Thanks to reserve funds from the City of Independence Water
Department that are intended to be spent on our aging utility infrastructure,
we get a $3.5 million Farmers Market. Parts of the Truman National Historic
Landmark District are still serviced with water mains older than Harry Truman.
These water mains are at least questionable to support modern fire hydrants
that also protect an 11-story HUD low-income senior housing complex (with
limited ladder truck access and no sprinkler system). The city commandeered
federal funds for the project but only presented the project’s impact to Truman
history to authorities ignoring the city’s rich national trails history. This
in spite of the fact that the new project was placed right on three nationally
designated trails and the archaeological remains of businesses connected to the
trails. The city’s environmental assessment report only covered a fraction of
the impacted property. Also, there were no Storm Water Permits necessary to
fulfill state regulations. So the city took all these shortcuts in planning,
designer selection, evaluating impacts to our national histories, and
implementing an accelerated construction schedule so the facility could be
opened in time for Santa-Cali-Gon. Yes, we ignored the impacts of our trails
history so we can celebrate our trails history.
