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| BY GREG WALTERS |
TO MEET THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24
6:00PM / AT RAYTOWN CITY HALL
The Revenue Enhancement Committee will meet to discuss issuance of General Obligation Bonds to fund street improvements in Raytown. The preliminary cost of the street improvements is expected to be high. The funding for the Municipal Bonds will be paid for by Raytown residents and business through increases in their real estate and personal property taxes.
There is not any doubt the need is there to improve Raytown streets – especially those streets in residential neighborhoods. And it is not an accident that the street improvements have fallen behind. The City has continually moved money from the General Fund that could have been used for street improvements.
The great leap forward under discussion by the Revenue Enhancement Committee is expected to create new revenue streams to pay for repair of the streets. The Board of Aldermen will make the final determination on Committee's findings.
The short version of this scenario is for Raytown homeowners and business owners to expect to pay more in property taxes to fund the projects.
To illustrate how serious the Board of Aldermen is in following this path was illustrated last Tuesday night when the Board authorized the City Administrator to enter into two (2) professional service agreements for engineering services. The purpose of these agreements is to provide engineering services through 2026.
The two firms, Walter P. Morris and Associates and Affinis Corp, specialize in Neighborhood Street Reconstruction.
According to documents provide by Affinis, the City has identified $25 to $35 Million Dollars that will be needed to complete four years of construction of ten miles of streets.
In his announcement of the Revenue Enhancement Committee meeting Ward 3 Alderman Ryan Myers said the public is invited to attend, but he will not allow public comment at the meeting.
MAP OBTAINED FROM THE BOARD OF ALDEMEN LEGISLATIVE PACKET, FEBRUARY 9, 2022. RESOLUTION No. R-3439-22.
OUR VIEW: Like Mr. Myers, I was tasked by the Board of Aldermen to serve as Committee Chairman to the city (in my case, the Park Board as well) go make recommendations on city issue. The Parks Improvement Committee was formed in the wake of violence at Colman Park shortly after I was elected.
Our first order of business was set regular meeting times, make certain they were properly publicized, and, most importantly, let the public know they were invited to attend and participate in the meetings.
I can tell you from experience that make the meetings inclusive of the public was one of the best moves the Parks Improvement Committee made.
Many of the recommendations were eventually approved by the Raytown Park Board. Improved lighting in our city parks, private security patrols to enforce park curfews, and stricter enforcement of noise pollution by the Raytown Police are a result of suggestions from the public.
Those results are because people felt their opinion was welcome at our public meetings.
Allowing the public to give their input at "public meetings" is good advice for a a local government in search of support for their projects and the increased taxes needed to pay for them.
Mr. Myers would be wise to follow that blueprint for success. It worked for the Parks Improvement Committee. Given the chance, it would work for the Revenue Enhancement Committee.
USE THIS LINK TO Comment OR VIEW COMMENT PAGE
Megan Marshall announces
campaign for Jackson County Legislature
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| MEGAN MARSHALL |
Marshall seeks to unseat two-term incumbent Tony Miller in the Democratic primary election on August 2, 2022. If elected, per Missouri statute, Marshall is allowed to serve on the school board and county legislature at the same time.
Other People’s Mail AND OUR RESPONSE
PART ONE . . . “Part of the
Problem”
Unknown commented
on "(Untitled)"
“You report on the homeless situation, but what are you
doing about it? I take food and clothing to the homeless so they don't freeze
in this weather. If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the
problem.”
The above was in response to a story we published about a couple of locations where homeless people had been seen in Raytown. We mentioned in the story the Police and Fire Department have been working together to address the problem.
Apparently the writer of the blog did not read the last sentence of the story.
So to follow up on the story we visited with Raytown’s “Community Paramedic”, Matt Cushman.
The Raytown Fire Department and the Raytown Police Department have partnered in finding an answer any homeless situation discovered in Raytown. Matt Cushman* has been designated the “Community Paramedic”. In his position he is charged in helping the homeless in Raytown.
He works directly with “Street Outreach”, and area wide organization that helps to find permanent shelter and care for those who are living on the street.
“Our effort is focused on creating a program that serves the needs of the community,” said Cushman.
To find out where homeless situations are developing Cushman relies on monitoring social media, checking areas known to be attractive to the homeless, and following reports given to him by the Raytown Police Department. Twice a week he takes to the streets of Raytown, checking out those areas where the homeless are known to gather.
He classifies the homeless population as coming from three different categories:
- One third is made up of individuals who are down and out, lost a job, lost their home, or told to leave where they were living. In many cases, they have nowhere to go.
