On to the General Election

The primary held earlier this week is over, and Eric Jenkins (challenger) and Jeff Meyers (incumbent) move on to the mayoral race.  John Segale with a very poor third place finish is out of the running.

The general election is just a tad over four weeks away, April 3, 2012. 

Time for the citizens of Shawnee to elect four members of the council and the mayor.

It's no secret, I feel that the challengers (listed below)for each office should prevail.

Eric Jenkins for Mayor  http://jenkinsformayor.net/  over Jeff Meyers

Charles Macheers  Ward 1 Councilmember http://macheers.com/index.html over Jim Neighbor

Mike Kemmling     Ward 2 Councilmember http://mikekemmling.blogspot.com/ over Neal Sawyer

Jim Ferris               Ward 3  Councilmember http://www.imwithjim.com/ over Dawn Kuhn

Dylan McAfee        Ward 4 Councilmember http://electdylanmcafee.blogspot.com/ over Mickey Sandiver

Their web info is shown above so if you'd like you can make a contribution.  It does not need to be large.  Also, a reminder. If you are not happy with the actions of a councilmember who is not in your ward, eventhough you can't vote against them, you can still contribute to their challenger.  That councilmember is a COW (councilmember from other ward).

Shawnee Mission Times

Our post below about Vaught campaigning at the council got picked up by the Shawnee Mission Times
http://www.shawneemissiontimes.com/

I had to chuckle.  The more I thought about what Vaught said, the funnier it got.  He basically couldn't understand why Eric Jenkins even brought up the subject of right to life, since that is an issue that is not acted on by city governments.

Believe it has something to do with folks wanting to know how an individual stands on a variety of issues, to see if they (the voter) can relate to the candidate.

Guess Vaught just doesn't get it.  So, what else is new?

Vaught Gets the Judge Judy Award

In the past I've mentioned Judge Judy's first book, "Don't Pee On My Leg And Tell Me It's Raining".

Well, Monday night Vaught left a bunch of moisture in the council chambers.  In his comments about certain statements being made during this election cycle he seemed to take exception with the fact that the Cheryl Scott affair keeps getting brought up and that nobody on the council could have done anything about it.  That it was totally up to Scott.  That nobody else was involved.

Well a person would have to be either blind or stupid  not to see what had transpired.

Try these two previous posts of mine, which provide a wealth of background information:

http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/04/scotts-resignation-it-gets-deeper.html

That one was from back when it was happening, and then this one, is more recent with lots of other links:

http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2012/01/cheryl-scott-debacle-and-its-relevance.html

When reading those posts, and any of the others linked from them keep in mind that Scott had sent her letter of resignation to the city manager.  Wrong..............that letter needed to go to the mayor.  A council member does NOT work for the city manager.  The mayor is "next up" in the chain of command.............if you read those links you will see why that is relevant, particularly with what did/did not transpire at a council meeting.

Also, in case you don't read all of the items linked off of the two posts above, remember that when Scott bought her Arizona house, it was the former city clerk that signed as witness to her signature on various documents.

Vaught Campaigns From Council Seat

Jeff Vaught, Ward III's bombastic self absorbed council rep did a little campaigning/electioneering for Jeff Meyers, from his council seat.

Vaught apparently took exception to emails sent out by a member of the community and a state representative.  The email from the member of the community stated that mayoral candidate Eric Jenkins was the only real right to life candidate.  Vaught then proceeded to "question" Mayor Meyers on his stands and affiliations.  Wow, if that's not campaigning from the council chambers then what is?  Needless to say the mayor responded with comments that were designed to show him in a better light.

Question:  How come KFL (Kansans for Life) has endorsed Jenkins over Meyers?

Gee, can I address the council and campaign for a candidate?

More on this tomorrow.

Additional Thoughts, 10 Quivira CID

OK, these are additional thoughts based on my post from yesterday.

First, let me say that some folks will probably think I'm being paranoid, and others will probably think I'm being very logical.

1.  Both last August's CID presentation and the one the previous year went directly to the council without going to a committee first.

2.  Why???

3.  With regards to last August, would it be possible that certain individuals in the city knew about the pending sale?  Then if it went to a committee, by the time it got to the full council the sale would have been finalized and the process would have had to start over?

4.  That's another reason to terminate the current CID and let the new ownership reapply.

5.  If they have the ability to arrange financing for $2.8 million why not arrange the entire $4.2 million and not put it on the residents of the city?  Especially when the primary merchant is a grocery store and the area is not exactly the highest per capita income area of the city.

6.  Urge your council member not to approve an extension of the CID time frame but to terminate it as not complying with the original provisions.

7.  Was there complete transparency on this issue?  I don't think so.

10 Quivira Palza CID Update

Looks like the 110 Quivira Plaza CID is about to rear its ugly head again.

This is what is scheduled for the City Council meeting, this Monday, Feb 27, 2012 (starts at 7:30PM):

F. PUBLIC ITEMS


1. CONSIDER REQUEST TO DELAY COLLECTION OF COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
DISTRICT SALES TAX FOR TEN QUIVIRA PLAZA.
DISCUSSION: On August 8, 2011, the Governing Body passed an Ordinance and
approved a Development Agreement authorizing the creation of Ten Quivira
Plaza Community Improvement District (CID). Ten Quivira representatives
have requested that the collection of sales tax be delayed until January 1,
2013. A memo and supporting documents are included for review.
PAGES 33 - 44
ACTION: Pass an ordinance delaying the collection of the CID sales tax to be
collected within the Ten Quivira Plaza Community Improvement District. If
approved, an Ordinance Number will be assigned.


But why is there consideration to delay the collection of this tax?


Aha, now we must look at this, from the packet:

BACKGROUND
On August 8, 2011 the Governing Body passed an Ordinance authorizing the creation of the Ten
Quivira Plaza Community Improvement District and authorizing the imposition of a sales tax to
be collected within such district; and, approved and authorized the Mayor to sign a Development
Agreement with the Developer/Owner.


The ordinance established the District and levied the tax with an effective date of July 1, 2012. In
order to initiate the collection of that tax, the City must notify the State 90 days prior to the beginning
of a quarter. The Development Agreement included language that if the City does not receive
confirmation of approval and commencement of the private financing by March 1, 2012, the City
would take steps to delay the implementation of the sales tax and the agreement would be terminated.


DISCUSSION
Since August, Ten Quivira representatives have kept staff informed of their change in ownership,
ZCOF TL Ten Quivira LLC (ZCOF), and their progress in working with Bank of America regarding
the restructuring of their portfolio. ZCOF cannot begin any work on the Center without Bank of
America’s final approval. Bank of America has required additional due diligence prior to construction
of the improvements including completed plans and final bids for the work. ZCOF has requested that
the collection of the sales tax be delayed until January 1, 2013. A letter from Hugh Robinson
explaining the request in more detail is attached. Delaying the collection of the sales tax can be
accomplished by passing a new ordinance.


Because of the ownership changes and the work with Bank of America, Tri-Land has not yet signed
the Development Agreement. If the ordinance passes delaying the collection of the sales tax, a revised
Development Agreement will be brought to the Governing Body at a future meeting with updated
language on the deadlines and the ownership. Once the Development Agreement is complete, ZCOF
will be ready immediately to begin construction. Construction of improvements that are not funded
by the CID may begin sooner.


Now, let's look at Tri-Land's letter:

"As we have explained, a portfolio of 6 shopping centers that includes Ten Quivira Plaza was sold to a new group, ZCOF TL Ten Quivira LLC ("ZCOF TL"), on September 29, 2011.  Tri_land has an ownership interest in the new entity that owns the shopping centers and we continue to be responsible to lease and manage the 6-center portfolio."


In his letter Mr. Robinson also states that he has kept the city informed about the progress of the ownership transfer/sale since August.  Why wasn't the public informed about the pending sale at the public hearings?


This entire project needs to be terminated and if the new ownership wants the CID let them start the process over.  Or is this going to be another case of "we already started, so let's continue"?


Transparency on this issue was and is greatly lacking.

It's Almost Here

What is almost here?  The mayoral primary election, will be held Tuesday, Feb 28, 2012.

There are three individuals running:

Eric Jenkins - Challenger
Jeff Meyers - Incumbent Mayor
John Segale - Challenger

For those who have read my previous blog posts on this subject then you know I feel that Mr Jenkins should be Shawnee's next mayor.  My reasons have been stated.

Let's get a decent turn out for this election, and then another good turnout for the general election on Apr 3, 2012.

This Looks Interesting :-) :-) :-)

Yepper, this does look interesting:

http://www.shawneedispatch.com/weblogs/between-shawnee-lines/2012/feb/10/election-season-takes-shawnee/

Will Shawnee Gain Any New Residents From This?

