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ENews Source    
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
 
This Week In Kansas City, Kansas
Liveable Neighborhoods Holds Community Partners Event
Chick-fil-A Opens Doors to Wyandotte County Residents
What's Going on Next Door?
Reardon Parking Lot Changes
State Avenue Benefit District Considered
Donahoo Road Closure
BPU Ethics Commission Notice
Fire Department Holds Graduation for New Firefighters
Extension Office Launches E-Newsletter
Road Construction
I-435 Repairs Slow Traffic
K-32 Road Repair
UG is Now on Twitter
Upcoming Meetings
Your Kansas City
3-1-1 Call Center
Liveable Neighborhoods Holds Community Partners Recognition Event
Red Carpet Recognition DinnerResidents, neighborhood groups, and organizations filled the historic Vox Theatre Monday night to recognize those individuals who volunteered their time and efforts to make their city a better place.
 
"We were extremely thrilled with the number of people that attended the event. It was a full house 260 plus people. Our neighborhood groups are the best!" says Mary J. Johnson, Liveable Neighborhoods Executive Director. 
 
There were 5 speakers that provided remarks about Kansas City, Kansas and Wyandotte County. The common message centered on the importance of working together and the common vision of improving the quality of life for all residents throughout the county.
 
"We live in a safer community today than we did decades agoAttendees to the Red Carpet event and it's because of people like you," Mayor Joe Reardon said.
 
Sheriff Don Ash talked about how the blue print for change was established nearly 20 years ago. "Obviously it's working and we need to strengthen those partnerships that have led us on this path of success."
 
Homicides and crime have been on a steady decline in KCK. Many credit this accomplishment to the collaboration of neighborhood groups and community policing efforts. KCK Police Chief Rick Armstrong, Fire Chief John Paul Jones, and BPU Board President Loretta Colombel also provided remarks.
 
Residents at event"The event last night was held to recognize and honor the dedicated citizens in our community that have chosen to be neighborhood leaders. They are the unsung heroes that spend their time, efforts and energy working behind the scenes to make a difference," said Johnson. 
 
There were also 49 neighborhood groups that were the recipients of grants. The 2010 recipients of the Community Partners Red Carpet Recognition award were:
 
Awards for Red Carpet Recognition Dinner
  1. Crime Fighter of the Year Award            

    Recipient:      Paul Soptick, President of Neighborhood Crime Prevention Patrol

  2. The John Eger Award for Excellence in Code Enforcement           

    Recipient:      Community Police Officer Amy Allen

  3. Community Partnership Awards

    Recipient:      Christmas in October
                      
    Recipients:     Rachelle Smith, Target
             
    Recipient:      Glenn Harte, Degoler Pharmacies

  4. Neighborhood Leadership Award
                
    Recipient:      Mario Escobar, Villa Argentina Neighborhood Group
              
    Recipient:      Donnie Thomas, Kensington Community Area Watch
The recognition was presented by Liveable Neighborhoods and the KCKPD Community Policing Unit.
 
       Award Recipient          Award Recipient2

Chick-fil-A Opens Doors to Wyandotte County Residents

Camping out for Chick fil A grand openingNearly 200 people camped out in front of the popular food chain Chick-fil-A last Wednesday morning for their grand opening event.
 
The parking lot was packed with tents as early as 6:00 am while campers waited anxiously to be among the first 100 to receive 52 free combo's for a year; which adds up roughly to 1 a week. 
 
People came from as far as Baltimore, MD, South Carolina, and Florida to be part of what has become the food chain's commonChick Fil A grand opening grand opening event called "First 100." They played games in the parking lot to past time.
 
"It's been great," said Lloyd Anderson, Chick-fil-A's store operator at the Independence Center location. Anderson has been in charge of 50 grand openings. "I was concerned about the weather at first, but they came bundled up."
 
