*This is the Prairie Village City Council meeting recap for Monday, August 19th, 2019. You can see the full agenda and board packet HERE.

Council members present at roll call: Chad Herring, J. Nelson, Schermoly, R. Nelson, Wang, Poling, Myers, Morehead, Runion, McFadden, Odell, and Gallagher.

My apologies for being a bit behind on this recap. My #teambonnie volunteer crew knocked on over 300 Ward 3 doors this week and had the great pleasure of speaking with a large percentage of the residents! If I haven’t personally been to your door yet, know that I will be soon!

A side note on Arts Council that wasn’t covered in the meeting below: The PV Arts Council Instagram account is active once again! Follow us here: www.instagram.com/pvartscouncil/.

Here are some highlights from this meeting:

JCPRD Update on Meadowbrook Park

Haven’t been to Meadowbrook Park, yet? You should check it out!

Current Meadowbrook Park Features:

• 82 Acres
• Three Miles of Paved Trails
• Grand Pavilion Shelter
• (3) Iconic Park Shelters
• Destination Playground (this is a major draw for all ages!)
• (8) PickleBall Courts
• The Grove Pavilion Shelter
• The Great Lawn
• Low Impact Outdoor Fitness Equipment
• Clubhouse Room Facility Rental for up to 190 guests (see image below)

Future (or Proposed) Meadowbrook Park Features (These features were part of the original master plan and may be funded by the 20-year TIF*.):

• Stocking the Lake with fish
• More lighting for the Great Lawn, lake loop, & trails
• Additional outdoor furnishings
• Sculpture Garden
• Spray Park
• Environmental Learning Area
• Iconic Gardens
• More PickleBall or Tennis Courts
• Parking if needed

*Unlike other TIF projects, the additional taxes generated by the Meadowbrook project do not go directly to the developer. Instead, those TIF funds are applied toward the park purchase and/or public amenities.)

Caution: The possible presence of Blue-Green Algae is being monitored at all JCPRD properties, including Meadowbrook Lake. Keep pets (and humans) out of the water, and wash your hands if you accidentally touch it, just to be safe.

Public Participation

Pat McAnulty, Laura Speicher, and Tony Biagioli, all residents of Belinder Avenue between 73rd and 75th Streets, spoke out about the proposed Belinder Sidewalk in front of their homes. One against and two for, respectively.

Committee Reports

Community Center Ad Hoc Committee

• RFP for Survey Firm on the streets – August 9th – 26th
• Council to select Firm – Early September
• Study to begin – TBD

Tree Board

• The Prairie Village Tree Board’s Annual Fall Seminar will be October 2nd (the first Wednesday in October every year) at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall at 7700 Mission Rd.
• The event is Free and Open to the Public!
• UPDATED: Attendees will learn about using native plants in the suburban landscape presented by William Roth Gibson (see bottom of pg. 6 at link for more info on. W.R.G.), and there will be a special presentation recognizing the Kansas State Champion Trees within Prairie Village and the people who care for them.

Teen Council

• Deadline to apply – September 13th
• for PV-residing high school sophomores, juniors, or seniors

JazzFest

• I don’t recall an update from this committee at this meeting, but of note:
• Save the Date for JazzFest: September 7th.
• They need Volunteers for the ticket sales tables and merchandise booth! Sign up HERE!

Mayor’s Report

• Thanks to the NAACP and its local chapter President, Fred Jones, for allowing Chief Schwartzkopf, Major Roberson, and the Mayor some panel time for dialogue at their monthly meeting!
• City Administrator Wes Jordan, the Mayor, and Staff attended the NEJC Chamber lunch for the State of the District update from SMSD Superintendent Dr. Mike Fulton catered by SMSD’s own Broadmoor Bistro students at the Center for Academic Achievement! (I went to this event, too, and it was DELICIOUS!! They’re open to the general public Wednesday evenings for dinner. I highly recommend checking it out. The beef tips and homemade noodles were fabulous, but I’d go back for the pastries alone!)

He reiterated a point that’s he made frequently in the past: That exposure to a variety of backgrounds and viewpoints is a benefit to the education of Johnson County students. “It’s important that as a society — not just locally here in Shawnee Mission, but across this country — that we begin to embrace this notion that we have a lot diversity in our community and our country and that diversity absolutely is a strength,” Fulton said.

