More on Council Travel

At the 8/9/10 council meeting I actually suggested what I had written about here. That the council publish on the city's web site their projected travel plans.

One of the primary reasons for this was that in February of 2009 the council voted to have their travel plans announced at a meeting. Well, they did not appear to be doing that, since the only way we found out ahead of time who was going to the National League of Cities March 2010 conference was because I asked a few weeks ahead of time.

Council member Sandifer said he thought it had been announced at a committee meeting, and the city manager indicated that she thought so too. Well, I checked and did not find it in the minutes. Actually emailed them to tell them that, and also to let me know if I was blind and missed it in the minutes of the meetings to let me know. Would you believe? They did not respond. Guess good doesn't start with responding to citizen emails.

Anyway, there did not seem to be much enthusiasm among the council members to have their travel plans announced ahead of time on the web site. But, having been reminded about their adopted motion of Feb 2009 four council members did announce that they were planning on going to the November 2010 conference in Denver. These were council members Neighbor, Sawyer, Vaught and Sandifer. That information was also published in the 8/11/10 issue of the Shawnee Dispatch in their synopsis of the council meeting. I thought I had heard the mayor also say that he was planning, but heard nothing from the city manager (she is not covered by that previous motion).

So, now we have upwards of 6 folks going to that conference (if the mayor and the city manager do go). These conferences can be very beneficial for Shawnee. The only question is, how many folks need to attend in these tough economic times?

My personal opinion is that the Mayor (as CEO) and the city manager (as COO) of the city should attend. As for council members, with the tight budget, my recommendation would be no more than two. Now, for this meeting coming up we have a unique situation. Mr Sawyer did not go to the previous one in Wash DC in March, but had planned on it. As such the registration fee (non-refundable) was paid. The NLC has advised the city that they will allow that to be used for the November meeting. Great............the city doesn't lose it.........so that means that Mr Sawyer would be one of the attendees under my scenario.

Now, what about the other one (with three still planning). Well, Mickey "Travelin' Man" Sandifer could sit this one out. Heck, to paraphrase Will Rogers, I don't think he ever found a trip he didn't want to take. Now that leaves two rookies, Neighbor and Vaught. A coin toss between them could decide that one. Then we'd be down to only two council members going, and possibly the mayor and city manager (and those two usually don't attend these things for the full schedule).

Now, doesn't that make more sense in these strained economic times?

Sidebar: Remember my previous post about Jeff "The Timekeeper" Vaught? (Scroll down to "Budget & Egg Timers"). Well, at the 8/9/10 council meeting a contractor who lost a bid got up and spoke (according to my watch) for 12 minutes. Don't remember our self appointed timekeeper saying anything about that. LOL Guess he is selective as to who he wants to time. :-) :-)

Budget Comments

Some peodple have asked me what it was that I said Monday night when addressing those three budget items.

So here goes. Oh, for the record, I have not timed it to see how long it will take to read. :-) :-)

1. Wonderscope: This is easy. They get a $10k subsidy from the city. Their financials would indicate they don't need it. The money comes from a tourism tax, and could be used for Old Shawnee Town. duhhhhhhhhh

2. School Crossing Guards: For this commentary I will use rounded off numbers. The city does not have to pay for them, but has been doing so for many years. The budgeted amount for 2010 was approximately $130K. Because of reduced traffic volume in certain locations, that amount is being changed to $90K for 2011 as some locations no longer qualify for a guard. The school district was approached with some options (mostly volunteers and/or the AAA program) and they shot it down. It's time that the district took over this item. My suggestion was for the amount for 2011 to be cut to $45K. The guards would be paid for by the city until 12/31/10 under the 2010 budget and until 6/30/11 under my proposal. This then gives the district almost a year to formulate a plan (volunteer, paid or a combination), to taking over their just responsibility beginning the fall of 2011. After that, there would be no city funding of this item.

3. Council Travel: This is an area that needs to be looked at closer.

From 3/2009 to 3/2010 Mickey Sandifer took 3 trips at a cost in excess of $7K. At the NLC conference in DC 3/10 he stayed the longest and spent the most of any member of the city delegation (which had four people). My comment/question was could we have done just as well with only the city manager and the mayor(who were there for two days)? And couldn't councilmembers Sandifer & Kuhn have stayed home?. These two cost the city over $5.5K for their participation.

