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The City Council approved a $1 million contract Thursday with ReDiscover to keep the Kansas City Assessment & Triage Center (KC-ATC) running for another year.

Why it matters: KC-ATC is where police officers and emergency departments send people in a mental health or addiction crisis whose cases aren't appropriate for jail or the hospital.

Catch up quick: It opened in 2016 after Truman Medical Center, now University Health, shut down its behavioral health ER in 2015 and left police and hospitals cycling the same people through ERs and holding cells, some racking up more than 100 ER visits a year.

The original deal split funding among the city, Missouri's mental health department, Ascension, and six area hospitals.

A $20 million Ascension contribution, paid at $2 million a year for 10 years, has covered most of the operating budget since then.

That money has come from Ascension's 2015 sale of St. Joseph Medical Center and St. Mary's Medical Center. The money was set aside for KC charity care and is winding down this year.

How it works: The 24/7 center at 12th and Prospect takes referrals from KCPD and area ERs, stabilizes people, and then connects them with housing, treatment or medication.

The average stay is about 16 hours, according to a Truman Medical Centers case study. Clients come voluntarily and can leave whenever they want.

The center doesn't take walk-ins; officers and hospitals must call first.

By the numbers: In its first six months, the center took in more than 700 people and saved local ERs an estimated $1.5 million, according to Missouri Hospital Association data.

KC ERs had been getting 17,000 visits a year from people with mental illness or substance use issues, the data shows.

What's next: The state is also building a new $300 million psychiatric hospital at Belvidere Park, expected to open in late 2027 or early 2028, which will include a separate psychiatric ER open to the public.

KC's mental health crisis center gets another year

The city is stepping in with a $1 million contract to keep KC-ATC running as the original Ascension funding winds down.

Illustration of a brain surrounded by medical crosses and lines

The City Council approved a $1 million contract Thursday with <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="ReDiscover" data-vars-click-url="https://www.rediscovermh.org/" data-vars-content-id="256895fc-e7df-4308-9836-5e130b55be99" data-vars-headline="KC&#x27;s mental health crisis center gets another year" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.rediscovermh.org/" target="_blank">ReDiscover</a> to keep the Kansas City Assessment &amp; Triage Center (KC-ATC) running for another year.Why it matters: KC-ATC is where police officers and emergency departments send people in a mental health or addiction crisis whose cases aren&#x27;t appropriate for jail or the hospital.

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Health

Armed with brushes, buckets and a biodegradable cleaner, volunteers are quietly restoring Kansas City's oldest public burial ground.

Why it matters: Union Cemetery holds more than 55,000 Kansas Citians, but decades of neglect and an 1889 fire that destroyed nearly all of its early records left hundreds of graves marked only by wooden stakes that have since rotted away.

State of play: Union Cemetery Historical Society, which started in fall 2024, has been leading workshop volunteers through more than 5,000 markers.

Heather Faries, the society's vice president, runs the classes. Volunteers learn to use a biodegradable cleaning solution called D2 that lifts lichen without damaging the stone, then keeps working every time it rains.

The society got an $800 grant from Freedom's Frontier National Heritage Area to fund supplies for more than a dozen classes in 2024 alone.

Context: The cemetery dates back to 1857, when Westport farmer James M. Hunter deeded 49 acres halfway between Westport and the town of Kansas after an 1849 cholera epidemic filled both towns' burial grounds.

By 1910, the property had fallen into such disrepair that the Union Cemetery Association sold off 18 acres at 27th and Main to pay for maintenance.

KC Parks took over what remained in 1937 and continues to maintain the grounds today.

The society finished digitizing more than 35,000 burial records in 2022 to help fill in for what was lost in the fire, and is now reviewing them for errors, according to UCHS.

Zoom in: Among the gravestones being restored are those of veterans who served from the Revolutionary War through Vietnam.

Lt. Joseph A. Boggs served in the Pennsylvania militia during the Revolutionary War. He died in Westport in 1843 at age 93, and his remains were later moved to Union Cemetery.

Pvt. Nathaniel Gwynne was a 15-year-old Union soldier when he charged a Confederate position at the Battle of the Crater in Petersburg, Virginia, retrieving his unit's flag. He later moved to KC, where he served in the Missouri House.

If you go: Union Cemetery is open 8:30am to 3:30pm Monday through Saturday. Self-guided walking tour maps are available at the sexton's cottage inside the cemetery.

To volunteer, text 816-916-9980 or visit their website.

The bottom line: Nearly 170 years after it opened, Kansas Citians are still showing up on Saturday mornings to preserve their own history.

Volunteers are restoring Union Cemetery

With brushes, buckets and a biodegradable cleaner, volunteers are bringing Kansas City's oldest public burial ground back to life.

Autumn cemetery with weathered tombstones and a tall, pointed obelisk monument at center; brown grass, leafless trees, red bushes in the background, and scattered stones and flowers by graves.

