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The Paul Livius Report
Raytown Board of Aldermen Meeting – May 20, 2014
Mayor Bower saidthat we hear of
individuals performing extraordinary acts to help others.One such example of selflessness was recently
demonstratedon May 3, 2014, when Lee Dickerson and Aaron Basquez demonstrated
greatbravery, quick thinking and heroism when they saved a child from a
potentially lifethreatening situation by assisting in the rescue of the child
from a swimming pool. The Board of Aldermen wishes to commend Lee Dickerson
andAaron Basquez for their rapid response and the heroism they demonstrated
whileplacing their own safety in jeopardy by taking immediate action in a
dangeroussituation and for the outstanding example they set for the citizens of
Raytown.
Mayor Bower declared Mike McDonough the 2014 Truman
Heartland Citizen of the Year.
Andy Noll gave the Board the annual pavement
maintenance program during a study session.
For more information, go to http://www.raytown.mo.us/vertical/sites/%7B418C71C3-E397-4C87-B464-C498EC8900F9%7D/uploads/05-20-14_Web_Packet-1.pdf. Start on page 3.
The Board passed a resolution approving the
purchase of computer equipment and supplies from Dell Marketing. Dan Berry told the Board the request is for
technology purchases from Dell Government Sales, which includepreferred
discount pricing on Dell computer and servers.
Dell is a member of the Western StatesContracting Alliance (WSCA), a
national cooperative purchasing alliance, which creates multi-statecontracts in
order to achieve cost-effective and efficient acquisition of quality products
and services. Information Technology
request permission to purchase replacement computers and servers as part ofthe
City’s planned, technology replacement program.
The technology replacement programs earmarka 5-year replacement of
workstation/computers and 7-year replacement of Dell enterprise servers. Thetechnology replacement schedules allow for
maximum ROI on technology procurements whilemaintaining Dell service warranty
on mission critical hardware and applications.
The Board passed a resolution approving the
purchase agreement for the sale of city owned property. Andy Noll told the Board that in October 2013,
the Board of Aldermen asked City Staff to market the surplusproperty located at
8506 Westridge. Staff listed the
property with Evergreen Real EstateServices and a buyer was identified. The attached sales contract represents an
offer for$116,000 including a few pieces of underutilized personal property
which is currently storedon-site. Staff
has reviewed the contract and believes the offer is fair and equitable. The attached contract also includes a list of
the buyers “planned property improvements” whichwill bring the entire property
within the City’s required property maintenance codes. The proposed buyer is 8506 Westridge, LLC
represented by Brian Bamesberger of StarDrywall, an existing Raytown commercial
business.
Alderman Pat Ertz told the Board he has found smoke
shops in Raytown that sell paraphernalia such as glass pipes. Alderman Ertz said Independence, Mo limits
the number of smoke shops selling these items.
Raytown can and should limit these shops. Alderman Emerson asked why the city can’t
come up with a list of items that can’t be sold in Raytown. Chief Lynch said it is not illegal to sell
these items in Raytown unless it is for illegal activity. Joe Willerth said it is already illegal to sell
these items to anyone under 18 years old.
He told the Board it is better to regulate these items through
zoning. The Board can limit the number
of shops based on population. They can
keep these shops away from schools, parks, and churches. Mayor Bower asked Alderman Ertz to meet with
other Aldermen and see if they can make a plan for an ordinance.
 |
| BY GREG WALTERS |
Another Poll!
Last week we ran a poll to find out the preference
of readers as to the official designation for the elected governing body of
Raytown City Hall. The question is timely, because the Raytown Charter
Commission will be discussing, for at least the next two meetings, changes in
the rules of how we elect our city officials.
The poll results will speak for themselves – so we
will not dwell on them (see results following this story). Let's just call it our way of trying to make it possible for the people of Raytown to participate in the writing of the Charter.
Speaking of which. The Charter Commission will be holding its fourth meeting this coming Tuesday, May 27th, at Raytown City Hall. The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. These are public meetings with time set aside for public comment. So if you have something you would like to add to the proceedings or just want to see exactly what is going on come on by.
Another question that is sure to come up in the
Charter Commission discussions will be whether or not to create term limits for
elected officials. A number of surrounding cities have adopted term limits,
most notably Lee’s Summit and Kansas City, Missouri. The State of Missouri has
term limits for members of the House and Senate. Incidentally, the change in
the State was forced by an initiative petition by Missouri voters, as was the
adoption of term limits in Kansas City.
So, what do you think? This week’s poll question
asks your opinion on the question of term limits.
This Week’s Poll
Last Week’s Poll Results
Raytown Farmer's Market to Open
Thursday May 29th will be the opening day for the Raytown Farmers' Market. Market hours are Thursday 2pm to 7pm and Saturdays from 8am to 1pm. Come on out and enjoy the fun!!
