Sunday, July 12, 2015

RAYTOWN'S LEADING NEWS SOURCE

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Police Remodeling Put on Hold
by Greg Walters

A recent article in the local paper was interesting in what it didn’t report.  The Board of Aldermen refused to sign a lease agreement with Block and Company on June 2.  Aldermen Meyers and Moore both stated the city shouldn’t pay Block’s taxes on a six month lease.  The city attorney assured the Board the lease was a “boiler plate lease document”.  The Board directed the city attorney to go back to Block and renegotiate the lease.  On July 7, the revised lease was presented to the Board and approved.  The Board was told the prior lease document was a sample lease.  There was some confusion because the document appeared to be the same document presented in June.  The city clerk pointed out the document presented to the Board in July was different because the new lease had one extra sentence absolving the city from the tax liability.  On July 15 , Randy Battagler reported in the Raytown Times the building was sold and couldn’t be leased.  The residents of Raytown are fortunate the Board didn’t sign the original lease in June.  How much money would they have spent moving, or partially moving, in the building, only to have it sold out from under them?
DUE TO PROBLEMS WITH OUR SERVER, WE WERE UNABLE TO PUBLISH MORE THAN THE ABOVE STORY THIS WEEK.  WE SHOULD BE UP AND RUNNING NEXT WEEK. - GREG WALTERS

BY GREG WALTERS
How About 
Them Royals!
The Royals are having the last laugh going into the All Star Game. Despite national attention focused solely on the “wrongness” of one team dominating the American League players of the All Star Team, seven of the boys in blue will be on the squad.

Five of those All Stars were chosen directly by the fans themselves.

When you consider that Kansas City is one of the smallest markets in professional baseball, the numbers supporting the Royals speak their loudest. There is no way a city based population of a little more than 2 million people could have swayed the vote without a lot of help from voters all across the nation.

The ones who seem to be complaining the most about the outcome are the same talking heads who picked the Royals to come in fourth in the American League Central Division this year.

Yes, I know there is still half a season left to play. But, all things considered, the Royals are deserving of the accolades they are receiving from the public.

Don’t believe the Royals can meet the challenge? . . .  Just You Watch!


BY PAUL LIVIUS
The Paul Livius Report
Raytown Board of Aldermen Meeting – July 7, 2015
Mayor McDonough said the mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law, and scouts achieve their ranking by fulfilling requirements in areas of leadership, service and outdoor skill. Only 4% of all scouts achieve the highest rank of Eagle Scout.  Devin Cordes has fulfilled all of the requiremnts to complete his Eagle Scout Project which involved planning, designing, presenting his idea to the Raytown Park Board, and acquiring materials for a pathway to Aunt Sophie’s Cabin at the Rice-Tremonti Home.  Devin is a student at Lee’s Summit West and member of Scout Troop #54 of Lee’s Summit.  The City of Raytown, on behalf of all its residents, recognizes this bright and outstanding young man for his accomplishment and specifically his receiving the prestigious rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America.  Now, the City of Raytown also encourages all residents to congratulate Mr. Cordes for completing an Eagle Scout project which will be enjoyed and utilized by residents for many years.


Mayor McDonough said Maggie Chase has been given the Missouri Municipal League “Person of the Year” award.  She has worked with the Raytown Emergency Assistance Program (REAP) for the past 16 years.

Alderman Steve Mock announced Brewer and Shipley will be at Kenagy Park on August 9 from noon to 7pm, sponsored by the Raytown Arts Council.

The Board passed a resolution approving the expenditure of funds to Watkins Lithographic, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $17,000.00.  Brenda Gustafson told the Board the City of Raytown provides four quarterly newsletters to our residents. The City put out a request for sealed bids for the printing of the newsletter. The lowest bidder was Watkins Lithographic, Inc. for a full-year printing agreement. The staff requested bids for a 16 and 20 page document. Currently, the document is 16 pages; however, the 20 pages would be totally dependent on the amount of advertising received.