What is "this"?  This is a company called Zumiez opening an order filling center in Edwardsville.  Zumiez is a national company with hundreds of stores across the country and a heavy on line presence.

The company is planning on having 100 employees at this location, but the question I pose is based on the fact that they have offered to transfer 35 employees from Everett, Washington.  Now, when a company offers to transfer employees, with all the concurrent expenses, you know that these are not minimumm wage jobs. 

So, it would be nice to know if any effort is being made to reach out to them to get some of those folks to relocate to Shawnee.  I realize that we are so far away from Edwardsville (says this blogger sarcastically).

For more information on this item please go to the KC Star article at http://www.kansascity.com/2012/02/15/3430858/edwardsville-to-get-100-jobs-with.html

Shawnee Dispatch Mayoral Questionnaires Are On Line

The Shawnee Dispatch has placed the questionnaires that the three candidates for mayor have answered.  Remember, since three individuals are running there will be a primary 2/28/12 with the top 2 going on to the general election 4/3/12

You can go to http://www.shawneedispatch.com/ and scroll down to the story or you can click on the links below for each one:

Eric Jenkins  http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2012/feb/13/candidate-questionnaire-eric-jenkins-mayoral-prima/

Jeff Meyers http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2012/feb/13/candidate-questionnaire-jeff-meyers-mayor/

John Segale http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2012/feb/13/candidate-questionnaire-john-segale-mayoral-primar/

Can't figure out (and not sure I even want to know) what Segale's strategy was in waiting to the last minute to file, thereby creating a primary election.  He did have the right to do that.  Oh well.

As mentioned in other posts, I'll be pulling for Eric Jenkins.  Firmly believe that because he is retired he can devote more time to helping Shawnee move forward.  His military and FEMA background would indicate an individual who can get the job done.  His service on Shawnee's Planning Commission gives him strong insights into what the city needs.

The "Cheryl Scott Debacle" was a slap in the face to the people of Shawnee (and Ward 1 specifically).  The franchise fee, the CID for 10 Quivira Plaza are two more reasons why I feel that Jeff Meyers needs to be replaced.  And in my opinion, Jenkins is the one for that.

One Pretty Sharp HS Editor

Sarah Darby, editor-in-chief  of Mill Valley's "Jagwire" really hit some nails on the head.

Go here  http://www.mvnews.org/blogs/citytalk/2012/02/09/city-council-candidates-for-ward-three-talk-about-upcoming-elections/  and then scroll down and read two stories

All you ever wanted to know about local elections and more    and  My first city council meeting (sort of)

Kemmling v. Sawyer

Mike Kemmling is challenging Neal Sawyer in the Ward 2 council race.

In an earlier post I indicated that I preferred Mike Kemmling over Neal Sawyer. 

This was the toughest of the five positions for me to take sides.  I like Neal.  He always has acted like a gentleman on the council.  So why would I choose Mike Kemmling for the council seat.

There have been many issues where Neal has said, what I feel to be the right things, but then has voted the opposite.  On verious occasions before his vote he explains this.

Two items that he voted for stand out to me.  He voted for the appointment of Jim Neighbor to the vacant Ward 1 seat caused by the Cheryl Scott debacle.  He voted to eliminate full minutes of council poceedings.

These two items bother me as they, IMHO, take away certain rights of the citizens of the community.  One right is to select their representative, the other being full transparency of what the governing body does.

I think it's time for a change in Ward 2 and feel that Mike Kemmling will bring a new perspective to the council.

Washington DC, Be Prepared

And what does Washington DC need to be preapred for?  Well, the annual National League of Cities convention.

It looks like only 4 individuals are scheduled to represent Shawnee............(that's down from the 5 scheduled last year).  Maybe my rants and raves here have had an effect?

OK, so who is going?

Mayor Jeff Meyers
Councilmember Mickey Sandifer (that's no surprise......he never saw a trip that he didn't want to go on)
Councilmember Jeff Vaught
City Manager Carol Gonzales

Could this list have been pared down?  Possibly.  How about if it was just the mayor, one councilmember and the city manager?

With his seat up for reelection on April 3rd Mickey Sandifer must feel that the citizens of Ward 4 are blind to all of the money he spends on travel, and feels like he will be returned to office.  Add to that his voting for the CID, the franchise fee, and the insult to the voters in Ward 1 by voting for the appointment of Neighbor instead of pushing for an election.

If nothing else, it would be nice if this was the last trip Sandifer took that was  paid for by the citizens of Shawnee.  Let's not give him the opportunity to take any more.

Not Very Neighborly

What are we referring to?  The action that placed Jim Neighbor on the city council representing Ward 1.

For the "long" story scroll down to my post "The 'Cheryl Scott' Debacle And Its Relevance Today" posted below on 1/28/12.

The short version is that Cheryl Scott could have resigned early enough for her seat to be placed on the ballot for the spring 2010 election.  Instead, she did not resign until after the election.  That left two options for the council.  To select her replacement or call for a special election, since the fall election was outside the parameters of the time element for filling the position.  Naturally, enough individuals on the council chose to "save" the city money by not having the special election.  But what happened to the fact that anybody with common sense could read between the lines to see what was happening?

Then when one looks at the resumés of those who applied, Mr. Neighbor included, it raises even more questions.  One of the individuals who applied had been a retired USAF colonel (running military hospitals)and also retired as CEO/President of two major hospitals in the KC area.  His background in budgets, personnel staffing etc put him, IMHO and the opinion of others head and shoulders over Mr. Neighbor.  Of the five resumés submitted I'd have to rank Mr. Neighbor's as 3 or 4.  But certain individuals on the council apparently had a plan and nobody was going to stop it.

Sandifer made the motion to appoint Neighbor and that was seconded by Kuhn.  Then Morris, Vaught and Sawyer voted with them.

This travesty fostered on the voters of  Ward 1 needs to be corrected. 

Charles Macheers needs to be elected over Neighbor in Ward 1.

Kuhn (Ward 3), Sandifer (Ward 4)  and Sawyer (Ward 2) need to be replaced by Ferris, McAfee and Kemmling accordingly for their complicity in this action.

I also find it hard to believe that Mayor Meyers couldn't see what was going on.  Time to replace him with Eric Jenkins.

Two Items To Make You Think

Ahhhh, things do happen in Shawnee.  OK, let's start with 4/26/10 when Dawn Kuhn made a motion to have a temporary street of 115 feet built in Ward 3 because of the K-7 construction project.  A temporary street (like for about 90 days), that was going to cost $67,500.  Folks all over town have to live with construction inconveniences, unless you live in her neighborhood.  The motion was seconded by Mickey "Loves to Travel" Sandifer, and approved when Mayor Jeff Meyers broke a 3-3 tie (Kuhn, Sandifer and Vaught voting for the project).  Actually, with her narcissistic attitude I'm surprised she didn't make a motion to name it Kuhn Terrace or something like that.

Now, let's fast forward to 2/14/11.  The illustrious Ms. Kuhn makes a motion (seconded by Mr. Frequent Miles Sandifer) to eliminate complete written minutes of council meetings.  Audio minutes with summaries are not the same as being able to review minutes for specific actions.  But then some members of the council did not want verbatim minutes because "they'll only use them against us".  OK, who voted for this veil of secrecy?  We already know about Kuhn and Sandifer, now you can also add Vaught, Neighbor, Morris and Sawyer.  And what was one of the primary reasons given for doing away with full minutes?  Money.

So you see, there is money to make Kuhn's life easier in her neighborhood but not enough to keep the citizens fully informed of what happens at city council meetings.

Keeping this in mind, I must now say that all incumbents running for reelection need to be voted out of office and  new council members put in place.

That means.............

For mayor............no to Meyers...............yes to Jenkins
Ward 1.................no to Neighbor.............yes to Macheers
Ward 2.................no to Sawyer................yes to Kemmling
Ward 3.................no to Kuhn...................yes to Ferris
Ward 4.................no to Sandifer..............yes to McAfee

Remember, if you want to support a challenger, vote for them.  It they are in another ward, but you disagree with the actions of the incumbent, you can contribute to that challenger.  The mayor's race is city wide and there is a primary for that office on 2/28/12.  Then the general election will be 4/3/12.

Sidebar:  Wonder how many other motions with negative impacts for the citizens were made by Kuhn and seconded by Sandifer?  Good little lapdog, Mickey, good doggie.

Is Kuhn Being Honest With Her Constituents?

OK...........follow closely. On 10/26/11 her husband filed for divorce and she filed an entry of appearance the following day.


