KANSAS CITY, Mo. — From public safety to how we get around Kansas City, technology plays a larger part in our everyday lives.
It's also why the city created the position of Chief Innovation Officer in January 2013, a job that Alex Braszko took over about six weeks ago.
"Kansas City, Missouri, has decided that innovation is a priority for them and our office is there to help better integrate existing and emerging technologies into day-to-day operations within the city to improve the quality of life for the citizens," Braszko said.
He brings a military background to the role.
"I was working in the Department of Defense in the U.S. Army and I was integrating emerging technologies, if you like systems and capabilities, into military operations," Braszko said.
While much of the work goes on behind the scenes, people may start noticing kiosks around town, which can fulfill a variety of functions.
That could be as simple as providing emergency notifications, including Amber Alerts or National Weather Service warnings, or helping provide an extra set of eyes during big events.
"They have cameras integrated into them...," Braszko said. "Let's say when we (the Kansas City Chiefs) win the Super Bowl next year, right, there will be a lot of people downtown, Want to be able to use those cameras to get situational awareness for public safety?"
A kiosk will be intergreated in the new bus shelter being built at 12th Street and Grand Avenue, which isn't far from a new shared scooter/bike parking hub that was recently added along 13th Street.
There's also a stretch along the east side of Grand Avenue reserved for Lyft and Uber pick-ups. To monitor how often these spaces are used, the city installed special sensors to keep track of traffic.
"We'll look at putting them out here to be able to look at traffic management through those sensors," Braszko said.
The use of drones, Braszko said also could help keep the city safe.
"We're getting aerial technology that's great," Braszko said. "It would be great to have real-time access to imagery during an emergency management situation."
The addition of 5G capability in Kansas City also could be a game-changer for many aspects of our everyday life.
"It offers a lot of promise, specifically for law enforcement when it comes to latencies, situational awareness, real-time information," Braszko said. "That's going to be a drastic improvement."
While the focus right now seems to be on downtown, Braszko's goal is to spread technology city-wide.
With more technology, comes the increasing specter of Big Brother, but Braszko said the city is mindful of privacy issues and wants the public to know.
Data collected won't include personal information and the traffic sensors, for instance, only indicate the presence of an object. They won't record faces or license plates or anything along those lines.
More projects are planned as technology continues to evolve.
But before doing any major projects, Braszko said his office will interact with the public and get input on different ideas.
That inlcudes a presentation in the coming months regarding the city's new innovation plan, which will be shared with Mayor-Elect Quinton Lucas and the new KCMO City Council.