The Board passed a resolution approving a 6-month lease with BPS Properties for temporary housing of the Raytown Police Department.  The staff has worked with local realtors to find a location to temporarily house the Raytown Police Department during the remodel of the lower level of City Hall.  The GE building was examined, but was sold. Staff also looked at mobile office space, but renting 7001 Blue Ridge Boulevard is more economical. Approximately 22 Raytown Police Department personnel will need to move during the remodel, and can readily be housed at this location.  The 6-month duration cost would be $21,000.00. Some additional cost would be incurred such as moving expenses and disassembly and assembly of office cubicles; however, those same costs would be incurred with any other facilities.  Alderman Meyers pointed out this is the same lease submitted in the prior packet.  Jim Melvin apologized and said he submitted the new lease and wasn’t sure why it didn’t get in the packet.  He told the Board they renegotiated the lease and no taxes will be included in the lease payments.  City clerk, Teresa Henry, pointed out the packet contained the new lease contract.  It was similar to the original, except the provision for taxes had been removed.

The Board approved a resolution approving the purchase of salt for the purpose of treating roads and bridges in inclement weather from Independent Salt Company in an amount not to exceed $52,000.00.  The Public Works Department received three bids in response to the invitation and has determined the bid submitted by Independent Salt Company in the amount of $63.99 per ton was the most advantageous bid received.

The Board passed a resolution declaring certain property owned by Raytown as surplus and authorized disposition.  Jim Melvin told the Board a skid loader replacement vehicle has been leased this year and the new vehicle will be placed in service soon. Public Works has evaluated the vehicles and has determined that the vehicles are not well-suited for continued use by the City and should be deemed surplus and disposed of in accordance with the purchasing policy. The S220 Skid Loader has safety issues with its lift arms. The MT55 is not used often enough to warrant its continued ownership and it is cheaper to rent a walk behind when needed rather than maintaining the current MT55.  The City would dispose of the 2005 S220 skid loader for a trade-in price of $18,000.00. The City would also dispose of a 2005 MT55 walk behind loader for an additional $12,000.00 trade-in.  The vehicles are proposed to be sold as trade-ins during the purchase of a sweeper and planer or alternatively sold at on-line auction via “Purple Wave”. The sweeper and planer are within the City Administrator’s purchasing authority. The revenue generated from these surplus items is Blue Book or better, and the fact that the City does not incur a cost to dispose of the items is an additional bonus. The unused portion of the proceeds would be deposited back to the Capital Improvement Sales Tax fund.

The Board heard the first reading of an ordinance establishing a procedure to disclose potential conflicts of interest and substantial interests for certain municipal officials in the city of Raytown.  Teresa Henry, City Clerk, told the Board in 1991, the Missouri General Assembly adopted an ethics and personal financial disclosure law, which applied to all municipalities with an annual operating budget in excess of $1 million. Under the law, municipalities were allowed to adopt their own simplified personal financial disclosure requirements by ordinance (commonly known as “short form” reporting). The financial disclosure reporting requirements apply to each elected official, the City Administrator (as the Chief Administrative Officer and Chief Purchasing Officer), the Director of Finance (as the Chief Financial Officer), the City Clerk, the full-time General Counsel, the Park Board, and the Parks and Recreation Director.  Each political subdivision desiring to use the “short form” is required to readopt the ordinance authorizing “short form” reporting every two years. However, in order to avoid the significant consequences of the failure to readopt the ordinance the recommended best practice is to adopt the ordinance annually.  The ordinance must be adopted by September 15 and a copy must be provided to the Missouri Ethics Commission.


Paul's Rant BY PAUL LIVIUS

THE LAST WORD . . . Those members of the Raytown Board of Aldermen who stood their ground on the rent ceiling of a temporary home for the Raytown Police Department have been proven correct in their action.

This past week they agreed to enter into a contract with BPS Properties to lease space at a vacant building located next to Our Lady of Lourdes Church at Gregory Boulevard and Blue Ridge for six months to house the police department while renovations are made at City Hall.

The original contract called for the city to pay the property taxes on the building over the life of the lease. The majority of the Board said “no” in the face of criticism by city staff who insisted the taxes had to be paid by the city. The Board of Aldermen clearly won this round. Since the criticisms of the Board's action came during a public session of the City Council it would be appropriate for those staff members who mistakenly tried to lead the Board astray to make a statement correcting the error.

DAVID BOWER LEGACY?
Greg sent me a text while reviewing the Board of Aldermen meeting this week. He wrote (in part) I’ve been watching the meeting. Tom Cole gave an economic report. He said over the course of the 23 year TIF for Walmart, the initial bonds were $35 million.  The total cost of the payback by Raytown will cost $90 million. Thank you David Bower.”

