Sunday, October 25, 2009

Broken Promise

by Greg Walters Regular readers will remember a story we ran last Spring about Frank Potter and his neighbors on 84th Street in Raytown. Their back yards and adjoining woods were the site of a sanitary sewer renovation project built by the city in their neighborhood. The result of the new sewer construction is most accurately described by the term “scorched earth”. Potter was told by representatives from City Hall that upon completion of the project the property would be returned to its original condition. Trees were cut down and ground into mulch which was then spread over the construction area. The work crews then took pulverized rock mined from under four lanes of Raytown Road and graded it over the mulch. What was once an idyllic wooded glen is now a wasteland of rock and mulch.Potter contacted the Department of Natural Resources and was told the city did not have a current Land Disturbance Permit for the project as required by state law. The DNR visited the site and informed city hall of the violation. Potter received phone calls from his Aldermen and Interim Public Works Director Jason Hanson promising to seed the area this fall. Fall has arrived. The city has done NOTHING. We visited with Mr. Potter over the weekend. He told us that he has given up on City Hall keeping its promise. He is extremely disappointed in his elected representatives, public works officials and in particular, Mayor Bower. There is a lesson learned from Mr. Potter’s experience for all Raytowners. When the city wants to use your property, you would be well advised to be compensated before the first shovel full of earth is turned. Otherwise you may end up as the Potters did on 84th Street. As for our elected officials . . . they need to remember their role as stewards of the city includes a responsibility to protect and ensure that abuse such as the Potters have experienced should not be tolerated in Raytown. Has Anyone Noticed? While driving by the construction at Raytown Road and Gregory Boulevard I had a feeling that something was wrong with the picture. So, I pulled over and studied the site. Then it occurred to me. The ugly utility poles and the spider nests of wires are still in place. Yet concrete sidewalks and curbs are near completion. Apparently the city does not intend to bury the lines as was originally discussed when plans were being drawn for the new intersection. Guess that’s part of the price you pay when you hand over $800,000.00 of the taxpayer’s money to pay off debt created by the new shopping district on 350 Highway. Walmart did not open in time to create tax revenue to satisfy interest payments due bondholders of the project. The TIF Agreement signed by the City of Raytown requires the city to make up any shortfall of tax revenue from the project. By the way, if you go by the new Walmart, you will find ALL of the utilities on their property are buried. Other Cities Seek Solutions . . . There were some interesting stories in the Kansas City Star this weekend. One had to do with a nuisance problem common to all cities – barking dogs. The City of Prairie Village, Kansas has adopted a policy of impounding dogs that bark continuously during the night time hours. Captain Tim Schwartzkopf told the Star, “. . . when dogs bark nonstop at night, that’s when it becomes a nuisance.” The city’s policy is to contact pet owners and ask them to take the animals inside during the evening hours. If the resident does not cooperate, the dog will be seized and placed in an animal shelter. That is innovative governing. Most impressive is that it seeks solutions rather than excuses . . . it is a model that should be followed in Raytown. A Kansas City, Kansas police union has voted to forgo a pay increase to help ease a budget crunch in Wyandotte County’s Unified Government. According to the story, the possibility of layoffs and further pay cuts was a major factor in the decision. The Unified Government has already placed a two year pay freeze and pay cut through the use of furlough days for some city employees. Last year the Raytown Board of Aldermen approved five percent pay increases for all city employees. This year the Board increased salaries by two percent. High School Football Standings
O'Hara High School.....................8 wins / 1 loss
Raytown High School...................3 wins / 6 losses
Raytown South High School............6 wins / 3 losses
LAST WEEK’S RESULTS:
O’Hara 35 / Pembroke Hill 13
by Brother Richard Geimer After a sluggish three quarters with the O'Hara Celtics owning a 14-0 lead over the Pembroke Raiders, the scoring picked up for a final score of 35-13. Both teams had to adjust to a slippery field and neither could put any points on scoreboard in the first quarter. The Raiders reached the 12 yard line before Andre Jordan intercepted a Jacob Gerson pass. The second quarter also had a slow pace until a poor Raider punt gave the Celtics the ball on the 44 yard line. The Celtics were on the move with a 10 yard run by Raphael Spencer and two T. J. pass plays for 20 yards to Joe Melchior and 16 yards to Louis Golden. Melchoir scored just before halftime on a 5 yard pass play. T. J. White ran the two-point conversion for an 8-0 lead at the half. In the middle of the third quarter, T. J. White was able to complete a 36 yard touchdown pass to Louis Golden, but his two-point attempted pass to Joe Melchoir, although complete, did not cross the goal line. O'Hara was up 14-0 entering the final quarter. O'Hara scored three of the five fourth quarter touchdowns. Their first score of the quarter was set up by a 45 yard pass to Louis Golden and a 20 yard run by Raphael Spencer. The TD was scored on a quarterback keeper by T. J. White. The Celtics' other two TD's were on long runs: a 65 yarder by Raphael Spencer and a 61 yard run by T. J. White. The Raiders scored the other two touchdowns. The first was on a fourth down with 25 yards to go for a first down. Jacob Gerson passed to Jak Kittoe in the endzone covering 36 yards. The second was scored with just three seconds remaining in the game, a 4 yard run by Jacob Gerson. Julian Gidley kicked two of O'Hara's extra points and Nathan Wagner kicked the lone Raider extra point.
Celtics Head for District Championship Bringing their season record to 8-1, the O'Hara Celtics football team headed into the District Championship game with the Saint Pius X Warriors on Friday at O'Hara. Both teams are 2-0 in District play.
Raytown South 42 / Northeast 0