Ribbon Cutting EventThe official grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony was held the next day on Thursday. Mayor Joe Reardon, Commissioners Mark Holland, Mike Kane, and Tom Cooley cut the ribbon with along with the KCK Chamber and many hungry customers.

What's Going on Next Door?

Red Lobster Poster

Just next door on the east side of the Chick-fil-A resturant there's another new restaurant under construction.
 
Construction Crews on Red Lobster projectConstruction crews were out moving dirt and pouring concrete for the foundation of the next new addition to the Plaza at the Speedway development.
 
Red Lobster is planning on opening its doors sometime early next year; 2011. Stay tuned and we'll keep you posted.
 
Red Lobster Construction Crews
Reardon Parking Lot Changes
The Unified Government parking lot across Minnesota Avenue from the Reardon Center and Hilton Garden Inn is tentatively scheduled to be converted to paid parking on December 1st, 2010.

Paid parking will be Monday-Friday, 8am to 5pm. Parking in the evenings, weekends and holidays will remain free.

Pricing
0-1 hr. = $1
1-2 hr. = $2
2-4 hr. = $4
4-6 hr. = $6
6-8 hr. = $8

For citizens doing business at BPU or the Hilton Garden Inn, free parking will still be available in the garage behind the two facilities.
State Avenue Benefit District Considered

The Unified Government is working with Business West and the KCK Community College on a proposal to create a State Avenue Benefit District.
 
An informational meeting concerning the proposed State Avenue Benefit District is set for 7:30am Wednesday, November 3 in the Conference Center at the College.
 
The district would be in the State Avenue Corridor from 64th to 94th streets and also include 78th street from State to Riverview avenues. The proposal calls for benefits in three major areas-appearance, security and marketing.  The meeting also will focus on the plans that the Community College has for vocational and technical training in the former Wal-Mart Center and the former Laird Noller auto dealership. UG County Engineer Bill Heatherman will also report on progress of the construction along the 78th Street and State Avenue corridor.
 
For information about attending the meeting contact Murrell Bland at Business West by calling 913-766-4300 or e-mailing [email protected]

Donahoo Road Closure
The intersection of North 123RD street and Donahoo Road will be closed for 30 days beginning today, Tuesday, October 19th at 9:00 am to November 18th at 5:00 pm.
 
This road closure is part of the Donahoo road rehabilitation project. You can obtain a map of the marked detour route at www.wycokck.org.  
 
The contractor for this project is J.M. Fahey Construction at 408 High Grove Road in Grandview, MO.

BPU Ethics Commission Notice

The Kansas City Board of Public utilities (BPU) Ethics Commission will meet on Wednesday October 20, at 5:00 p.m. at the West Wyandotte Branch of the Public Library in Conference Room A.

 

The purpose of the Ethics Commission is to ensure proper implementation of BPU's code of ethics and act as the policy-setting body for ethics issues at the utility.

 

BPU Logo

Fire Department Holds Graduation for New Firefighters
The KCK Fire Department held a Firefighters Graduation at Memorial Hall on Thursday at 6 PM.  There were 43 graduates from this academy, which fifteen are Paramedics and 28 are Emergency Medical Technicians.
 
The graduates have been trained to FF I and FFII certification levels, they have been tested and trained on:
  • KCKFD  EMS Protocols
  • Hazardous Materials Operations
  • Emergency Vehicle Operation
  • Ambulance Operation
  • Street names
  • Hundred numbers and physical fitnes
Overall, they endured an intensive 14 weeks of training.
Extension Office Launches E-Newsletter
The K-State Research & Extension Office of Wyandotte County will launch an electronic newsletter in a few weeks.
 
If you're interested in keeping informed about the programs, stories about past events, and timely tips about food, lawn and garden, and the home environment that the Extension Office has to offer, please don't hesitate to sign-up to receive this e-news at no cost to you; click here to be added to the list:
 
http://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=001hBRxcr-C4qJtTrj1nXzvIw%3D%3D
 
We value you as an Extension supporter and hope you will join our mailing list today. Please feel free to share this information with your friends, neighbors, and family. Know that our policies do not permit us to share your email address with anyone and you may unsubscribe at any time.
 