BY JENN
Easy Weeknight 
Meal Ideas
As I wrote about on Fit Bottomed Mamas recently, making dinner with a new baby can be daunting. But, I also realize that getting healthy eats on the table every night — whether you have a newborn at home or not — can also be tough. Whether you’re working long hours, taking care of loved ones, training for a big race or simply have a lot of to-dos on your list, I can see how “making dinner” can be replaced by something more convenient like, say, take-out. BUT! In the first few months with my little girl, I learned a number of tricks and tips to make dinner a breeze. Or, at least, more doable. From really delicious and stupidly easy slow cooker meals to what freezes well to recipes to make with minimal prep (and, even, one-handed!), I wanted to share what I learned the hard way. That way you don’t have to! READ MORE

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33 comments:

GADSDEN said...

Greg sent me a text while reviewing the Board of Aldermen meeting this week. He wrote (in part) “I’ve been watching the meeting. Tom Cole gave an economic report. He said over the course of the 23 year TIF for Walmart, the initial bonds were $35 million. The total cost of the payback by Raytown will cost $90 million. Thank you David Bower.”



The above information that I want to thank Greg for is the kind of information that the tax payers of Raytown need to know.

For those that say we need another Wal-Mart let them do it with out a TIF or any other tax benefit from the taxpayer.

Again thanks to Greg for the above information

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this information Greg I will be making copies of this to pass out at Doughboys.

Elisa Breitenbach

Anonymous said...

Thank you Sue Frank who is also responsible for this

Anonymous said...

Sue Frank did support the 350 Walmart deal. She chose to let it stagnate unfinished. Bower finished the deal. Sue also opposed a Walmart in Downtown Raytown.

David Bower pushed the 350 Walmart deal to completion. David Bower was well aware of the mountain of debt he created for the City in creating the 350 Walmart deal. Apparently he did not learn from his mistake.

Don't try to blame Sue Frank for what David Bower did.

Anonymous said...

Bower and Frank are no longer Mayors of Raytown.

Anonymous said...

So where is the rest of the police department going to be while 22 are at the temporary building? Are they going to be at the PD? Is that safe or are the citizens looking at workers compensation claims and settlements?

Betty Sue said...

Anon 7:53

You're right - Frank and Bower are no longer mayor. But the increasing debt they left will be with us for many years. It was pointed out at the last BOA meeting that the $32 million debt will cost the city $90 million to repay. Somebody explain how that is a good deal.

Pat Casady said...

WalMart and Block have NOT lived up to their promises!
Block promises us stores all along 350 hwy. and across the
street just east of the old YMCA.
I feel that since they haven’t lived up to their promises then
legal action should be taken to relieve the financial burden
placed upon the tax payers. Make WalMart and Block pay
for lying and deceiving to get their deal.
$90,000,000.00 is criminal!

Peter said...

To 7:59 am
The personnel staff and their office cubitculs will be moved to the tempt location. No one at the police department will be unemployed. It is much like when Sprint or Quintiles has to temporarily move from one office setting to another business still goes on in the same fashion just a different location . No Need To Worry about Citizen Safety or the City being concerned with unemployment cost .

GADSDEN said...

Elisa, good idea to let as many people know as possible what Wal-Mart is costing us along with our police dept.. kept busy arresting one or two a day that we know of.

The last thing we need is another Wal=Mart and another TIF to cost the tax payers of Raytown more funds.

Peggy Sue said...

Pat - Who's going to pay for the lawsuit? Corporate and municipal lawyers charge upwards of $500 per hour. The legal fees could run close to a million dollars. Walmart has deep, deep pockets. They can afford to keep stalling and getting continuances. I'd be willing to bet a year's pay that there is nothing in the contract that guarantees revenue or TIF payments on Walmart's part. The only people who would win in that scenario is the lawyers.

Anonymous said...

Not unemployment Peter, workers comp due to employees being inside the building during renovations. There are more than 22 employees at the department. Are they going to have AC during the work, bathrooms etc. are there harmful things like asbestos that those employees not part of the 22 privileged employees that get to move will be breathing in, therefore causing worker comp claims because they have to stay at PD?