Cardinals Head to State Playoffs

With yesterdays convincing win over the Northeast Vikings the Cardinals have put themselves in position to enter the state playoffs for the third year in a row. The district championship will take place next Saturday at Chittwood Stadium when the Raytown South Cardinals are the visiting team in a game against the Raytown Bluejays. Please come out and support the Cardinals as they attempt to extend their winning streak over the Jays.
For more information on the Raytown South Cardinals visit their website at http://school12220.ihigh.com/
Raytown 20 / Truman 16
NO REPORT South JV Gets Rolling Again The South JV squad moved to 6-2 last night with a convincing victory over Truman. After a slow start, Marc Alan Tucker caused and recovered a fumble on a punt by Ishmail Wainright. A few plays later, Tucker dove in for a 1 yard touchdown score. The Cardinal offense was rolling on the ground after that. Tucker led the rushing attack, but big runs were added by Justin Turner, Mustafa Rose, Marcus Moye and Delvon Rouser.
After Truman scored on their first drive, the defense became very tough, keeping Truman contained for the remainder of the game. Big plays by the front seven of the Cardinals kept the Truman offense stifled all night long.
The Cardinals will finish their season at home next Tuesday, 10/27, at 5 PM against KC Northeast. Please come out and support your Cardinals one more time. O'Hara Girls Post Win in Cross Country In the Saint Mary's Fall Classic Cross Country Run held at William Jewell on October 24, the O'Hara Celtics girls squad won the championship. The team had 36 points, easily ahead of the next two teams of Saint Mary's (62 points) and Odessa (66 points). Leading the Celtics was Claire Becker who was the first runner across the finish line with a time of 23:56! The other four contributing to the victory were 4th place Amy Gaston (25:47), 7th place Katelyn Gutteridge (26:28), 11th place Allison Seck (28:00), and 13th place Mackenzie Shelton (28:47). In the boys race, the Celtics took fourth place as a team with 162 points. Lowell Thomas was 11th and Chris Wesche finished 20th. Collin McKinney, James Keeney, Andy Meyer, and Ronald Clark also ran for O'Hara. The ten schools invited to the meet were Saint Mary's, O'Hara, Odessa, Lone Jack, Drexel, Lee's Summit Community Christian, Barstow, Sherwood, and Princeton. Not all of the schools had complete squads for team scoring.

63 comments:

Andy Whiteman said...

While reading about Mr. Potter, I was wondering what "original condition" means? Is original condition when God first made the earth? If so, it may be proper to leave only soil there. Obviously chunks of asphalt is NOT "original condition." The Fascist Fief said they would seed the area but any idiot knows grass won't grow on asphalt. Too bad this isn't in writing. I would suggest contacting an attorney if it was in writing but there may be grounds that the work was not done in a reasonable, prudent, and workmanlike manner. I suggest calling CH4 or CH5. They can show it on TV but I bet city officials will decline to be interviewed.

I totally agree with the PV ordinance on barking dogs. The first problem is getting the Judge to enforce it. I was in court as the complainant and the prosecutor was didn't ask proper questions of the witnesses and appeared to have no knowledge of the ordinance. Our muni judge told me to move also appearing to have no knowledge of the ordinance. Obviously if we want enforcement, we need a new prosecutor and a new judge. Another problem with barking dog ordinances is an officer must observe the violation to impound the dogs. The dogs may not be barking when the officer arrives or it could be argued that the officer's presence caused the dogs to bark. Still could be unenforceable.

I had this problem in Aurora, CO. In Denver the Denver Dumb Friends League has law enforcement authority. The DDFL assumes a barking dog may be an abused dog because there is a reason for barking. The dogs were confined outside in a fenced off area in the back yard. When DDFL arrived, they cited the owners for no shelter, no food, frozen water (hence no water). The DDFL had to come out again and the people gave up the dogs. I can't understand why anyone would have dogs if they keep them locked in a run. My dog lives in the house with me.

I spoke with an animal control dispatcher in Alamogordo, NM. She said that they spend at least 45 minutes to investigate each complaint because the officer must observe the barking without causing the barking. She told me one lady had called numerous times but the dog did not bark when the oddicer arrived. Finally the complainant called AC and kept the dispatcher on the line with a conversation for 1/2 hour and every 5 minutes said, "Do you hear that?" and held the phone to the window. After 1/2 hour, the dispatcher said, "That is enough" and dispatched an officer with instructions to cite the owner for barking dogs.

It is very difficult to enforce but I think PV has made a good effort at enforcement. The Fascist Fief should do the same but enforcement would also require a prosecutor and judge who both know the ordinance(s) and are competent.

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

That would be just wonderful if Raytown would adopt a enforcment policy like that about BARKING DOGS! However, I do not see it as feasable when they cannot/will not enforce laws that are currently on the books now, especially when they are too lazy to come out and do anything about dogs that are running loose after we have reported them loose on several occaisions, all to no avail. I for one am tired of irresponsible pet owners that leave their dogs outside all hours of the day and especially at night. They bark for no reason 98% of the time and wake my family up, especially on the weekends when you try to sleep in until say 8:30 to 9:00 am. Get a muzzle for the animals before something drastic happens!

Ruth Adams said...

Will NBC be surprised??*

Here's your chance to let the media know where the people stand on our faith in God, as a nation..

NBC is presently taking a poll on "In God We Trust" to stay on our American currency.

Please send this to every Christian you know so they can vote on this important subject.

Please do it right away, before NBC takes this off their web page. Poll is still open so you can vote:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10103521/

This is not sent for discussion. If you agree forward it, if you don't, delete it.

By my forwarding it, you know how I feel.

Greg Walters said...

I received a message this afternoon from a writer who felt the pay increases mentioned in this week's story was inaccurate.

The fact is the pay 5% increase and 2% pay increases given across the board to city employees is right on the money.

