CityScene - City of Independence, Missouri

Informing Citizens
CityScene
February 2011
Volume 18 Number 2
2011 Dr. Martin Luther King Celebration
Barbara Peterson
See Martin Luther King, Page 3
Go to City7.TV to view the program and
speech by Barbara Peterson.
When The complete, Independence Fire Ministerial Alli-
Station ance and 4 The will Community look of Concerned
like Citizens, this conception
in partnership with the City of
at Independence, right, provided recognized by 2011 Martin
wbi Luther Architects. King Day with ceremonies January
17 at the Truman Memorial Building,
416 W. Maple. The theme for this year’s ACE Club students stood
celebration was “What Are You Doing with Rudy Summerville as
for Others?”
he spoke.
Barbara Peterson, who serves as president of the Board of Directors of Black
Archives of Mid-America in Kansas City, Inc., was the keynote speaker.
Rudy Summerville, who works at William Chrisman High School, received
the 2011 Martin Luther King Jr. Award from the Independence Human Relations
Commission. He is the Caring Communities Site Coordinator/Youth Specialist
and is the Association for Chrisman Excellence (ACE) Club coordinator.
The celebration featured music by the Dr. King Celebration Community Choir
under the direction of Sandy Jones. The ACE Club served as ushers and Van
Horn High School ROTC presented the colors.
The winning student essays
written on the theme
by local high school and
junior high school students
were read.
The middle school essay
winner was Emily Davison,
an eighth grader
at Bridger Middle School.
Andrea Watkins Davis, a
senior at Fort Osage High
School, received the John
Olivarez Scholarship for
her essay.
Founded by Peterson’s
www.independencemo.org
City of Independence, MO
Water Main Project
To Add 13 Miles of Line
If you have seen some very large pieces
of pipe being delivered to eastern Independence
over the last several months,
you are witnessing the preparation for
construction of the Water Department’s
next transmission water main.
The City is in the eighth year, of an
eight-stage construction project that is
adding about 13 miles of water main to
the City’s inventory.
Water Systems Director Dan Montgomery
said, “It is vital to our community
that we not only look at our current water
needs, but also to what our water needs
will be in the future. This $11 million
project does just that.”
It was determined that the City needed
to install an additional water main in
conjunction with the building of the Little
Blue Parkway to assure the City’s water
needs can be met in years to come. The
fi rst phase of the transmission main began
in 2003 with the construction of a 36-inch
See Water Main Project, Page 4
Tax Abatement Program
Orientation Sessions
As revitalization of northwest Independence
neighborhoods continues, the
City continues to accept applications for
the Fairmount-Carlisle Parcel Specifi c
Tax Abatement Program and will conduct
several orientation sessions explaining
the process throughout the year at the
Fairmount Community Center, 217 S.
Cedar. The informational meetings will
be held at 6 p.m. the fourth Wednesday of
each month.
The Fairmount-Carlisle 353 Redevelopment
Plan gives property owners
tax relief for repairing their homes. The
tax abatement area is comprised of the
Fairmount, Carlisle, Procter and Bristol
neighborhoods and portions of the Mt.
Washington and Bundschu neighborhoods.
The area is bounded generally on the
See Tax Abatement, Page 4

February 2011 CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene Page 2
‘Girls Just ‘Wanna Have Fun’ March Events at Historic Sites
If your budget and schedule won’t allow
you and your gal pals, sisters, mothers,
daughters and grandmothers to jet off
to the Caribbean, why not consider coordinating
some special outings in your own
hometown? March provides the chance to
join in the fun at two of the City’s most
popular events geared for women.
On Saturday, March 12, attend the
“Puttin’ on the Ritz” luncheon and fashion
show at the Bingham-Waggoner Estate,
313 W. Pacifi c. The fashion show will feature
new spring and summer fashions from
K and G Superstores on all three fl oors of
the home. The event runs from noon to 2
p.m. Tickets are $25 with advance reservations
required to 461-3491.
If you are a history buff, you’ll enjoy
a presentation Saturday, March 19 at the
National Frontier Trails Museum, 318 W.