A recent trip to Vegas has already been covered in a previous blog post (scroll down).

There are two more NLC events coming up. One is in September in Philadelphia and the other begins Nov 30 in Denver. I asked who on the council was planning on attending. Only one council member raised their hand, for the Denver trip. If any others are planning why didn't they raise their hands? Hiding it folks? It will now be interesting to see who else goes, and tried to ignore the question.

Here's something that I didn't bring up at the meeting: Going forward, I think it would be a good idea for the city to post on its website any projected/planned travel for members of the governing body (mayor and council). The info would include who is going, where, when, projected costs (per person), reason and perceived benefits to the city. The city could create a "Governing Body Travel Calendar" page. Let the public know ahead of time (45-60days) where they are planning to go to represent the city and for what reason.

If you would like to email the mayor or any member of the city council regarding the above, their email addresses can be found at http://www.cityofshawnee.org/WEB/ShawneeCMS.nsf/vwContent/GoverningBody?OpenDocument

And, if you want, include me as a cc recipient: shawneeray@gmail.com

Budget and Egg Timers

Well, very few members of the community attended the budget meeting.

And yes, yours truly got up to speak on 3 items. The city’s contributions to Wonderscope, the payment for the school crossing guard program and council travel expenditures.

Here’s the funny part. When I was finished, rather than commenting on any of the pertinent information that was brought up, Jeff Vaught, the self appointed time keeper for the council was critical of the fact that I spoke for eleven minutes. He said citizens are only supposed to speak for three and he wants to see that enforced. The mayor did say (and I do thank you Mr. Mayor) that I did announce that I had three items to address.

Anyway here’s the kicker. In his rush to criticize the time spent (as opposed to addressing the issues) Mr. Vaught showed a lack of knowledge of city policy. The policy is 5 minutes, not three.

Maybe I should have sat down after each item, and then got back up.

Oh, where did I come up with the five minutes not three? From the city’s own website at

http://www.cityofshawnee.org/WEB/ShawneeCMS.nsf/b62f116aa62dde94862575680053ac82/034841e84c8d782086257585005bce15?OpenDocument

This is where it says: Please keep your comments brief. Comments should be tailored so as not to exceed five (5) minutes.

The brochure for this does not actually specify any particular time limit. It can be viewed at:
http://www.cityofshawnee.org/WEB/brochures.nsf/vwNews/81897B60DE6386C2862577200066EF4D/$FILE/PublicComment_09.pdf


Definitely would like to see if Mr. Vaught starts timing other folks………especially those that get up and speak in favor of items he supports.

City Budget Hearing

Tomorrow, Monday, 7/26/10 the city council will hold a public hearing on the 2011 budget.

A public hearing is exactly what it means. A time for the public to comment on the item.

This is when Shawnee citizens have the opportunity to let the council know which parts of the budget they agree with, and which parts they may disagree with.

The council meeting starts at 7:30PM at city hall, 11110 Johnson Drive.

Vegas, Oh Vegas........

My letter below appeared in today's edition of the Shawnee Dispatch http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2010/jul/21/vegas-contingent/

In a letter to the editor (July 14) Mr. Vincent attempts to justify the trip to the Las Vegas shopping center convention by Council member Dawn Kuhn.

Was he aware that four people — Jim Martin, Shawnee Economic Development Council executive director, Doug Wesselschmidt, Shawnee Development Services director, Carol Gonzales, Shawnee City manager, and Kuhn — officially represented the city?

Additionally, three local businessmen/developers “….were there representing their companies’ interest and also helping Shawnee where appropriate.” (per Mr. Martin).

Granted, Ms. Gonzales returned early because of the unfortunate and unforeseen situation that occurred within our fire department.

So now my questions are: Did we really need such a large contingent? Could we have done just as well with just Messrs. Martin and Wesselschmidt? And then maybe, only if necessary, either Ms. Gonzales or Ms. Kuhn, but not both? The other three were there on their own.

Also, a review of documents obtained under an open records request indicates that Ms. Kuhn’s return flight was scheduled for two days after the convention ended. A little vacation added on to a business trip?