Park employees are not paid from city funds but from Park Department funds. The distinction is important. The Raytown Parks and Recreation is a separate entity from the City of Raytown. They have their own funding source (property tax and sales tax) and are governed by their own Board.

The same is true for employees of the Raytown Fire District. Once again, another governing body that has its own tax levy and sales tax.

I hope this clears up any misunderstanding as to the amount of employee pay increases at Raytown City Hall for the last two years.

Andy Whiteman said...

Ruth, Thank you for posting. I will pass it on to many even though it is my present policy not to pass emails on.

This isn't for Christians only. Other religions have their own God under a different name.

4:13PM, I understand how you feel. There is no need for a dog to be barking unless there is an intruder. After I got my dog, she didn't bark for so long, I wondered if she could bark. Finally she barked 3 times at someone walking down the street who appeared like he didn't belong in the area. When he realized he had my attention, he speeded up his pace.

One thing that will stop a barking dog is an electronic bark collar that emits a mild shock on barking. They learn fast. Dogs are smart.
********
I went to Walmart tonight to check it out. To my surprise prices weren't as low as I expected. In fact some seemed the same as a regular store. I found only 3 items that I would buy that cost less. I expect that as merchants are driven out of Raytown, the prices will come up.

On good thing about Walmart is they provide jobs!

Andy Whiteman

Pat Casady said...

I feel bad for Mr.Potter and his neighbors.
I ........we all thought the "new administration" would be different
but, nothing has changed for the people of Raytown. City Hall
still cares nothing for the taxpayers as shown to Mr.Potter and
others. It's a shame Mr. Potter wasn't a big box store, this bunch
of elected officials would have bent over backwards for him and
his neighbors. Maybe even taken some of the tax money collected
for street repairs and diverted them to cleaning up that property
as promised.
However we all know how this City Hall keeps it's promises or the
lack there of. As these incumbents are out begging for your vote,
the one and only time they will talk face to face with you, remember
how well they have done with their promises and your tax dollars.
remember all the tax increases you voted for in good faith and then
they were used elsewhere. But, most of all remember these items
and more when you go into the voting booth next time.
It's time to get rid of these non caring untrustworthy people and vote
in some people that will do right by and for the people. I know this
is a pipe dream but if we all work hard we can make it happen.

Anonymous said...

I broke down and went to see what all the hype was about at the new Wal Mart. I saw kids riding bikes inside the store, playing with toys that they were not buying, so I must admit I was NOT impressed by the store at all. I will go to Lee's Summit and shop Target.

doc summers said...

before anyone asks i will put this out there.
The Union which represents the Firefighters/Paramedics employed by the Raytown Fire Protection District agreed to a pay freeze and gave up some holiday pay to help offset budget shortfalls.

We felt this was the best way to maintain manning levels and to help offset budget shortfalls.
I wanted that known since we were mentioned in earlier post.
That saves anyone from asking the question.
Thanks
Captain Darren "Doc"Summers
Raytown Fire/Rescue
Local 1730 President

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the input, Doc.

Very interesting.

Andy Whiteman said...

Pat has a point. Maybe Mr. Potter should request rezonning to put in a big box store. The city would get out there and do a clean up ASAP.

These are hard times. I appreciate that our firefighters, EMTs, and Paramedics took a pay cut. It makes me really angry that the tie wearing, chairwarmers at City Hall get raises. Most of these people don't live in Raytown, pollute the air driving to work, and waste money on gas. Some of these jobs are totally unneeded. As my mother would say, "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." I say some of our elected officials are poca loca en la cabesa.

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

Doc, I think you and the Union should be commended on your willingness to help hold the line on costs in these troubled economic times. I only wish Bower and his crew of aldermen could have seen to ask all city employees to do the same. I hope times get better soon so we can all start seeing pay raises again.

Pat Casady said...

I think Mr.Potter should call Action "9" News about what has been going on. If Mr.Potter is reading this, he should tell them about all the improvements this town is making that doesn't help the citizens
at all. Hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars being spent and
very little going toward making life better for the people that are paying those taxes.
This is unfair and unethical not to mention just plain
wrong. I believe I called channel 9 and talked to Bev Chapman she
made an appointment and was very nice about talking to us.
Our elected officials are there to help and work for the people.
They are supposed to work to make life better for the taxpayers that
fund everything they do. Remember, it's your money they spend,
waste and give away. It's time they start acting like the responsible
they all told us they would be if elected.

Anonymous said...

Thank you Doc Summers for the information. Sorry to say about nine of the ten adlerman we currently have on the board are being lead around by the rings they have in their noses. Maybe some day we wil get a board who can think for themselves.

doc summers said...

I have no dog in the politics of the city.
I only put that information out there before anyone asked or commented on the Fire District.
The times are tough and im sure that our Police and EMS have taken steps to hold the line also.

The only thing i can say is that the City like the Fire District serves the people and this job is all about customer service and satisfaction.
You do a good job, solve problems,be accoutable and work to bring about a positive outcome when you serve.
You do this and people will remember you and your department when it counts and you need help.

You forget these things and you will never have the trust of the people...and without that trust what do you have.....

doc summers

Frank Potter said...

Police,Fire/Ems,& City Parks are about all the good that is left in Raytown. Unfortunately customer service at city hall has
deteriorated since we have gotten a new city administrator & mayor.
I think people sometimes forget
that the city administrator is
responsible for the day to day
operation of the city & for the
performance of city employees.
Raytown citizens deserve better.
There is no trust.
Frank Potter

Anonymous said...

People are skeptical of anything coming out of City Hall. And who can really blame them.

When you call in a complain to codes they are pleasant enough taking down the informatin. Good luck finding out if anything is being done about it.

Call city hall and leave a message for someone. Be prepared to wait for about 48 hours before the call is returned. Don't know why, it is just the way it is.

