KC mayor ‘tired of this banging on the city crap’ by police officials
over spending
By Glenn E. Rice grice@kcstar.com Updated February 13, 2018 03:48 PM
Kansas City Mayor Sly James on Tuesday lashed out at police officials’
repeated demands for more money.
The takedown came during what was supposed to be a brief budget
discussion during the monthly Kansas City police board meeting Tuesday. James
said city workers are being forced to curb spending — and the police department
must do the same.
“You want more money, you want more officers, find more inefficiencies
in how the money is being used,” he said. “I kind of get tired of this banging
on the city crap when at the end of the day I don’t see anybody coming up with
any solutions.”
READ MORE . . . Sly James comments
READ MORE . . . Sly James comments
Mayor Cancels
MeetingBY GREG WALTERS AND PAUL LIVIUS
Sec. 2-491. - Regularly
scheduled board of aldermen meetings.
The board of aldermen
shall meet regularly on the first and third Tuesday of each month at the time
and place established from time to time by the board. Regular meetings may be
rescheduled by the majority of the board for good cause. Regular meetings will
be rescheduled to the following Tuesday if the scheduled meeting falls on a
national holiday or any election day.
REPRINTED FROM THE RAYTOWN CODE OF ORDINANCES
REPRINTED FROM THE RAYTOWN CODE OF ORDINANCES
Sec. 2-492. - Quorum
designated.
A quorum of the board of
aldermen shall be a simple majority of all the aldermen duly elected, qualified
and serving. A quorum of a board, committee, commission or other subunit of the
city shall be a simple majority of the members duly appointed, qualified and
serving, but excluding ex officio members.
REPRINTED FROM THE RAYTOWN CODE OF ORDINANCES
REPRINTED FROM THE RAYTOWN CODE OF ORDINANCES
Last Tuesday’s regular meeting of
the Raytown Board of Aldermen was cancelled by Mayor Michael McDonough. The
notification was posted on City’s website the day of the meeting. The decision
to call off the meeting is alleged to be that too many of the Aldermen were
unable to attend that evening. Ward 3 Alderman Ryan Myers and Ward 2 Alderman Jim Aziere were
out of town. Ward 5 Alderman Bonnaye Mims was ill with the flu.
Ward 4 Alderman Bill VanBuskirk was also said to be out of town. We have since learned VanBuskirk was in town on Tuesday. And, that he sent word to the Mayor's office that he was available to attend the meeting.
Ward 4 Alderman Bill VanBuskirk was also said to be out of town. We have since learned VanBuskirk was in town on Tuesday. And, that he sent word to the Mayor's office that he was available to attend the meeting.
Somewhere along the line
of communication was broken between the Mayor and Board members.
At this point it is all water under
the bridge.
But it still remains that eight items of business were supposed to be conducted last Tuesday. One of those items was the swearing in of two new officers to the Raytown Police Department.
But it still remains that eight items of business were supposed to be conducted last Tuesday. One of those items was the swearing in of two new officers to the Raytown Police Department.
 |
| BY GREG WALTERS |
Ward 5 Vacancy
Needs to be Filled
Usually, when there is a
vacancy on the Board of Aldermen, the process to appoint a new Alderman to
finish the current term is moved along quickly.
Here is how the process
works.
The Mayor appoints the
position to finish the term of office until the next city election. The
candidate’s name is placed on the agenda for the Board of Aldermen to approve
or disapprove the appointment. Six votes are required for approval of the
appointment.
The current vacancy has
been open since early November . . . over 90 days has passed . . .why hasn’t
the position been filled?
This is not first
vacancy to go unfilled by Mayor Michael McDonough.
In 2016 he left two
seats vacant for extraordinary lengths of time. In July of 2016, a seat on the
Board of Aldermen became vacant due to the sudden death of Steve Mock. Mayor
McDonough did not fill the seat, opting to allow the position to go unfilled
for nine months.
In that same year, the
Alderman Josh Greene resigned his seat on the Board because he was moving to
another town. As in the case with Mock vacancy, McDonough did not make an
appointment. The seat remained vacant for five months until a new Alderman was
elected in April of 2017.
The cancelling of last
Tuesday’s meeting shows the consequence of not filling vacancies on the Board
of Aldermen. As the events played out it shows city business hanging in limbo.
