Planning Commission Debacle Continues

 Let's continue the discussion from my last post, just prior to this one.  The comments made by certain planning commissioners, were, IMHO totally out of line.

Let's look at what that fine body did with the proposed apartment complex at 5700 King Street.  They were willing to go along with a five (5) story unit that contained 189 apartments.  Now, here's the kicker, they gave a variance for 68% of the units.  Huh???  Seems that Shawnee has a requirement that a residential unit have a minimum of 800 sq ft.  Well, 129 of the 189 units were well under that.............some were in the mid 600s and some were even as small as 460 sq ft.  Wanna know what 460 sq ft looks like?  Go outside and look at a striped parking lot.  Depending on the striping you will be looking at 2, maybe 2-1/2 spots.  Teeny tiny huh?  Naturally those are studio apartment units, but still, when you take away kitchen areas, bath areas, washer/dryer set ups etc etc not much walking around room.

Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the commission also go along with the concept that any excess vehicles could park at city lots.  Always thought that overnight parking was not permitted at city lots.

Anyway, methinks the three commissioners who did not (so far) follow Braley out the door might want to consider doing the same.

Willoughby was, IMHO the most egregious for a variety of reasons. He made the comment during the open meeting that citizens should rise up and vote out the council members who voted against the project.  Let's take  a trip down memory lane.  Let's see if "Uncle" Alan remembers.  He was appointed to fill the vacancy of a council member who had resigned.  The way his nephew by marriage (former Mayor Jeff Meyers) had orchestrated the appointment process resulted in a KOMA investigation by the JoCo DA.  That resulted in a scathing letter of rebuke by the DA.  Subsequently, when Uncle Alan ran for an actual full term he was soundly defeated.  No wonder.  His performance as a member of the council was, politely speaking, lackluster.  

Some folks have asked me my thoughts about what can be done at that location.  Personally, I feel that an apartment set up could be beneficial and blend in, if done properly. If it was kept at 2 or a maximum of 3 stories.  Actually, what about a "village" of duplexes, triplexes and even fourplexes.  Or, maybe designed like that but two stories.  If the designs were right, they could conceivably blend in with the rest of the neighborhood and also add to the downtown area with additional people residing there.  But a five story monstrosity.............no way.

Planning Commissioners Who Overstep

 

At this past Planning Commission meeting it appears that four members of the Shawnee Planning Commission overstepped their position.

First, let's make one thing clear.  Planning Commission members have volunteered for the position, and that is to be commended.  At the same time, they are not accountable to anybody.

At this last meeting, four of them seem to have gone over the line.  It had to do with the fact that the  City Council (who is accountable to the citizens of the city) voted down the rezoning action for the proposed apartment unit at 5700 King Street.

At the end of the meeting, while still in session these four saw fit to complain about the action of the City Council.  It is NOT their position to take sides on these issues.  They cannot be champions for either the developers or the residents.  That is beyond the scope of their function.  Freedom of speech?  Yes, when the individual is not sitting in a session.  Taking sides while sitting in a session is abhorrent.

So, what happened?  Commissioner Les Smith (5 years) started the ball rolling with attacks of the council. Randy Braley who has been on the Planning Commission for six years announced his resignation because he disagreed with the council's actions.  He has been on the Commission since 6/2014.  Good riddance.

Commission chair Dennis Busby made some scathing comments about the city council.  He has been on the Commission since 8/2007.  That is 13 years.  Too long. Methinks he should follow Braley out the door and not let the door hit him in the rear.

Next up.....Alan (Former Mayor Jeff Meyers' Uncle by Marriage) Willoughby.  He was advocating, from his position on the Commission, that residents in the wards of the council persons who voted against the item should rise up and vote them out.  That is a personal view, and if he wants to state that away from a Commission meeting that is fine.  But to make that statement while the Commission is in session is a breach of protocol.  He too should follow Braley out the door.  His service on the commission has been split over the years, but amounts to approximately 10 years.

Again, it is not the Planning Commission's responsibility to advocate for either side in a matter that has come before them.  These four  have tarnished their positions.

 

It Gets Worse - More Revelations About the Trash Container Situation

 In my first post about this situation I mentioned the agreement that the city entered into with the sub contractor for Waste Management.  As a point of reference you can view it by clicking here.

There is something very important missing in the agreement.  There is no way for the city to opt out, even in an emergency or for cause.  Usually agreements like this have such a clause, especially to opt out "for cause".