Call and elected official? What for? Some of them are not even listed in the phone book! Expecting a call back from most of them, from the Mayor on down, is just wishful thinking.

But all is not doom and gloom. If you call in a pothole to public works they are pretty quick in responding. Same can be said about the police department. Though sometimes they seem too timid in their response to nuisance problems.

At least they respond. That's better than can be said for codes. Call them, be prepared to wait.

Anonymous said...

Our out of town city administrator and his posse of carpet baggers are responsible for running the city on a day to day basis. But our elected officials are supposed to watch over them and guide them.

From watching the BOA meetings it is clear that the tail is wagging the dog at city hall.

Most of the board members sit like mute statues during meetings. Any discussion appears to be in line with getting permission form the city attorney on how to vote.

If anyone disagrees (which is a very rare event) Mayor Bower goes ballistic.

Maybe some anger control sessions would be in order.

Pat Casady said...

Mr.Potter,
You are right sir.
There isn't and hasn't been any trust of City Hall since
the first City Administrator who taught our elected
officials how to be devious and uncaring.
After he divided the people and set up a couple of groups
to do and vote how he wanted, this town has been going downhill.
Once that seed had been planted it has been taught to newly
elected people. It's easy to plant that seed of wrongdoing, it's
much harder to kill the idea of after being elected they are better
than the rest of us. That club of deceitfulness was started a little
over ten years ago and, it's still alive and well today.

Greg Walters said...

I think Mr. Potter hit the problem right on the head. City hall is lacking credibility.

Our elected officials are supposed to bring that trust to the people through their actions. If they cannot figure out what is wrong from reading the posts on this blog then there is no hope for them to reform.

If they purposely ignore what is written here then they are too stubborn to recognize their own best interests.

Anonymous said...

Service from city hall just doesn't exist anymore. We need to fire all these out of town department heads. Oh yes Mahesh, the city administrator is a joke. This guy is laughing all the way to the bank, he won't move here and I'll bet he has his resume out right now looking for a better job. Look at his record he's had quite a few jobs over the past few years, Raymore, Olatha, St. Charles, this guy is constantly on the move. But Bower and his dummies are singing his praises, just like this Beth Linn, another joke for a department head. Have these people accomplished anything? I say no. WAKE UP BOWER!!!

Andy Whiteman said...

It has become apparent to me from reading the last few posts that the city is being run much same as Dictator O'Bomba runs the country. I really wonder if the city learned this style from the Dictator or the Distator learned from the city? Actually I think the Dictator learned from Chicago. Is any elected official here from Chicago?

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

For the record, burying the electric lines at Raytown Road and Gregory was NEVER part of the plan.

And the new Wal-Mart is very nice. Well organized and clean. Love the LED lights in the fridge and freezer sections, very energy effecient.

Anonymous said...

To Doc Summers. I heard that the Fire Department had to remove a deer from a fence and that Animal Control refused to come out to dispose of it. Nice customer service from City Hall.

Greg Walters said...

For the record. Removal of telephone poles and wires was discussed. Was it ever a "part of the plan"? Interesting parsing of words that would make Bill Clinton proud.

Just like the Walmart Store, the intersection is being paid 100% by taxpayer's dollars.

Don't the people of Raytown deserve as much as we offer up to the walmart gods?

As for the new store. Haven't been there -- yet -- but have been told it is more like a Sams Club than a regular Walmart. The merchandise is there, but not too attractively displayed.

Guess everyone who wants will eventually make up their own mind.

Andy Whiteman said...

OK, now we know, if you have an animal control issue call the Fire Department. It seems to me that the MO Dept of Wildlife should have handled it.

Is it necessary to attractively display merchandise? I don't know where merchandise is attractively displayed. I feel that I am lucky if I can find the merchandise that I want. I give Walmart credit for not having loud, blaring music unlike another local store which recently moved.

Greg, by the way, who won the $20 gift certificate?

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

"For the record. Removal of telephone poles and wires was discussed. Was it ever a "part of the plan"? Interesting parsing of words that would make Bill Clinton proud".
This from the guy that says "all city employees" does not include park employees or firefighters. I guess my question is who signs their checks.

Anonymous said...

Ed:
So we have a new Raytown Greatwaste. Er, excuse me, Gateway. The Raytown/Gregory intersection has been transformed. It is now so infused with the aura of public sevice that citizens should be required to remove their hats as they drive through it.

It's wonderful to observe a blockade of rosebushes in the center of the road, as opposed to having to watch for those annoying vehicles travelling in the opposite direction. This allows Raytowner's overtaxed brains to achieve nirvana while heading south and making a left turn onto E70th Terrace from Raytown Road. This will ease the pain when they get T-boned by oncoming traffic. Such a considerate and thoughtful bunch, our city planners. Saving taxpayer money on anesthetic, what genius.

But wait, there's more.

Another one of those highly artistic cinder block phallic symbols has been erected on the median. For modesty's sake (no doubt), it will be adorned with a thin veneer to make it look like solid natural stone, and one of those Raytown non-logo plaques will be affixed to it. The total effect will permanently remind everyone of what city hall really thinks of its taxpayers.

After all, what better use for hundreds of thousands of our tax dollars that went into this startlingly ugly project. It will no doubt increase property values by about 1/10th of 1 percent of what it cost.

Bravo, city hall. Your reputation precedes you. Pass the popcorn.

Pat Casady for Mayor.

Anonymous said...

Hey anonymous 10:25,
The W-M better be nice because it will cost you and the rest
of the Raytown taxpayers millions and millions of your
dollars before they pack up and move away in twenty three
years or until their free ride is over. Plus your property values
will keep going down and your taxes will keep going up.
Welcome to Raytown big W-M store, you've killed another small town.

Greg Walters said...

Okay, I will help you out.