Even worse, it breaks down the communication between the public and City Hall.
Hopefully, the Mayor will
understand the need to fill every position on the Board of Aldermen and take appropriate
action.
 |
| BY PAUL LIVIUS |
Paul’s Rant!
The Rest of the Story
(with apologies to Paul Harvey)
The word on the street
is that Mayor McDonough plans to ask the Board to approve the appointment of
Melissa Beall. As of our publishing deadline, we have been unable to confirm
when the appointment would be made.
Beall is said to be a
strong supporter of McDonough. This could spell trouble for the chances of her
appointment gaining enough votes to be seated. The Mayor has been at odds with
the majority of the Board over the past year.
Six votes are required
to approve the appointment. Since there is a vacancy on the Board, that means
that four Aldermen could block the nomination.
Accusations that the
Mayor’s nominee does not actively vote in Raytown City Elections have surfaced.
No better way to set the
record straight than to check with Jackson County Election Board. Here is what was learned.
According to records
from the Jackson County Election Board, Ms. Beall first voted in the November
2004 election and continued to cast votes is national elections up until 2016. She
did vote in the Presidential Primary in 2016 but did not vote in the
Presidential Election in November of 2016.
Ms. Beall has voted
twice in city elections since she registered to vote in 2004.
As Paul Harvey would say
. . .
61 comments:
I wish Missouri had early voting like Kansas does. I think voter participation would go way up.
Voter participation will only go up if they have internet voting. Too many people are too lazy to go to the polls.
Board meetings get cancelled all the time in the corporate world and in government. Kinda silly to dedicate an entire edition of the Report to this nonissue. Yes, I want Ward 5 to have another Alderman. It is time. Actually there is much bigger news happened in Raytown. We had some big crime incidents, but no mention of them... Why?
Let me get this right our elected police chief and the mayor, who was a former police officer) complained that we don't have enough police on the street, but delay getting them on the street because the board is to good to meeting when by law they are to meet.
Something is wrong in Raytown
Alderman Moore was out of town on business as well.
Alderman Moore was out of town on business as well.
I found that absentee voting works very well for me. I don't have to wait in line and can vote in the convenience of my office sitting at my desk whatever time of day or night pleases me. I wonder why more people don't use it unless the just don't want to vote?
Andy Whiteman
The board of aldermen should vote no on Ms. Beall unless the mayor has previously discussed her appointment prior to placing her name on the agenda. The mayor needs to work with the board not against them.
I think the point of the editoiral was that if the appointment had been made in a timely manner there would have been a quoroum at the meeting. I don't know about the rest of you, but I would have liked to see two more officers sworn in last Tuesday night. Now we have to wait another two weeks before the swearing in can take place because there were not enough aldermen at the meeting.
Quick! Somebody come up with a new topic, because complaining about a meeting that was cancelled is a sleeper topic for the week. Yawn and double yawn.
It’s a formality to have them sworn in. Just for show.
Really if you don’t think they weren’t sworn in except for the board you got to be an idiot. They can be sworn in by the city clerk or the mayor it anytime usually in from the board is just a show. They can be done anytime in the clerks office or the mayors office. Come on really
I think the officers have already been on the street for several weeks.. The swearing in at Council meeting is ceremonial and for family to attend etc.
I thought absentee voting was only to be used if someone was going to be out of town, they are disabled, or having surgery. I thought that they had to attest to the reason.
Lots of folks would be doing absentee voting for "whatever reason" just because we didn't want to go vote on a Tuesday. I wouldn't lie just to get an absentee ballot.
The officers are always sworn in by the city clerk when they are ready for duty. The swearing in at the Board meeting is nothing more than a formal introduction to the board and citizens. The swearing in in public is not even required
I really believe that the city wants Raytown to become blighted and full of criminals. Just look at the infrastructure and the crimes that are being committed. Signs going up in the right of ways again seeking to buy houses. Vacant houses everywhere. Pawn shops, liquor stores, booze joints, tattoo parlors, convenience stores every hundred feet, gravel roads. Come on, enough already!