Peter said...

Asbestos won't be a problem since the building was built in 1975. And I don't believe an HVAC was in the renovation plan.
A workman compt claim could be now tripping or anything else; so this won't up those claims. Don't think plumbing was in the renovations or was it?? City Hall has plenty of restrooms within its building; a person may have to walk alittle further just as any employee in any other business may have to.

GADSDEN said...

GADSDEN said...
Elisa, good idea to let as many people know as possible what Wal-Mart is costing us along with our police dept.. kept busy arresting one or two a day that we know of.

The last thing we need is another Wal=Mart and another TIF to cost the tax payers of Raytown more funds.

July 14, 2015 at 12:02 PM




GREG, THE FIRST PARA OF THE ABOVE SOMEHOW GOT ALL MESSED UP

GADSDEN said...

GADSDEN said...
Elisa, good idea to let as many people know as possible what Wal-Mart is costing us along with our police dept.. kept busy arresting one or two a day that we know of.

The last thing we need is another Wal=Mart and another TIF to cost the tax payers of Raytown more funds.

July 14, 2015 at 12:02 PM




GREG, THE FIRST PARA OF THE ABOVE SOMEHOW GOT ALL MESSED UP

Anonymous said...

Is everyone forgetting how generous WalMart is? They occasionally throw Raytown a tidbit of $1000 or slightly more as a donation to the EMS or Police Department for much need equipment. Nice, but doesn't impress me!
Andy Whiteman

Anonymous said...

Cops will be working out of the Fire Station 1.

To bad the city was not as accommodating with the request to move back to local dispatching.

Pat Casady said...

Peggy Sue,
Let’s see, $90,000,000.00 Vs. a few hundred thousand in
Lawyer fees? If it saves Raytown taxpayers, and if a good lawyer
thinks Raytown has a case, then why not? Raytown could
use that money for city uses to make life better for the taxpayers
not to relieve WalMart and Block from their promises.

Anonymous said...

Pat,
If an attorney thinks it is a good case, he should take it on contingency. That would be a $30M or greater fee!
Andy Whiteman

Peggy Sue said...

Pat - what are you proposing? That the city sue Block because they didn't build more businesses? Or that the businesses Block brought in didn't have the projected revenues? All Block has to say is they tried and no one wanted to relocate to Raytown. Even you, before the past election, referred to Raytown as a ghetto. Why would Lowes, Home Depot, or any other big box store want to come here?

Pat Casady said...

Peggy Sue,
First of all, to my knowledge I have never called Raytown
a “Ghetto.” I have said this town we love has gone downhill
in the last twenty years, even said it was a sinking ship.
Now, when Block and WalMart converged on City Hall with
their plan for the new WalMart, and quite a few mouth pieces
telling our elected officials how great things would be if
they approved the deal to give them millions in tax brakes
they then sweetened the deal with promises of many new
businesses ready to move in along 350hwy. and across
the highway to the south.
The paper even printed a picture of what Raytown could
expect the seven new businesses they were bringing in
would look like.
What I can’t understand is why you think it is OK for
Raytown taxpayers to pay out $90,000,000.00 for a company
that makes over a QUARTER BILLION in profits each year,
and lied to the people of Raytown just to get a sweet tax deal.
Just think what our streets could be like if Raytown wasn’t
paying out millions of dollars each year from the cities tax
income to pay for this bad deal.
WalMart and Block care nothing about Raytown!
You watch, if WalMart isn’t making the profit they think
they should they will fold and high tail it out of here and
leave you and the rest of the taxpayers holding the
$90,000,000.00 bag.
By the way, it’s nice to converse with someone that signs
their name to what they write. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

I still ask how many $$$$$$ were under the table on these "deals" and to whom?

Anonymous said...

Raytown is the ghetto in a lot of the neighborhoods. Poor code enforcement, section 8 housing and low if any police presence. It's really sad. Raytown use to be a vibrant community years ago, but not anymore. Those days are gone my friends. Society is getting meaner and meaner and good folks are getting more scared. With a country that is nearing 20 Trillion in debt, there is more concern about a flag, or a man becoming a woman and getting an award That kind of national debt that will lower our standard of living if not addressed soon. If it's not too late already.

Beth said...

