KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Four Kansas City-area businesses spent their weekend cleaning shards of glass, and boarded-up windows and doors following a string of break-ins.

“It’s not just isolated to us,” said Christopher Ciesiel, Co-Owner of Sagebrush Cocktail Bar and The Campground.

Businesses affected by weekend break-ins:

• Sagebrush Cocktail Bar
• Seven Swans Creperie
• La Bodega
• Garden House Cafe

A trend that’s become common in the Kansas City area had Ciesel notice movement on his security cameras outside his KCK Rosedale neighborhood cocktail bar. He told KSHB 41 a group of individuals were seen brandishing a firearm and shattering the glass door in his business. The group stole an empty cash register. Following the hit at his business, he called neighboring business owner, Garden House Cafe, Jordan Fox. A similar event was taking place at his business.

“Our cash register was taken, all of our cash. That was it, thankfully,” said Fox. “It’s disheartening.”

Fox has called the Rosedale neighborhood home for eight years and has worked at his corner location for four. Operating as Garden House Cafe for the past two years, he values the patronage of his neighbors and the sense of life his business can bring to the community.

“It’s a very intimate space for ourselves, community, and neighbors,” he said. “Our neighbors walk up almost every morning for a cup. We know them by name. It the kind of story of corner shops across the nation.”

Will Shaw/KSHB

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Fox told KSHB 41 three individuals brandishing a firearm, seen on his security footage, broke into his corner cafe, shattering the front door and stealing a register with cash.

“No one was hurt in the process. Everything else was in tact. We have vendors in our space that we really care about, all of their products were in tact so that was really great,” Fox added.

Garden House Cafe

Kansas City experienced a spat of business break-ins and since late October, saw it taper off. This round, it has Ciesiel and his neighbor questioning the system as break-ins become the norm.

“If they [Police] happen to catch someone like this, they’ll just be back on the street in a day or two,” Ciesiel stated. “It’s not ‘if’ anymore, it’s ‘when is it going to happen’ or ‘when is it going to happen again.’”

The Campground

In late August 2024, a string of car thefts also rang throughout Kansas City. A suspected car theft led to the murder of beloved Chef Shaun Brady when he confronted a group of suspects attempting to steal a vehicle. Brady was gunned down after he took out the trash and was left for dead in the parking lot. The Brady & Fox restaurant, the location of the Shaun’s death would not reopen, family stated the restaurant was too connected to Brady’s culinary impact on Kansas City.

Jack McCormick/KSHB 41

“It hurts and it kind of makes it hard to keep going and stay positive,” Ciesiel added. “If things keep going how they are, I don’t see a lot of these impacted businesses staying open…I just hope it doesn’t keep going to the point, where small business owners must start defending themselves and their properties. That would be a scary time.”

On Sunday, Garden House Cafe opened it doors to an influx of customer’s showing their support. Many wrote messages of support on plywood boards gracing damage on the windows.

Will Shaw/KSHB

“It’s been a lot to process,” Fox explained. “I know many of these people by name and it means the world. It means, we do have support.”

Support for the corner coffee shop owner keeps him going for now. Fox offers a message for governmental leaders to ensure the prosperity of small businesses moving forward.

“This is our livelihood, so our head is down and we’ll keep going. I am asking that something happen in our government to care for our small businesses. It has to happen,” said Fox.

KSHB 41 reached out to KCPD and KCKPD, asking if the recent string of break-ins are in connection to each other. KCKPD had not responded to KSHB 41’s inquiry at the time this article was published. KSHB 41 asked Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department if this batch break-ins has any connection to the ones in 2024.

A KCPD spokesperson told KSHB 41, if the crimes have any connection it will be investigated. Any connection to neighboring jurisdictions or ongoing patterns would be what detectives would look into.

“There hasn’t been much of a response that I can see,” Fox added. “The response is, we’re just out here on our own.”

TOPEKA — Two Kansas legislators prefiled a bill that would deliver millions in voter-approved school bonds that were blocked earlier this year because of a strict ruling from the Kansas attorney general.

Voters in the Greeley County school district approved in May a $4.6 million school bond that was to be used for upgrades and renovations, but because the county — the smallest in Kansas with a population of just less than 1,200 — doesn’t have an elections website, the Kansas Attorney General’s Office refused to release the funds.

The Attorney General’s Office, which is responsible for validating every bond election in the state, decided the bond election didn’t meet legal standards. County officials didn’t adhere to a recent law requiring them to publish notice of a bond election three weeks in advance on a county elections website, in addition to a traditional newspaper notice, the office said.

A nonprofit, Greeley County Community Development, operates a website containing general government-related updates and news for the county, but it isn’t government-run. The school district’s website contained answers to frequently asked questions and in-depth information about the bond didn’t fit the bill either.

The bill prefiled Wednesday, ahead of the Legislature’s Jan. 13 start, would uphold the results of the May election and give the school district carte blanche to proceed with the improvements outlined in the bond measure.

“We should’ve already had bids and been building important facilities in Greeley County, so times a-wastin’,” said Sen.-elect William Clifford, a Garden City Republican. 

Clifford and Sen.-elect Tory Marie Blew, a Great Bend Republican, are co-sponsoring the bill. Clifford’s district-to-be encompasses Greeley County, and Blew’s district borders it. Both were members of the House before winning Senate seats in November.

Clifford said he respects the attorney general’s decision. But he is motivated to ensure the will of the people is fulfilled.

The Kansas State Wildcats dropped their third consecutive game in a blowout loss to the Houston Cougars Saturday night.

Here are a few takeaways from their fourth Big 12 matchup:

1. Kansas State was dominated on the offensive boards.

Kansas State’s rebounding issues were temporarily improving despite their losses. That issue returned Saturday, as the Wildcats were outdone 44 to 20 on the boards. Cougars forwards Joseph Tuglar and Ja’Vier Francis combined for 11 offensive rebounds, leading to Houston’s 20 second-chance points and halting Kansas State from getting in transition.

2. The slow starts are killing Kansas State.

To state the obvious, getting in early holes is not the key to victory. The one-half performances illustrate the Wildcats’ slow start to the season, which continued against Houston. Kansas State went into the half down 22, with Brendan Hausen being the only Wildcat who produced early. The only difference is this game felt like an avalanche all night; the Wildcats didn’t even have a comeback to reciprocate their sloppy first half.

3. Brendan Hausen woke up the 3-point shooting.

If Kansas State can walk away with one positive on the night, it’s the improvement in the 3-point shooting. The Wildcats went cold from the arc for nearly the last month, with the exception of the Cincinnati victory. Hausen scored 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting from 3-point range, as the team shot 40 percent on the night. Had they defended the paint better, they could’ve reduced the deficit and kept the game close.

Jayden Armant is a graduate of the Howard University School of Communications and a contributor to Kansas State Wildcats on SI. He can be reached at jaydenshome14@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.