Pacifi c. At 2 p.m. historians Anne Mallinson
and Nancy Lewis will discuss the
lives of women caught up in the drama of
Civil War Missouri in a special program
looking towards the upcoming 150th anniversary
of the beginning of the Civil
War. The presentation is free with regular
museum admission.
The following Saturday, March 26, the
Watch City Meetings
On Streaming Video
City Council meetings and study sessions
are available as live and archived streaming
video on the City’s Website, www.independencemo.org
Each live City 7 TV broadcast is available
online during the 6 p.m. Monday City Council
meetings. An archive of the program is available
on the site the next morning for viewing 24
hours a day. Archived videos are available for a
few months following their posting. If you would
like to purchase a copy of a Council meeting
call 325-7019.
CITY COUNCIL
Mayor
Don Reimal 325-7027
City Council Offi ce 325-7022
Councilmembers
Marcie Gragg District 1
Will Swoffer District 2
Myron Paris District 3
Jim Page District 4
Jim Schultz At Large
Lucy Young At Large
City Manager
Robert Heacock 325-7170
Vaile Mansion, 1500 N. Liberty St., opens
its carved doors from 2 to 4 p.m. for the
tea party of the season, with a nostalgic
“Wizard of Oz” theme and vintage fashion
show. The Vaile’s volunteers will create
tea sandwiches and light desserts to be
served while guests listen to live harp
music. Guests will be able to visit with
“Dorothy” and the Oz “witches” while
fashions of the past are modeled. Tickets
are $25 with advance reservations to 305-
3712. This year the attendance will be
capped at 75 guests.
Is shopping your bag? Get your retail
therapy fi x at the big Marketplace Art,
Craft and Gift Show Saturday, March 26
and Sunday, March 27 at the Independence
Events Center, 19100 E. Valley View
Parkway. This show of trendy, unique
handcrafted and retail art, crafts and gifts
includes clothing, candles, children’s
items, home and seasonal décor, jewelry,
purses, tasty foods and artistic craftsmen.
Hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is
$5 and is free for children 12 and younger.
IShare
UTILITY
ASSISTANCE
254-4100
CityScene is published monthly by the
City Manager’s Offi ce, 111 East Maple
Street, Independence, Missouri 64050.
Editor: Irene Baltrusaitis, Communications
Director, 325-7019. The City’s webpage
address is www.independencemo.org
Call 795-7577 or visit www.independenceeventscenter.com
When the historic sites of Independence
re-open for the regular tourism
season in April, there will be an increase
in admission rates from $5 for adults and
$2 for children to $6 for adults and $3 for
children at the 1859 Jail and Marshal’s
Home, Bingham-Waggoner Estate and
Vaile Mansion. A similar $6 admission
increase started January 1 at the National
Frontier Trails Museum, 318 W. Pacifi c.
A three-site discount ticket for the homes
will be sold for $15. Visitors who wish to
add the Trails Museum to their tours may
purchase a $20 four-site discount ticket.
The discount tickets are sold at all four of
the attractions.
For a complete list of tourism events, or
for coupons, discounts and more information,
go to www.visitindependence.com
or call Tourism at 325-7111.
Recycling Centers
The City operates two recycling centers. Items
accepted at the centers include paper, cardboard,
paperboard, steel and aluminum cans,
plastic, glass food and beverage containers,
toner cartridges and dry cell batteries. The recycling
centers and their operation days and
times are:
35th Street Recycling Center
13600 E. 35th Street
10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Fridays
8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Saturdays
Vista Avenue
Recycling Center
875 Vista Avenue
8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Sundays
10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Mondays

February 2011 CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene Page 3
Martin Luther King From Page 1
late husband, Horace M. Peterson III, in
1974, the Black Archives collects, preserves
and honors the heritage of African
Americans to inspire and empower current
and future generations. As president
of the board since 2007, Peterson has
spear-headed the renewal of the Archives
including a multi-million dollar renovation
of new facilities located in the Historic
Jazz District.
The Black Archives of Mid-America, located
in Kansas City, Missouri, is a center
for learning and research into the African
American experience in Missouri, Kansas,
Iowa, Oklahoma and the Midwest at large.
