Mayor Randy Pogue Declares Kearney a Utopia

 Mayor Randy Pogue Declares Kearney a Utopia Built on Mulch, Best Friendships, and Basketball Cages

By This Pontificating Happy Rock

KEARNEY — Kearney Mayor Randy Pogue took the mic at a recent Chamber luncheon to let everyone know just how spectacularly everything is going under his watch — and by spectacularly, we mean a combination of taxpayer-funded mulch replacements and heartfelt PowerPoint slides about senior-friendly parks.

Of course, the mayor didn’t mention his bromance with Clay County Commissioner Jason Withington — you know, the guy who mysteriously ended up with WWE tickets “as a gift” during that ethics-adjacent ticket scandal. But hey, who needs transparency when you’ve got matching polos and shared visions?

According to Pogue, Kearney is thriving thanks to “thoughtful and meaningful planning,” which is bureaucrat for “we finally found a grant.” The board of aldermen has bravely declared its 2025 goals: keep city services running, pretend to plan for growth, chase retail, and cram in as much high-density housing as the streets can take without splitting at the seams.

Parks, Trails, and Soft Landing Zones

Pogue bragged about Hall Park — a nearly $1 million senior paradise-in-progress funded through a blend of use tax revenue, a conservation grant, and the Hall Family’s generous donation (read: local royalty money). The park will include everything seniors could dream of: fitness courts, walking loops, and picnic shelters perfect for judging younger generations.

And if you thought mulch was forever — think again. Pogue announced that the outdated “wood fiber mulch” will be replaced with a more fall-appropriate substance at Lions and Mack Porter parks, costing only $162,000 from use tax funds. Because if there’s one thing this town can’t live without, it’s impact-rated playground surfacing.

Oh, and trails — the city locked in a $680,000 grant to extend the trail system so seniors can now walk all the way from Mack Porter Park to downtown while reflecting on why they still can’t cross Highway 92 without risking their lives.

Sidewalks and Water Tanks: The Sexy Stuff

Get ready for the 19th Street Complete Street Project — a $5.4 million extravaganza of bike lanes and railroad safety upgrades. Because nothing says “growth” like finally fixing sidewalks that should have been replaced when Bush was president (the first one).

Meanwhile, a glorious new water tower east of I-35 is underway, just in case all this expansion needs somewhere to go when the sewage system taps out.

Building Boom: Subdivisions and Sports Complexes

Mayor Pogue couldn’t resist crowing about the Innovation Business Park, where dreams of basketball and batting cages will soon become a reality. A stunning $4 million in capital investment is expected to flow in — or at least dribble in, slowly, after all the ribbon-cuttings and photo ops.

And don’t worry — if you’re looking to move to Kearney, you’ll soon have your pick of 384 new lots from the Westwood North and Meadow at Greenfield subdivisions. Because who wouldn’t want to move to a place where city priorities include fancy mulch and mayoral friendships more choreographed than a tag-team wrestling match?

But at the end of the day, Randy Pogue isn’t just mayor — he’s the people’s mulch-replacer, trail-dreamer, and WWE ticket whisperer. Kearney may not have transparency, but at least it has trails.

https://www.mycouriertribune.com/kearney-mayor-shares-successes-plans-for-town-growth/