The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has a list of more than 60 gas releases currently being addressed in Kansas City. Inner City Oil, which is owned by Zill, LLC, has two releases listed.
On Tuesday, State Rep. Brandon Ellington organized a protest outside of Inner City Oil.
Neighbors from the East Palastine neighborhood could be heard yelling for people to not buy gas at Inner City Oil.
People living nearby believe the gas station at 31st and Cleveland is the reason the neighborhood smells like gas.
Ellington said the DNR had been helpful in investigating the issues. He said people living nearby have complained since 2006 and that 10 years is a “long time.”
The protest also drew Rep. Bonnaye Mims, who said there are gas releases in her district in south Kansas City. However, she agrees with Ellington that 10 years is too long.
“The health department was there. The DNR was there. We had everyone at the table to tell you what’s really going on,” said Mims. “When are they going to dig up that tank and fix it?”
Other protestors said a Shell station on Main Street had several issues, but by comparison, fixed the issue in a year.
Ellington said they would have to keep putting pressure on the gas station to see actual change.
41 Action News reached out to Inner City Oil for a comment. We were referred to the owner’s attorney, who at this point has not returned our call.
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Belinda Post can be reached at belinda.post@kshb.com.