It houses a large collection of manuscripts
and artifacts including photographs, per-
Independence Keeps Reduced Excise Tax Rate
After lowering their License Surcharge,
an excise tax, by 23 percent in 2010, Independence
will move forward in 2011
with the same rate. In December, the City
Council approved the License Surcharge
Advisory Committee recommendation to
maintain the fee structure for a second
straight year.
“Independence is once again being a
leader in working with the housing industry
during these unique times and promoting
home building in their community,”
said Sara Corless, HBA Executive Vice
President.
The rate schedule will remain at $1,400.
Originally $550 in 2001, the surcharge
has risen every year from 2003 to 2008
where it reached $1,822. The City kept
the rate fl at from 2008 to 2009. Through
the fi rst 10 months of 2010, Independence
has seen the greatest increase over 2009
in Jackson County permit activity among
sonal correspondence, oral histories, and
rare books that are available for research
and study.
Born in Newport News, VA, Peterson
holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English
from North Carolina Central University in
Durham, NC and a Juris Doctor degree
from Vanderbilt University School of Law
in Nashville, TN. She is a member of Delta
Sigma Theta Sorority and the mother of
three children. They are members of St.
James United Methodist Church.
Sponsors also included The Examiner,
Local Investment Commission, the
Independence School District and the
Independence Ministerial Alliance.
cities with double digit permits. During
that same period in 2009, Independence
was on the outside looking in of the Top
Ten permitting cities in the metropolitan
region. This year they are ninth.
Voters approved the License Surcharge
Tax in 2000. The License Surcharge
Advisory Committee is an 11-member
citizen committee appointed by the City
Council. It is responsible for reviewing
key issues related to the License Surcharge
each year. Topics considered during the
review include applicable tax rates for
the different land uses, impact on the real
estate market, streets constructed with the
license surcharge funds, and future street
construction schedules. Over $6 million
from residential, commercial, office,
warehouse and industrial construction
activity has been raised since inception.
Reprinted with permission from the January 2011 issue
of “Building Business News,” the offi cial newspaper of
The Home Builders Association of Greater Kansas City.
Low-Income Weatherization Program
The City is accepting applications for its Low-Income
Weatherization Program. The City of Independence was
awarded a $600,000 grant to administer the program targeted
to families and individuals with incomes below 200 percent of
the federal poverty line.
Applicants must live in the City of Independence, income
qualify, and meet other program requirements. The program
goal is to improve energy effi ciency of the home in order to lower utility costs.
An energy audit is performed to determine the most cost-effective measures
that will improve a home’s energy effi ciency. There is no cost to the recipient for
this program.
A request for an application can be made by calling Herbert Webb @ 816-325-
7414 or by downloading an application on the web; http://www.ci.independence.
mo.us/comdev/FCHRP.aspx
Mayor Don Reimal with essay winners
Emily Davison (left) and Andrea
Watkins Davis (right).
Hot Line
Directory
Barking Dogs 325-7213
Crime Stoppers Tips 474-8477
Drop-Off Trash 325-7623
Drugs 325-6272
Graffi ti 325-7824
Neighborhood Watch 325-7643
Potholes 325-7624
Report Power Outage 325-7550
Street Lights 325-7535
Storm Water Pollution 325-7727
Parents University 2011
Workshops & Resources
for parents and caregivers
of children ages infant to 18.
8 a.m. to noon
Saturday, March 5
Pioneer Ridge Middle School
1656 S. Speck Rd.
Independence, MO 60457
per
$5adult*
*Teens welcome too!
Presented by:
Coalition For Child Safety
& it’s Partners
www.coalition4childsafety.org

February 2011 CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene CityScene Page 4
Water Main Project From Page 1
diameter water main that started at the
Courtney Bend Treatment Plant, located
on Cement City Road at Missouri 291
Highway, and extended to the east and
then southerly, ending at U.S. Highway
24 near Powell Road.
The City, in 2008, started construction
of the Little Blue Parkway from 39th
Street to R.D. Mize Road. As part of this
project contract, a 24-inch diameter water
main was installed along the roadway. The
new main will start out as a 36-inch diameter
water main at the City’s treatment
plant, reduce to a 30-inch diameter main at
23rd Street and fi nally reduce to a 24-inch
diameter main at Necessary Road.