Maybe we can combine two advertising slogans: Good starts with what happens in Vegas staying in Vegas.

**********

Mr Vincent's letter of 7/14/10 can be seen here http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2010/jul/14/letter-shopping-center-expert/

He in turn had referenced Mr Straub's letter, which can be read here http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2010/jul/07/letter-budget-matters/

How Apathetic Will You Be?

Yepper, will Shawnee residents once again show that they don't care about their vote? How many will not vote in the August 3d primary?

The shameful thing is that the JoCo election office has made it sooooooo easy to vote.

In person: 4 locations from 7/20 - 7/31

Advance voting by mail: Just fax in the application and they'll mail a ballot to you

On election day itself.

Just go to http://www.jocoelection.org for complete info

Tiahrt vs Moran

A few days ago I received my advance mail ballot. One of the many options available for voting in the Aug 3 primary election.

The Republican party has 4 individuals running to win the nomination to run for US Senator:

Todd Tiahrt
Tom Little
Robert (Bob) Londerholm
Jerry Moran

Now, it does appear that Messrs Tiahrt & Moran are the two frontrunners. What I find amazing is that these two gentlemen are attacking each other with such venom that one wonders are they both republicans?

It would be nice if, instead of their heavy attacks on each other they spent their time, energy, and money, on emphasizing their positives (or perceived positives), by stating factually how they voted on certain key issues etc etc.

Ironically, after the primary, the loser will probably issue a statement that to preserve party unity he will now support the other individual.

What a bunch of nonsense................

Vaught Responds to my CID Posts

Jeff Vaught, Shawnee Council Member from Ward 3 had some email comments about my posts regarding the CID for 10 Quivira Plaza. It's only fair that I post his comments here, along with my response.

From: Jeff Vaught
To: Ray Erlichman
Sent: Tue 7/6/2010 4:55PM
Subject: RE: Sunday morning update - Sticking it to one part of the community

Ray,

I have a difficult time responding to your comments because you seem to be all over the board in your political philosophy. One of my main campaign points was increasing development and improving the development climate in Shawnee. For too long the attitude has been that Shawnee is not pro development so we tend to lose projects to other cities. This is mostly a holdover from the past when Shawnee aspired to be a “residential community” with little to no emphasis on commercial development. Nice concept, bad idea. Without commercial development and redevelopment, our residential mill levee’s will continue to rise until we are no longer able to compete with other cities for even housing. Residential development puts an extreme demand on city services, from public safety to public works. Shawnee desperately needs an increase in both sales tax revenues and commercial property tax revenues.

That being said, I am not automatically onboard with every incentive that is proposed. If you look back and read the minutes from that meeting, I voiced my concern for the 10 Quivira Plaza CID and said I was struggling with it. My goal as a Councilman is not to blow a developer out of the water at his first appearance in front of the council, but to see if we can come to a win-win agreement that we can get public buy-in on. If you truly want to be a voice for the public and not a bomb thrower, I suggest you listen a little closer and maybe even ask a few questions before you make automatic assumptions. I think it’s great that you care as much as you do, but feeding bad information to the public can be just as destructive as bad Government.

Sincerely,

Jeff Vaught
Shawnee City Council – Ward III

My reply:

From: Ray Erlichman
To: jvaught
Subject: RE: Sunday morning update - Sticking it to one part of the community
Sent: Tue 7/6/2010 6:37PM

Jeff,

In my opinion there should not have been a struggle on your part.

The fact that a certain segment of the community would be paying a higher sales tax for the benefit of a shopping center is wrong.

The fact is that if the collections of that sales tax exceeds the expenditures the city then gets to keep the difference to use as it sees fit. Contributed by one segment of the community.

The concept of the CIDs was to draw additional funds from tourist and/or transit dollars...........not from local community shopping venues.

If you are struggling with whether or not the citizens shopping in a local shopping center, where the primary merchant is a necessity merchant (groceries) should pay a higher sales tax, then sir, it is my belief that you are not concerned with the community. And again, it is one of the more moderate income areas of the city. There should be no struggle here.

A TIF was just approved for the I-435 corridor. That is where the commercial development needs to come in.