City employees are paid by checks that come from City Hall. Fire District employees are paid by checks that come from the Raytown Fire Protection District. Park Department employees are paid by checks that come from Raytown Parks and Recreation.

It's kind of like those employees who work for Jackson County, Missouri. Their checks are paid from by the Jackson County Courthouse.

From Doc's letter we know the Fire District did not give any pay increases this year. I know that Jackson County froze pay increases last year (and had massive layoffs), I am not sure what course the Parks Board took.

Raytown City Hall gave out 5% pay increases last year and a 2% pay increase this year.

Those are simple facts.

The reason they are not all paid by the same place is because they are different entities. They have their own taxing authority, governing body and (this is important) separate civilian boards that govern them.

I hope that clears up why city employees, paid out of City Hall, are not the same as other governmental employees who happen to work in Raytown.

Andy, I don't understand about the
$20 gift certificate? What $20 gift certificate?

doc summers said...

here we go

Yes, We responded non emergency at the request of a tax paying homeowner in reference to a deer whose leg was stuck in a chain link fence.
We arrived and found the deer alive with a badly broken leg. We requested animal control from the city. We were informed that animal control does not respond on Sundays and that they would respond on Monday.
My crew removed the deer from the fence. The Raytown Police assisted with other issues related to the call.
We enlisted another firefighter to remove the deer from the residence.
Just like i said respond,solve problems and bring about a positive outcome...The feedback i recieved from the homeowner and neighbors was very positive.
For anybody that wonders we were never out of service and we were in a position to respond to any emergency that came up.
Again i have no intrest in in city politics and have no opinion on city policy as regards to animal control.
And for the person how would like to know who signs my check.
We are a Fire Protection District and are not under city control.
My paychecks are signed by the Fire Chief and at least one Fire Board Member.
doc summers

Anonymous said...

Our town was headed down the tubes before Walmart, now it's a guarantee. Did you know that 4 or 5 more small businesses are gone or moving? Wonder if Beth Linn knows? You would think it should be her business to know. But, I keep forgetting, SHE DOESN'T LIVE HERE, so why should she care?

Anonymous said...

Why does the City still need a full-time City Attorney on the payroll. This was done during the Wenson Adminstration for the sake of Wenoon hiring his attorney friend. When Wenson left, so left his attorney friend.

Before that, the City had a part-time contracted Attorney and it was at much lower cost. C'mon City Hall, thank outside the box and start getting rid of overpaid, do little, chair warmers.

Andy Whiteman said...

Greg, sometime ago you offered a $20 gift certificate at the new Walmart to the person who could guess when the I forgot if it was when opening or groundbreaking would take place. Maybe no one named the correct date? Just curious.

The fine citizens of Raytown will be paying taxes to support this business for the next 28 or 30 years is Socialism. That is why I stated at the BOA this is the Socialist Fascist Fief of Raytown.

I don't understand the the seperation of the Parks Dept. If this is a separate board, why does the Mayor appoint the parks director and board? There should be an election. I noticed that the Parks Dept. comes to the BOA for budget requests. Why don't they operate indpenedently. Obviously we need the Fire Dept. but the Parks Dept. could be dumped and run by the city. It seems like it already is.

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

Beth Linn great job getting the down down Christmas lighting together. Now how about cleaning up the city, and enforcing codes? To me that is a lot more important.

Anonymous said...

Doc,

There was a similar incident early last summer where a dog was left chained to a fence. Animal control would not respond on the weekend, so some police personnel came by and made sure the animal was fed and watered until Monday came around.

All I can say is "good job, guys". You make us proud in responding when needed.

Greg Walters said...

Andy,

There were no correct guesses.

Anonymous said...

The parks have a good ol boy network. They collect revenue on of SuperSplash, they have a different payscale and penison plan from the other City employees and both are better than what City staff gets. Why would they want to have the City run them and mess up all those good ez money jobs that would not be necessary if the City took them over, as they should.
The City talks a good talk about saving money, as long as it does not have to really save money, also known as double talk.

I know, I know, I'm just a blogger who complains about the city, lazy overpaid chair warmers, lack of city services, but damn, those people are ripping me a new one with every tax increase that comes along.

Andy Whiteman said...

I agree with Doc Summers, get the emergency resolved. We were a rural area surrounded by several fire districts where many people didn't know what district they were in. When I dispatched, we didn't argue that it wasn't our district. Someone needed help so we responded and notified the other district that we were responding since we were called and requested that they also respond.

There seems to be some conflict about animal control. They have set hours for ordinary complaints but are supposed to respond 24/7 for emergencies. I have had them respond at 9PM as well as 2AM. In the case of the 2AM call, I suggested that they respond the next day to pick up the body since the skunk was dead and no longer an emergency. It still needed to be tested for rabies. I think that sometimes it takes pointing out to the dispatcher that a/c is to be dispatched 24/7 for an emergency. A/C has someone on pager duty after hours.

I wonder what happened to the deer? Was it taken to a vet or did the State claim it?

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

Average fire fighter gets more than 40 hours of overtime per pay period from your hard earned taxes. Thanks to the union. You will never hear about it as they are our hero.

Anonymous said...

I read all the good work being done by our fire department and police department and wonder why doesn't the rest of the city follow suit.

The little extras, like the p.d. taking care of the dog chained to a fence, the fire department removing a deer trapped in fence, that is what public service is all about.

Our city council acts like its job is to play developer. Will they ever get it right? I hear they are getting ready to waste another $200,000 plus on a new department of economic development.

Why not use the private sector? They will make it happen if there is money to be made. If there is not any money to be made then city hall will just dump another ton of money into tax abatements to try to MAKE it happen.

At the end of the day we will be left holding the bill like we are already hold for Walmart for the next 23 years.

Pat Casady said...

