Platform · Pillar One

A City You Can
Afford

It's too difficult for many Kansas Citians to get by. Wes Rogers's plan tackles affordability where families feel it most — housing, groceries, childcare, and good-paying jobs — with concrete steps a mayor can actually take.

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The bottom line

How Wes makes KC affordable

Wes Rogers will make Kansas City a place working families can afford by building more real housing, protecting access to groceries and childcare, and connecting Kansas Citians to good-paying jobs. That means using City Hall's regulatory power to help build housing instead of blocking it, partnering with community organizations and the business community to keep families fed and kids cared for, and opening doors to careers in the trades, film, logistics, and technology.

Below: Wes's specific proposals for affordable homes, affordable groceries, affordable childcare, and good-paying jobs.

Affordable homes

More places Kansas Citians can afford to live

Housing is the biggest line in most family budgets, and too many Kansas Citians are priced out of the neighborhoods they love. Wes believes the answer is more real housing opportunities — not abstract policy debates — and a City Hall whose processes help build housing stock instead of standing in the way.

As mayor, Wes will use the city's regulatory power strategically to get more homes built, and lead the fight in Jefferson City to make sure longtime residents can afford to stay in the homes they already own.

Make City Hall a partner in building housing — fix the processes that slow homes down so the city helps grow our housing stock rather than hindering it.
Use regulatory power strategically — cut building-permit fees for builders who incorporate renewable energy, lowering costs and rewarding cleaner construction at the same time.
Lead efforts in Jefferson City to improve the circuit-breaker property tax credit so seniors and Kansas Citians with disabilities can afford to stay in their homes.
Keep the focus on real opportunities for real people — measuring success by homes families can actually afford, not by policy talking points.

Affordable groceries

No Kansas City family should go hungry

Putting food on the table is getting harder, and changes to federal SNAP eligibility risk pushing more Kansas City families into food insecurity. Wes won't let neighbors fall through the cracks when Washington shifts the rules.

A mayor can't rewrite federal law, but a mayor can rally the city's resources to make sure families have somewhere to turn. Wes will lead that effort directly.

Confront the risk head-on — federal SNAP eligibility changes threaten more food insecurity, and the city will not look away while families go hungry.
Partner with local community-based organizations to keep food reaching the families who need it and close the gaps that federal cuts leave behind.

Affordable childcare

Childcare families can actually afford

Childcare in Kansas City is simply too expensive. When families can't find affordable care, parents can't work — and when parents can't work, the whole economy suffers. This is an economic issue, not just a family issue.

Wes has a record of working across the aisle to build coalitions, and he'll bring that same approach to childcare — convening the people and institutions with the resources to move the needle.

Treat childcare as economic policy — when families can't find affordable care they can't work, and the city's economy pays the price.
Use the mayor's office to bring philanthropy and the business community to the table to expand affordable childcare options.
Build on Wes's proven record of working across the aisle to assemble a coalition focused on bringing childcare costs down.

Good-paying jobs

Careers that pay, right here in KC

Affordability isn't only about lowering costs — it's about raising incomes. Wes wants Kansas City to be a place where young people and working adults can build real careers without leaving home, especially in fields that are hiring now.

From the skilled trades to a fast-growing film industry to the logistics and manufacturing strengths of our central location, Wes sees clear, concrete ways to connect Kansas Citians to good-paying work.

Connect young people to the trades with a pre-apprenticeship program built with local trade unions — curriculum, mentors, and job-site training for high-school juniors and seniors and young adults ages 18–24.
Make Kansas City the epicenter for film-industry workforce development — training Kansas Citians in sound engineering, design, camera, and visual effects.
Leverage KC's central location — interstates, rail, and air — to grow good-paying jobs in logistics, manufacturing, and technology.

More of the plan