4:15 am -
Where have you been? We've had crimes being committed, signs going up in the right of ways seeking to buy houses, vacant houses everywhere, pawn shops, liquor stores, booze joints, tattoo parlors, convenience stores every hundred feet, and gravel roads since Sue Franks was in office. Nothing has changed. It might seem to get worse because there are the same dozen or so people who post an unlimited number of comments on a social media page about the same incident. Point in fact, there were 183 posts about the one incident at Walmart Saturday. If you look at the crime statistic page, you will see crime hasn't really increased in Raytown. And, it's much worse in Independence and Lee's Summit. Put down the Kool-Aid.
Here we go again. The juvenile name calling. Just read a post where someone called somebody and idiot! Boy that was enlightening. It really said more abuot the name caller than his target.
As for crime in our city, it is rampant everywhere in the metro area. Heard on the news this morning. A shooting out by the Legends shopping center. Another one in South Kansas City. Seems South KC has the most -- but who is keeping track?
By the way, I think the guys that put this blog together do a pretty good job. There articles are timely and most of the time on point. keep up the good work.
@6:23 a.m.
No. Crime is not much worse in Lee's Summit. Sorry, I used to live there and have family there now, and they don't have the problems we have.
@8:01
Well this weeks topic was timely, irrelevant, and boring!
I love my Raytown neighborhood, but it is on the low end of house prices and is getting a lot of rental homes and well, how do I say this while being polite, some of my new neighbors don't take care of their property and when they are run-down and nasty, it also affects my property and I feel ashamed of the way it looks when I drive up and down my street.
In recent years I have never been asked a reason for absentee voting. I just have to affirm my address, name, and DOB as a registered voter. I think they prefer that people vote rather than not vote.
Andy Whiteman
Greg you do a good job.
I do miss the fact that we no longer have a newspaper in Raytown. I know that a lot of people did not like Randy but it was better to have some information rather than none.
So when we have problems in our city we really do not have any way to know about it. I do not have Facebook, snap chat or any other of social media forms.
Mr. Mayor please start thinking for the good of the city, forget about keeping the Police Chief happy. Let us have a transparent government in city hall. Do not do as Frank White does, take 6 months to study the problem.
@10:56
Rental houses all over the place. Some residents are fine with this.
Rentals? Have three across from me. One is well kept and looks fine the other two are pretty nasty. Rude people with lots of trash and bad azz dogs.
To 10:56 who is happy about the large increase in rental houses? Greedy slum lords? You must not live in a neighborhood with a lot of rentals.
7:18 pm
I'm not fine with rental houses either.
One of the rental houses by me has a family of several people yet no one can bring in the big trash bin from the curb after trash day. Also we're lucky if they mow once a month. (Actually, they don't mow. Several teens live there yet they pay to have someone come over and mow.) Sometimes I wonder if they know what is involved in living in a house. I wonder if they are section 8.
Renters don't care how things look because it is not their house.
7:18 pm
I don't know of anyone who is fine with a lot of rental properties in Raytown.
Who are these folks who don't mind rental properties? Are they living in apartments themselves?
Rentals bring property values down.
I don't want Melissa Beall representing me because she is the mayors pick I want an independent thinker not a puppet that the mayor tells what to do and how he wants her to vote.
Why is the mayor making announcements about the PD new procedures when making a crime report? Shouldn't that be the chiefs job? Oh that's right the mayor is still a policeman he forgot he was elected mayor and forgot to turn in his badge You are a sad excuse for a mayor.
I wonder if the increase in crime in Raytown is related to the changing demographics of our community? I guess let's just sweep that question under the rug and instead listen to our Aldermen argue about where to put reelection signs in the right-of-way as we set and ponder why Cityhall/PD can't budget taxpayer dollars worth a damn and how giving them more money to mismanage is what got us into this mess in the first place.
These so call "professionals" Cityhall hires have no skin in game when it comes to what's best for Raytown. Their only concern is for themselves and their family, who are living in a nicer, safer community and school districts like Liberty and Lee's Summit.
Get what you can while you're employed with the city: $$$$$$ and kick the can down the road until your departure. We've seen this in the past city administrator and finance person, and nothing has really changed since they left for greener pastures. Just a different face to the same old crap.
From what I’ve seen on Facebook it was just a share by he and others. Wow can you get any pickier
11:54 a.m.