In my opinion, the Police, Firemen, EMT's and city workers
(not management) are underpaid. So any overtime they can get.....
more power to them. They are good honest people that actually
care about the citizens of this town and should be treated with
the highest respect. Very few of us would do their job for the pay
they receive but, some seem to like putting them down by taking
cheep shots at them under an "anonymous" name. Too bad these
"anonymous" writers aren't as brave as the people they put down.
Anybody with half a brain knows Raytowns problems aren't
because of the above service people, these people know what
they are doing. The police and firemen have gone through training
most of us couldn't do or would even want to do.
Raytown's problems are with the people that run
this town that don't have a clue and don't care.

doc summers said...

WOW 40 hours of OVERTIME a check, My wife will be thrilled now I can quit my partime job.
ANOTHER FALSE
I'm not sure where this information comes from.
I am the Union President and have been involved with the last 4 work agreements or Labor Contracts, this covers 12 years of service.
"Firefighters are our Heros"
FALSE
We are people just like everybody else.We chose this career because it was rewarding to us and being involved with/in public service appealed to us.
We have kids,mortgages,wives,and bills to pay just like everyone else.
"Firefighters get 40 hours a week of overtime but you will never here that from our heros"
FALSE
We are paid on a 56 hour work week we are paid every two weeks for five shifts worked.. by FLSA we are paid SIX (6) hours of built in overtime per pay period or two (2) weeks.
I would assume that everyone else in the private sector gets overtime after 40 hours worked.
If you do not believe me or understand my explanation you may go to www.raytownfire.com and view our labor contract or memorandum of understanding with the Fire District.
I have been with the Fire District since Oct of 1992, for the fist 3.5 years I was paid as a volunteer and never made over $10,000.00.
I was hired full-time in 1996 and have 14 years on the job.
I have a college education and made in the mid 60s last year, as a Captain..including all overtime and training pay....hardly a financial windfall, Firefighters make considerably less than that..however the fire district has been very good to me, my salary pays the mortgage and puts food on the table for my family.
Funny thing is if I was not Full-time I would still be there at night volunteering my time....can you say that about your job or your character...probably not you won't even sign your name.
Have a great day, winter is on the way....and please check your smoke detectors,service your furnance and clean the chimmneys...thanks
doc summers

Anonymous said...

Yeah, Every Fireman I have ever known, did'nt do much work. Sure after 911 they ALL became heros, but as in everything, there are heros and there are the ones who set around in lazy boy recliners all day, cook out on grills and pretend to be a hero while claiming what a great, wonderful job they do. Let's get real.

doc summers said...

sorry forgot to answer Andys Question.
The deer was field dressed by a member of the Fire District and the meat was handed over to a local family who needed it.
I will say it again work for a positive outcome...pretty simple when you think about it.
The remaining parts were picked up by Animal Control on Monday from the Firefighter who field dressed the deer.

Lets let the deer story go call it a lesson learned from all envolved.
doc summers

Pat Casady said...

I've had three customers come in and tell me they tried
the new Wal-Mart. They said they will never go back
because it's too big, too much walking and the sales tax is
too high.

Anonymous said...

This is what I don't understand, why does the mayor think that the dept. head of codes is doing a "good job" as he said at one of the meetings I watched, If the codes person who is on call on the weekend refuses to come in when called by the police or anyone. This not not the first time either that person refused to come in when the police called to get help. The police officers had to had to handle that one too because that person said she was 45 minutes away. As for the deer, It was not the fire dept. job to have to dispose of that deer died or alive but I give them credit for not wanting the children of the neighborhood to have to look at that deer all weekend. I hope that meat was donated to REAP or some other food pantry. Thanks guys.

It's a good thing that I'm not mayor because if I were at least 2 people would be gone. That weekend person would only refuse one time because on Monday they would be gone along with the dept. head. Why is it that the our Chief of Police isn't raising Holy H--- with that dept. and the mayor he certainly has the right.

Come to think of it maybe I should run for mayor, it can't be any worse than it is now, but we still have at least 2 more years of this mess. To bad we don't have recall for our elected officals but the charter failed now look at the mess we are in.

Anonymous said...

To the idiot who commented about the firefighters overtime...You ever heard of FLSA it is not the unions that grant the overtime, but rather it is a law. I am not sure what point your making If they work should they not get paid? Under federal law the line level worker cannot be salary, I so why should firefighters not be treated the same.

Oracle said...

How about those bureaucrats in Jackson County…

The jerks actually are naming part of I-35 in honor of Lamar Hunt.

For those not familiar with the name, Hunt is the carpet bagger who brought the Kansas Chiefs to Kansas City.

A carpetbagger he really was. During the almost 50 years he owned and operated the Chiefs he never saw fit to move his domicile to Kansas City.

He stayed right there in Dallas – far from the grasping reach of Kansas City and its myriad taxes which were voted to support his sorry collection of football players.

Had Hunt lived in Kansas City he might have had to pay, to name a few, earnings taxes, occupation taxes, property taxes.

Since the county owned the stadiums, Mr. Hunt never, in more than two score years, paid one penny of property tax. He was leasing – and a sweetheart lease it was.

Even worse, the county paid him an annual stipend just to ply his trade as owner of what surely must overall be one the worst football teams in history of the sport.

There are those walking around – without a leash, I might add – who actually believe we should rename Arrowhead Stadium to Lamar Hunt Stadium.

It would be more appropriate if we named it “taxpayers ripoff stadium.”

Some readers may feel I am being harsh in my criticism. We should just remember: Hotelier Leona Hemsley was dead right when she said, “Only little people pay taxes.”

Andy Whiteman said...

I am glad the deer meat was put to good use. Allowing the deer to remain would not only been have been cruelty to animals but a health and safety issue as well.