Ray

Sticking It To One Part of the Community

Reference is made to the post immediately below regarding the possibility of the CID being reconsidered for 10 Quivira Plaza.

One item that was brought up at the last public hearing about this was only given a cursory explanation.

Let's look at this item, again. In the article written by Mr Gough he states:

"After CID revenues pay all eligible project costs or CID bonds, the municipality can spend any remaining funds as though they were local sales tax receipts." (K.S.A. 2009 Supp. 12-6a34)

Now, I'm no lawyer but the above seems pretty simple. If the CID is approved, then it would seem that if there is any money left over the city can do whatever they want with it. Let's bring that down to earth.............if approved, the folks who go shopping in that center, besides paying a higher tax for things such as food, could be contributing more to the city itself. Is this why the council members of Ward 3 appeared to be favoring the CID at that time?

As mentioned above, this aspect was only glossed over at the last public hearing.

On the other hand, if a CID is formed where the majority of the business is transient and/or tourist, then the effect on members of the community could be minimal. This is described by Mr. Gough and mentioned in the post below. And again, that would be in line with the 3 current CID projects already on the books.

If the city wants to work with a developer for a CID then do it like the others.............where the money comes from transient and/or tourist dollrs.

Remember: Good starts with not sticking it to the members of the community.

Is That CID Rearing Its Ugly Head Again?

Is there a movement afoot to revisit the CID (Community Improvement District) for the 10 Quivira Plaza shopping Center (Shawnee Mission Parkway & Quivira)?

The original plan, which fortunately went nowhere, would have placed an additional 1% sales tax on the stores only in that shopping center. That additional tax money would go to the developer/owner for upgrades to the shopping center.

Today, the state sales tax was increased by 1%, which means that folks in Shawnee will now pay 8.775% on all retail purchases, including food. If the CID plan goes into effect, then folks who shop at that shopping center will pay 9.775%. Outrageous, especially when the major retailer in that center is a grocery store. Doubly outrageous when that shopping center is in one of the more modest income neighborhoods of the city.

Currently, there are 3 CIDs in the State of Kansas. One is in Maple Hill, sits on I-70 and is a truck stop. Another one is in Hays, sits on I-70 and is for a motel and restaurant. The third one is in Junction City, sits on I-70 and is like a mini regional shopping center with major retailers (like Sears).

The examples above fall in line with this statement: "If the project relies upon local business and if the CID sales tax would be unpopular in the community, a CID could negatively impact the project's business. On the other hand, retail businesses that derive a large portion of business from tourism and other transient clientele may not experience the same negative consequences from an additional sales tax."

The above statement was written by Matthew S. Gough, an attorney, who specializes in real estate financing transactions to include economic development financial incentives. The entire article that he wrote was published in both the Feb 2010 issue of The Journal of the Kansas Bar Association and The May 2010 issue of the Kansas government Journal.

If a CID, with its corresponding sales tax increase was to be placed on that shopping center it would be outrageous. How any member of the city council could even entertain that thought is, IMHO, beyond comprehension.

The citizens who would be most affected live in Wards 1, 2 & 4. I urge all, who agree that this is wrong, to contact your elected city council members and stay on them until this matter is put to rest. Side note: Ironically, when the original public hearing was held on this, the two council members who were most in favor of it were the two from Ward 3.

Flag or Advertising Banner

Monday night County Commission Chairperson Annabeth Surbaugh and Shawnee Mayor Jeff Meyers exchanged flags.

Ms Surbaugh in her remarks when discussing Shawnee's history even mentioned its first name, Gum Springs.

Anyway, when the flags were unfurled I was a little surprised. Instead of the flag that is part of the display behind the mayor at council meetings and on the pole outside of city hall, this humongous branding banner is what was shown. You know, the one that says "Good Starts Here". I might be wrong, but I always thought the city's flag was the one with the seal on it (the one with the sun's rays, the wagon, the oxen, the wheat shaft etc).

Being modern is good, ignoring heritage is terrible.

A reminder, "good starts with remembering your roots"

Litterbug

Last night the council passed a new ordinance with regards to litter.

Most of it made sense. Neal Sawyer brought up one valid point.............with a $500 maximum penalty there is no minimum penalty. The senior city prosecutor indicated that in some cases a person could get a $5 fine.