Now when the divorce gets finalized, what happens to the house? Does he get it? Does she get it? Or does it get sold and they both leave the residence? Now if the latter happens, where does she move to? To another residence within Ward 3? I doubt it.

I smell another "Cheryl Scott Debacle" coming up. I think Kuhn thinks she can win in Ward 3. Then relocate from her residence and resign her seat. Counting on enough of the incumbents to be reelected to push for an appointed replacement rather than an elected one. As a matter of fact during that debacle I said on this blog that Jim Neighbor was going to be appointed to fill Scott's seat. The night that he was appointed Kuhn said that comments the selection was predetermined were wrong. Yeah, right. I'm not related to Sister Cleo but sure did call that one.

Anyway, I don't think she is prepared to commit to the three years to remain in Ward 3 if she was reelected. And I don't think the citizens of Ward 3 should have to put up with that. That is a good reason to vote for Jim Ferris in Ward 3. And also to contribute to his campaign.

Oh, and if you feel that Jim Ferris would be the one to represent Ward 3 but you don't live there, you can still contribute to his campaign. Just like I will. That's because Kuhn is a COW (councilmember from other ward, see the earlier post about COWs below dated 1/19/12).

This would also be a good time to remind folks about voting for Charles Macheers over Jim Neighbor in Ward 1.

Sister Cleo sidebar: Crystal ball says that when Kuhn leaves Ward 3 she moves to Ward 4.  Maybe even has a place already picked out?  ;-)  ;-)  ;-)

Eric Jenkins For Mayor

Here is a link to his web site:  http://jenkinsformayor.net/

In the past I had supported Jeff Meyers when he ran for reelection.

Why the change?

Jeff Meyers stand on the Franchise Fee, the CID for Ten Quivira Plaza and his actions or lack of in the Cheryl Scott debacle.

That last item was a severe insult to members of the community to select their elected officials.  When the city manager admitted that she had a copy of Scott's resignation on a Friday prior to a Monday meeting and did nothing to notify the mayor and council. When asked at the meeting she basically lied by omission.  Don't believe me..........ask a lawyer.  The mayor needed to be firm about this.  See the blog post immediately preceding this one.

Eric Jenkins' biography would indicate a person of a strong background in having to deal with many aspects of governmental operations.  His retired status would indicate that he could also devote more time to being mayor.

I urge you to vote in the primary, 2/28/12 for Eric Jenkins.

Do you need to register to vote?  Go here  http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/VoterRegistration.htm

Want information on advance voting if you can't get to your polling place on the day of the election?  Go here 
http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/AdvanceVoting.htm

The "Cheryl Scott" Debacle and Its Relevance Today

The Cheryl Scott debacle is and will have an effect on this year's city elections. For a review of what happened please read the posts listed below. They are listed in chronological order, oldest first, and may take awhile to read but many might find these posts informative. Keep in mind, when you read these posts that a council member's resignation should go to the mayor, not to the city manager. Council members do not work for the city manager, even though some apparently think they do.


http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/03/scott-is-going-bye-bye-gee-what-non.html

http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/03/scotts-resignation-additional-comments.html

http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/03/scott-insults-voters-of-ward-1.html

http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/03/who-is-playing-games-now_29.html

http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/03/scotts-letter-of-resignation-still.html

http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/04/scotts-resignation-it-gets-deeper.html


More info as to why I feel Jim Neighbor was not the best qualified to fill the position, and why he got it, to be posted in the near future

This also has a bearing on why it is felt he needs to be replaced on the council, and his challenger, Charles Macheers elected (ward 1).

Also, one of the reasons (there are others) why other incumbents running need to be replaced for their actions in this debacle. Why Sandifer, Kuhn, Meyers and Sawyer need to be replaced.

Why, Jenkins (mayor), Ferris (ward 3) McAfee (ward 4) Kemmling (ward 2) need to be elected.

Mayoral Primary 2/28/12

OK, we already know that there will be a primary election on 2/28/12 for mayor of Shawnee.  Three individuals have filed to run.  The top two in the primary will move on to the general election on 4/3/12.  Because of this, it is very important for folks to get out and vote in the primary.

My choice and the individual that I will be voting for is Eric Jenkins.  I believe that Eric will bring a fresh face to the office of mayor here in Shawnee.  More on why I like him for this position in a future post.

If you are not registered to vote, please do so. Information on registering is available at http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/VoterRegistration.htm


Also, you can participate in advance voting without going to your polling place on election day. Info is available at
http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/AdvanceVoting.htm#2

Issues For This Election

Again, I wonder what issues will be brought up during this city election.  Will any of them mirror what has been posted in this blog?

Example:  There have been rants and raves on this blog about council member travel.  In less than two months there will be another one of those annual National League of Cities events in Washington DC (3/10-3/14). 

Maybe the rants and raves have been productive?  Not sure how many members of the city council will attend this year but we will be monitoring the participant list.  As of this past Monday one councilmember has signed up to go.  Guess who?  Shawnee's own "King of Travel at the Taxpayer's Expense" Mickey Sandifer.

One more reason not to reelect him.  As a matter of fact if Mickey is your COW (councilmember from other ward - see post below Thur Jan 19, "Dealing with COWs") and you are getting tired of paying for his travel, contribute to his opponent, Dylan McAfee.  And if you live in ward IV and are also tired of his travel, definitely vote for Dylan (and contribute if you can).

Sandifer's Personal Voting Precinct

Must be nice to have your own "precinct" of voters in your district..............  :-)  :-)

Looking at the voter list for Ward IV it appears that there are 6 voters registered at the Sandifer home address.  Wow, and all this time I thought Mickey and his wife were empty nesters.  Guess I thought wrong.  Looks like they might be adult children and their spouses........possibly?  Isn't one of these a KCMO cop who resides in KCMO?

Oh well, gotta help daddy anyway ya can.

Challenger Files in Ward III

James Ferris has filed to challenge Dawn Kuhn for city council in Ward III.

All incumbents now have challengers.

Primary 2/28/12 for Mayor

With the filing yesterday of a third candidate for mayor, Shawnee will have a primary for that office on Feb 28, 2012, with the top two moving on to the general election April 3, 2012.

The candidates are:

Eric Jenkins
Jeff Meyers
John Segale

It is very important for all of Shawnee to get out and vote in this primary as it is for the mayor's position.

If you are not registered to vote, please do so.  Information on registering is available at http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/VoterRegistration.htm

Also, you can participate in advance voting without going to your polling place on election day. Info is available at http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/AdvanceVoting.htm#2

Dealing with COWs

As the city elections approach I again get asked one question from folks that I meet. And that is: “What can I do about a council member who has voted for items that I don’t agree with or have hurt me but they are from another ward?”


OK, the answer is really very easy. Council members are elected by the voters in specific wards. When they sit on the council at meetings they are actually acting for the entire city and as such can be held accountable by ANY citizen. Let’s call these folks COWs (councilmembers from other wards).

Now if a COW votes for something that you don’t approve of or a variety of such items, what you can do is make contributions to their opponents the next time they run for office. You don’t have to live in that ward to contribute to the opponent of a councilmember. You can even live in Los Angeles. The only thing you need to do is to keep the contribution amounts within the limits set by law.

So if you are unhappy with how a COW voted, just look up who their opponent is and contribute to that person’s campaign.

Thingies

Sitting here, reviewing some of the blog posts and seeing what is happening for the upcoming city election it feels like folks may be getting a tad bit upset with what some of the current council members and mayor have been doing.


Maybe they’re fed up with the CID thingy……………the franchise fee thingy………………the way the resignation of Cheryl Scott was handled thingy……………..which included lying by omission…………..the excessive trip taking by some council members thingy.

Lots of other “thingies”

Maybe, just maybe, this blog has awakened some folks as to what is going on. Got a funny feeling it may have.

Mayoral Challenger Files

Eric Jenkins has filed to run for mayor.

Three Challengers Filed

Three individuals have filed to challenge incumbents in the upcoming city election:

Charles Macheers................Ward I
Mike Kemmling...................Ward II
Dylan McAfee.....................Ward IV

Info at http://www.cityofshawnee.org/WEB/ShawneeCMS.nsf/b62f116aa62dde94862575680053ac82/010c2571510ba7998625767f006761c9?OpenDocument

Good Ideas? Bad Ideas?

Last Tuesday 1/3/12 at the Council Committee meeting it was brought out that the city sometimes finds it difficult to fill openings/vacancies on various city boards and commissions.  Part of this is probably because of citizen apathy and part probably because folks may not know of the vacancies.