Shawnee Mission Post

• Mayor attended the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce reception event honoring MKCCAC and supporting regional solutions to climate change.
• City Administrator Wes Jordan and Staff met with KCATA about Micro Transit. Effective Saturday, July 6, the Ride KC Micro Transit service expands! Saturday service includes the whole of Prairie Village and more and also operates from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Fares are $1.50 per trip. See the link above for a map. (I touched briefly on my support for micro transit in my April 11th Public Transportation in Prairie Village post, but at the time PV wasn’t in the service area for this program. Yay for progress!!)

Staff Reports

Police Department

• National Night Out at the PV Shops Hen House was a great success and will most likely become an annual event for Prairie Village.
• Cone with a Cop at TCBY was also popular and fun.

Public Works

• Roe Avenue, 63rd Street to 67th Street construction will take a few days longer than planned because the contractor discovered unsuitable subgrade material.
• Mission Road near 68th Street Flooding project was not selected by the Johnson County Stormwater Management Advisory Council for the 2020 program. Public Works will reapply for 2021, but the funding will be reduced from 75% of costs to 50% of costs.
• High Water Sensor Beacons to be added at 68th & Mission and 74th & Village Drive.
• Skate Park Community Input Meeting – September 19th from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. at Meadowbrook Park Clubhouse.

See 2019 Construction Projects for a map!

Finance

• Lisa Santa Maria, Finance Director, updated Council that if the current lawsuits and appeals relating to “dark store theory” are lost in court, the maximum loss to Prairie Village will be $90,000.00.

Administration

Jamie Robichaud, Deputy City Administrator:

• Encouraged residents to come to City Hall during the Municipal Amnesty event from Sept. 10th – 19th!
• Village Vision 2.0 community visioning workshops will be Sept. 9th and 12th at 5:30 p.m. at the Meadowbrook Park Clubhouse. ** If you can’t make it to either of the workshops, there will be an opportunity to fill out an online survey during the month of September. The City will make the survey available to all residents on our website and social media pages.

Adam Geffert, City Clerk:

• Animal Enumeration in Wards 2, 4, and 5 began this week. The census helps keep animals protected by ensuring lost pets can be returned to their homes and by certifying all animals have rabies vaccinations.

Council Committee of the Whole

Terms of Office for Elected Officials

David Waters, City Attorney, presented the background on state legislature changes to elected officials’ swearing in ceremonies for new terms. Council voted to move swearing in ceremonies to the normal first Council meeting of December beginning in 2021, therefore not shortening the already shortened terms of the outgoing council members.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV’s)

In a 6-6 vote with the Mayor breaking the tie, Council voted to move the proposed drone (UAVs) ordinance to the full Council agenda at a later date. See the Shawnee Mission Post for more info.

New Sidewalk on Belinder from 73rd to 75th Street

Melissa Prenger, Senior Project Manager, gave the background and reasoning for the proposed sidewalk to infill the “missing link” section of the Belinder Avenue sidewalk (see dashed green line in image below).

Council voted unanimously to send the proposed sidewalk to the full Council meeting at a later date.

Tucker Poling, Ward 3, also noted that there is significant concern among residents for the speed levels along Belinder Avenue and that, in addition to giving Belinder Avenue a more pedestrian feel with sidewalks on both sides, we should also look at the speed problem along there.

Actions

The City Council took the following actions:

• Approved the regular City Council meeting minutes – August 5, 2019
• Approved the appointment of Shannon Marcano as Assistant City Attorney
• Approved DELN0001 – Delmar and Fontana low water crossing removal and drainage project – amendment to design engineering contract with Water Resources Solutions, LLC

Upcoming Events

• August 2019 – Gallery Featuring: Joseph Almendarize, Wanda Tyner, Carl D’Amico, Lisa Healy and Susan Kiefer
• September 2nd – Pool closes for the season at 6:00 p.m.
• September 3rd – Puppy Pool-Ooza (Dog Swim) 5:00 – 7:00 p.m.
• September 3rd – City Council Meeting, 6:00 p.m.
• September 7th – 10th Annual Prairie Village Jazz Festival
• September 9th & 12th – Village Vision 2.0 Visioning Workshops 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Meadowbrook Park Clubhouse
• September 10th – 19th – Municipal Amnesty
• September 19th – Skate Park Community Input session 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
• September 28th – Shaffer Park renaming ceremony

*This council meeting recap is indicative of how I will update residents twice monthly in my efforts to increase transparency and communication as your Ward 3 Councilwoman so you always know what’s happening at City Hall. I make an effort to pull together references from previous meetings, topics, and issues that are relevant in hopes of making some of the ongoing issues more clear.

Take care and reach out if you have any questions or concerns,

#ShowUp
#Breathe
#DoYourBest
#BeKind