City of ?????????

How many times have you driven by one of the city fountains in the summer months and smiled at the sight of a bunch of kids playing in or around them?

That might be a sight of the past if the city continues with its latest plan to save money.

If you haven't heard, the Kansas City Parks Board does not plan to turn on any of the city's 48 fountains this year. At all. I don't know exactly why this bothers me so much. Maybe it's because I'm a water sign. Or because the image of children frolicking in empty fountain beds instead of streams of water is a mite depressing. Or perhaps it's because Kansas City bills itself as the CITY OF FOUNTAINS.

I know the budget is tight and you don't want to cut important things like police or trash pickup. But surely it can pony up the $160,000 necessary to keep the fountains running for at least a few months of the year.

Sure, keeping the fountains off in 2009 might seem like a good way to ride out the current economic crisis. But if you don't turn them on this year, it will be even more difficult to do so in the future. The repair bill for fixing fountains that have been left dry for lengthy periods of time would likely be much higher than 160K. What seems like a harmless and necessary cutback now could be a death sentence for many of these fountains in the long run. Which is pathetic, considering this is the so-called "city of fountains." (Or did I mention that already?)

I've heard some people say that this is a great opportunity for private citizens or businesses with deep pockets to step in and save the day. But what then? Will they be relied on to keep the fountains going indefinitely? And how long before we'd start to see things like "Sprint/Nextel Women's Friendship Fountain!" in glitzy signs above the fountains themselves?

Going without fountains for one year is certainly not the most tragic thing in the world. After all, there are plenty of countries where people can't even find or afford clean drinking water, much less decorative displays of the stuff. But while we're spending millions of dollars funding stadium renovations and exclusive entertainment districts, why not make enough of that money available to keep alive something that people of all ages, races and social classes can enjoy?

Kansas City was founded and designed by people who had a vision of how to turn an uninspiring trading settlement into a viable, attractive community. If they hadn't, who knows what this place would look like. Operating fountains is a small civic amenity, but a significant one when it comes to the allure and vitality of this place. And for those whose parents can't afford to get them a country club membership, they're one of the only places around to cool off on a hot summer day.

I'd encourage people to voice their displeasure with this plan, and I'd encourage the city to find some way around this particular cut in the budget. Because fountains are fun for everyone. And "City Too Cheap/Broke To Turn On Its Fountains" just doesn't have the same ring to it.