So, I sent an email on 1/4 to the entire city council with copies to the mayor and city manager.  Would you believe, only two councilmembers even responded?  They were Pflumm and Distler.  Oh well.  The contents of the email are listed below.
Listening to last night’s discussion I was tempted to ask to speak but decided against it for two reasons:

a. Was not feeling the greatest
b. Meeting was running late
Various comments were made about trouble filling vacancies on various boards and commissions. Let’s try these suggestions:
1. I do not ever remember seeing these vacancies posted on the FRONT page of the city’s website, along with other announcements
2. I do not ever remember receiving an email from the listserv system announcing these vacancies
3. I do not remember ever seeing a press release/news item in the Dispatch announcing these vacancies:
a. “Mayor Meyers has announced an opening for xxxxx board. For information on how to submit an application to serve on this board please contact “abc” or go to the city’s web site at yada yada yada
b. “Councilmember Neighbor has announced a vacancy on the yyyy board that has an opening allocated to his ward, Ward 1. For information on how to apply to serve (same as above)
Anyway, maybe these alternate avenues other than word of mouth have been used………………..but I do not remember seeing them.
Side note: There was a comment made that Ward 3 was under represented on the planning commission. That would actually be expected since Ward 3 has traditionally had the worst turn out for city elections of all the four wards. So why does it surprise anyone that they have the lowest representation (read that as lack of interest in serving the city on a volunteer basis) on the planning commission?

Happy Holidays

As we get closer to the holidays let me wish all of the folks who read this blog a Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas and a Happy Healthy New Year.

Let's make the coming year the year that Shawnee citizens show true involvement in their city and show up to vote in the city elections.  Also, keep in mind, we have many voting options to include early voting and mail voting. 

Go here to find out about advance voting:   http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/AdvanceVoting.htm

Final Incumbent Files

Dawn Kuhn, Ward3 has finally filed for reelection.

Mayor Files for Reelection

Mayor Jeff Meyers has filed to run for reelection. 

Of the five incumbents, that brings to four those who have filed (besides the mayor, council members Sawyer, Sandifer and Neighbor have filed).

Council member Kuhn hasn't as yet filed for reelection, even though she has sent out letters seeking donations for her campaign.

So far, no challengers have filed.

Mayor's Christmas Tree

Went to city hall last night to  observe the lighting of the Mayor's Christmas Tree.

Wonderful time.............the groups that participated were lovely.  Listening to the Christmas Carols and other holiday songs was an enjoyable experience.

The monies collected for charity were uplifting.

The activities at Shawnee Town 1929 seemed to be well thought out.

Kudos to city staff and all who worked to make it an enjoyable evening.

Three Filed Today

OK, three of the council incumbents have filed to run for reelection:

Neighbor  Ward 1
Sawyer     Ward 2
Sandifer    Ward 4

It Starts Today

What starts today?  Today is the first day that a person can file to be a candidate in Shawnee's April 3rd municipal election.  Which could also involve a Feb 28th primary if more than two individuals file to run for the same office.

OK Shawnee, let's make this the year that folks in this town finally get involved in their local government.

Let's get some good candidates to run for local office.  I don't know how many, if any, of the five incumbents are going to run.

Those incumbents are:

Jeff Meyers, Mayor
Jim Neighbor, Ward 1 Councilperson
Neal Sawyer, Ward 2  Councilperson
Dawn Kuhn, Ward 3   Councilperson
Mickey Sandifer, Ward 4  Councilperson

Let's look for a minute at two of the above..............Kuhn and Sandifer.  IMHO, if these two choose to run for reelection we definitely need to see some fresh blood in their places.  These two definitely need to become "former councilpersons", and every attempt must be made to see that they are not reelected, should they choose to run again.  As a matter of fact neither of these two should, again IMHO, ever be elected to any governmental office whatsoever.

Jim Neighbor is also not high on my list for being returned to office.

More to come as the time draws closer.  Meanwhile, let's see who files to run for what.

Council & Planning Commission Workshop

Last Monday, 11/21/11 the City Council and the City Planning Commission held a workshop primarily focused on economic development.

It was a somewhat interesting evening.

One of the few intelligent comments of the evening came from Commissioner Tom Beckenbaugh when he said that Shawnee needed a magnet to draw people to it.  Hmmmmmm, I liked that, and as any reader of this blog would know, that is something I've been saying.

Much time was devoted to the proposed business/industrial park at 43d and K-7.  But, will a business/industrial park be a magnet?  It can bring tax paying businesses to Shawnee, but is it a magent that brings tourism and strong economic injections to the city?  Is it a magnet that will draw folks down from the Village West complex after their races, concerts and other mass public gatherings.

Granted, when those events occur the 200 or so hotel rooms fill up and some restaurants see a slight uptick in business.  But we don't get the heavy influx that a magnet attraction would bring...........from those events and year round.

Most of the discussions were monopolized by council reps Jeff  (I'm in commercial real estate) Vaught and Dawn (motormouth) Kuhn..  Vaught never misses the opportunity to tell us what he does for a living, and usually multiple times in the same evening.  Ironically, if one goes back they will see that for a commercial development real estate person his knowledge of the International Building Code was very limited (as to what it covers).  And Kuhn was sounding more like a candidate on the stump than a council person.

Curiously Vaught seemed to be pushing, among other things, redevelopment.  This was ironic since at a committee meeting I could swear I heard him tell another council rep that redevelopment was not economic development.

There was an exciting moment when council member Sandifer took offense (quite angrily too) at a comment by Vaught that seemed to be a nasty reference to how/where Sandifer was raised.  Funny also, because Vaught was critical in the past of former council member Straub's actions/comments at council meetings.

Pictures From Shawnee Veterans Day Ceremony

A few weeks ago I told a good friend of mine, Bill Nichols (a retired professional photographer) about the Shawnee Veterans Day ceremony.

He came by and took some pictures, created a slide show of them and that is available for viewing below.  He will also be posting individual still shots if anybody wants to download those.  Thanks Bill.

Veteran's Day 2011

In 2002 I wrote and placed the below poem (or at least I consider it a poem, many English teachers would probably disagree) on another web site.  I'd like to repost it here:

The GI in the foxhole
The sailor out to sea
The leatherneck standing guard
The pilot flying free

These are the brave men
And yes the women too
Standing guard to protect us
'Neath the old red, white and blue

They haven't asked for much
To them it's not a chore
Staying ready in peacetime
Just in case they go to war

Proudly they do serve
Like thousands gone before
Duty, honor and country
Be it peace or be it war

Our sons and our daughters
It is them that we do love
And proudly do they serve us
With guidance from above

At that time, I dedicated it as follows:

Dedicated to two special veterans......to me.....Abraham Erlichman, USAAF, WWII and the grandson he never knew Ashly Clayton Erlichman, 1/34 Armor, 1st Inf Div, SW Asia


If you can spare about 3-1/2 minutes, watch and listen to the video below.  Thank you.

Info for Veterans

With Veteran's Day coming up I'd like to post about a change in the law concerning rendering honors to the flag and during the playing of the National Anthem.

The Defense Authorization Acts of 2008 and 2009 had some interesting changes.

Veterans, and active duty military in civilian clothing now have the option of rendering the military style hand salute instead of the civilian hand over the chest salute.  This applies to the raising, lowering or passing of the colors as well as during the playing of the National Anthem.

Those individuals who are wearing cover (hats/caps for the uninformed civilians) may keep the cover on while rendering the hand salute.  If they choose to perform the civilian hand over the chest then they should remove their cover, and hold it over their chest.

Riding With the PD

Last April, and again last month I spent some time in a ride along with a member of the Shawnee PD.  The April ride was the evening shift, and the October ride was the midnight shift (and I made it all night until 6AM)

Both times I saw various things that both impressed me and made me feel good about our PD.

First, it is obvious that the police officer of today is better educated than in years past.  Even more important, I was able to witness various actions which showed that the officers also used alot of common sense.  That is a trait that is becoming scarce in many other professions.  And part of that probably has to do with their job related training.

One thing that became obvious on a couple of the calls is that we are definitely, IMHO, short handed.  There were calls that required two officers (primary and back up) for the safety of the officer and the public.  When this happens, based on the number of officers on duty there are holes in the coverage.  As an example, one of the calls was a complaint about a party at an apartment clubhouse, and we know liquor was involved.  There could have been problems if only one officer responded. Another call was a commercial burglar alarm at a restaurant.  It's after midnight, closer to 1AM........you don't know what you are walking into.  Again, two officers have to respond.  Fortunately, neither incident resulted in a negative situation.  But until the officers got there, and investigated, they didn't know what they could be getting themselves into.

Anyway, as stated above, I personally think we have some really good people on the PD.

I would like to see the number of officers on the street increased...........and that can only happen if the department is expanded.  And that requires action by the council and the city manager.