Raytowns home building boomer in the 1950s and then a spirt in the 60s late 70s. Many of the original owners are off in nursing homes and the houses have been bought up for rentals. A lot of small houses compared to the building of today. Rsytown has no where to go. No freed up land left for housing additions or multi shopping areas

Anonymous said...

Yes and nothing will get better if all one does is whine and piss and moan.
how about coming up with constructive ideas and answers
how about being part of the solution and thinking outside the box
how about supporting our newer aldrrmen and mayor in moving this city forward
doesnt much matter what is behind us, we just need to move forward and try harder and be united

Peggy Sue said...

So, how come it took the city attorney a month to get a new lease? All it took was one phone call. I bet if he had presented the revised lease June 16, the police could have moved in. The building wasn't sold (according to the paper) until July 15. Block would have probably had to make arrangements for the new owner to allow the city to stay the whole six months. Perhaps the Board needs to take a closer look at that.

GADSDEN said...

Now that we finally know the total possible damage to Raytown with Wal-Mart it would be interesting to find out how much of our tax payer money has gone into making up the payments each year. I hope that someone will let us in on that part of the story.

Again I thank Grey for printing the first part of the story.

Thansks

Anonymous said...

A broken promise by the new mayor is the first of many I'm sure, At last nights BOA meeting the BOA approved a new form of light weight seal aggregate for the streets of Raytown. The mayor promised when he made one of his campaign speeches he would resurface the streets no more light weight aggregate. This is being done with the mayors seal of approval. A few of the alderman are all excited because it will be black and look more like a repaved street. Is this because they can fool the tax payer into believing it has truly been repaved. Maybe the mayor should have attended a few of the council meetings and looked into the city finances before making such promises. I personally don't mind the light weight seal aggregate because I know the reason it is being done, I just don't like being lied to. Seems like this mayor is no better than what we have had in the past.

Anonymous said...

Anon 7:32 AM
At least he did not let them put down the old stuff anymore.
I saw pictures of the new stuff and then went and looked at it in Lees Summit. It is nothing like the old stuff and it is a hard seal not soft stuff. Looks just like asphalt to me. So before you bag on them try seeing what it does and what it looks like. Sometimes people have to make the dollars stretch more than they thought. That does not make them a liar.

Marilyn said...

Anon 7:32

When was the last time you picked up the phone and called your alderman or mayor? You moan and groan about what you think you know. Did you express your opinion to an elected official? Did you call the director of public works to ask about the new street seal? I'd bet a month's pay you just decided to complain without knowing all the facts. Next time, check first. You will appear more intelligent than you do now.

Pat Casady said...

Let’s get the facts right.
Mayor McDonough said he wouldn’t use the light weight
aggregate as you stated. How here’s the deal. The city
has to put the newer heaver sealer on some streets so they
don’t go downhill so they can put the asphalt overlays on
the streets that are worse off. Then when the tax income
builds back up these sealed streets that were protected by
the newer sealant can be repaved with minimal damage cost.
Remember the past administration cost the taxpayers millions
of tax dollars yearly with the WalMart deal, so this administration
has to use tax dollars sparingly.
Mayor McDonough did not lie to you or anybody else.
You will have to try again. (Anonymous!)

Marjain Breitenbach said...

I agree with Pat. The City is not using the lightweight sealer used in the past. It is a heavier sealer with granite particles. Its Life expectancy is twice what has been used in the past. It is called Diamond something. Other cities use it and the officials went and inspected it. It is a far superior product. It will not replace asphalt but will hopefully be able to be used to protect roads while others are being repaired. We are still using the old budget set up by the old officials. Rome was not built in a day. But hopefully this group of elected aldermen will be honest with the citizens and keep the channels of communication open for all. It is easy to call people names when you remain Anonymous.

Brian said...

Just a note on the story about the lease issues. Had the city signed the lease to the building with Block and the building been sold it would not have been "sold out from underneath" the city. The lease would still have been binding. This is standard and law with any real estate lease.
The new owners are legally bound by any lease in place on the property.

The fortunate ones are the new owners. They now have a new property with no lease in place so they can do whatever they want there right away. It also is likely good for the city. In general companies purchase these kind of properties with intentions to put something there. This sale likely means we will soon see a new business going in there.