Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County

The Mission Police Department is creating a special unit of two police officers dedicated to solving problems, building cases and analyzing crime trends in the community. Cap. Dan Madden said the officers, who will likely be hired internally, will receive specialized training as the police department’s first Directed Patrol Unit. “They’re essentially a problem-solving unit, being able to look at and interpret data, and know where to get it,” Madden said. (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County)

The Roeland Park City Council is preparing for changes to management of its pool operations following the termination of the long-standing joint operating agreement between the city and Johnson County Park and Recreation District. The city is looking to Midwest Pool Management to pick up some of the duties handled under the previous agreement with JCPRD. The city and JCPRD held a ceremony this summer marking the city’s assumption of ownership of the facility. (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County)

As the wave of teardown-rebuild projects in the city continues, the Fairway City Council has asked its planning commission to take a fresh look at the building code and review process. But one member of the planning commission is raising concerns that changes to the status quo could eliminate important checks on homebuilders. The council on Monday directed the planning commission to conduct a review of  chapter 15 of the building code, which last underwent a major rewrite in 2014. The city has approved a half dozen changes to it since then, but none of them have been major. The document [...]

Merriam has taken the next steps to transfer ownership of property on the new community center campus to the Johnson County Library as part of the library’s plans to locate the Antioch library branch on site. The property conveyance agreement approved by the city of Merriam this week outlines the following: An anticipated timeline for construction and opening Permission for Merriam to use the property as open space until library construction begins Shared maintenance and ongoing use of shared infrastructure on site (plaza area between buildings, parking structure, internal access roads) (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for [...]

Each week we provide a member of the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners the opportunity to share an update on what issues are catching their attention. This week, we have a column from 3rd District Commissioner Steve Klika. He’s co-authored the following with Pam Shernuk, vice-chair of the Johnson County Commission on Aging. Earlier this year the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) identified three strategic priorities for 2019-2020: 1. Complete/advance existing projects approved by voters and the Board of County Commissioners with efficiency and effectiveness. 2. Strengthen and finance the appropriate level of service to meet the needs [...]

Information presented at the first meeting of the district’s new Facilities Task Force on Tuesday suggested Pawnee, Rushton and John Diemer Elementaries could all be slated for demolition and reconstruction in the coming few years. The task force is fleshing out a detailed analysis of the district’s current facilities, and developing a plan for what projects could be funded by a new bond issue if it were to be approved by district voters. At present, the district is considering a possible $177 million bond issue in 2020. An issuance at that level would not require an increase in the tax rate [...]

Mission and Roeland Park are struggling to resolve a conflict over the terms to switch ownership of seven-tenths of an acre along a shared border of the two cities. But out of an effort to value the two cities’ history of working together on other issues, the cities have agreed to revisit negotiations on those terms in the next several days. The plot of land in question is located on the northeast corner of Johnson Drive and Roe Boulevard. Both cities agree that under a deannexation agreement, Roeland Park would take over half of the financial responsibility for the traffic signal at [...]

The Shawnee Fire Department officially welcomed a new team member this past Sunday: a $1.2 million aerial ladder truck. The truck, a custom-built 2019 Pierce Velocity tractor-drawn aerial, will be known as Ladder 71. A tractor-drawn aerial which is often called a tiller in the fire service has an articulating center which allows it to bend, much like a tractor-trailer. Fire Chief John Mattox says the new tiller is 64 feet in overall length and carries an aerial ladder which fully extends to 107 feet. (Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County)

Shawnee is in the process of updating its sign code and design guidelines after a downtown business requested city approval for a projecting sign. Pegah’s Family Restaurant in June had requested approval from the planning commission on a new projecting sign at its downtown location, 11005 Johnson Drive. City staff and planning commissioners were concerned that the sign was “too large and out of scale for the building facade,” according to city documents. The planning commission’s approval of the sign at the time called for a reduction of the overall size of the sign. The planning commission then directed city staff [...]

Twelve years ago, the Prairie Village City Council adopted Village Vision, a wide-ranging comprehensive plan that set priorities for the investment of time, energy and resources in the coming years. Many of the priority items that plan identified have since been either partially or wholly addressed. Corinth Square, which had fallen into a state of some disrepair at the time, has been largely renovated — and redevelopment of the center continues. The city has updated its building codes to encourage home renovation while maintaining the character of neighborhoods, and it’s enacted a program to encourage residents to improve aging homes. And work has been done [...]