Union Cemetery in the fall. Photo: Abbey Higginbotham/Axios

Armed with brushes, buckets and a biodegradable cleaner, volunteers are quietly restoring Kansas City&#x27;s oldest public burial ground.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Union Cemetery" data-vars-click-url="https://www.uchskc.org/history/" data-vars-content-id="2e83b746-dc87-4a67-9c08-d23f93aa9a65" data-vars-headline="Volunteers are restoring Union Cemetery" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.uchskc.org/history/" target="_blank">Union Cemetery</a> holds more than 55,000 Kansas Citians, but decades of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="neglect" data-vars-click-url="https://kcparks.org/places/union-cemetery-12/" data-vars-content-id="2e83b746-dc87-4a67-9c08-d23f93aa9a65" data-vars-headline="Volunteers are restoring Union Cemetery" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://kcparks.org/places/union-cemetery-12/" target="_blank">neglect</a> and an 1889 fire that destroyed nearly all of its early records left hundreds of graves marked only by wooden stakes that have since rotted away.

It will soon cost to park your car at Berkley Riverfront.

Why it matters: Port KC is trying to manage traffic as the neighborhood expands and demand for space increases.

By the numbers: Parking for an hour will cost a minimum of $2.50, including the base rate and fees.

The rate increases by $1.50 per hour, and additional fees range from $1 to $2.75.

Context: The price is meant to create turnover, improving access for residents and visitors.

Port KC references the KC Streetcar, the Grand Boulevard bridge and buses as alternative ways to get to the riverfront. 

The plan also has rules against burnouts, racing and using motor vehicles within the park. 

What they're saying: "As we welcome more residents and visitors to the riverfront, it's an absolute necessity that parking spots be available for everyone to utilize them," Jon Stephens, president and CEO of Port KC, said in a statement. 

What we're watching: Signs started going up Wednesday. 

Paid parking is coming to Berkley Riverfront

Port KC is trying to manage traffic as the neighborhood expands.

Large blue and red pay here sign with a QR code and instructions to scan or text LRKI; located near railway tracks with overhead wires, trees, and a blue sky in the background.

Signs are up at Berkley. Photo: Travis Meier/Axios

It will soon cost to park your car at Berkley Riverfront.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Port KC" data-vars-click-url="https://berkleyriverfront.com/parkingpolicy/" data-vars-content-id="31b28931-ab8a-4f3d-a0a4-c014b566243d" data-vars-headline="Paid parking is coming to Berkley Riverfront" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://berkleyriverfront.com/parkingpolicy/" target="_blank">Port KC</a> is trying to manage traffic as the neighborhood expands and demand for space increases.

Transit

Data: INRIX; Table: Carly Mallenbaum/Axios

Consider staying off Kansas City highways Thursday and Friday afternoons if you want to avoid the worst Memorial Day weekend traffic, according to INRIX forecasts.

The big picture: AAA predicts this will be the busiest Memorial Day ever for travel — meaning your departure time could make or break your trip.

By the numbers: AAA anticipates that more than 45 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more over Memorial Day weekend. That's 200,000 more than last year.

The bulk of them — more than 39 million travelers — will be driving.

Between the lines: Sunday is the best driving day, per INRIX, a transportation data analytics company that works with AAA to calculate travel times.

Zoom in: I-70 through Jackson County is down a lane in each direction between 25th St. and the US-40/31st St. interchange for the Improve I-70 KC bridge project, which runs through the rest of May.

Translation: if you're headed east toward Lake of the Ozarks, Columbia or St. Louis, you're funneling through a work zone at the worst possible hours.

What we're watching: Watch out for aggressive Monday-morning drivers.

AAA and Cambridge Mobile Telematics clocked a 29% spike in Memorial Day speeding compared to other Mondays, with speeding peaking 7am to 9am.

Flying instead? KCI is consistently back to pre-pandemic passenger volumes, with Thursday and Friday typically the peak departure days. 

Justin Meyer, then a KCI Aviation Department spokesperson, told KSHB travelers should use the cell phone lot at 860 Brasilia Ave. for pickups rather than waiting at the arrivals curb.

Pro tip: If you can leave before 10am Monday on the way home, you'll dodge most of the return crunch and the speeders.

KCI is consistently back to pre-pandemic passenger volumes

Justin Meyer, then a KCI Aviation Department spokesperson, told KSHB

Worst times to drive in KC this Memorial Day weekend

AAA predicts this will be the busiest Memorial Day ever for travel.