Who drafted this?  Was it the assistant city manager who notified a member of the council that she had authorized this action?  Was it the city attorney?

Here is my problem.  We all make mistakes.  Nobody is perfect.  But for some reason we have some folks who say that our staff (especially senior members) are world class.  We have a very good city staff.  And most of the time they function very well.  The problem is, and it starts at the top (City Manager Nolan Sunderman), there is a culture of an unwillingness to admit to mistakes.  It is for this reason that I have not asked him directly about this trash container debacle.  Previous experience has shown that he tap dances around questions, seldom provides direct answers, and refuses to acknowledge mistakes.

The lack of an opt out clause in the agreement is, IMHO, one such mistake.  Actually, the entire situation is one big mistake.  If Sunderman does not take full responsibility for this debacle, then IMHO he needs to go.  The sign of a true leader is to take responsibility, especially when things go wrong.  He is not a leader.

Part 2 - Shawnee is the New Storage Facility For Waste Management

 This is getting worse each and every day.  See my original post of 11/10/20 below'

Here is what we know:

1.  A sub contractor for Waste Management is storing tens of thousands of trash containers on the north side of both Splash Cove and Shawnee Town 1929 adjacent to the visitor center.

2.  The same sub contractor will be bringing in used, unsanitary containers to store at these locations.  These can spread infections, diseases and attract various vermin and animals (and not all domesticated either-----think coyotes, raccoons and foxes)

3.  This action involves swapping containers with Waste Management customers and not just Shawnee customers.

4.  The agreement with the sub contractor was signed by the Assistant City Manager.  Who authorized it?  IMHO, whoever it was should be terminated, post haste.

5.  Why?  Waste Management has hundreds of acres out by their landfill.

6. How was some of this information gathered?  Not from the city.  Staff ignores inquiries from citizens.  So, a member of the community had a nice conversation with the persons representing the sub contractor.

7.  Please, just see two of many emails below:

11/12/20 Thursday

I told you earlier about seeing the TV4 truck at Splash Cove this morning and the two obvious delivery trucks.

I did not get to see 7 am news for WDAF but do intend to watch the noon edition to see if anything.

But I then decided to go back and see if anyone around and ask where they might be delivering those on the two trailers.

Wow, glad I did.   There were two guys in a pickup with Rehrig name on it. (The mfgr of the containers.)  The one guy got out and talked with me for about 15 minutes. He and his  bro own a company who contracts with WM to do this all over U. S. Said he had no knowledge of what is involved with City and Rehrig but he filled me in on details which I can guarantee you most folks, including our city council members and perhaps even the mayor are not aware of. Not sure I can recall all he told me but will tell you enough to make your blood boil and want some damned heads to roll from our "world class city staff".

Here are some highlights.

1. He and his assistant were awaiting arrival this morning of FOUR more 53' trailers of the WM bins!!!

2. He pointed out what is now the beginning of a second area of USED WM containers.---he also expressed frustration with mgmt of WM as they have not instructed him WHERE or  WHAT is to be done with these unsanitized containers!!!

3. He did say these are definitely NOT going to only Shawnee, but to several surrounding cities having contracts with WM.

4. Now here is the part you will find amazing.  A few years ago you might remember WM offered smaller size containers.  The largest one has always been what they refer to as a 96gallon.   I think he said next is 60 and smallest is 18.  According to my understanding these NEW containers are going to be delivered to all WM customers, REGARDLESS OF WHAT THEY CURRENTLY HAVE.   Customers will have no choice!! The plan is to send by some method a notice after  TG I believe, but not sure of date, explaining to customer.  They will attempt to deliver the NEW ones the day after the customer's current pickup date. Can you imagine that nightmare?  He SAYS he and his bro own the company contracting with Rehrig and have done several of these "switchouts" over the past 10 years.  He never did explain the WHY of such action.

4. He did admit there will be many instance where the customer will end up with double qty/styles as they do not coordinate the delivery/pickup.  The info letter mentioned above  is supposed to explain that he stated.

I know there were other thing he covered but these are highlights I remember.  This thing I guarantee you is headed to be a much bigger fiasco and quite frankly I would guess strongly that Caitlin nor her illustrous leader Nolan, neither one know the real plan that is being implemented.

And think about it---those dirty, unsanitized used containers---how long will they sit at Splash Cove?  Good thing cool weather is with us.   NEW ones piled all over with more to come---WHILE old used ones are brought to same storage area to be held for who knows what.