BTW, if anybody else is interested in doing a ride along, there are forms available at the PD that you have to fill out, submit and get approved.  It can be a learning experience.

Dan Pflumm Invests in Downtown Shawnee

After sitting vacant since Commerce Bank left, the building at the corner of Johnson Drive and Nieman is now owned by a Pflumm again. Dan Pflumm, owner and president of DanCo Systems, Inc., a company he established in Shawnee in 1995, recently purchased the building.


The building on Johnson Drive and Nieman once housed Shawnee State Bank, and more recently Commerce Bank. Shawnee State Savings Bank, which occupied that corner since 1908, was owned by the Pflumm family. The building’s ownership changed when they sold their interests in Shawnee State Bank to Commerce Bank in the mid 1990s.

Dan plans to renovate the hundred plus year old, 10,000 sq ft. building. The future layout will consist of a suite of offices for lease, as well as become the new headquarters for DanCo Systems.

Dan who is also a Shawnee councilman, has been involved in projects to revitalize the downtown area. The updating of this corner lot will bring more commerce to the area. Current renovation plans include exposing the original interior limestone walls of the historic building.

His company, DanCo Systems, specializes in instrumentation and control systems for the process control industry, as well as sales, support, engineering and consulting. In addition to their Shawnee location, DanCo also has an office in St Louis.

Has It Finally Happened?

Well, has it?  Has the City Council wised up?

OK, for the long term readers of this blog (and anybody that wants to research previous posts) I have been on the council's case for a long time regarding trips to various conferences.

My comments have always been that these conferences can be helpful, we just did not need to send 4, 5 or 6 people to them.  One or two would suffice and they in turn can brief the others upon their return.

Well, the National League of Cities is having a conference Nov 9 - 12.  That is next week in Phoenix, Arizona.

According to the information I received today only one person is going to represent Shawnee at the conference.  That is great, and that individual can then report what they saw and heard to all the others.

And guess who that person is that is going?  Yes, the one and only. Mr Trip Taker himself: Mickey Sandifer.

Maybe, just maybe, my constant harping on this issue has had the desired effect.  Nahhhhh, the council (certain members anyway) will probably say they did it on their own to save money.  Yeah, right.

More Indicators of Apathy in Shawnee

Just did a little quick research.  This is another example how apathy about local government is rampant in Shawnee.  What I refer to as the "intelligent idiots" of Shawnee.  Those folks who do nothing about our local government but make sure they get involved with national politics. 

Below is a listing from  August 3 until last Wed, October 26 indicatiing what kind of letters have been submitted to the Shawnee Dispatch:

In 13 issues of the Dispatch there were a total of 4 letters commenting on local governmental items.  Seven issues of the Dispatch had no letters of any kind and three issues had letters that were not on topic about local issues.

10/26/11 Illinois school seeking local items
10/19/11  NOTHING
10/12/11  NOTHING
10/5/11  Self serving letter from the Kansas Press Association
9/28/11  NOTHING
9/21/11  NOTHING
9/14/11  Thank you for return of lost item
9/7/11  Local commentary/opinion
8/31/11  NOTHING
8/24/11  Local commentary/opinion
8/17/11  NOTHING
8/10/11  NOTHING
8/3/11  (1) Local commentary/opinion
            (2) Local commentary/opinion

C'mon folks...............get involved with your local government.  Don't be one of the folks that complain after the fact when something happens.

Hoopla Is Directed The Wrong Way

The political season is heating up.  Eyes are on the Republican debates.  Battles over the dates of the Presidential primaries have begun.

And Shawnee is just a little over five motnhs away from a municipal election.  Whooops.........how did that sneak in there?

That's right, on April 3, 2012 Shawnee voters (well at least 10% of them) will go to the polls and make decisions concerning 4 council seats and the mayor.  And 90% of them will sit on their butts and do nothing.

But watch what happens in the Presidential election.  Almost 80% of Shawnee's voters will vote.

I'm not saying don't vote in the Presidential election.  I'm saying get out there and vote for your local government.  The President does not control your property taxes, sales taxes, street repairs, emergency services (police and fire), parks etc.  When was the last time a President plowed snow?  Or filled a chuck hole?  Or got out in the parks to keep them functional?  Never. 

Citizen participation in local governement in Shawnee sucks.  And the local government has more of an effect on your daily lives than any other government level.

Anyway, back to the upcomig elections on April 3, 2012.  Mark your calendars, as that is just a little over 5 months away.

The five people up for reelection are:

Jeff Meyers, Mayor
Jim Neighbor, Ward 1 council (election for him, he was appointed to fill an unexpired term)
Neal Sawyer, Ward 2 council
Dawn Kuhn, Ward 3 council
Mickey Sandifer, Ward 4 council

Right now I can think of 3 of the above who definitely should not be returned to office, and I have mixed emotions on the other two.  More on that later.

Hmmm, Guess I've Been Quiet

Yes, I've been quiet for almost a month.  Why?

Well, there was a committee meeting of the Finance and Administration Committee a few weeks ago.  There were two items on the agenda and I could not believe that nobody from the community showed up.

One item was the redrawing of the ward boundaries.  Don't the people of Shawnee care which ward they live in?  Don't they care who their reps on the council are?  Don't they care who they might be voting for, for council (if they ever get off their lazy butts, since voter turn out stinks)?

The other item concerned hunting regulations within the city limits. 

Regardless of what a person's opinon is, the fact that folks in Shawnee continue to show as much apathy as they do about their local government never ceases to amaze me.

I am continuoulsy getting emails and phone calls with suggestions of causes and situations that people think would be good to get involved with.  My answer to them...............why don't you get involved?

By the way, the two items mentioned above will be on tonight's city council agenda.  Will you be there or will you be crying after the fact?

Missed Opportunities - Again

While some city council members keep screaming that we need economic development (commercial development), what is being done to get it?

Fast food resturants are not the answer, see the post at
http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2011/03/king-is-coming.html Oh, and by the way, where is it?

The recent Kanrocksas concert at Village West pulled in about 60,000 people for 2 days. A bit short of their original prediction of 100,000, but then this was the first of what is supposed to be an annual event. Willie Nelson's Farm Aid pulled in over 18,000 shortly after.

What did we in Shawnee get from those two events?

We are approximately 7 minutes south of the Village West complex. A complex that was started approximately 10 years ago.The casino going in up there is moving along quite nicely. There will also be a major hotel to go with it. With the right type of development along the I-35 corridor we could receive some benefits from this. Will we ever see it? I doubt it

Is It a Hotel or Pie In The Sky

Let's use the article in today's Shawnee Dispatch as a reference point:
http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2011/aug/24/city-moves-abate-unsafe-buildings-hotel-site/


The hotel project began in 2008. Basically very little has been done since then. Some structures that were on the property and are still there have deteriorated to the point that they are safety hazards. Not to mention eyesores.

So, what is happening? The city is going to hold a public hearing to make a determination. If the items are determined to be hazards and the owners do not take them down the city will demolish them. Then the city will have to bill the owners for that action.

Now, in the above referenced article appears this, from city manager Carol Gonzales:

"Gonzales said the city wanted to maintain a positive relationship with the hotel group and looked forward to the new development. However, she said, the blighted structures have reached the point where they are unsafe."

Duhhhhh!!!!!!! What kind of relationship does the developer want to maintain with the city? Why after receiving various notices about this problem have they failed to act? Why are they willing to let the city go to the expense of demolishing the structures? If the city has to do it, will the developers repay the city? Or will legal action have to be taken to recoup the funds?

The cost of demolition is about $20K...............a drop in the bucket of the budget for the construction of a hotel of this size.  Kinda makes a person wanna ask how committed is the developer to this project.

Sellin' Gold

A little over a week ago I decided to take advantage of the price on gold and sell off two pieces that I don't need anymore.


One was a man's bracelet that I bought over 30 years ago in San Diego and the other was a company ring with a diamond from a company that I no longer work for.

Learned some interesting things, that I'd like to pass on. First, the price that you hear in the media is for 24k gold. Second, you're not going to get that since whoever buys it from you has to have room to make a profit. Because of that I had a price in mind of $650-$750.

With that in mind I took the 2 pieces (both were 14k) to a pawn shop on 87th Street that says they buy gold. The gentleman there offered me $400. Something just told me not to even bother trying to negotiate.

Then I went to this place over on 76th St and Metcalf that gold buying is their business. Nicely decorated, coffee available , kinda trying to make ya feel at home. The young man there, after going through some gyrations offered me $300. Told him he was crazy. His place was supposed to be a "gold buying store" and a pawn shop just offered me $400. He went through some more gyrations and called "one of the owners". Came back to me with an offer of $500. Told him he was too short and I didn't appreciate his feeble attempt at low balling me.