Sawyer thought the minimum fine should be a more substantial amount, like maybe $100, to get the point across. Methinks he is right.

Touchy, Touchy, Touchy

Last week I went on line to the Shawnee Dispatch to download the questionnaires that the individuals running for council answered, prior to the election. Figured that since we had 3 new members this time, that later, after about 6 months, it would be neat to look at their campaiogn comments and then compare those to what had actually happened.

Well, one item popped up regarding Jeff Vaught. As a matter of fact, I had seen it before the election, meant to ask about it, and actually forgot. Could not believe that such an innocuous item could raise such a fury. Follow the exchange of emails.

My first email to him:

From: Ray Erlichman
Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2010 11:30 AM
To: Jeff Vaught
Subject: Candidate questionnaire

Hi Jeff,

Was just doing a review of the candidate questionnaires from the Dispatch for an item I am looking at researching down the road, and then something else on your responses caught my eye.

I meant to ask you about it prior to the election and then spaced it out..............sooooooooooo...............I'll ask now: On the education section you stated "no comment". You were the only candidate who wouldn't state what their education level was. So, I'll ask it here.......what would be the answer to that question, and why didn't you wish to state it in the questionnaire?

Thank you

Ray

My second email to him:

From: Ray Erlichman
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2010 3:16 PM
To: Jeff VaughtSubject:
FW: Candidate questionnaire

Afternoon Jeff,

Below please find a copy of my email from 6/20/10. I'd like to think that you haven't as yet responded because of an oversight as opposed to a deliberate attempt to avoid a citizen inquiry.

Anyway, I did find it curious that you responded "no comment" to the question on education. Heck, not verybody has a PhD. I'm a high school drop out. But, your avoidance of a very basic question posed to candidates is intresting.

Looking forward to your reply, because, "good starts with timely responses to citizen inquiries"

Ray

His reply:

From: Jeff Vaught
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2010 5:57 PM
To: 'Ray Erlichman'Subject:
RE: Candidate questionnaire

Dear Mr. Erlichman,

On April 6th of 2010, I was successful is winning the general election for Shawnee City Council, Ward 3 with the following official results:

Jeff Vaught: 470

Dennis Kissinger: 409

Both of my opponents, Mr. Kissinger and Mr. Straub, touted their education. As we both know, the candidate you supported was eliminated in the primary election and, while I have the utmost respect for Mr. Kissinger’s accomplishments, I went on to defeat him in the general election. I find it ironic that not one of my constituents has ever questioned my education level yet you, a resident of ward 4, seem awfully concerned about it. Why?

Sincerely,

Jeff Vaught

Shawnee City Council – Ward 3


My reply to his email.

From: Ray Erlichman
Sent: Wed, 6/23/10 9:26PM
To: jvaught
Subject: RE: Candidate Questionnaire

Jeff,

Why? Simple................because you made it an item of curiosity by stating "no comment" My first email is a little more specific.

What ward I live in is immaterial. As an elected member of the city council, any citizen of Shawnee can ask you that question. Ward 3 residents vote for or against you. But when you are on the council you represent all citizens of the city. Very similar to the Congress of the United States. If I have a question for a Rep or Senator, regardless of where they are from, I can and will ask it. Just like any citizen of Shawnee has the right to voice their opinion to any member of the council, regardless of their ward. This would include, but not necessarily be limited to any opinions as to what actions they would like the council member to either approve or disapprove.

So, the choice is yours. You can either answer the question or you can refuse to answer it. We don't have to go back and forth with it. Just let me know which one.

Thank you

Ray

Guess that is a touchy subject. No reply as of last night. Guess he also doesn't realize that eventhough the voters of the 3d Ward elected him, that when he sits on the council he represents everybody and anybody can question him. Why is that such a touchy question?

As a side note: Why don't residents of Ward 3 question some things? See the post below about apathy. When it comes to local elections, Ward 3 is the most apathetic. Does that have anything to do with it?

Now he really has my cuiosity up. Touchy, touchy, touchy

Apathy In Shawnee

Believe there have been various posts about this in the past on this blog.