Raytown Charter
News Link
The Raytown Charter Commission has created a webpage to keep Raytowners informed on the progress of the Commission. The page has links to the Minutes and Video of past meetings. Use the following link to visit the page.
Which designation do you prefer for the governing
body at Raytown City Hall?
28% . . . . Raytown Board of Aldermen
72% . . . . Raytown City CouncilRaytown Farmer's Market to Open
Thursday May 29th will be the opening day for the Raytown Farmers' Market. Market hours are Thursday 2pm to 7pm and Saturdays from 8am to 1pm. Come on out and enjoy the fun!!
Vendors:
Apron Strings and Other Things
Due Season Farmlet
Josiah and Gladys Chumba
Sister Friends
The Dancing Pig
The Little Muddy Farm
The Townshend's English
Gardens
Children's educational
area: Terry Shepherd from Butterfly Fields Nursery will be presenting
educational activities for children.
Adult Education Area: Mark
Morales from Bridging the Gap is teaching Rain Barrel Making Sign up for the
class by emailing Raytown Farmers' Market at RaytownFarmersMarket@gmail.com
cost of class is $65 and you take your Rain Barrel home.
The Raytown Charter Commission has created a webpage to keep Raytowners informed on the progress of the Commission. The page has links to the Minutes and Video of past meetings. Use the following link to visit the page.
USE THIS LINK .
. . CHARTER COMMISSION
 |
| BY JENN |
Grilled Watermelon
Recipe
Recipe
It’s a holiday weekend and you know what that means
— it’s time to fire up the barbie! We’ve shown you how to grill veggies and avocados, and today — with the help of George
Duran, author of Take this Dish and Twist It and
host of TLC’s “Ultimate Cake Off” on behalf of ConAgra Foods — we’re going to
show you how to make the easiest, tastiest and healthiest dessert ever: grilled
watermelon!
Read
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42 comments:
One meeting of the charter commission has happened. Tomorrow they will have there second meeting and I am sure that we will see something concrete start to take shape.
All the citizens that are worried about the meetings should attend or at least watch the video when it is posted.
As long as they are not forced into a corner with some extreme measures I for one think that we will see a charter that is workable. Greg has so far done a good job with keeping us updated.
Let us wait until after the second meeting before we start to criticize so much.
Greg has done a good job keeping us updated. Tonight should be a good meeting. Did anyone on the blogs go to or hear about the "Quiet" meeting on the Greenspace? I was in hopes the newspapers would report something. That did NOT happen so I hope someone on the blogs can report about it for us. Thanks Greg keep up the good work the Good People of Raytown need you.
I agree Gadsen. Ive seen somethings to give me hope on this Charter. I think there is good leadership on there from what Ive seen.
What the hell is a quiet meeting?
It's a meeting held without fanfare hoping no one would pick up on it.
According to the local paper, four -- count them -- four of the l2 members of the charter commission did not show up for their initial meeting.\
That, alone, should tell anyone with a brain this venture is doomed.
Four of 12 -- What does it take to make a quorum when the future of our city is at stake.
I believe that Roberts Rules of order should prevail at in this group.
If not, the entire project will disintegrate.
One more item:
Someone on the Charter Commission wanted to conduct the meetings on the internet only.
That has to be the stupidest idea in the world.
Half of the charter members believe, or they preach, a doctrine of "Keeping it simple."
A big mistake. Running a town the size of ours is not simple. If it were, would we need all those high paid city employees.
Keep it simple is a bad idea and most certainly not the way to go.
What was the "quiet meeting" on the Green Space? This is the first I have heard of it.
Jose, Please get it straight there are 13 members on the commission and apparently 3 of the members were sick, we have all been sick at some time. The 4th member, may be he was also sick or had an excuse. Go to the meeting yourself tonight and see what happens.
Anonymous did you know the city has an information officer who keep's everyone informed? She is doing a great job right? I wish I could tell you more about the "quiet meeting" on the Green Space. The person that told me about it just made the comment about the meeting in the basement of the library they had on the Green Space. They froze up when I asked about the meeting. I asked who had the meeting? They would not tell me. All they would say was the person in charge of the Green Space had the meeting.
Maybe someone could find out approximately when the alleged meeting took place. The library does not give space and time away for the use of their meeting room. Perhaps a few well thought out questions to who was using the facility at a certain time could point you in the right direction. It certainly does not sound like whoever was involved is very proud of their participation.
Is there something rotten in Raytown?
