The Board of Aldermen will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, January 15, 2019, at 7:00 p.m. at Parkville City Hall, 8880 Clark Avenue, to consider a 10 percent increase to the Parkville sewer rates. For more information visit http://parkvillemo.gov/residents/sewer-utility-billing/#rateinfo.
The 7th Annual Paint Parkville event was held between September 25 and 29. The City of Parkville proudly sponsored its fourth purchase award to support the event and to bring talented artists into the community. This year’s theme was “Honoring our First Responders” and the City of Parkville selected Downtown Main Street as its sponsored event location. Mayor Nan Johnston presented the City’s award to winning artist Tammie Dickerson at the Board of Aldermen meeting on December 4, 2018.
Artists from around the Kansas City metro area converged for Paint Parkville 2018. Paint Parkville is an annual outdoor plein air painting event hosted by the Cathy Kline Art Gallery with the goal of fostering art appreciation by inviting the public to observe artists in action.
This is the fourth year the City has sponsored a purchase award for Paint Parkville. Prior themes included Parkville, the new entryway sign along Highway 9 near Coffey Road east of downtown and the Parkville Nature Sanctuary. The new painting will be displayed next to the other purchase awards at Parkville City Hall.
Police Chief Kevin Chrisman was also presented with a painting sponsored by the Main Street Parkville Association. The winning artist was Diane Stolz.
Cathy Kline presented a sculpture to Mayor Johnston and thanked the City for supporting Paint Parkville.
For more information about the City’s purchase awards, please contact City Clerk Melissa McChesney at (816) 741-7676.
Left to right: Tammie Dickerson, Mayor Nan Johnston and Cathy Kline
Celebrate the holidays at the 25th anniversary of Parkville Christmas on the River on Friday, November 30th! Admission is free!
Schedule of Events
Note: Events and times are subject to change. Shuttle services are available until 10 pm. Due to the fireworks and safety reasons, the boat ramp and Platte Landing Park will be closed to the public on Friday, November 30, starting at noon and will reopen Saturday, December 1, 2018.
Free Shuttle Service
From 6-10 p.m., free shuttle service will be available at the following locations:
Due to limited parking downtown, the Parkville Police Department recommends taking a shuttle to and from the event.
Handicap Parking
Handicap parking will be available in the parking lot at the entrance to English Landing Park (blue star on map below). Handicap vehicles MUST have a State-issued placard or license plates on their vehicle to access the marked handicap parking lot.
Closures
The following streets will be closed:
Other closures include:
Detour for FF Highway
Christmas on the River is organized by the Main Street Parkville Association.
Parkville City Hall will be closed on Thursday, November 22 and Friday, November 23 for the Thanksgiving holiday. Regular hours will resume on Monday, November 26, 2018, at 8:00 a.m.
New decorative lights have been installed in downtown Parkville. The streetlights are a continuation of the lighting installed along Route 9 as part of the Route 9 Downtown Entryway Project. The City of Parkville, the Parkville Old Towne Market Community Improvement District (POTMCID) and the Main Street Parkville Association (MSPA) worked together to fund the new streetlights.
In 2016, downtown merchants approached the City about improving the streetlights, primarily on Main and 1st streets. Streetlights in these areas were a mismatch of decorative streetlights, globes attached to wooden poles and in some cases cobra head lights that were needed to provide the proper level of lighting. The goal for the new lighting was to provide a fresh look, match the new lights with the ornamental streetlights along Route 9, give downtown Parkville a more cohesive look and provide the proper illumination for traffic and pedestrian purposes.
Design for the new streetlight project was completed by TranSystems, who also assisted with the design of the Route 9 Downtown Entryway Project. The POTMCID provided $42,500 in funding for the project. The MSPA was a conduit for the design grant. The City provided funding for the remaining cost of the project including design, electrical work and sidewalk reconstruction. The streetlight poles were installed by Kansas City Power and Light. An annual differential cost for the decorative street lights will be paid to KCP&L by POTMCID.
During construction, the City recognized the opportunity to make other needed improvements, including repair of several sections of brick sidewalks on Main Street and 1st Street. The total cost of the entire project was $102,500. The new streetlights and sidewalk repairs were completed in August.
Mayor Johnston said, “A large project like this would not be complete without the help of our partners. We thank the downtown merchants who initiated the project, the Main Street Parkville Association and the Parkville Old Towne Market Community Improvement District.
For more information about the streetlight project, contact Public Works Director Alysen Abel at (816) 741-7676.
The City of Parkville is pleased to announce its partnership with Park University to accept food donations for Pirate Pantry, the University’s response to the increased awareness of food insecurity, or lack of nutritious food, among college students. Mayor Nan Johnston attended a grand opening ceremony for Pirate Pantry on October 23, 2018.
With the price of college and living expenses, many college students have difficulty choosing between the cost of college and the essentials, such as food. In spring 2018, Park University found that 1 in 5 students reported food insecurity and 65 percent of those students reported skipping meals due to a lack of money. One study of 66 institutions and 43,000 students concluded that 36% of students were food insecure. Another study discovered that 53% reported missing a class due to food insecurity, 55% opted out of joining extracurricular activities and 25% dropped classes due to hunger. Many students said that hunger was a factor in not being able to concentrate, leading some not to complete their degree.