If you are having difficulty getting the link to work, simply copy and paste the link to your web browser. If you still have trouble  navigate to our website (www.wyandotte.ksu.edu) and click on the appropriate button.
KDOT Logo

Road Construction

Road ConstructionBased on information provided by the Kansas Department of Transportation, the UG is able to provide motorist living in Wyandotte County with a list of roads and highways that are scheduled for construction.

This information can be useful to prepare individuals, commuting to and from work, with early warnings on minor delays. This also encourages drivers to use alternate routes due to lane and ramp closures.

Visit the KDOT website for up to date information on lane and ramp closures:
www.ksdot.org/kcmetro/laneclose.asp.

I-435 Repairs Slow Traffic 

Two Kansas Department of Transportation repair projects on I-435 are causing traffic jams.
 
A pavement marking project on northbound and southbound I-435 from Leavenworth Road to the Missouri River is shutting down lanes. I-435 will experience intermittent lane closures, and at times, may be reduced to one lane. Drivers should expect minor delays and are advised to use alternate routes, if possible. Crews are working Monday through Saturday between 6am to 7pm.
 
I-435 from 98th Street to the Kansas River will also face lane closures starting this week as crews seal cracks on the highway. There will be alternating lane closures on I-435 with a minimum of two lanes open between 6:30am to 8:30am and 4pm to 6:30pm.  Crews will begin work on the southbound side first then move to the northbound side.  Drivers should expect minor delays and are advised to use alternate routes, if possible.  
 
Updated lane closure information for both projects can be viewed online at: www.ksdot.org/kcmetro/laneclose.asp.    

K-32 Road Repair

The eastbound right lane will be closed over the Kansas River Bridge to 55th Street for a bridge deck pavement repair project on Wednesday, October 20,.

The lane closure will be round the clock (24/7) beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, October 20 and will reopen to all traffic at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, October 22, weather permitting.
 
Crews will complete pavement repair on the bridge deck between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on both Wednesday/Thursday, October 20-21. 
 
Drivers should expect minor delays and are advised to use alternate routes, if possible.  Updated lane closure information for this pavement marking project can be viewed online at: www.ksdot.org/kcmetro/laneclose.asp.  

Unified Government of Wyandotte County, KC, KS

Agendas and Minutes
To view standing committee and full commission agendas and minutes, go to the Unified Government Website at www.wycokck.org.

Ordinances, meeting Agendas and Minutes are available and readily accessible on the Internet. So it's easy to find items and actions the Unified Government Commission and its Standing Committees are taking.
The UG is Now on  Twitter
Stay in touch and keep informed on what's going on with your local government on Twitter. Follow The Dotte on Twitter
 
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Quick Links
 
 
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Upcoming Events
 Board of Commissioners meeting in Commission Chambers
Full Commission Meeting
on Thursday, 
 October 21, at
 7:00 pm in the
Commission Chambers
 
 Planning and Zoning Meeting 
 on Thursday, 
October 28, at 7 pm in the Commission Chambers
Don't Miss
Reardon on Your Kansas City Public Affairs Show
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with Mayor Joe Reardon
 
Tune in on the last Sunday of each month for a special edition of "Your Kansas City" featuring Mayor Joe Reardon on My KSMO channel 62 and Time Warner Cable Channel 10
 
My KSMO
Also
 
Mayor Joe Reardon 
 will appear on KCTV5's 
Mayoral
Monday segment beginning August 2nd at 6:45 am during the KCTV 5 News in the Morning Show. Catch the Mayor on the first Monday of every month on 
 
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Stay tuned and stay informed!
3-1-1 Call Center
Do you have questions pertaining to the Unified Government? 
 
Just dial 3-1-1
 
 The call center provides a simple and easy three-digit access to a live Customer Service Representative that can answer your questions.