Downtown Ambassadors
The Downtown and River Market Community Improvement Districts have helped transform Downtown Kansas City with a simple but ambitious mission: clean, safe, and attractive.
The Downtown & River Market Community Improvement Districts’ (CIDs) mission is to keep Downtown Kansas City clean, safe, beautiful and fun. We provide security, cleaning and promotional services that supplement, but do not replace, basic services provided by the City of Kansas City and the fundamental responsibilities of property owners.
Our public safety officers patrol the streets 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to ensure that Downtown continues to be a safe and welcoming place. Known commonly as the “bumblebees”, they are the ambassadors for the neighborhood and are constantly on alert to help deter crime and assist our community.
The CIDs public safety ambassadors encourage and assist homeless individuals to get into appropriate facilities where they can find shelter and necessary social services. Ambassadors respond to calls from retail businesses and building managers and patrol Downtown on a daily basis. The CID ambassadors are trained to engage our homeless clients and offer them assistance in receiving services.
The public safety ambassadors work closely with the Kansas City Police Department. Our public safety staff are trained by the KCPD and assist the local precinct in dealing with thefts and the prevention of other crimes.
Through a partnership with the CIDs and the KC Streetcar Authority, public safety ambassadors play leadership roles in safety and way-finding services aboard the KC Streetcar since it started operations in 2016.
Through a partnership with the Kansas City Central Public Library, CID public safety ambassadors provide safety services, keeping the Libary safe during hours of operation and at special events.
The CIDs are committed to the development of its ambassadors through year-round training through numerous programs and classes provided by our partners.
Downtown & River Market CID ambassadors crews ensure that sidewalks are clean and graffiti-free seven days a week. Our cleaning crews supplement the City of Kansas City’s sanitation services and the obligations of property owners.
The CIDs deploy uniformed workers who manually clean sidewalks and parks on two overlapping shifts, seven days a week so that Downtown opens clean and remains clean throughout the day. The CID’s maintenance ambassadors manually sweep all sidewalks at least twice a day. All sidewalks also get a monthly power washing in warm weather months to remove accumulated stains and grime.
The CIDs have zero tolerance for graffiti. Specially trained teams use solvents and high-pressure washers to blast graffiti from the ground floor of building walls, light poles, signs and street furniture while protecting architectural surfaces.
Following snowfall, CID maintenance staff gets to work clearing bus stops, fire hydrants, all corner caps, sidewalks, and crosswalks to create clear and accessible pathways. In addition to coordinating with the City, our crews prioritize areas by taking into account pedestrian traffic and the entrance/egress of public transportation nodes.
The CID maintenance ambassadors maintain a variety of street furniture throughout the district. Our crews are responsible for cleaning and repairing these elements as needed, and repainting them seasonally to keep them looking fresh and clean.
The creation of the Downtown Community Improvement District (DCID) proved to be a pivotal moment in Downtown’s revival. Since the formation of the DCID in 2003, more than $8.8 billion has been invested in Downtown Kansas City.
The River Market Community Improvement District (RMCID) manages a 35 square block area in Kansas City’s oldest neighborhood. The RMCID was established by property owners within the neighborhood to provide enhanced services and programs to make the district cleaner, safer and more vibrant.
Back row, from left: Marvin Williams, Mark Rowlands, Frank Jackson, Art Chatman, Ronell Bailey, Sheila Tatum, Daniel Moon. Front row, from left: Sean O’Byrne, Justin Tatum, Santos Ramirez.
Director of Operations, Community Improvement Districts
santos@downtownkc.org
Director of Contracts, Community Improvement Districts
mark@downtownkc.org
Internal Communications Manager
justin@downtownkc.org
Safety Supervisor
ronell@downtownkc.org
Safety Supervisor
frank@downtownkc.org
Maintenance Supervisor
sheila@downtownkc.org
To request a CID service such as power-washing, removal of graffiti tags or to express any questions or concerns, please contact us using the form below.