- One third is those with significant mental health problems, are addicted to drugs or other type of substance abuse.
- One third is made up of people who prefer to live a type of lifestyle that is basically a rootless existence.
*Matt Cushman is a paramedic with the Raytown Fire Protection District. Previously he served as the Director of Paramedic Services for the City of Raytown before the ambulance service was transferred to the Fire Department’s control.
OUR RESPONSE . . . “Part of the Problem”
The author of the short post at
the lead of this story asked “what are you doing about it”. It is a fair question and one we do not hesitate to answer.
My wife and I donate regularly to
many different charities, some local, some national, some international. One of
our favorites is “Heifer International”, a worldwide charity dedicated to providing livestock and seed for areas suffering the ravages of famine. This
enables recipients to become self-sufficient.
Our favorite local charity
(second to our Church) is an organization named Shelter KC Women’s Center. The
introduction to this worthy organization’s page pretty much says what they are
about.
Opened in 2013, our Women’s
Center is a 20-bed residential recovery facility for single, homeless women
located near downtown Kansas City. But for our clients, it’s simply “home.”
Most of
their clients are women who have been abused, abandoned and left on their own.
Shelter KC Women’s Center helps them regain their self-respect, teaches them
job skills and help show them the way back to a meaningful life.
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| JEROME BARNES |
Jerome Barnes
TO RUN FOR JACKSON COUNTY
DEMOCRAT
COMMITTEE
Raytown’s State Representative in
the Missouri House of Representatives has announced his intention to file for a
vacancy on the Jackson County Democrat Committee.
Under
Missouri State Statutes, Barnes can run for both seats simultaneously. His
position in the House of Representatives is a governmental post. The Democrat
Committee position is a political post.
Barnes
told the Raytown Report he decided to throw his hat into the ring when two of
Raytown’s representatives on the Jackson County Democrat Committee, Sandy and
Fred Hartwell announced they would not be running for re-election.
Sandy and
Fred told the Raytown Report they are pleased that Jerome will be running for
the position and will most definitely support his campaign. Sandy
Hartwell is also a former Raytown City Councilwoman.
Joining
Jerome on the ballot as a candidate for Democrat Committeewoman will be his
wife, Donna Barnes.
13 comments:
With gas prices on the raise along with everything else would I be correct that camping on city property is permitted?
In response to last week's poster that said they are giving directly to the homeless.
I don't believe that is the best answer to the problem.
1.) When I worked downtown KCMO, the police would hand out flyers requesting individuals not to provide direct assistance, but instead refer the homeless to the services on the backside of the flyers.
This helps make sure the homes get the basic human needs and assistance to get out of their situation; not just money or a meal.
2.) There have been news stories even about the Greater Kansas City metro area of people playing the roll to appeal to the kindness of many. I recall on was a guy seen downtown or plaza who often wore a local sports team hat and jacket. Amazing after the story hit the individual wasn't see out and about like before.
3.) The camps lead to trash and infestation which can be seen at the property by Aldi's, under the I70 bridge at Sterling or along the creek in the Watts Mill area.
4.) Don't forget in an effort to stay warm the fire under I70 bridge that shut down the highway for days.
I don't disagree that we need to look out for our fellow members of society, but we need to do it in a responsible way that provides all needs for the homeless and protects society at the same time.
We should be please we live in a community where the leadership at the fire department sees this need and is working to help othem in a production way.
In a time of transparency and wanting to be heard, one has to question the personal agenda and what is attempting to be hidden from the public when a Alderman has published on Facebook about a committee meeting that will NOT allow public comments.
It makes we feel something is NOT right and anything but the truth is being publicly presented!
Raytown deserves better and it is no surprise the condition the city is in when our elected officials are responding to the citizens like Putin is to the world.
What is going on at the school district!
At least 3 top positions have already announced they will not be returning next year.
A report being released in January that based upon project enrollment the district will need to close 8 schools in the next ten years.
Translation is the top administrative team has been making bad decisions and requesting money at what is soon to be append to everyone on as extremely unreasonable when the schools where countess dollars where used for fields and not classrooms are abandoned as the corresponding school closes.
This was never leadership by a self serving need for competition between supper attendance at a financial cost to taxpayers and educational cost to our students.
With the future known it is time to stop issuing and or renew the bonds!
It is time to focus back on the classrooms and those teachers that truly deliver successful students back to the community instead of the one that might have a successful career in major-league sports.