Folks, this is a true "hidden agenda" I feel and no one at City Hall truly knows the workings!!!

11/13/20 Friday

I just came by SC on my way to Cap Fed. Those two white pickups with the hauler trailers were there (7 a.m.) loading up for another day of distribution I guess.  And looked like more used containers had been added to the storage also.

Veteran's Day - 2020 - A Sad Day This Year

 This is probably the saddest Veteran's Day that I can ever remember.  Some miscreants found it necessary to deface the WWI Memorial in KCMO.  They spray painted " No to elections" and "Yes to revolution" along with the communist hammer and sickle.  Would you like to see what it looked like?  Then all you have to do is click this link.

The anarchists are looking to turn this country into a communistic/socialistic nation.  Just see some of the statements coming from the Democrats about black balling Trump officials and efforts to reeducate  Trump supporters.  Typical communistic/socialistic moves.  Adhere to the party line or you are in deep trouble.  Funny thing is that many Democrats that supported some of these socialists would also in the end (if a takeover were to happen) would also be swallowed up.  Kinda like some animals that eat their young.  

Freedom of speech is great.  Vandalism, destruction of property, arson, murder, looting is not.

Something I published here from an internet source many years ago.  If you don't want to read the whole thing, then at least scroll down to the last highlighted paragraph.

WHAT IS A VET? 

Some veterans bear visible signs of their service: a

missing limb, a jagged scar, a certain look in the eye. Others may carry the

evidence inside them: a pin holding a bone together, a piece of shrapnel in the

leg - or perhaps another sort of inner steel: the soul's ally forged in the

refinery of adversity. Except in parades, however, the men and women who have

kept America safe wear no badge or emblem. You can't tell a vet just by

looking. What is a vet? He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in Saudi

Arabia sweating two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers

didn't run out of fuel. He is the barroom loudmouth, dumber than five wooden

planks, whose overgrown frat boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the

cosmic scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 38th parallel. She -

or he - is the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep sobbing

every night for two solid years in Da Nang. He is the POW who went away one

person and came back another - or didn't come back AT ALL. He is the Quantico

drill instructor who has never seen combat, but has saved countless lives by

turning slouchy, no-account rednecks and gang members into Marines, and

teaching them to watch each other's backs. He is the parade-riding Legionnaire

who pins on his ribbons and medals with a prosthetic hand. He is the career

quartermaster who watches the ribbons and medals pass him by. He is the three

anonymous heroes in The Tomb Of The Unknowns, whose presence at the Arlington

National Cemetery must forever preserve the memory of all the anonymous heroes

whose valor dies unrecognized with them on the battlefield or in the ocean's

sunless deep. He is the old guy bagging groceries at the supermarket - palsied

now and aggravatingly slow - who helped liberate a Nazi death camp and who

wishes all day long that his wife were still alive to hold him when the

nightmares come. He is an ordinary and yet an extraordinary human being - a

person who offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his

country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to sacrifice

theirs. He is a soldier and a savior and a sword against the darkness, and he

is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the finest,

greatest nation ever known. So remember, each time you see someone who has

served our country, just lean over and say Thank You. That's all most people

need, and in most cases it will mean more than any medals they could have been

awarded or were awarded. Two little words that mean a lot, THANK

YOU!

It is the soldier, not the reporter, Who has given us freedom

of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, Who has given us freedom of

speech. It is the soldier, not the preacher, Who has given us freedom of religion, It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, Who has given us the

freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier, Who salutes the flag, Who serves

beneath the flag, And whose coffin is draped by the flag, Who allows the 

protester to burn the flag.

Shawnee is the New Storage Facility For Waste Management

Actually that should be Rehrig Pacific Company, a sub-contractor for Waste Management.  In a nutshell, the parking lot of Splash Cove has become a storage facility for thousands of trash containers.

There has been much back and forth between city staff and various members of the community with staff NOT being totally forthcoming.  

Wanna see pictures of this mess?  Click here - you might have to scroll down And if you want to see the written agreement you can do that by clicking here.

The city entered into an agreement with Rehrig for the storage of these items.  It would appear that the city is not being compensated for this.  Why is the city the storage facility?  Info from city staff indicates that the city was asked to help store the items which were going to Shawnee citizens.  But, certain questions have yet to be answered, and as is typical for certain members of city staff it is like pulling teeth to get specific answers. 