I think the issue with no response from animal control comes from a police dispatcher. I took it to an Alderman once and after that if the dispatcher refused service, I made an issue of telling him/her that a dispatch is required for emergency conditions. That caused a/c to be dispatched. Maybe it is necessary to point that out to the dispatcher. If the a/c person has a 45 minute response time, they can't be required to sit at home on their day off unless they are paid for that. It also could have been an employee who doesn't live in Raytown.

I agree with Pat about the salaries of city and emergency WORKERS. Anyone who wants to put down these fine public servants should have the gall to sign their name and not hide as anonymous. Anytime one of these workers does a good job or goes above and beyond the call of duty I send an email to their supervisor any mayor. All should do that.

One writer wrote about overtime FLSA over 40 hours per week. It also depends on Union contract. I worked a job where overtime was paid over 30 hours per week or 35 hours per week for those who worked a 6 hour shift or 7 hour shift. Actually overtime was paid for working before or after the shift. No matter how many hours were worked, working a day off was considered overtime.

I will agree that Walmart is too big and it is difficult to find anything. One the other hand, they could narrow the isles and people would complain it is too crowded. The parking lost was mostly filled but the store seemed to be mostly empty of customers due the enormous size. The only thing I like about Walmart is I can get things there that are nowhere else.

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

Lamer Hunt also owned and was a chief financial reason for the Major League Soccer coming to town and he was the Owner for three of the franchises Dallas Burn,Columbus Crew and our Kansas City Wizards.
And be real He brought the Chiefs here from the AFL league just to give you all somewhere to spend your $50 to park and $10 for a flat beer and up to $200.00 a ticket.
I call that brilliant...and be honest if you had the money and knew the loopholes to jump through you wouldnt pay taxes either...

Anonymous said...

More businesses bite the dust. Accent Interiors and Shoe Warehouse. Wonder if Bower even knows these tax revenue places are gone.

Anonymous said...

Take a tour of fire department you will find at least two people playing on Internet. Go and watch their board meeting, there are more firefighters than board members. Go and look at their building to see the best use of your tax dollars.

Most communities have fire and EMS together so it makes sense but Raytown has it separate. Look at the call volume and you will find that 80% calls are typically for EMS and only 20% goes to fire. But look at how much of your property tax is going towards fire if you care.

You don't have to believe me but do your research. For a little thing they will go out with their big million dollars worth of truck with flashing sirens on but they are catching deer.

Fire Chief needs to do analysis about the value they provide and you should demand it. I can go on and on and five of you blogger thinks they are doing a great job then so be it. When was the last time any one of you went to their board meeting? They do meet during daytime and no one has complaint about it (including Andy) or timing of their meeting. Pat live out of town so why he cares. Doc makes in the 60's and second job and enough time to spend on computer and write on this blog. Fire chief need to look into this as well. I have many friends who chose their career as a fire fighter but Doc’s negative attitude towards other municipal employees or promoting fire department as a hero which is OK but not on by being critical about other municipal employee. This is unwarranted. That’s all.

Andy Whiteman said...

From what I read here is that Lamar Hunt opperated the same as Walmart--Get the taxpayers to pay for the business. True Socialism.

I seems to me that since the Chiefs work in KCMO their salaries should be subject to KC earnings tax as well as ticket sales and vendors subject to sales tax.
********
I saw the street seeeper going down the street yesterday. I wonder is this is a new city service? In the past, I saw one vary rarely.

Andy Whiteman

doc summers said...

Why waste my time.
We (Fire Department) will run around 3,500 calls for service this year.
These will include EMS Calls where there is a determined Life threat.
The Fire District is a ALS (Advanced Life Support)Fire Department. We work hand in Hand with the Citys EMS Service and when they are tied up we respond until outside Ambulance arrives. We are all EMTS and Paramedics.

So have grown tired of providing information that you feel the need to twist.
You are right i gross mid sixties but after TAXES,HEALTH CARE,SOCIAL SECURITY and every other payroll taxs bring home is a lot less.
I have no problem with you thinking im lazy or surfing the internet. I have that option and yes i will surf now and then....but think of this, all of the online training via Federal Govt,FEMA,NFPA and most of the recertification and college classes are done online also.
I also would like you to produce or post anything where i have put down or demeaned any other municipal employee...I also would like to see anything where i have said we are heros....i never say that that is just plain wrong.
The only heros i know are on the border or overseas.
So please spare me.....If you wanna call me or think of me as Gus the fireman..so be it whatever it takes for you to sleep at night......And for anyone who does not know who Gus the fireman was...Beaver Cleaver used to go see him....and by the way the board meetings are posted and are during buisness hours..and yes there are 3 board members all chief officers as they are each responsible for a board report and budget item,Human Resource person and one of the Union Officers....
I have grown tired of this again, if anybody wants to ask a question i will answer only if you sign your name..doc

Andy Whiteman said...

8:39AM, I used to be on a fire board and I remember very few citizens citizens attending. Firefighters attended if they had a budget request or had a comment to voice, or just wanted to observe. And yes, we had more firefighters in attendance than board members. What is wrong with that? Firefighters outnumbered board members. I don't most think citizens were interested. Citizens voiced their comments to me in the Post Office.

I have NEVER seen public notice of a meeting here and haven't had the desire to attend because I am satisfied with the service received. IF I wanted to attend, I would complain about day hours.

If you observed firefighters on the computer so what? I am surprised you didn't find them sleeping or eating. Their primary job is to respond to emergencies. Other than that their responsibilities are maintenance of equipment and upkeep of the station. They don't work 8 hour shifts like most people. I don't know how the shifts here are set up but Doc can explain that. It is my understanding that firefighters work 24, 48, or 72 hour shifts depending on the department. The reason is they are at the station and available to respond immediately 24/7! Someone previously complained because firefighters were working out and staying fit on the job. Physical fitness is necessary not only for health reasons but also for job safety.

