LEVASY, Mo. — Nestled along Highway 24 in northeastern Jackson County sits Levasy, Missouri, population 77.
"It's the quintessential small town," explained Mayor Kim Dyer. "We take care of each other and We know each other's names."
The small farming community is a picture of Jackson County's agricultural heritage. Levasy is a quiet and hardworking town. Its appearance is a sliver of what it once was.
"There's some kind of connection to the land, where people love to come back," Dyer said. "You don't see that in neighborhoods anymore. It's a lifelong thing.
Dyer has acted as the town's elected volunteer mayor for a decade and has lived in the town for 30 years. She's survived eastern Jackson County's greatest catastrophes.
“The worst nightmare ever," Dyer described a 2019 flood. "It was literally just an hour... to get our things, vehicles and get out.”
She told KSHB 41 it was a perfect storm of heavy rainfall at home and heavy snowfall to the north. Dyer said Gavin's Point Dam near Yankton, South Dakota controls the Missouri River's flow throughout the year.
"We were watching Gavin's Point. We were calling the Army Corps of Engineers asking, 'What's going on?' It got to the point we were like, this never happens," she explained.
A private levee along the Missouri River was breached. Dyer said the levee is only capable of holding 27 feet of rising river water. The early June 2019 flood breached the levee with 31 feet of water, according to Dyer, and it had never breached railroad tracks that split the town.
"We started seeing the tracks begin to seep and we could see the water coming underneath the tracks. We knew that it was starting to fail."
The south side of Levasy took on water for the first time since 1951.
"I ran through the house," she explained. "I tried to throw everything up I thought was valuable. It's interesting because you don't know what is valuable in your life until you lose it."
Her home took on over two and a half feet of water. It was the beginning of a new era for the community.
"It was difficult to try and run my own personal business and run the city at the same time," Dyer said.
Since 2019, the city of Levasy has done its best to rebuild from the carnage of the flood. That's why Mayor Dyer applied for federal funding through the American Rescue Plan Act.
"If you want money to be for rescuing America, this is what America needs," she expressed. "We need old buildings torn down, old buildings rebuilt, old buildings rehabbed so we can continue to use them and continue to thrive and have property taxes paid.
At Tuesday night's Special Jackson County Legislature meeting, KSHB 41 was introduced to Dyer as she urged legislators to allocate the remaining $70.4 million ARPA funds. She alongside 20 others expressed the value of their applications for money to the legislature.
The Jackson County Legislature is debating between two proposals, one prioritizing county infrastructure and salaries. The other proposed by Legislator Manny Abarca prioritized numerous local organizations and community projects.
The City of Levasy is requesting $1.1 million to fund its Community Center, vacant lot clean up, and local park improvements.
"I'm struggling along to try and make things work. We are having garage sales and bake sales in this community so that we can buy paint," she explained. "So we can continue to make our buildings better and we can continue to rent them and to utilize them."
Mayor Dyer took KSHB 41 on a tour of the projects in Levasy. The proposed $1.1 million would tear down multiple dilapidated homes that began deteriorating before the 2019 flood. A few of the homes are the first thing you pass down Main Street.
"I've never been a woman who wanted to be rescued and I don't need to be rescued. But in this situation with the American Rescue Plan, I need the rescue," she explained. "I need those funds that one time. It's a shot of energy to really fix the problems that I have, to get these properties torn down, cleaned up, and make them into beautiful parks or at least clean spaces that are nice and beautiful. So hopefully it will raise the property values of the people who are still left."
Levasy is one of many projects relying on the Jackson County Legislature to come to an agreement. At Tuesday night's special meeting, legislators did not come to an agreement on what projects to fund.
Following the meeting, Legislator Jalen Anderson told the media that Abarca's $116 million proposal, including Levasy's funding, was a "political show."
"There shouldn't be any politics in this. It's about people and what can you do to help people," Dyer said. "When you have that kind of money, you can do a lot of good in the world. Aren't our politicians supposed to be there for the people? Isn't that what our Constitution said for the people?... We don't have politics in our town."
Abarca and Anderson went back and forth during Tuesday night's meeting.
Legislative Vice-Chairman Marshall told the presiding body, "The bull**** has to stop..."
According to the Jackson County Legislature website, its last scheduled meeting for the 2024 calendar year is Dec. 16. Legislators have until Dec. 31 to reach an agreement on the allocation of the funds or the money will be redirected to Washington D.C.
KSHB 41 asked Dyer how much time Levasy has left if legislators can't reach an agreement.
"Maybe another handful of years," she responded. "Maybe a slow a slow death."
Dyer told KSHB 41 she remains positive the legislative body can reach an agreement for all projects that could benefit.
"I'm tired of the politics. I don't see how the politics benefit anybody," she added. "I think it's important for them to do things that make the county itself better. What could be better making the county better, than strengthening communities who really could use some extra income, even if it’s just one time."
Levasy, Missouri, is approximately 35 miles east of downtown Kansas City.
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KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Miami County in Kansas and Cass County in Missouri. Share your story idea with Ryan.