IF, there are silent or secret meetings on the “Green
Space” or anything else, someone should find out and
make it public. I’m really getting tired of lies and deceptive
practices of this administration. If this is illegal then the hired
city lawyer needs to step up and tell the elected people
to stop or face the consequences.
The people of Raytown didn’t elected these people to go
behind their backs and go against what is right.
I used to think there were a few good elected officials in
Raytown but now I’m beginning to wonder.
So someone overheard someone say something about a meeting in the library meeting room at some unknown time with an un-named person about the green space??? And the newspaper or communication officer didn't offer up this exact information that was posted on this blog???
Library has conference rooms for rent with a 2 hr minimum. If someone saw someone or a group of someone's go into the conference room then they would know when and who. Again this is nothing concrete is it??? Let us know when the information is more concrete or atleast we know something or anything solid. Some people will say anything in the presence of others just cause they know they can get them going. We don't even know who originally said it in the first place so that too is a secret
I know when it was but I can't remember the exact date but I did see the space ship parked out back!!!
Agreed. What makes it so intriguing is that the developer was supposed to be back about a month ago with plans for consideration. Very mysterious, sneaky, sneaky! Nothing new for Raytown City Hall.
To 10:18; that's way too funny!!!
To 10:00 am; got to agree there.
I'm more with the two comments about finding out something tangible
Ha, Ha, Ha, Anonymous you need to be a secret little person on the blogs. Why is that? I did NOT over hear anything about the meeting on the Green Space. This is concrete information. Just like when the WalMart deal came out. I was not the one telling a lie or covering up the truth. I was in fact told they had a meeting on the Green Space. They would not tell me who did the meeting. What I was told was the person in charge of the Green Space held the meeting. I was also told they wanted to postpone the development. They told me they did not know anything else. I could tell the person was fearful talking about it. I truly like and respect this person who told me about the meeting. I have had people call and ask me this persons name. I am sorry if anyone has a problem with this but I understand and respect this persons fear of not wanting to talk about these people. Happy Space Ship Stories if that brings you joy. I would just like someone to blog who was at that meeting. This should not be mysterious at all. Some at Raytown City Hall don't think the public has a right to know what is going on.
Who are "they" ?
Ok now; name calling and nasty attitudes are not necessary . Be adult otherwise as it has been stated before " takes away from your comment"
Ok so now we know they wanted to postpone the development .... Well that's another piece of the puzzle. And that's good news to me
Seriously get some actual proof before making accusations. Mentioning secret meetings with people that cannot be confirmed spread by unconfirmed people.....this whole thing is stupid.
How was the Charter meeting? Did not get to go. Anyone attend that can add any info?
This is absurd. Someone writes that they were told there was a meeting at a library and asks if anyone knows anything about it. No one says there was a meeting, just that they heard there was one. This causes some to speculate about a possible meeting. This drives some others to hate speech in their comments.
Why the uproar? If nothing was going on. If there was not a meeting. Why all the anger and terse comments made only to degrade and defame?
The City Clerk at Raytown City Hall has said that Videos of the Raytown Charter Commission meetings will, be aired on channel 7 (the Comcast Government channel) on Mondays and Wednesdays at 7PM and Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10AM. Last Tuesday nights Charter Commission meeting was taped and should be broadcast on that schedule. To be certain of broadcast times please call the City Clerk's office at Raytown City Hall (737-6000).
The meeting will also be available on You Tube later this week. We will publish a link to the site once it is up.
It was a good meeting with many interesting topics and discussion. We will publish a report of the meeting this Sunday.
I for one believe Elisa.
It doesn’t take a genius to realize Elisa owns a
donut shop and some elected people as well
as city employees stop in from time to time.
Of course she talks to them and of course they
wouldn’t want their names to be told. You all know
the climate at City Hall. You go against the leader
you catch Hell for it.
Examine the past! Why wouldn’t there be secret
meetings? It has happened in the past and until
this bunch is voted out or a good charter is written
there will always be secret meetings.
If the WalMart grocery store meeting wasn’t leaked
to the public, there would be huge box sitting in the green
space right now. They don’t want a repeat of that deal.
They will want to slide the next deal through without
the public sticking their nose into it to stop it.
So all you “Anonymous” writers that hide behind that
wall and throw stones at the rest of us, just sit back
and watch for what will become true.
Anonymous bloggers get verbally attacked as well as those who use a name on their blog. People for some reason feel the need to defame anyone who has an opinion other than theirs. There were lots of people on here who signed their name and now you don't see them anymore; maybe they got too busy or left the blog all together or maybe they use the anonymous name. Who knows. You can point fun at an anonymous blogger as well as a named blogger if that's what you do. There would be more important/ interesting topics to converse about in my opinion and better use of ones time and energy
Pat you are correct many city employees would prefer their names be anonymous and it's understandable . Those same people may even be on this blog as well
Well another Raytown business is closing, this time the Hallmark store around the corner form Hi-V. Sign of the times, the young do not buy greeting cards like the old do. Mark one more up for the internet.