I decided to share some statistical information with those who do read it. It is amazing though how the elected body that has the greatest effect on our daily lives draws the absolute smallest response on election day. At a presidential election the turnout is pretty good...........but the president, congress etc does not have the effect on us daily that the city does. It's the city that sets property taxes, local sales taxes, provides public safety services, public infrastructure services etc etc................don't think I've ever seen a congressman, senator or president shoveling/plowing snow or laying asphalt, responding to a domestic violence situation, putting out a fire, or rushing a heart attack victim to the hospital.

Here are the figures:

April 2010 Council Election

Ward Registered Voted Percent

1 -----10,104---- 1,393 ----13.78%
2 ------8,668 ------808 -----9.32%
3----- 11,930 ------893 -----7.49%
4 ------9,160 ------807------8.81%



April 2008 Council & Mayor Election

1------ 9,792----- 1,786 -----18.24%
2------ 8,412 -----1,389----- 16.51%
3 -----11,030----- 1,260---- 11.42%
4------ 8,666----- 1,373----- 15.84%


November 2008 Presidential/Congressional Election

1------ 10,370----- 8,334---- 80.37%
2------- 8,939----- 6,689---- 74.83%
3------ 11,966----- 9,892---- 82.67%
4------- 9,516----- 7,351----- 77.25%



These figures are pretty interesting and in a way show how little the community really cares about how their city is run.

What is really a shame is that the county has made it so easy to vote. A voter does not have to show up on election day. They can vote early at designated locations, or they can even get a ballot by mail and not have to physically go to a polling location.

For info on advance voting please go here: http://www.jocoelection.org/voters/AdvanceVoting.htm

Another response, re: TIF

Now, this sounds good, especially the last part:

Mike, you are correct in every assumption. Without a tiff, this property will be sold for either a high density housing development or perhaps we’d rather see large (2-5 acre) plots with upper level homes. Either way, the highest and best use of the ground would be a high end development which welcomes consumers to Shawnee. It is truly large enough to attract a theme park or some other single user, such as Disney proposed some years ago for a music themed entertainment. More likely, the TIFF would allow a developer to give a beautiful, well planned mix of retail/entertainment, office, high end living spaces all similar to development around the race track at the Legends.

__________ _________________________­
Robert E. Hodgdon – Treasurer/Board Member
Hodgdon Powder Company, Inc.

A Response to what is a TIF?

Received the below response. Mike brings up some interesting, positive points.

ray,

this corner, when developed, will be our "gateway" development to more development westbound on shawnee mission parkway, all the way out to shawnee mission pkwy. and kansas hiway 7.

if you have ever been on the property ( i have ) you would notice that like the deffenbaugh rock mining + landfill operation, it is a huge pile of rock under that soil.
to make it "development ready", it will take millions of dollars of rock detonation, earth moving, and utility installation.

in short, it is a "big deal." despite the fact that the families involved have a net worth exceeding you + i, it is still a huge endeavor, and one that cannot be undertaken without a city / landowner / developer partnership. the other alternative is to leave it alone, zoned agricultural, which produces the lowest revenue stream possible, or the owners bequeath it to a charitable-trust estate arrangement, and tax revenue could go to zero.

from a personal standpoint, i would love to see a drury inn, mixed retail / condo development / restaurant / bar area, similar to a development that i am familiar with in west des moines, iowa, that has spurred further development along a similar corridor, and is now one the current "hot properties" in polk county, ia.

i understand your concern on t.i.f., and to be sure, all t.i.f.'s are not created equal. in this case, i believe that the "give to get" scenario of this property is in the best long term interest of shawnee and the school districts.

another key consideration is that when cerner corp. builds the development out by the nascar track, the need for affordable, condo-type housing in west shawnee plays right into this future potential area. some clerical worker and her husband working at cerner can afford a nice, new, $100,000.00 - $150,000.00 2 br. condo, in an area with restaurants / bars / retail, but cannot afford to buy my home at a $250,000.00 clip.

ray, i hope that you take my commentary at face value, as i have no financial dog in this hunt, just want to see first class future development out here in my neighborhood.

permission to post to your web site is granted.

respectfully,
michael t. egan.

What's in a TIF?

