've been one, I am one. And so while I think we've done a lot, the BizCare office has done a lot to streamline processes. I know as small business owners, there are a lot of challenges. You've got to be Jack of all trades. You've got to be a master at HR. accounting, all of these different things. And in addition to running your business. And so I think, you know, there are strategies I think we could implement as a city to be a better partner with those, with our businesses so that we all can thrive. Right, right. Well, I will say that I love some of your strategies and your thought patterns. Of course, bringing departments together so that they can communicate with one another. The more they communicate, Sometimes like you said, you can find out that we're both working on the same thing. Let's just fill this gap and get it done. And so uh that's important. One of the last things I'm gonna ask you about is for us the city's concern is Creole. Creole uh is a big deal. I will say that I've heard lately that it's gotten better. ah However, it still needs some work. uh And addressing Creole, uh is going to be probably one of the small businesses uh number one issues, especially now since the state has come out with new ordinances regarding the DBE certification and having to prove that why you're a DBE. If I can't look at my bank account and tell that I'm broke, but um and how you became uh disadvantaged. all these things and they're asking about school and things like that. How is the city going to be able to handle that much more oh oversight? Because now they're talking, we want you to do even more work. Yeah, so I think uh definitely our Creole Department, Civil Rights Equal Opportunity Department is really working. I know they were having some staffing issues. I think those have kind of leveled out. And it's funny, the meeting I just came from, actually we were talking about the opportunities there. And I think that uh the city is really working. We've got to function within the state statutes that are put up on us. And so I know that the city manager is working diligently with Jaime and the team, the Creole team. to make sure that we are well in alignment with the federal and state government. And so I think uh at this point, there've been several meetings that have occurred to try to figure out how we need to adjust and where we need to adjust. And I would expect probably over the next four to six months or so, we'll see that movement level out and uh an opportunity to see more stability, I'll put it that way, more stability for our black and brown businesses? Well, I'll say this. uh I don't get to cast a vote since I'm in the summit. However, I will say our businesses in Kansas City, our chambers in Kansas City, and we would like to make sure that whoever sits in the mayor's seat, that we have a relationship with them and that we are able to assist one another in the building of Kansas City and the the continued bridge building. think that's the most important thing is the bridge building. We have a lot more coming to Kansas City. I've been privy to some of the uh upcoming great things that may be happening. And I think that uh if World Cup doesn't teach us anything, should teach us preparation is the first rule to success. If we're going to succeed, we got to be prepared. I want to thank Raina for coming on today. It was fun. Of course, you know, this is not going to be your last time on because I'll be looking for more people to show up. I will say that I appreciate the work that you have done. It has been consistent. It has been steady and it has been calm. And so thank you again for coming on straight from the heart, straight from the heart where we just talk facts and we just talk. We don't come with fluff. We don't come with lies. We don't come with Deceit. We just talked. And if you stay tuned, you'll continue to see us moving ahead. If you have a topic or a something you'd like to talk about, hit us up at the Heartland Black Chamber of Commerce uh on our info at Heartland Black Chamber. And always remember, I couldn't do this show without AGA Production. These guys are number one, top in the nation. And if you need good podcasting, give me a call. I'm their manager. Thanks. See you later.