“Normally a water main is not built
from two opposite directions, but it was
felt the City could obtain better prices if
it was included as part of the roadway
projects,” Montgomery said. “It would
also assure the water main project would
not be in confl ict with the construction of
the new roadway alignment.”
Since then, the City has awarded several
more contracts for the construction
of Little Blue Parkway. Each of these
contracts includes installing a portion of
the new main. Once all phases of Little
Blue Parkway are completed, the City
will also have a new water main that will
Tax Abatement From Page 1
far west along Brookside Avenue; the
northern boundary of the City and along
the boundary with the City of Sugar Creek;
along 24 Highway; and south along a line
just west of Forest Avenue and south of
Truman Road to 18th Street and west to
Fuller.
The tax abatement program continues
to expand and in December 2010, the St.
Clair Park 353 Redevelopment Area was
added. There are 549 parcels north and
west of Mount Washington Cemetery that
are included in this area.
Program participants are freed of property
taxes for the fi rst 10 years and receive
50 percent abatement for the following 15
years if they invest a specifi ed amount in
upgrading their property. Taxes are still
due on the land itself.
Between 2007 and 2010, there were
121 properties approved for abatement.
To date, 160 participants are proceeding
have the capability to deliver an additional
eight million gallons daily of water to
customers.
When this project is completed in
2012, there will be more than 753 miles of
water main and approximately 4,800 fi re
hydrants in the City’s water distribution
system which must be maintained. In addition,
there are more than 15,000 valves
on these mains that can be used to isolate
sections of main when necessary.
In addition to the water main being
installed along Little Blue Parkway, the
Water Department is also working in
conjunction with the Public Works Department
at several other locations.
The Water Department is relocating
water mains at fi ve additional project sites
to eliminate confl icts with the new storm
or sanitary sewer projects.
“While it is important that we work
closely with the other departments to
assure a project is completed in a timely
and effi cient manner, we must also take
care to assure the integrity of the water
distribution system is not jeopardized,”
Montgomery said.
“Great care is taken to assure that when
a new main is put in service, the water that
is delivered from that main continues to
meet or exceed all federal and state stan-
with repairs.
Tax abatement information will also be
available during a lunch from 11 a.m. to
noon the second Tuesday of each month
from February through December at the
Fairmount Community Center.
Call Pat Robinson, tax abatement administrator,
at 325-7426 for more information.
City staff will assist residents in
applying for the program.
Applications for the Fairmount-Carlisle
and St. Clair Park Parcel Specifi c Tax
Abatement Program are now available at
three locations:
• City Hall, Community Development
Department, 111 East Maple Avenue,
Independence, Missouri 64050
• Fairmount Community Center, 608
S. Ash Avenue, Independence, Missouri
64053
• Curt’s Market, 10101 Truman Rd.,
Independence, MO 64053
printed on recycled paper
dards,” he said. “We provide top-quality
water to our customers. That has been, and
always will be, our most important objective
as the City’s water provider.”
Early Bird Special
2011 Season Passes
Purchase your tickets by
5 p.m. Saturday, March 19 at
Truman Memorial Building
416 W. Maple Ave.
(816) 325 - 7483
Regular Early Bird
RESIDENT PASSES
Youth or Senior Season $75 $68
Adult Season $105 $95
Family Season
5-Punch
$250 $225
Youth or Senior $24 $22
5-Punch Adult $32 $29
5-Punch Family $88 $79
NON-RESIDENT PASSES
5-Punch $28 $25
5-Punch Adult $36 $32
5-Punch Family $100 $90
Opening Day is Saturday, May 28
Adventure Oasis Water Park
2100 S. Hub Drive
(816) 325-6238
WATCH CITY 7 TV
City of Independence
Government Access Television
CITY COUNCIL
6 p.m. Mondays*
10 a.m. Tuesdays
7 p.m. Wednesdays
2 p.m. Sundays
PLANNING COMMISSION
6 p.m. 2nd & 4th Tuesdays*
10 a.m. Wednesdays
7 p.m. Thursdays
For more information:
www.City7.TV
*Denotes live meeting,
all others are rebroadcasts.