What do you think firefighters should do? Should they clean the station and shine the trucks 24/7? That would be useless. There is such a thing as over maintenance. If you checked into it you might find some research, studying, or training going on. Why don't you observe a whole 24 hour day before complaining on what you saw on a short walk through? The way you should think of it is firefighters have a 2nd home and live at the job. They are not going to actively working 24/7, but if you or anyone has an emergency they are there for an immediate response.

From what I read, they were NOT catching deer. They were ending the suffering of a deer and removing a nuisance, safety, and health hazard. Did they actually go red lights and sirens or did you assume that? I would dispatch that as a Code 2 response meaning no red lights and no sirens. Red lights would be appropriate for traffic control at the scene.

As for FD vs EMS, KCMO recently had 2 separate departments. IF you observed responses in Raytown, FD also responds with EMS. They back up each other. Sometimes FD can arrive before EMS. EMS has ambulances for transport. The two departments are working well together. Why change something that works?

In Alamogordo, NM Police are cross trained as Firefighters. The last time I was there, I thought there had been a bad crime because numerous police cars were responding red light and siren. This posed a traffic hazard because of too many police cars from all directions. Finally a Fire Truck came after all the police cars.

Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

october 31, 8:39am, you sound pretty ignorant. Have you ever considered that the value or return on your measly investment of tax dollars to the fire district are several things: cheaper homeowner insurance rates from a better fire district rating, improved response times that yield better service, for instance, the difference between saving ones life and dying, or the difference between a few thousand dollars damage and a total loss. Also having the proper facilities to store or house firefighter apparatus when not in use, to keep all apparatus properly maintained, repaired, and ready, and proper living space and quarters to conduct other operations, training, and rest for each firefighter. BTW, I am not a firefighter, or on the board, so this is not a biased post. Stop and think before you start complaining about things that you do not understand!

Anonymous said...

Andy,

Remember this. The Chiefs do not pay the tax on the receipts of the gate. The users do. So it is not really accurate to say they are paying the taxes. Same thing goes for the outrageously high parking fee at the games. To add insult to injury, the parking lot was paid for by the tax payers. Then they get to pay for it again if they want to use it!

As for the firemen. It is unfair to pick them out. There is no denying their is a huge difference between private sector and public sector work hours, vacations, holidays and paid time off.

That is the main reason their is a waiting list of people who want to serve as firemen. It also explains why so many public sector employees are related to each other. It helps to have a relative on board when those rare instances of a job owning offers itself to the public.

As for public service. Yes, there are examples of public servants going way beyond the call of duty. 911 is a good example of that. There is also examples of shameful activity and cowardice, as was witnessed in New Orleans when that city experienced its horrendous floods from Hurricane Katrina.

I like to think that individual public servants will rise to the occassion when called upon. If they do not, you will have anarchy.

The one thing in Raytown that makes no sense at all is the two departments, paramedics and fire department serving out of two locations. This duplication of expense to the tax payer is just plain stupid.

With that in mind I can understand why City Hall has steadfastly stucks is head in the sand when it comes to this glaring example of waste.

Andy Whiteman said...

Greg, I have been thinking all week. Is "Broken Promise," a polite way of saying "lie?" I think there are some liars in pubic office and not just in Raytown. The person who yelled, "You lie," to Dictator O'bomba never should have apologized. He was pointing out a fact. Maybe he should have apologized for breaking the tradition of decorum but NO apology should have been made to der Fuhrer.

Andy Whiteman

Dee said...

Andy, you sound like a bitter lunatic when you refer to the president that way. Think about it.

Anonymous said...

I don't know about Andy, but I have thought about it.

Andy, you sound like you are spot on accurate on your statement about the President. Don't be intimidated by those who disagree.

They are the ones who should be searching for answers to Obama's failures and broken promise.

Speaking of wish. How is that war going in Afghanistan.? Is Gitmo emptied out yet?

Andy Whiteman said...

No decision on Afghanistan. The detainees in Gitmo will get the Swine flu vaccine before it is available to American citizens!

Dee, I am bitter that voters fell for Dictator O'Bomba's lies. He bought votes be promising tax cuts, entitlements, and medical care. His actions are Hitler like. Maybe you are one of the meek who will follow. I am not a follower. I will state my opinion:
Here is the link to Impeach the Dictator:
http://www.impeachobamacampaign.com/

Andy Whiteman

Robbie said...

Andy Whiteman said that the pillar at Raytown Road and Gregory is a safety hazard. He should try turning left from Raytown Road onto Gregory. The pillar is positioned in such a place that one can’t see oncoming traffic until it’s too late when turning left. Someone is going to get hit trying to turn there.

While I’m on the subject, why didn’t they leave an area for people to turn left onto Raytown Road when exiting the Raytown Gregory Animal Clinic? I thought the current administration was all about helping businesses. This would have been the perfect time to change the traffic pattern.

Andy Whiteman said...

Robbie, You make a good point. The pillar is a safety hazard from NB Raytown Rd making a left onto Gregory. I guess that is something that I have never wanted to do. The powers that be will probably tell you that there is a left turn signal you could use.

As for a left from the Raytown Gregory Animal Hospital, that guestion was raised at the BOA. I believe the answer was that was not an interesction but an exit from a business. I am wondering why no left turn from SB Raytown Rd into Raytown Gregory animal Hospital? So why does Walmart which is a business get 2 traffic signals one of which creates a hazard turning NB from Westlake Hardware?

I think this would be good points to bring up at a BOA meeting or if you want an answer contact watchdog@kcstar.com because I doubt you will get an anser from the BOA.


These actions as well as the Walmart deal makes me ask, "Have our City leaders Gone Rogue?"

Andy Whiteman