Weeks of impassioned testimony and email writing have apparently paid off for neighbors of Thomas S. Stoll Memorial Park. The county park board on Wednesday officially shot down a proposal for a gated exit through the park that Johnson County Community College wanted for emergencies.
Some 40 neighbors applauded as the county park and recreation governing board unanimously voted to deny the egress route for college use. College officials should look for other alternatives, park board members said.
Park neighbors have turned out in force to meetings on the idea and have submitted numerous emails since learning of the idea about a month and a half ago. JCCC had asked for a connection as an evacuation route for the campus that would bring traffic south and out through the park’s entrance. But neighbors feared the idea would be a foot in the door toward college expansion into the park or a traffic cut-through into their neighborhoods.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post – Neighborhood news and events for Prairie Village, Fairway, Mission Hills)