Tyrone Garner | |
|---|---|
| 30th Mayor of Kansas City, Kansas | |
| Assumed office December 13, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | David Alvey |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1968or1969(age 55–56) Portland,Maine,U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | MidAmerica Nazarene University (BA) Ottawa University (MA) FBI National Academy |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Army |
Tyrone A. Garner (born 1969) [1] is an American politician and retired police officer who is currently serving as the 30th [2] mayor of Kansas City,Kansas since 2021. He previously served as the deputy chief of the Kansas City Police Department (KCKPD).
Tyrone Garner was born in Portland,Maine. He grew up in San Jose,California before he and his family moved to Kansas City,Kansas (KCK) at the beginning of his freshman year in high school. He graduated from Wyandotte High School in 1987 and enlisted in the United States Army. After being honorably discharged,Garner joined the KCKPD where he would serve for over three decades,attaining the ranks of captain,major,and ultimately deputy chief. [3] Mr. Garner was the first and only African American KCK police officer to attend and graduate from the prestigious FBI National Academy in Quantico,Virginia and was the first African American male commander to ever command the western portion of KCKS. He retired in 2019,and briefly served on the Kansas City Kansas Community College Board of Trustees. [4] Garner served as a governor-appointed Kansas African American Affairs Commissioner for the Kansas Congressional 3rd District. [5] He also appointed the first African-American female chief of staff and county administrator in Wyandotte County. [6]
On November 2,2021,Garner defeated incumbent David Alvey in a close election to become the first African-American mayor/CEO of the United Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City,Kansas. [7] He took office on December 13,2021. [8] [9]
On January 10,2022,Garner hired Wyandotte County's first black female interim county administrator,Cheryl Harrison-Lee. [10] Only four months later,on April 21,2022,Unified Government Commissioners raised questions about Harrison-Lee's dedication to the job,citing her ongoing consultancy work with the neighboring city of Kansas City,Missouri,administering economic development tax revenues. [11] Garner "angrily stormed out of a special session" [12] of the Unified Government on May 3,2022,refusing to answer commissioners' requests that he begin a nationwide search for a permanent county administrator. Commissioners cited the interim administrators' possible conflict of interest as reasons to begin the search.
In a Facebook post on January 29,2024, [13] Mayor Garner announced he would temporarily step aside as mayor to undergo a medical procedure. Tom Burroughs,former Democratic member of the Kansas House of Representatives and current Unified Government At-Large District 2 Commissioner served as Mayor Pro Tempore during the recovery period and Garner returned to office on May 2,2024. [14] [15]
On November 19,2024,Garner's office released a statement saying he would not seek re-election after his current term. [16]
On December 16,2021,Garner proposed ending the county's mask mandate early amid rising COVID-19 cases and against the appeal of county health officials. [17] The repeal of the mask mandate was one of Garner's first acts in office.
On December 27,2021,Garner closed the county's sole cold-weather shelter. [18] After citizen protests and an emergency commissioners meeting,the cold shelter was eventually allowed to open. [19]
On January 18,2022,KCTV broke the story that Garner charged county taxpayers $85,569 for a new Yukon Denali. [20] After widespread community debate,Garner returned the luxury SUV on February 8,2022. [21]
In January 2022, [22] Garner opposed a $23 million downtown redevelopment project. [23] The proposed development had already been approved by the previous administration but Garner's opposition kept the project development agreement off the commission agendas. In April 2023,the Board of Commissioners approved a modified project that included $9.5 million in incentives and subsidies,which Garner didn't oppose. [24] Ultimately the project failed when the developer didn't meet financial milestones. [25]
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)