Then I went to a pawn shop on 75th Street. He was pretty close. He offered me $500 right off the bat, and when I went to negotiate for what I wanted he countered with $575, as the best he could do (gettin' closer) but if I came back the next day the boss might be able to do better. I liked his demeanor.

My next stop was Thompson's Jewelry at 6642 Nieman Rd. Beautiful..........John offered me $600 from the start. Then I asked if he had looked at the diamond (about 1/3 carat). He admitted he had not, he thought I might want it to do something else. When he looked at it, he said he could bump the price another $50. Now he was right in line with what my original self estimate was. We made the deal.

Moral of the story...........do business with local merchants, especially when selling gold. Remember, the prices I was given were as low as $300 to what I finally got, $650 (well, $600 for the gold) . That's a spread.

Vaught's Comparison of Shawnee to Liberty (MO) Faulty

Prior to voting on the CID for 10 Quivira Plaza 3rd ward council rep Jeff Vaught attempted to compare Shawnee with Liberty, MO.


One of the arguments against the CID was that it would increase the sales tax paid on food, since the primary retailer in that shopping center is a grocery store.

Well Mr. Vaught brought out some info that Liberty had multiple CIDs and that two of them had grocery stores.

Something didn't seem right, but I did not have the info at hand. Now I do. Liberty officials were contacted and the information received is very interesting.

In Liberty, when one shops at a grocery store the sales tax on groceries is 3% LESS than non-grocery items. OK, let's break that down. In the two shopping centers he was talking about, the sales tax (with the 1% for their CID) is 8.6%, but on grocery items it is only 5.6%. Prior to the CID the sales taxes would have been 7.6% and 4.6%. So, in Liberty the tax did go up on grocery items, but the total tax paid on them is still quite a bit less than on non-grocery items.

So as to make sure everyone knows what qualifies as a grocery item, Missouri uses the federal guidelines for SNAP (supplemental nutrition assistance program, formerly food stamps). If it is an item that can be purchased with SNAP it qualifies as a grocery item for the reduced sales tax rate. The reduced sales tax rate applies to all individuals not just SNAP recipients.

How come Mr Vaught did not mention the bi-level sales tax in grocery stores there?  Curious, did he do his own research or was he spoon fed the info?

CID Approval

This past Monday the city council approved a CID (Community Improvement District) for 10 Quivira Plaza.

My opinion still stands that this is a bad precedent to use this type of financing tool for a neighborhood shopping center.  The increased 1/2% sales tax will go to helping the ownership revitalize the center.  Others might now apply for the same type of financing which could result in shopping center specific tax increases of up to 2%.

In this case the ownership will be spending $2.8 million and the sales tax is being used to obtain an additional $1.4 million for the revitalization.  I applaud the ownership for their willingness to secure the $2.8 million.  That is the American way.  I criticize them for using the citizens of Shawnee (especially Ward 2) to finance the balance.

One of the arguments used by some on the council to support the tax increase was that if the ownership had to finance the improvements then they would raise the rents and the citizens would still be paying more.  Duhhhhh.................they are using $2.8 million of their own (or secured).  Won't they still raise rents?  Leaving the merchants to pass that on to the citizens?  Maybe not on stores that have existing leases, but what about at renewal time?  What about when the empty stores are filled?  Won't the revitalization be a selling tool for setting their rental rates higher?

Now, another argument for approving the CID was that by improving the shopping center it will be assessed at a higher value, bringing in more property tax dollars to the city.  Duhhhhhhhhhhhh.............is the ownership going to absorb those property tax increases?  Of course not.  Rents will still be set higher.

Then, when the ownership sells the center, for a profit which they are entitled to, the new ownership would have to also adjust rents............which means the merchants will still have to increase their prices.

So, what does that mean?  It means that the arguments that without the CID the rents would go up and prices also, are/were bogus arguments.  Prices are still going to go up. The sales tax increase will just be
on a higher retail price, ergo, a larger dollar amount.

Three of the five council reps who voted for this increase are up for reelection in 8 months (April 2012).

I strongly urge folks to work against their reelection.  Even if you are not in their ward, there is nothing to stop you from working against their reelection.

These are:

Mickey Sandifer.............ward 4...........talks about caring about senior citizens but I don't see that
Dawn Kuhn..........ward 3.............also was a strong supporter of the 5% franchise fee..........send her packing
Jim Neighbor..........ward 1............wasn't even elected......appointed to fill Cheryl Scott's remaining time............nice guy, but a review of the resumés of the others who applied for the position was not, IMHO the best qualified.

I'll Be There............Will You?

Tonight, the public hearing for the proposed Community Improvement District at 10 Quivira Plaza (Quivira Rd & Shawnee Mission Parkway).

This would include a 1/2% sales tax increase, just for that shopping center, which would include the Price Chopper Supermarket.

Shawnee City Hall, Nieman Rd & Johnson Dr at 7:30PM

Be there..........get involved.........voice your opinions.

Another Reminder

Monday................8/8/11.......7:30PM.................City Hall

On the agenda:  The proposed Community Improvement District for 10 Quivira Plaza

Be there.................voice your opinion.............

Tell your friends, family about this important meeting.  It could set a precedent.  Is it a precedent that you want?  Let's hear you.

Be There, Monday August 8, 2011

Reminder................

Public hearing for the proposed Community Improvement District at 10 Quivira Plaza will be Monday, August 8, 2011 at 7:30 PM in the city council chambers, Johnson Drive and Nieman Rd.

This is an important issue for many reasons, including the possibility of a 1/2% sales tax increase for the shops in the district.  Keeping in mind that the largest generator of revenue in the shopping center is a grocery store.

Be there at the hearing with your opinions............the good, the bad and the ugly.............but be there.

Community Improvement District - 10 Quivira Plaza

Well, this is coming up again.  The public hearing is scheduled for Monday, August 8th at the City Council meeting at 7:30PM.

If approved, this would also include a 1/2% sales tax just on the shops in that center.  The basics are that  $4.2 million is needed for the revitalization of the shopping center.  The ownership is putting up $2.8 million and the balance ($1.4 million) would come from the extra sales tax.

This is another one of those items that needs citizen input................pros and cons.

One thing that I find intriguing is that just like last time, the item did not come before a committee but directly to the full council.

No Mill Levy Increase

Whooopeeee.  Some folks are making noise about how the city budget did not include a mill levy increase.

Of course not.  We have our 5% franchise fee.  Wheeeeeeee.  OK, let's use the KISS theory.  Your utility bills have a franchise fee on them.  The fee is 5% of the utility bill.  Basically that goes back to the utility because that is what the city is charging them and state law allows the utilities to pass that on.  That is why, when it came up in the summer of 2009 many folks (including me) spoke out against it.  See what happens, is that everytine the utility rates go up, that 5% goes up.  Every time you use more gas and/or electricity your bill goes up (think super hot summer or super cold winter...look at next month's bill for the effect of the July heat), and your 5% franchise fee amount goes up.

Way back when..............I said that eventually folks might forget it was the city that levied this and would start holding it against the utilities. 

So, there are folks who can pat themselves on the back and make themselves look and sound good for not raising the mill levy............but just look at that franchise fee.  Up, up and away....... in our rising utility costs, translated to franchise fee, translated to.............tax.

Where Did $79 Million Go?

Unless you were at the Shawnee City Council meeting Monday night you probably cannot answer that question.

The point I'm trying to make is that unless Shawnee citizens get involved they have no idea how the council is spending their money. 

Monday was a perfect example of what I have been saying for a long time.  During the business from the floor portion (after the budget hearing), a member of the community got up to say how unhappy he and other folks in his subdivision were with some recent street repairs.  Personally, I do not know if his complaints was valid or not.  What I do know is that he, like just about everybody else, never showed up at various council meetings when it was discussed how certain street repairs had to be modified.  They were never there when it was discussed how certain repairs, for budgetary reasons, had to be cut back.  And, he and others were not there to discuss, at the budget hearing, the various points of how to use the Deffenbaugh impact fees (infrastructure, eco development or a combination).

And are he and his neighbors among the high percentage of Shawnee residents who vote in Presidential elections, but sit home for City Council elections.  Don't believe me?  Here are the numbers, for Shawnee:

2008 Presidential election  40,791  registered voters   32,177 actually voted

2010 City Council election   39,862 registered voters  3,890 actually voted

That means that 78.9% of Shawnee citizens voted for President, but only 9.8% voted in the last city election.

The elected body that controls local taxes, provides emergency services, maintains streets and parks, plows snow,  etc only less than 1 out of 10 residents get involved to the point of voting.  How many show up at council and/or council committee meetings?  Usually the number can be counted on the fingers of one hand, if that many.

