Free complimentary copy March 25, 2016 • Volume 3, No. 22
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Sandi Patty’s farewell tour to stop in Raytown Five-time Grammy Award winner Sandi Patty’s farewell tour “Forever Grateful: The Farewell Tour” is coming to Raytown in April. The performance will be held at 7p.m. April 7 at First Baptist Raytown. General admission tickets are $25. The tour began in February 2016 and is scheduled to run until spring 2017. Patty rose to prominence after her rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” during the rededication of the Statue of Liberty in 1986. Her version of the national anthem has been performed with the National Symphony, at the Indianapolis 500, the Dedication of Camp David Chapel and ABC’s Fourth of July Special. She has performed with symphonies across the country, including the New York Pops, Boston Pops, and the Dallas Symphony. She headlined the title role in sold out performances of the musical “Hello, Dolly!” with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, costarring Tony Award winner Gary Beach. Patty has also performed
during three separate presidential inaugurations, and at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The tour will feature special guests Veritas and performances from members of Patty’s family. “What a privilege it has been to share my story and faith through song for so many years,” she said in a statement. “My heart is full of gratitude for so many who have been along this journey with me. I could never have imagined my career taking me to so many amazing places and meeting so many people who have changed my life forever. … My desire is to use this next season and the ‘Forever Grateful’ tour as an opportunity to say ‘thank you’ to as many people as possible.” Along with the “Forever Grateful” Tour, Perry released a new album, “Forever Grateful” in February. More information on the tour is available at www.sandipatty.com. Information on tickets is available at www.premierproductions.com or by calling 816-268-1525.
By Kris Collins
Photo courtesy CMA Media Promotions Sandi Patty, five-time Grammy award winning singer, will perform in Raytown April 7 as part of her final tour, “Forever Grateful: The Farewell Tour.”
Raytown Schools to host 2016 graduation outdoors By Kris Collins For the first time in the Raytown C-II School District’s history graduation ceremonies for Raytown High School and Raytown South High School seniors will be held outside. “We are working hard to make sure this comes off very well,” Brian Huff, assistant superintendent of secondary education, told the school board earlier this month. The seniors, when asked for their thoughts on the event as juniors, wanted to host the event outdoors, Huff said. “It’s kind of a celebration of having a stadium on the south side of the district,” he said. “There’s a lot
By Kris Collins
Charges filed in Independence standoff
of excitement to be able to establish this as our place, our home. That’s probably what initiated the conversation.” The cost to host the event outside — at each schools stadium — is not finalized, though Huff said the cost has been “considerably less” in previous years. He said the district has had the event recorded and simulcast in the past, and live streaming for 2016 is a relatively simple addition to the workload. “It’s a convenience for our parents,” he said. “If you’ve got a grandpa in Louisiana, he can watch online.” Huff has a bid for video services to present the school board
at its next meeting and would not disclose what the cost is before the board was privy to the bid. Documents presented to the school board at its previous meeting showed video services were estimated at $18,400. Huff said the cost is fairly close to that figure. Raytown C-II School Board of Education Director Bobbie Saulsberry expressed reservations about the expenditure at the board’s March 7 meeting, asking if an outdoor event would yield greater value. “I think this is an extravagance,” said Saulsberry. To that end, Huff later said, the district will conduct another survey
after the event to gauge that value, which will inform future decisions on graduation ceremonies. Furthermore, he said many of the expenses associated with the outdoor event are one-time costs, such as stanchions and ropes, steps for the stage and skirting for the stage. He was quick to concede that the event may not go over well, but noted that the district is approaching it in a conscientious fashion. “I can say, having been through it with a grandson, outside is pretty nice,” said Terry Landers, school board director. “You’ve got all that space. It didn’t rain. We had a good
Operations Calendar as a reminder that it gets done every year and on time. This will make sure that we have no more mistakes of this type. There was no loss of revenue from this mistake. I believe that working on this together, the staff will ensure that there are no more oversites (sic) such as this again.” City Administrator Mahesh Sharma previously said the filing “fell through the cracks” from 2012 to 2015. Michelle Gleba, director of communications for the Missouri Department of Revenue, said reminder letters were sent out in 2014 and 2015, after the department took over administration of TIF filings from the Missouri Department of Economic Development. The department of economic development didn’t return calls by press time with information on reminder letters it sent to the city before 2014. The department of revenue lacks statutory authority to bring a penalty forward for Raytown’s failure to file. State statute dictates a five-year ban on the formation of new TIF districts for any entity that violates filing requirements. Such a penalty was handed down by a Boone County judge in December 2015 after the city of Columbia was sued for violating reporting requirements 23 to 25