Here are the questions that various citizens want answered:

1.  Who approved this arrangement?

2.  Why isn't Shawnee being compensated?

3.  What assurance does the city have that all of the containers will be distributed to Shawnee residents?

4.  Produce a copy of the distribution list for these containers.

This is an outrage.  Unfortunately, previous experience has shown that senior city staff (City Manager Nolan Sunderman) will attempt to tap dance around this

Democrats' Hypocrisy Rears Its Ugly Head - Again

 Well, the Presidential election is for all practical purposes over.  It would appear that Joe Biden is the President-elect and I seriously doubt that any lawsuits filed will change that.  In all probability there will be some instances of irregularities proven, but not enough to change the outcome.

So, why do I say that the Democrats' hypocrisy rears its ugly head-again?  Actually the answer to that is very obvious. 

First, let's make one thing clear.  Joe Biden did not get a mandate.  The vote totals for President were not a "wipe out".  Democrats apparently retained control of the US House of Representatives, but with less members.  Instead of the predicted "blue wave", they have lost seats.  Maybe it's time for them to wake up and not reaffirm Nancy (the wicked witch of the west) Pelosi as Speaker.  The Senate results are still very much in limbo.

OK, now for the hypocrisy.  Biden is calling for unity.  Where was the unity when Trump won in 2016.  It was non-existent.  Hillary Clinton has spent the past four years spewing venom.  The House of 
Representatives wasted years and millions of dollars trying to play "gotcha".  This is all very well said by Jason Chaffetz in this opinion piece.  Methinks turn around is fair play.  What's good for the goose is good for the gander.  First, continuing investigations need to be conducted into the financial machinations of Hunter Biden and to finally pinpoint the involvement of his father.  

Some folks may not remember what happened when Stacey Abrams lost her bid for governor of Georgia in 2018. How the liberal press fawned over and supported her legal challenges to the results.  That is the same liberal press that is now attempting to excoriate Trump for his legal challenges.  Need a reminder? Click here.

Some predictions from yours truly:

1.  Our NATO allies, who under Trump finally ponied up hundreds of billions of dollars in owed contributions will revert back to their old ways of holding back.  

2.  The recently negotiated accords between Israel and some of its Arab neighbors will come to a halt.  Biden does not have the necessary skills to move forward to bring others into the realm of these accords.

3.  Biden will resign after serving at least two years and one day of his term.  The reason for that time frame is based on the terms of the 22nd Amendment to our Constitution. The reason for the resignation will be medical, probably a diagnosis of early onset of dementia.  The time frame that was just mentioned would theoretically allow Kamala Harris to run and be elected to two terms of her own.  Any resignation prior to the time specified would limit her to just one run.

4.  When the unemployment numbers for minority citizens rise and they experience a widening of the pay gap, folks will realize that Trump was not the racist that he was portrayed to be by the Dems.  Under Trump, minority unemployment was at an all time low.  The pay gap was narrowing (still needed more work), and thousands of Opportunity Zones were being created to bring jobs, home ownership and positive commerce in low income neighborhoods.

5.  Various groups of anarchists will continue their actions of rioting, burning buildings, looting, assassination of law enforcement, and physical attacks of those not aligned with them.  Biden, aided by local Dems will continue to refer to these folks as peaceful protesters.  And, they will be aided by the Communist News Network and the Most Stupid Network Broadcasting Company.  Eventually they will destroy our country.  That's right folks.  Unlike Trump who understood a strong law and order position Biden/Harris will cave.  The Republicans were not out to destroy our country.  It has been the Democrats with their left leaning (and leaning even more) that will destroy our country as we know it. Their cradle to grave philosophy of government controlling its citizenry will change our country for the worst.  The only way out will be for a strong Republican surge in the Congressional elections of 2022.  Will we survive until then?

Friend's Sister-in-Law Needs Help

 I recently received an email from a very dear friend here in Shawnee.  Rather than attempt to explain it myself I will copy|paste his email below, complete with the Go Fund Me link.

Please consider a donation.  Thank you.

Hello, Barb and I are fine. However, here sister in Galena IL, had a serious fall in her home last Friday. The details are a on the link to a GoFundMe page created by her family and a friend.

We are asking if you have a Facebook account, please post the link. Also, please forward this message to anyone willing to help out a pet lover.  Barb's sister loves pets and has been earning extra money as a pet sitter for residents in her small community of Galena. She will not be able to do this pet sitting in the near future as she will have braces on her back and neck. She will have these braces for at least three months.

The link to the GoFundMe story:

http://gf.me/u/y52fq6