Disgusting.

Tonight's the Night

Apologies to Rod Stewart....................but.............tonight's the night.

Yepper, the Shawnee budget hearing is tonight.

Will you be there to see how the city uses your money?
Will you be there to tell them what you agree with?
Will you be there to tell them what you disagree with?

Are  you interested in seeing and hearing how tens of millions of your dollars are being spent?

Coming to a City Hall Near You

Monday, 7/25/11 coming to the Shawnee City Hall will be the public hearing for the 2012 budget.

Come see how the city spends your money.
Come speak on the items you agree with.
Come speak on the items you disagree with.
Come take part in the governmental process that has the most effect on your daily lives.

Budget Public Hearing - Mon 7/25/11

This coming Monday the Shawnee City Council will hold a public hearing on the amended 2011 budget and on the 2012 budget.  The council meeting starts at 7:30PM.

As stated on numerous occasions it is amazing how little interest Shawnee citizens take in local government.  Yet it is local government that has the most effect on our daily lives.

There are numerous items in the proposed 2012 budget that folks need to look at, among them:

Economic development vs street maintenance
A proposed volunteer program with a proposed paid coordinator
City contributions to various organizations

It would be nice for folks to turn out, listen, and even comment.  And, see and hear how your elected representatives vote on these issues.

Upcoming Public Hearings

Public Hearings at the City Council are very important events. They are one of the major ways that citizens can voice their approval or disapproval regarding items that the council will be voting on.

Unfortunately, most folks in Shawnee do not get involved at these hearings. They just wait until after the fact to ask "How did that happen?" or "Why didn't that happen?"

OK...here are the two that are coming up:

Budget Hearing: This will be on Monday, 7/25/11, at 7:30PM. Both the amended 2011 budget and the proposed 2012 budget will be voted on by the council. Get involved with how your money is being spent.

Community Improvement District: This will be on Monday, 8/8/11, at 7:30PM. The ownership of the 10 Quivira Plaza Shopping Center (Quivira Rd and Shawnee Mission Parkway) have applied for the property to be designated a CID. This would involve the ownership investing funds for upgrades and the levying of an additional 1/2 cent sales tax for part of the upgrades, applicable only to the shops in that center.

What happens at these hearings will have a definite impact on Shawnee and its citizens. People need to get involved.

As we get closer to these hearings I will be posting some opinions regarding certain items.

Gotta Love Vegas

Well, ya gotta love it.

On 5/22/11 (see below) I commented on the Global Retail Real Estate Convention. It was indicated that four people were going to represent the city: the executive director of the SEDC, the city's development director, the city manager and one city council person.

It was mentioned that in my opinion we only needed to send the first two individuals and the other two could have stayed home.

So let's see what the impact was for sending City Manager Gonzales and Council Member Kuhn.

Gonzales expense report: $1,816.34
Kuhn expense report: $1,637.64

Total $3,453.98

And since they both went, why couldn't they "double up" in their hotel room? Most private businesses are requiring that now.

And last, but not least. Apparently Dawn Kuhn uses the travel to Vegas (just like last year) to extend her stay (this year an extra 4 days) past the convention's end. Apparently vacation time is needed. Granted, this is at no additional cost to the city, but because it is tied into the convention she doesn't have the associated transportation costs. I'm curious. She did this last year also...............now I wonder..............has she done this before then also? Maybe we need to look and see how many times she was the "chosen" one to go to Vegas.

Whose Money Is It?

OK............we'll keep this one simple.

At last night's council meeting the use of the "Impact Fee" that Deffenbaugh will be paying was discussed.

When it was brought up that council needed to be dilligent in how this "taxpayer money" was used, Jeff Vaught went on a Dawn Kuhn style diatribe.

The problem here is that Vaught kept saying that the money was not the taxpayer's but was an impact fee.

OK, we already know that Vaught had a problem with a 4th grade vocabulary word, and for a self professed commercial real estate expert had no knowledge of the International Building Code. (working in a field does not necessarily make one an expert) Now let's add to that the fact that he apparently does not understand what funds are "taxpayer funds".

Try this Jeff: The city receives funds.............regardless of the source, these monies become "taxpayer funds" because the monies are "owned" by the city, and the city is "owned" by its citizens (where local taxpayer and citizen in this case can be synonomous). Other than grants from other entities which are provided for specific purposes (and relieve the city of using some of its monies for these purposes) these are "taxpayer monies". Ergo, it is the council's responsibility to ensure that these monies are diligently used.


DTJVSD

Short Letter to the Star

Had a short one in the KC Star on Sunday, 6/26......and it's on line
here

Or, if you'd rather read it now:

Gel fuels create hazard

I have one question in reference to the June 16 front-page article, “Gel fuels raising concerns on safety,” about the dangers of the sticky flammable materials used in some firepots, tiki torches and other outdoor fire products:

Has anybody ever heard of napalm and how it functions?

Ray Erlichman
Shawnee

Thoughts About the 2012 Budget

At last night's Public Works and Safety Committee meeting more items regarding the upcoming budget were reviewed.

One item of interest was Jeff Vaught's comments about not giving Wonderscope Children's Museum $10,000. Gee Jeff, are you finally listening to me?

Last year, and for a couple of years prior to that I have spoken out at council (it's on the record) that we should eliminate the city's contribution to that organization. There were times when I even produced copies of Wonderscope's IRS Form 990. As a tax exempt organization their IRS filings are available for public scrutiny. One year, they gave a former executive director a 15% salary increase, while we were freezing employee salaries. Hopefully the item can be struck from the 2012 budget.

Interesting side note is that Dawn Kuhn was silent on this last night when in the past she has jumped to the defense of Wonderscope. Wonder why? Does her silence mean that she does not support giving them the money?

Let's move on to the topic of economic development.

SEDC executive director Andrew Nave gave a presentation. I'm not going to go through it item by item but suffice it to say it is my opinion that some things were lacking.

There was talk about attracting various businesses, but, that we did not necessarily have the buildings of sufficient size for them. The city manager mentioned that some companies were expressing an interest in the riverfront project/area.

At no time do I remember hearing any mention of a strong emphasis to attract destination type businesses/developments that could feed off of KCK's Village West along the I-435 corridor. Duhhhhhhhhhhhh.........................

When the presentation brought up info about new businesses and their potential payrolls, Council Rep Neal Sawyer asked a very important question: How much of those projected payrolls would stay in Shawnee? Very valid.

Side note: A few years back I proposed that any incentives given to businesses should have a tie in to the payrolls remaining in Shawnee. Think about that. How beneficial is a business that employs let's say 25 people, with a yearly payroll of $1,000,000 if let's say $800,000 of that belongs to folks who live (buy/rent) and shop in other cities. Will some of that be spent here? Yepper. Would more of it stay here if these businesses brought folks to Shawnee from other cities? Yepper.

Family Squabble?? Part 2

Well, I finally listened to the audio version of the 6/7/11 Finance and Administration Committee meeting (see the earlier post below).

I'll keep it simple. Based on what I heard, Council Rep Dawn Kuhn was way out of line in her rant against Council Rep Neil Sawyer.

The post below links to an item in the Shawnee Dispatch in which it is noted that Council Rep Vaught even saw nothing wrong with Mr. Sawyer's question, indicating that if council didn't question items that we might as well have eight rubber stamps up there.

Mr Sawyer did not berate or beat up on staff as Motormouth Kuhn suggested. If anybody was insolent or antagonistic or rude it was Kuhn in her comments directed to Mr Sawyer.

"Family" Squabble??

Was there a "family" squabble during last Tuesday's Finance and Administration Committee meeting?

I left early...........missed it....but heard about it at http://www.shawneedispatch.com/weblogs/between-shawnee-lines/2011/jun/08/r-e-s-p-e-c-t/

Will be listening to the audio version of the situation before voicing my opinion.

Educated Idiots

Who am I referring to? The majority of the registered voters in Shawnee. Ooooops, you're not supposed to insult folks. Too bad. Read on and you'll see why.

Back in April I thanked the mayor for his comments in the city's newsletter http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2011/04/thank-you-mr-mayor.html

I also jokingly told him in the parking lot one night that I was thinking of suing him for plagiarism. The mayor basically brought out how important it is for the people of Shawnee to get involved with what happens in the city, especially with city government. Again, this is something I've been preaching about for quite some time.

It seems that when a "big" election rolls around (presidential especially, then gubernatorial) the folks in Shawnee show up to the polls in droves. Sometimes in a presidential election maybe as many as 80% of the registered voters.