times between 2009 and 2015. Though the Raytown TIF documents were filed retroactively, they don’t offer complete information, some as basic as how much money has been spent on infrastructure for the 30-acre redevelopment project. Gleba said the department of revenue doesn’t have any statutory authority to enforce the accuracy or completeness of require filings. Additionally, the Raytown Live TIF commission, which is required and given certain responsibilities by statute, has not met since November 2011, according to Raytown Public Information Officer Brenda Gustafson. The commission is required by state statute to hold public hearings and vote on all proposed redevelopment plans. The commission is not required by law to review financial data. The Raytown TIF Commission is comprised of 11 members, six of which are representatives from the city, two members of the school district, two members of Jackson and one member appointed by the other taxing entities in the district. Raytown’s representatives are: Larry Coleman, Allan Thompson, Gerald Young, George Koepp, Don Orrell and one Vacant Position. The school district’s representatives are Allan Markley and Steve
Shelton. The Jackson County representatives are Mark Trosen and Jack Feldman. The city could not confirm who the final member was by press time. The city’s failure to file required financial documents came to light when the Raytown Fire Protection District Board revisited an agreement it made with the city for the redevelopment project and began to raise questions. Under an agreement between the two entities, according to Mike Hunley, Raytown Fire Protection District deputy chief, a certain percentage of tax revenue generated within the district would go toward certain phases of redevelopment projects, all of which were part of the Raytown Live project. Hunley said the fire district agreed to pay more of its taxes than is outlined in law, but only agreed to for the construction of the Wal-Mart on Missouri 350, part of phase 1 of Raytown Live. The district believes some tax revenue has gone to other parts of the redevelopment. It is unclear how much the district believes it has overpaid. Fire Chief Matt Mace said the fire district recently met with city officials to ask questions, but no response has been give as of this week. Through Gustafson, Sharma and Raytown Finance Director Mark
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An Independence man is facing two felonies in connection with an hours-long standoff with Independence police this past Sunday. Darian L. Mickelson, 50, is charged with unlawful possession of a weapon and third-degree assault on a law enforcement officer for the incident. According to court records, police were dispatched March 20 to a residence in the 3100 block of Englewood Terrace regarding a burglary. Police documents state it is believed that Mickelson made the initial call, and had made several calls to police in the previous days. When police arrived on scene, they found a shed on fire in the backyard of a home. Mickelson allegedly threatened he had a “fire bomb” and yelled obscenities at the officers. Police then secured the scene and began making preparations for a standoff and negotiation. Mickelson reportedly continued to threaten police and he allegedly pointed a rifle at police officers. Police documents state Mickelson allegedly called police dispatch and said he would start firing on police unless they left his yard. Hours later, after unsuccessful negotiation attempts, Mickelson was taken into custody through the use of a chemical agent. Police found an improvised explosive device near the main entry door of the residence and two rifles in the home, police documents state. Mickelson is in custody on $10,000 bond. He is scheduled for a court appearance April 11.
City not facing penalty for failure to file TIF documents
The Missouri Department of Revenue confirmed this week that the state is not imposing any penalty on the city of Raytown for its failure to file financial disclosure documents associated with the tax increment finance (TIF) district formed for the Raytown Live redevelopment project along Missouri 350. Mayor Mike McDonough sent out a letter in early March stating the city had filed the financial documents for 2012 through 2015 required by state statute, bringing the city in compliance with filing requirements. A TIF district is a funding mechanism commonly used to fund large-scale projects. The TIF captures tax revenue and allows a city to pay off bonds used for a redevelopment project over a long period of time. “The TIF paperwork was forgotten during those 4 years, partially due to personnel turn over in the Finance Department,” McDonough’s letter said in part. “This did not occur under this administration, but it was corrected this last week under direction of my administration and Board of Aldermen. We now have it included in the City’s Standard Operating Procedure and it is in the
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Loughry have declined requests for interviews with the RaytownBrooking Eagle. Questions about the TIF finances have gone unanswered, like how much of the tax revenue captured by the TIF has gone toward building infrastructure, or how much money is in the Special Allocation Fund, which holds the captured tax revenue. The city has offered The Eagle no explanation for why such questions have gone unaddressed. Mace and Hunley said they are dedicated to finding a solution and hope to do so outside the courts. There is currently a petition in circulation calling for the state of Missouri to audit the city of Raytown for the purpose of getting an accurate view of what the TIF finances are. The petition currently has approximately 700 signatures, according to Mace. Mace said the fire district also has four requests of the city: • Give one of its seats on the TIF commission to the fire district • Form a citizens committee to review the TIF finances • Pay back any amount of taxes the district paid in excess of its agreement with the city. • Renegotiate with the district its percentage of tax revenue capture by the TIF district that is greater than what is required by law.
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