I think it is a good idea for certain City positions to require residency in the City. It would be easier to achieve if the school districts in the City(Raytown and Hickman Mills) were actually places you would want to send your children to. The City administrator should be one position where City residency is required.
I think Tom Cole is doing an excellent job. Dealt a bad hand and is trying to turn things around. We, the citizens of Raytown could make his job easier by supporting the City and raising the levy,--a levy that has not been raised in close to 4 decades.
Ummmm
Probably because the police are part of the city and he wants to be sure he shares things that make any portion of city operations more efficient
Interesting story in KC Star this morning.
It is titled: "Mayor Blasts Police Official Over Money".
No newspaper here anymore but you wouldn't see that story about Raytown.
Why do we have chief of police? (I should say city marshal because that is really what his title is), or for that fact even a police department if we can go on line to file crime that occurs. Just wondering
"I think Tom Cole is doing an excellent job. Dealt a bad hand and is trying to turn things around."
"Dealt a bad hand...."? That's the understatement of the year. Tom Cole deserves some kind of national public service award. He is indeed doing an EXCELLENT job.
Can you imagine what Tom Cole is compelled to confront each day when he's sitting behind his desk at City Hall?
"As he sits at his desk, he hears footsteps...voices in the outer alcove....his pulse accelerates..."
What is the link to the "Mayor Blasts Police Official Over Money"
Sorry it is not showing up so maybe the police took it down
Interesting and timely reporting this week. Why does the mayor drag his feet on making appointments to open seats on the BOA. I wonder if he feels he can control the Board better when there are fewer members? Could very well be the case this time around!
Only certain things can be reported on line. I’m sure it’s due to the minimal manpower they have.
Why does Raytown, a city of less than 30,000 people and 10 square miles, have two more members of the board than Lee’s Summit? A city of close to or more than 100,000 people and not sure on square miles, but a lot more than Raytown. Small town politics.
The article is in the KC Star.
The writer said it was in KC star
It was not about Raytown but another city
You think with the stuff the board has had to deal with the mayor has had much success finding quality people to step into office You wish him to appoint just anyone just to fill a spot
We have received an extraordinary number of requests to create a link to a story printed in the Kansas City Star about comments Mayor Sly James made regarding police department requests for additional funds. To view the story go to this week's Raytown Report. The story and a link to the story is posted for your review.
This City is very fortunate to have the City Administrator and Finance Director that we presently have. The City Administrator faces problems every day that were not of his doing, but is trying diligently to bring this City back to where it used to be. The Finance Director is finding so much that has been hidden for years and she is at the top of her profession. You have a Board who has been faced with all the junk that was dropped in their laps from decades back. Citizens of Raytown, you had better be glad that we have the staff and Board that we have. Give them time and our City will be better off than it has been in decades.
"You think with the stuff the board has had to deal with the mayor has had much success finding quality people to step into office You wish him to appoint just anyone just to fill a spot" February 16, 2018 at 6:30 AM
Oh plueeze. Hiya, Mikey.
Syntax, punctuation... -> we gotcha.
It's by far not your first go-round "en anonyme".
And we beg to differ.
Dispense with spending so much time on social media and resolve the alderman issue.
Greg thanks for the post
The resume of Melissa Beall is posted on the board minutes for Tuesday the 20th. She is a Funeral director by trade. Has a masters in business administration and a long history of serving on boards and commissions, and other volunteer organizations. Very civic minded nominee. A great nominee for the 5th Ward.
If the residents of Ward 5 don't like Melissa Beall, they won't have long to wait until she moves on to the next thing. She hasn't had the same job for more than 3 years. Sounds like she does something for awhile, gets bored, and moves on. No stability at all.
@3:49
Wow. The negativity. I actually know something about the funeral industry as I considered becoming a funeral director at one time. Funeral directors are in short supply. If she changed jobs every few years it’s most likely to earn more money. Believe it or not, being a funeral director is a good job that allows you to live anywhere in the U.S.A. Not everyone can do this job. I am amazed at how people speak so negatively without knowledge. In the end it makes you look foolish.