Pat Casady "Life Is Good" to me because of people like you:) Raytown has been a real fun place for us to be. The families and children we serve truly warm my heart. Last week we had the honor of being part of Norfleet Elementary Career Day. They told us the kids fought over us. We love what we do. We enjoy our life at our donut shop. We enjoy this community. Politics and politicians play a part in our life. If I could get each and every person to vote I would. Only a small percent will vote but most people do like donuts. Politicians and Anonymous people go hand in hand. The truth always comes to me because I always seek it. Thanks Pat for all your blogs, I always do enjoy them.
I'm not surprised the Hallmark shop is closing. You're correct that people are not buying greeting cards at the Hallmark shop. Some of it is the internet, but why should I go to the Hallmark shop when I can get a card at any grocery or department store? I'm sorry the folks who work there will be losing their jobs. Hopefully, they will find something soon.
Lillian
The Hallmark Greeting Stores had so much more than cards. Candles , confections , photo albums.. The Grocery stores carry all the same with so many more amenities . The individual specialty shops don't stand a chance in the one stop shopping world. Groceries, bakery, candles, cards, flowers , dry cleaning, hot food all under one roof. I also heard Jack Henry's on the Plaza is closing. A sign of the times for sure
For what it is worth I believe Elisa too. What exactly happened at the Quiet Meeting (I LOVE that term)will probably remain a well kept secret. As for what Elisa has said on the subject, face it folks, she was right on the Walmart deal. She is probably right on this one too.
Thxs Greg for the info on the Charter meeting. And thxs for keeping us updated and informed
Perhaps Hallmark is closing because people like me can't continue to pay $6 for a $2 greeting card. They priced themselves out of my budget.
Lillian,
I, too, am disappointed to see the Hallmark store close. Raytown's isn't the only Hallmark store to close. I live a a rural city about the size of Raytown and we lost our Hallmark store last year. The advantage of a Gold Crown Hallmark store is reward points that earn discounts on future purchases. Now I must buy my cards at a grocery store, Walgreens, or el cheapo Walmart at with the same high retail price! Also the selection is not as good as at the Hallmark stores.
In my opinion, Hallmark card sales are declining mostly because of the high prices of cards! The 99¢ cards no longer exist and it is difficult to find even a $1.99 card! I bought a Father's Day card for my brother in law who enjoys receiving cards and it was $4.99! Due to high prices, I expect Hallmark will be a sign of the past like Monkey Ward's. True Hallmark has other items, but all I want there are cards. If I have to purchase a certain balance to get my reward, I may buy candy bar to reach that amount.
Andy Whiteman
Wouldn't the library be subject to Sunshine Law too since its a public building funded by taxpayers?
To Andy
Good to see you on here again.
My in law recently retired from Hallmark. It has changed a lot over the past 40 yrs but so has a lot of things. We are at the age where we notice all the changes. We don't get the Grandkids birthday cards anymore just the gift . And I had to get a co worker a card and went to Dollar general because they were under $4.00 . We have a Dollar tree near by and I stopped in and saw they had cards. Everything's a dollar there but it's mostly off brand but who cares! Again welcome back Andy
To Terrence,
Thanks for your comment. I have been reading, but generally have no comments on the Charter, which is the main topic lately, since I am not there now and unaware of the goings on other than what I read in the Raytown Report. I have posted a few times but not published. I asked Greg about that and he stated that the posts weren't received. I suspect there may be a block of either me or certain words established by Google.
Andy Whiteman
The "Green Space" belongs to the city and for your information Elisa we the people are the city. Just once gets things straight. I just wish you were as smart as you think you are. Just sign me Gloria
Andy,
We do not have the ability to block certain words through Google. We didn't block you. We would have published your comments if they had been received.
Paul,
Not saying that you blocked me but that I thought Google blocked me. Some servers will block a sender if anyone else using that server clicks, "mark as spam." Go Daddy does that and I have emails going to spam even though I don't use that filter and don't mark as spam. Kim Komando's newsletter was blocked by AOL some time back because a few people clicked "mark as spam."
Because I receive over 200 emails a day, I set up my own filters based on addresses or subject key words. The filter will be activated by as few as 3 letters sending the email to trash. It can take me 2 hours to figure out and correct the 3 letters causing the problem. I filter to trash rather than purge because I can retrieve from trash, but if it is purged, I will never see it.
Just saying the non-received posts could be caused by Google or an unknown error on your end.
Andy Whiteman
Easy on Elisa. she has our back,
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