Illustration of a pattern of different hands all holding small U.S. flags

Consider staying off Kansas City highways Thursday and Friday afternoons if you want to avoid the worst <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Memorial Day weekend" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2025/05/23/memorial-day-weekend-2025-federal-holiday-meaning" data-vars-content-id="729b3ad1-a1d1-4e88-a782-8dee7001c9c2" data-vars-headline="Worst times to drive in KC this Memorial Day weekend" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2025/05/23/memorial-day-weekend-2025-federal-holiday-meaning" target="_self">Memorial Day weekend</a> traffic, according to <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="INRIX" data-vars-click-url="https://www.ace.aaa.com/travel/advocacy/memorial-day-travel-forecast-safety-tips.html" data-vars-content-id="729b3ad1-a1d1-4e88-a782-8dee7001c9c2" data-vars-headline="Worst times to drive in KC this Memorial Day weekend" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.ace.aaa.com/travel/advocacy/memorial-day-travel-forecast-safety-tips.html" target="_blank">INRIX</a> forecasts.The big picture: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="AAA predicts" data-vars-click-url="https://newsroom.aaa.com/2026/05/45-million-americans-planning-memorial-day-weekend-getaways/" data-vars-content-id="729b3ad1-a1d1-4e88-a782-8dee7001c9c2" data-vars-headline="Worst times to drive in KC this Memorial Day weekend" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://newsroom.aaa.com/2026/05/45-million-americans-planning-memorial-day-weekend-getaways/" target="_blank">AAA predicts</a> this will be the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="busiest Memorial Day ever" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2025/05/12/memorial-day-travel-forecast-record-aaa" data-vars-content-id="729b3ad1-a1d1-4e88-a782-8dee7001c9c2" data-vars-headline="Worst times to drive in KC this Memorial Day weekend" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2025/05/12/memorial-day-travel-forecast-record-aaa" target="_self">busiest Memorial Day ever</a> for travel — meaning your departure time could <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="make or break" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2026/03/23/travel-delays-shutdown-security-airfare-prices" data-vars-content-id="729b3ad1-a1d1-4e88-a782-8dee7001c9c2" data-vars-headline="Worst times to drive in KC this Memorial Day weekend" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2026/03/23/travel-delays-shutdown-security-airfare-prices" target="_self">make or break</a> your trip.

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Axios Latino

New national polling shows an uptick in religious fervor among young men, even as more churches across the country are shutting their doors.

The big picture: Gen Z still has the highest share of religiously unaffiliated adults in modern history, but small hints of a religious rebound have spawned speculation about how that could reshape politics, culture wars and church strategy for years to come.

An estimated 4,000 Protestant churches closed in the U.S. in 2024, outpacing the 3,800 that opened, according to Lifeway Research.

Driving the news: A Gallup poll found 42% of young men between 18 to 29 now say religion is "very important" in their lives, up from 28% just a few years ago.

Young women in the same age group have held steady at about 30%.

Religious attendance among young men has climbed to about 40% or more each month, its highest level in over a decade.

Zoom in: At Our Lady of Good Counsel in Westport, about 50% of the adult parishioners are between ages 18 and 30, operations director Joe Ibarra tells Axios.

The parish has roughly 1,000 members, and about a third of its adult parishioners are converts or returning Catholics.

What they're saying: "We are very young," Ibarra says. "In a couple of years, the number of young adults will eclipse the number of older adults."

"For people interested in becoming Catholic, it skews male," Ibarra adds. "In a world that's very fast-changing, they're looking for something stable. It's always a pendulum thing. Things swing back and forth."

State of play: Recent studies have spotlighted an increase in church attendance among young men, especially in Catholic and conservative evangelical congregations.

Stories from The New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal have pointed to packed pews, viral conversions and "TheoBro" culture as signs of a possible revival.

Some pastors report increased interest from Gen Z men, often tied to searches for community, structure or values.

Reality check: An Axios review of other recent surveys showed slight increases in reported church attendance among Gen Z men but little to suggest they're driving a "revival" like the Third Great Awakening of the early 1900s.

The bottom line: There's no broad Gen Z religious revival, but there is a targeted, politically tinged uptick among young men that's reshaping the conversation.

Gen Z is going to church in KC

A national uptick in religious fervor among Gen Z men is playing out in Kansas City, where half the parishioners at one Westport Catholic church are under 30.

A line graph showing the share of Americans who say religion is "very important" in their lives from 2000-2024. The overall percentage for U.S. adults is 48%, down from nearly 59% in 2000. Among men ages 18-29, it's 42%, a recent increase, while for women in the same age group, it's 29%, a steady de

New <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="national polling" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2026/04/16/gen-z-religion-poll-gallup" data-vars-content-id="b22ffef3-ac3d-4ff9-b28e-aa71e3b3e31d" data-vars-headline="Gen Z is going to church in KC" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2026/04/16/gen-z-religion-poll-gallup" target="_self">national polling</a> shows an uptick in religious fervor among young men, even as more churches across the country are shutting their doors.The big picture: Gen Z still has the highest share of religiously unaffiliated adults in modern history, but small hints of a religious rebound have spawned speculation about how that could reshape politics, culture wars and church strategy for years to come.

Religion

A line graph showing the share of Americans who say religion is "very important" in their lives from 2000-2024. The overall percentage for U.S. adults is 48%, down from nearly 59% in 2000. Among men ages 18-29, it's 42%, a recent increase, while for women in the same age group, it's 29%, a steady decrease.

Americans who say religion is "very important" in their own lives

A table that shows Memorial Day weekend 2026 road traffic forecasts by day. Worst driving windows are Thursdayfrom noon to 9 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday from noon to 5 p.m., and Monday from noon to 5 p.m.

Abbey Higginbotham

Featured stories

Gen Z is going to church in KC

Volunteers are restoring Union Cemetery

KC's mental health crisis center gets another year

Worst times to drive in KC this Memorial Day weekend

Paid parking is coming to Berkley Riverfront