RAYTOWN'S LEADING NEWS SOURCE

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BREAKING NEWS

RAYTOWN, MO (KCTV) - A Raytown school board member's husband was assaulted at their home by would-be robbers as she looked in horror.

Bobbie Saulsberry's husband was treated at the hospital for minor injuries.

And residents of the normally quiet cul-de-sac are now on edge.
"Terrible news to hear," said James Edwards. "This has been a quiet neighborhood."

John Saulsberry, 69, arrived home from work to his residence in the 8400 block of Woodson Drive. It was 1 a.m. Tuesday. READ MORE

BY GREG WALTERS

What a Difference!

What a difference a month can make! It has been a little over a month since the new Mayor and Board of Aldermen have been sworn into office.

Usually that means a couple of the name plates on the dais are changed and business goes on as usual. But the 2015 Municipal Election in Raytown was anything but usual.

The election brought five new faces to elected positions. Only one incumbent returned from the previous term of office. The other incumbents either did not run for office or were trounced heavily by the voters at the polls.

The most notable change is that the elected body has thrown away the rubber stamp that had been used to pass legislation, particularly on spending issues, in the past eight years. This new Board of Aldermen has shown they are an independent bunch.

The last meeting was a prime example.

City staff had recommended the Board approve a measure to spend $33,950.00 to convert  vehicles in the Public Works Department from gasoline fuel to propane.

On the face of it would appear to be a sound proposal. After all, who is not opposed to helping the environment by limiting the use of fossil fuels? But the broad picture did not tell the whole story. Board members correctly pointed out that half of the vehicles chosen for the conversion would be near the end of their service life at the end of the payback period.

Since it takes nearly five years to pay off the conversion cost of hardware used on the vehicles, the plan did not make economic sense. As pointed out by members of Board (and more than a few bloggers to this publication) it would make more sense to buy new vehicles already equipped for propane fuel as vehicles are retired from service and replaced.

The Board has also shown it is keeping a close watch on how the money is spent. When City Staff suggested taking money from the city street light fund to pay for cost over-runs at the  city’s water park, Super Splash, the Board spoke as one with an emphatic “NO”.

The Board has the ability to set policy, particularly in how the city spends its money. The poor judgement exhibited by City Staff on maintenance vehicles and the spending of unfunded tax dollars on Super Splash clearly illustrates the change is long overdue. The Board of Aldermen needs to take a pro-active part in the city's budget process. This something that was not practiced under the previous administration.

For too long the city has drained money from street maintenance and street light accounts for pet projects of the administration. The lack of proper maintenance on neighborhood streets is a detriment to Raytown. Streets that were supposed "repaired" with light aggregate seal look more worn and uneven than they did before they were fixed with the flawed process.

A quick visit to City Hall shows where a good amount of the money has been spent. The interior of the building has been completely remodeled, and the spending is not done. A recent report told of $33,822.00 which is slated for new carpeting of the office spaces in the building. It is also interesting to note that one of the few streets to receive asphalt instead of light aggregate seal (Raytown Road between 63rd Street and 59th Street) leads directly to City Hall's parking lot!

The lack of proper maintenance on neighborhood streets has come with at a cost. The result has been a decline in property values and the loss of curb appeal in our residential neighborhoods.

The new Board of Aldermen has shown they are not afraid to step up and make changes when they see fit. Mayor Michael McDonough has shown he is willing to let the Board govern.

It is truly a breath of fresh air at City Hall. The Mayor and Board should continue making changes in priorities to benefit the residents of Raytown.

Paul’s Rant 

Part of my job is to review stories in other Raytown publications and comment on them. The following are my thoughts about a press release that ran in the Raytown Times two weeks ago.

The headline read “City Gains Recognition for Community Efforts”. I thought this must be a good thing. So I read on wondering what it was Raytown was being recognized for.

Six columns later (about half a page of newsprint) I learned Raytown had won the Bronze Level Award. This prestigious level means . . . it was worded so poetically that I must put it down as it was written:

“The bronze level that Raytown attained recognizes heightened awareness of the issues and requires a resolution or commitment by the city’s elected body, along with community presentations and public engagement.”

So there you have it. If anyone wants to know what has been happening in Raytown just tell them we have attained recognition – the coveted Bronze Level – from the Mid America Regional Council.

I did some digging and found out only four cities in the Metropolitan area received the award. It was hard to tell, but my guess is only four cities participated in the program.

Let’s see, there was Mission, Kansas and, from the Missouri side, Gladstone, Grandview and Raytown.

Raytown received the “Bronze Award”. Which makes this writer wonder, were the awards handed out like they do at the Olympics? Was there a Gold and Silver Award? Or, was it more like the practice in Little League Baseball where everybody wins an award!

I guess it is important to understand “heightened awareness of the issues”. And probably equally important for the city show “commitment and resolution” by city hall.

There is also a part of me that wishes the city would put more effort into taking better care of the city’s infrastructure, like our neighborhood streets, streetlights, sidewalks, etc. You really do not need a study session to learn this is where Raytown truly needs fixing. If more effort were put into those basic areas, we could all put our pictures in the newspaper receiving an award for a job well done.

At least that is what I think……What do you think?

BY JENN

Whole-Wheat Waffles 

with Sliced Strawberries and Yogurt

Do you ever see Martha Stewart recipes and think: “Man, no way can I pull something like that off”?

Well, think again, because today we have a whole-wheat waffles recipe from her new cookbook — Clean Slate: A Cookbook and Guide: Reset Your Health, Detox Your Body, and Feel Your Best — and although it is gorgeous and perfectly Pinterest-looking, we promise it is easy to make. Plus, it’s totally healthy! READ MORE


Recycling for Raytown?

SPG Solutions, a small Raytown business owned and operated by Greg Walters, has made an application for a $100,000 Grant offered by Chase Manhattan, to help fund and operate a Recycling Center in Raytown.

The stated purpose of the grant application would be used to develop a community recycling center in Raytown, Missouri.

Chase Manhattan, through its Foundation, Mission Main Street Grants, will give two million dollars to 20 eligible recipients this year. Chase Manhattan is accepting applications from eligible business from across the country for 20 awards of $100,000 each for a start-up business.

The application process and acceptance to the program uses a three part process. Part 1 is the application, which has been completed and accepted by the Mission Main Street Program. The second part requires the applicant to receive a minimum of 250 “likes” on its Facebook Page by June 19th.

How You Can Help . . .

You can help bring recycling to Raytown on a professional and permanent basis by simply casting a “like” vote on SPG Solutions via social media.

To cast your vote, use these simple instructions.

1. Click on the vote now link following these instructions.

2. It will take you to a page with the words "vote for your favorite business" across the   middle of the page.

3. In the dialogue box it will ask you to "enter company name, city or zip code".     Type in 64133. 4, To vote you will be asked to "Log in with Facebook".

5. You will be ready to cast your "like" vote at the bottom right hand corner of the page.

    USE THIS LINK . . . VOTE NOW

The "like button" appears at the right hand side of the page. Please "click" it!

All votes must be cast by June 19th, so please get the word out through social media contacts. If all goes well, by this time next year, Raytown will have a recycling center we can all be proud.

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