Pirate Pantry is open to Park University students and is operated by volunteers, primarily graduate students in the Master of Social Work program. Undergraduate social work students help by stocking shelves and taking inventory. It is funded completely by donations, including a major gift from North Kansas City Hospital. Food drives were recently conducted at the University, Parkville City Hall and Northland Baptist Church.
Donations of non-perishable food and personal hygiene items can be placed in the donation bin outside Pirate Pantry or dropped off in the pantry. Donation bins will also be available at Parkville City Hall. Bulk donations can be coordinated by e-mail to pantry@park.edu and financial donations can be made by check written to Park University with Pirate Pantry in the memo line.
Mayor Nan Johnston said, “The City is very proud of our Pirate Community. We hope that raising awareness about this issue will increase the number of donations received. We are pleased to partner with Park University on this endeavor.”
For more information about the Pirate Pantry, visit park.edu/park-pantry/.
On October 16, 2018, the Board of Aldermen adopted a resolution urging voters in Parkville and throughout Missouri to become knowledgeable on Proposition D, an issue on the November 6, 2018, ballot related to funding for improved roads, highways and bridges. The resolution urges voters to determine whether they support or oppose the funding through an increase in the motor fuel tax and to participate by voting in the November 6th election.
The Missouri General Assembly placed an issue on the November ballot for a statutory referendum to fund Missouri law enforcement and maintenance for highways, bridges, roads and streets. If passed, Proposition D will raise the motor fuel tax by 2.5 cents per gallon annually for four years beginning July 1, 2019, and will enable the Missouri Department of Transportation to address a backlog of road projects.
It is estimated that, if passed, the measure will generate at least $288 million annually to the State Road Fund to provide for funding of Missouri state law enforcement and $123 million annually to local governments for road construction and maintenance. The impact to the City of Parkville is estimated at $87,359 and the funds would be used for road and bridge maintenance and improvements in the community.
Voters will see the following language on their November ballot: Shall Missouri law be amended to fund Missouri state law enforcement by increasing the motor fuel tax by two and one half cents per gallon annually for four years beginning July 1, 2019, exempt Special Olympic, Paralympic, and Olympic prizes from state taxes, and to establish the Emergency State Freight Bottleneck Fund?
Mayor Johnston said “Missouri ranks in the bottom two states on fuel tax, yet has the 7th largest state highway system and the 6th largest bridge system in the country. In addition, a portion of the fuel tax will go to municipalities to assist with funding for local road and bridge projects.”
For more information about Proposition D, visit http://www.safermo.com. To learn more about the City’s resolution, contact City Administrator Joe Parente at (816) 741-7676.
The Parkville Nature Sanctuary will host its annual Ghost Stories Night on Saturday, October 27, 2018, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Parkville Nature Sanctuary located at Highway 9 and 12th Street. Ghost Stories Night is a fundraiser and family event for kids of all ages.
Hot dogs and chips will be served – all tickets are $5. Guests can toast marshmallows and enjoy s’mores at the campfire, hike the haunted trail, listen to scary tales and enjoy music provided by the Shortleaf Band.
To help prepare for the event, the Nature Sanctuary is looking for high school aged and older volunteers to help carve Jack-O-Lanterns at English Landing Park on Thursday, October 25 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Cookies and cider will be provided. The pumpkins carved will be used to light the kids trail during Ghost Stories.
For more information about Ghost Stories, contact Nature Sanctuary Director Joe Ryan at (816) 741-7676.
The City of Parkville recognized a local Boy Scout for his hard work in helping to enhance the Parkville Nature Sanctuary through his Eagle Scout project. Benjamin Haddix from Boy Scout Troop 1351 was presented with a certificate of recognition from Nature Sanctuary Director Joe Ryan and Ward 4 Alderman/Nature Sanctuary Liaison Marc Sportsman at the Board of Aldermen meeting on October 2nd.
Benjamin Haddix completed his Eagle Scout project by covering approximately 150 yards of the White Tail Trail with gravel which helps to keep the trails open year-round by avoiding muddy days that follow rains or snow melt. His crew of volunteers shoveled rock into wheelbarrows, wheeled the rock to the parts of the trail that needed it and smoothed the rock onto the trail with rakes. They also uncovered and raked the rocks into a well-defined pile that will help the next group that works with the rock.
Parkville Nature Sanctuary Director Joe Ryan said, “The Parkville Nature Sanctuary is most grateful for the work Benjamin did to improve our hiking trail through his Eagle Scout project.”
Mayor Johnston said, “The Parkville Nature Sanctuary is a 115-acre natural area with 2.8 miles of trails that is maintained almost entirely by volunteers. We thank Benjamin for his work in helping improve our community.”
For more information about the Eagle Scout project or to volunteer, contact Nature Sanctuary Director Joe Ryan at (816) 741-7676.