I am not concerned about someone changing jobs being on the BOA. But I do believe we need an independent person in that position. I don't think Ms. Bealle fills the bill there. She is tied way too closely to Mayor McDonough. He has been anything but an independent-minded politician. His ties to the p.d. are well known. His actions during the city's budget crisis smacked of cronyism and taking care of good old boys. Ms. Bealle filed for office and pulled out last election. From what I understand McDonough told her to withdraw because she would not win. Heard this from many different sources. She may be smart, civic-minded and a good person. But her reliance on the Mayor is too much to trust. Raytown needs independent minded councilmen and women. Do you really believe she will be independent. I don't think so!
@8:06 a.m
If that’s the advice she was given, it was probably sound advice to withdraw. Your concerns are really overblown. Local politics is pretty basic and usually non controversial. It’s roads, bridges, and police. Not the kind of issues we see at the state or national level. I am glad Ward 5 will have full representation on the council and I hope the BOA will do the right thing and approve the nomination.
Why wouldn't she have won? She was first on the ballot. She was the only candidate filed who did not have a political activist background. A good campaign could have elected her. Even if she had lost she would have some credibility from having run. She was given bad advice.
@ 9:18 a.m.
Oh come on. You already know the answer, it’s just politically incorrect to say!
"I don't think Ms. Bealle fills the bill there. She is tied way too closely to Mayor McDonough. He has been anything but an independent-minded politician. His ties to the p.d. are well known. His actions during the city's budget crisis smacked of cronyism and taking care of good old boys." ~February 18, 2018 at 8:06 AM
cro·ny·ism
/krōnēˌizəm/
noun derogatory
"the appointment of friends and associates to positions of authority, without proper regard to their qualifications."
Cronyism. Same verse, different town, era, whatever.
Raytown, however, is the worst. The absolute WORST. We elect a few unqualified people, who in turn lean on their equally unqualified friends and associates from decades past.
The results of falling back on this tiny, aged, sinister, sneaky, inferior gene pool are now laid bare for all to see.
It's laughable. It's sad.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We're not offering any "solutions". Really?
First "solution" is to vote out a few of these disingenuous, manipulative, unproductive, repugnant fossils. Perhaps they didn't create "the problems", however they've always been completely incapable via a dearth of a number of items, including intellect and BEHAVIOR, of remedying anything here.
We need a clean slate. Those people will make mistakes too, and will learn along with the rest of us, but hopefully they'll be the type of folks with heart and sincerity that will raise this city back up. People that we can all wrap around and fully support.
Start fresh. There is no other way. I can't believe that we keep doing this.
I live in Ward 5. I have the right as a citizen to expect full and equal representation on the BOA for the Ward that I live in. Everything that 5:20 PM has said is nothing more than divisive petty politics. Mrs Beall is qualified by education and her public and volunteer service.
"Mrs Beall is qualified by education and her public and volunteer service."
Mrs Beall, did you write this?
If/when this person is appointed, they'll be met with open minds. If their behavior is the polar opposite of some of the current characters in office, they'll do just fine. Otherwise, best that she carry on with her "public And volunteer service" without crossing the threshold at City Hall.
There should and will continue to be zero tolerance for the actions and behavior of some of the current officeholders.
9:02 am
Wrong. And funny.
It’s really not that hard to figure out who wrote the Ward 5 post. The evidence is out there. :) What concerns me is your apparent lack of concern that Ward 5 is underrepresented on the council. I am concerned about it. I have every right to be.
"What concerns me is your apparent lack of concern....".
Huh?
WRRRRONG! Where?
Fill the thing already. We need as many bottoms as possible planted in those seats. Just fill the Ward Five seat with a productive, level-headed individual.
Next time read. READ! Too funny.
Well let me help a few people out, especially the Raytown unleash 10 or 12 un-educated folks. They want to run things but never step out and do anything. They set in the wings and wait like swine, waiting on directives from the mayor. No one can do anything right but them, yet they have never ran for anything in their miserable life. They give Raytown a bad name and continued (along with the pd and mayor) a bad reputation. Wake up people this is not the wild wild west - you need to come into the 21st century. I applauded these 6 board members for having the guts and standing up to the past fashion who want to hold on to a city that's been sinking for some time. We've got a good administrative team, who needs support to dig us out of this hole that we're in since the Sue Frank era. Wake up people.
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