But what happens in the local elections (mayor, city council)? We are lucky to see 10% of the registered voters show up.

Well folks let me explain something to the feeble minded: It is the council that is responsible for street repairs, sales taxes, mill levies, snow removal, police protection, fire protection, emergency services, maintenance of parks, swimming pools ad infinitum. Neither the occupant of the White House or the Governor's mansion has as much of an effect on your daily lives. Yet what do the feeble minded (educated idiots) of Shawnee do? They sit home and don't show up to vote.

The worst part of it is that here in Johnson County we have an elections department that goes out of its way to provide easy access to voting. There is the basic in person at the polls on election day. Then there is advance voting at the election office and various remote locations. There is also advanced mail voting (and you don't have to be stuck at home ill to take advantage of that).

So now why do I refer to (and insult) the folks in Shawnee? That's easy. Shawnee has a very high percentage of college educated folks living in the city. But they allow less than 10% of the registered voters to control what happens in the city. Actually less than 5%.............because if less than 10% show up in a ward, then approximately 1/2 of that amount will determine the winner.............and if it's a close race, maybe in reality only 50 people or so will determine the winner. That is disgusting.

Next April four council positions and the mayor's position will be up for election. There are two council members, who, if they choose to run again, need to be unseated. More on this later.

So, unless the educated idiots get off their collective posteriors and vote they should be prepared to accept whatever happens in the city.

More Watching

This past weekend was apparently a real hot one up at the Kansas Speedway with the race.

No long drawn out comments today.........................did we get any bleed off from the massive crowds?

Rumor has it that the two Shawnee motels were booked (217 rooms I believe) and that the restaurants at Midland Dr and I-435 did a nice business.

But, that's chicken feed compared to what we could have if we had destination development along that I-435 corridor. Even that 3d motel that was approved years ago would be nice.

Alas, as the Speedway, Village West etc have been growing for 10 years our I-435 corridor has remained void of any major attractions.

Viva Las Vegas

It’s that time of the year again. The Global Retail Real Estate Convention is being held by the International Council of Shopping Centers in little old Las Vegas.

So, who is going to represent Shawnee? Well, we can start with Andrew Nave, Executive Director of the Shawnee Economic Development Council. Then there is Doug Wesselschmidt, Development Director for the City of Shawnee. Now in my opinion, that’s where we need to stop.

But nope, two more individuals are going: City Manager Carol Gonzales and Ward III Councilmember Dawn Kuhn. Last year three local businessmen also went to represent their own interests. Not sure if any are going this year.

Will this trip prove beneficial for Shawnee? Who knows? It is my understanding that as a result of last year’s trip we got the new Burger King coming to town. Maybe this time we will get a Hardee’s.

Question: When will we, after all these years, get something to draw some bleed off from the Village West complex?

Oh, is Dawn Kuhn planning on staying a couple of extra days after the convention in Vegas like she did last year? Must be nice.

All We Cand Do is Watch Part II

Well if you scroll down a little you will see the original post on this topic.

Now we know that the Willi Nelson FarmAid 2011 concert is coming to town. And guess where this one is going to be? At the new soccer stadium in Village West? (Side note: Soccer games are starting soon)

Will Shawnee get any bleed off from that? Do we have anything to attract those folks down the I-435 corridor?

Those guided tours of the largest landfill in the midwest are getting to sound pretty good.

Refunds & Credits

As previously noted on this blog, funds were advanced for both airfare and meeting registration fees for Councilmember Vaught for a NLC convention which he subsequently did not attend.

Inquiries to the city manager have resulted in the following information being received:

The airfare is available for Mr. Vaught to use within a year. NLC has refunded the registration, all but a $70 change fee.

So the city got back a majority of the money for the NLC registration fee. Good.

What about the airfare?

IMHO, here are the options:

1. Use the airfare in the future, which would also mean spending additional funds for registration, hotel, meals etc.

2. Same as one above, but make sure we keep the number of participants to no more than 2 and that Mr. Vaught is one of the two.

3. Suffer the loss of the airfare without paying for any additional travel related expenses.

I still think these meetings can be beneficial. Just don't feel that we need to send a whole bunch of folks. Would recommend number 2 above.

All We Can Do is Watch

Look what is going to be happening at the Kansas Speedway this summer!!

http://www.kansascity.com/2011/04/25/2826540/kanrocksas-music-festival-in-kck.html

Read the article above. See what all the talk is about. A two day music festival, at the speedway, drawing upwards of 100,000 people, each day.

We sit right down the road from there. And what kind of bleed off are we going to get from there? What do we have along the I-435 corridor that would draw a large number of those folks to spend money in Shawnee? While Village West continues to grow what has Shawnee done to attract any strong development along that corridor? We spent money for a study. Whoopeeee!!!

I know. We could send tour buses up to Village West and offer folks a tour of the largest landfill in the midwest. Then, after that, Dawn Kuhn could take them on a side tour to see where the new Burger King is going in.

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire

Last Tuesday, 4/19/11 the council's Public Works and Safety Committee had its monthly meeting.

One of the items on the agenda concerned the policy about mowing rights of way. In some cases it is the home owner's responsibility, in other case the city's. Basically it appears that the committee was trying to make the policy uniform in nature with specific guidelines.

The above is a subject that cannot be gone into in just a few paragraphs here, and yes, I do have my thoughts on this subject. Especially with regards to some specific areas that were mentioned.

What bothered me was the committee chairperson, Dawn Kuhn just flat out lying to a member of the public over what some may consider an inconsequential matter.

An elderly gentleman got up and complained about his hearing aids being broken and that he could not hear what was being said even with the PA system that we have.

Ms. Kuhn's response to this was:

"These are not PA system microphones. They are purely recording microphones, for our minutes and our, uh, for the record of the meeting so it doesn't matter how loud we speak into them or how closely we are they will not amplify our voices."

If they aren't connected to the PA system why did the assistant city manager head to the room where the equipment is stored when this was going on? If they aren’t connected to the PA system, then how come every time I get up to speak, I tap the mike to make sure it's on and you can hear the thump?

Other examples that they are connected to the PA system:

When the council chambers are filled to capacity the proceedings can be piped into the lobby and also into the council's conference room.

My point here is that if Ms. Kuhn, a seven year veteran of the council, having served 2 years as council president and currently is the chairperson of this committee would lie to a resident about something as picayune as this, what else would she lie about?

A cup of coffee says Kuhn will try and do some kind of Tijuana Two Step on this. Oh, her quote above is not from my memory, but from a CD of the meeting.

Good starts with being honest with residents, especially senior citizens.

The Numbers Are In

Well, the numbers are in.

The four individuals who went to the National League of Cities spent a total of $8,563.03. This does not include the little over $700 that was paid in advance for Councilmember Jaff Vaught who did not go.

I'll have to check with the city manger on that. In the last email I received from her on that subject she said "The City has requests in to the airline and to NLC to have the amounts credited. Review processes are underway for each."

Anyway the four people who went were: Mayor Meyers, Councilmembers Neighbor and Sandifer, and City Manager Gonzales. In my opinion that was two more people than was needed, especially in these tight fiscal times. As predicted in a post of mine prior to the trip, Mickey Sandifer spent the most money and stayed the most number of days in DC. He personally was responsible for $3,034.55 of the total amount spent.

Also, as mentioned in a post prior to the trip, our delegation stayed at the primary convention hotel. Sandifer was 5 nights , the other three were 3 nights each.

A more detailed breakdown is shown below: (You can click on the image for a larger view)

As a reminder, in a post on 2/6/11 I indicated which cities were planning on sending folks to this conference. Shawnee, Olathe and Prairie Village all planned on 5. Mission planned on 4 and Roeland Park was looking at 1. The following cities were not planning on sending anybody Lenexa, Merriam, Overland Park, Leawood, Topeka and the UG of Wy Co and KCK.

Thank You Mr. Mayor

In the Spring/Summer 2011 City Line newsletter (available here: http://gsh.cityofshawnee.org/pdf/events/CityLine/CityLine_Spring_11.pdf )
Mayor Jeff Meyers makes various comments about folks getting involved in city government. Among these comments are:

"It is my desire that every citizen and every business feel a part of Shawnee and its City government. Many people don't think about it, but there is no form of government that is closer to you and has more impact on your daily life than your City government."


"The impact of your City government on your everyday life is tremendous."

"It is because that impact is so significant that your engagement is so important."

These comments seem to echo many comments I've made over an extended period of time. The difference being the mayor says it so eloquently and diplomatically, where I've said that the citizens of Shawnee are disgustingly apathetic. Especially when it comes to what happens in their city. Their participation in city elections stinks. Their participation in representative government stinks. The facts confirm that.