Is the Revenue Enhancement Committee comprised of only young people? I thought a while back he was looking for young people for a committee.
I think they should allow public comment too.
The revenue committee is not comprised of only young people. here are young people, middle aged people, and older people. Go to the meetings and see for yourself.
I guess everyone could go the meeting and "see for themselves". But how can you tell the age of someone by just looking at them. Under Myers rules no one from the public will be allowed to speak. Do we get a muzzle put on us at the door? This paranoia at city hall of outsiders is going way beyond explanation. Maybe it would be a good idea for Myers to re-think what he calls a public meeting.
If the leaders of our city have yet to cleanup the city property next to Aldi's, do you think they are going to be honest with how they will repair our streets.
Therefore it is no surprise they don't want interaction with the residents and businesses owners.
The truth is out their and until our leaders act like adults the answer to give them is NO!
NO to more taxes and No to future terms
Interesting we have an Alderman against our freedom of speech.
I believe this makes his second attempt to impose his will against the Constitution and the first Amendment.
I wonder which Amendment will be next the 2nd, 4th or 14th!
My father fought in WWII to end this type of thinking.
I enlisted to go to Vietnam to fight the evils of Communist.
It seems somehow both my father and myself as well as this great Nation of ours lost the larger war. The war none of the seen coming. The war against the Constitution.
To anyone who would like to know what is going on on Raytown school district they should ask the children and families that have moved. Over the years our little donut shop has been one of the first place our new families visit. We truly love and enjoy our families. Whenever they end up moving w we always ask them why. The two biggest reasons we hear from families are crime. The Jackson County Prosecutor is the largest problem with crime. Then we hear the school district. We have had families tell us the bullying and disrespect to the teachers are too much. They don't want their children to think that it's acceptable. The worst problem we have been told about is children fear going to the bathroom. We have been told one boy kicked out of one school and placed in another who went on to attack more girls in the new school. They just bounce him around like a Catolic priest who abuses more and is not addressed. I myself even called a board member about it along with the Chief of Police. It's not allowed to be talked about. The more it's not talked about the worse it will become. I made a copy of the entire presentation that was made before the school board. Every parent should watch the video of the presentation that was made before the school board. It was shocking. What I found more shocking was not one person had a question. Parents need to talk to their children. They also need to be going to school board meetings. Politics and policies surround our families. As the school district numbers go down our donut families keep growing. It's not just a job we go to work at. It's a lifestyle of doing our best. Nothing means more to us than children. No one should fear going to the bathroom at school or the playground. Sincerely Elisa Breitenbach
Elisa Breitenbach, you have no idea how bad it can be in our schools. They allow coaches to bully students and get away with it. It's despicable the lack of concern and we'll being for kids they have. So grateful my last is graduating from this district.
When you guys wrote about the impact of inflation on the proposed property tax increases it looks like you were spot on. When the BOA approved the tax packages for the ballot in early March you correctly set the rate at 7%. Just saw on CNN that the rate has now climbed to 8.5%. From what I have read about the President's budget for the coming year, Washington DC is going to pile more debt than ever into the economy next year. This will fuel the rate of inflation even more.
The odd thing is the one sector that actually benefits from the rising cost of utilities, fuel and food are out local governments like Raytown. Each time the rate paid for electricity rises, the take from the 8% Franchise fees increases with it. Same for all sales taxes.
I do have a question about how the city plans to spend tax dollars on road improvements. It was my understanding the money was supposed to be used for neighborhood streets. Why then is so much of the money earmarked for major streets like Raytown Road.
Let's say you do 4 miles of a four lane street. That same amount of money would cover 8 miles of residential streets.
Too many unanswered questions for my vote come next August.
Maybe the Board will see the light and intervene with some direction to city staff. It would be out of character for them. It would also be refreshing.
I have a freshman at RSH. This is our first year in the district and the culture shock is extreme. She is an outgoing, enthusiastic teen who was made cheer team at tryout and was told- "you got it cause your white". She has cheered for years in our previous district. She is regularly ridiculed and called names because of the area we live in (Apparently the higher your street number the more privileged you are) and we live in a very nice home. I'm a small business owner, My husband is a blue collar worker. We are exactly who you want moving to your town, yet if my daughters arn't safe, why would we stay?
On the issue concerning the Revenue Enhancement Committee- Someone said- If you have questions go- When? Can someone show me where the next meeting is posted? Do you only get a couple of days notice for these things?
One last question: Who is running for Mayor next term?
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