Last week, the city council approved a TIF (tax increment financing district) for an area (approximately 240 acres) in the vicinity of I-435, Johnson Drive and Shawnee Mission Parkway.

Basically, this was approved once before but the DeSoto USD 232 put a stop to it.

Now it has come up for reconsideation, and the city has reapproved it. It would appear that neither of the two school districts or any other taxing authority involved will object.

So, here is the $64, 000 question (remember that TV show?): What do the families that own this property intend to do with it?

At this stage, they do not have to say. Once plans are developed then their intentions will be known, as each project will need separate approval.

First and foremost, are they going to develop it themselves, or are they planning on selling it? A chunk of land that has been recently designated as TIF has got to be more valuable to a potential developer and could possibly show a nice profit for its current owners on resale. Heck, these three prominent Shawnee families didn't get that way by staying home and watching TV.

But, that is almost immaterial as they may choose to not sell the property but to develop it themselves. Either way, that again brings up the question: What will be done with it?

1. Will it be developed as housing subdivisions? Does Shawnee need more housing? Will Shawnee need more housing down the road?

2. Will it be some sort of mixed use like Zona Rosa on the Missouri side? Or what is being considered for the Metcalf corridor to replace Metcalf South?

3. Will it be office park? Warehousing? Light manufacturing?

4. Will it be destination shopping and entertainment (like Village West)?

5. Will it be mostly hospitality oriented (restaurant and hotels) to get some of the overflow from the events at Village West?

6. Will it be a combination of any or all of the above?

Time will tell.

Shawnee PD Adapting to Situation

Kudos to our Shawnee PD

There is apparently a relationship between vehicle crashes and other crimes. Our PD has analyzed this and is taking a proactive stance to work towards reducing both.

Please see the information in the Kansas City Star at:
http://www.kansascity.com/2010/06/10/2007467/shawnee-using-traffic-enforcement.html

Salute the Flag, Not Your Drink

I have sent the item below to the Shawnee Dispatch as a letter. Hopefully they'll publish it and more people will be aware of this:

This past Saturday was the annual Old Shawnee Days parade. As usual, a nice turn out and some really great participation by folks marching in the parade.

But something is bothering me. At the beginning of the parade, when the American Legion Color Guard stepped off, the lack of respect by those watching was abhorrent. Mike Thompson, announcing the event, asked all to rise. Standing across from the grandstand I did notice just about everybody stand. What I also noticed was that most were continuing their conversations and drinking their drinks. Less than a dozen folks in my field of vision actually paid proper respect by saluting the flag. Is it so difficult to shut up, stop drinking, and place your hand over your heart for approximately 60 seconds? Must be. And, while you are at it, teach and show your children respect for the flag?

Don't know what the reaction was along the rest of the parade route. Would venture a guess it was the same.

Those Who Serve, To Protect and Defend

Today is Memorial Day, and all across the country many words were being spoken to honor those who gave their all in defense of our country.

Last week, the City of Shawnee and many of her friends and neighbors turned out to render honors for Firefighter John Glaser.

These two events make me wonder about one thing? Why can't we honor these folks while they are still alive? True, there are certain periods of the year that are designated for this.......but why not on a daily as it happens basis?

Ever go grocery shopping and see a couple of firefighters there also? Buying food to cook on their watch. Would it be so terrible just to say thank you as you walk past them? Or give them a thumbs up? Or an "ok" sign? How many of those meals have been left on the table to spoil because just as they sat down the bells rang?

What about that police officer that you just saw walking back to his/her car? A thank you for his/her efforts to protect us would be nice. Ever get a speeding ticket? Or stopped for running a redlight or a stop sign? Maybe you need to thank that officer then too. He/she may just have saved your life, or even stopped you from injuring or killing someone else.

And last but not least our military members. Sure, we have Memorial Day, Veteran's Day and Armed Forces Day (honoring those who have passed on, those who have served and those who are serving). But what about what happens when you pass one of these folks in the store, on the street, at the airport etc?

A simple thank you, a thumbs up or an "ok" sign would probably mean alot.

These individuals do not "sign up" for these jobs for the glory. They do it because of a desire to serve their fellow man..............to protect us, to defend us.

Say something to them to show your appreciation, and admiration, while they can still hear it. It will mean alot to them.