Sidewalk Shrapnel from the “War on Drugs”

Here at the front lines in the neighborhood battle grounds, the enemy is not readily visible for those nonresidents. Some may say it’s like finding a needle in a hay stack. But for those who live here in the neighborhood, the needles are actually easy to find. In fact, you have to watch where you step. The needle and syringe shown above in the photo was on our sidewalk last weekend. And neighbors around the corner stumbled on a kid’s Libby Lu bag full of drug paraphernalia on their property and another neighbor next to them had found about a half-dozen syringes on their property. If absentee landlords do not hesitate to rent to known sex offenders with records of violence against children, then they’re not likely bothered by drug use on their property. We should not be totally surprised that folks who have committed drug crimes are in our neighborhood. The fact is that drug offenders are given an official invitation to come to the Truman National Historic Landmark District every week. Most of the mandatory drug counseling meetings in Independence are conducted in the lower level of the First Baptist Church while the county government offers a special “Drug Court” right on Main Street directly across from the old Court House and below the watchful eye of sculptured bronze statue of President Truman holding his walking cane, perched prominently and respectfully on an engraved pedestal. We should be proud to host programs that are intended to help people here in the neighborhood. But are these programs successful?According the US Office of National Drug Control Policy, one out of every ten 8^th grade students reported using an illicit drug in the last 30 days. Are we providing adequate resources and a stable revenue source to fund our Police Department’s efforts to fight drug activities in our neighborhoods? Drug problems in the community contribute to neighborhood crime, problems in our schools, homelessness, and public health issues while putting a strain on the tight budgets of local governments. Are we winning the War on Drugs? From the perspective of our area of the National Historic Landmark District, it appears not. We are, however, blessed here in Jackson County to have a special funding source with a program called COMBAT to address these drug problems in our communities. And there are success stories to tell, which we all heard during the last election. But with the legendary stories of the great accomplishments of our 19^th-century pioneers on the trails, the Civil War battles, and the rise of world leader Harry S Truman, one of the nation’s most important neighborhoods also deserves to have success stories in our struggles with keeping our youth free of the dependencies of drugs, social welfare, and cultures of crime. Actually, we could really use someone like Harry Truman back here in his neighborhood and not just in bronze. And history tells us that Harry knew how to end a war!

Parking Lot “Postscripts”

As a postscript to the Bank of America park lot story at the corner of White Oak & Osage, it finally got an upgrade. No, it wasn’t cleaning up the weeds, trash, debris, or removing the rusty barbed wire fencing. The guard posts, that support the chains that are there to keep people from parking there, got a freshening up with a new coat of yellow paint. That’s right. The guard posts and chains are intended to prohibit any of their neighbors from parking there, unless, of course, it’s Santa-Cali-Gon. Who are their neighbors? That would include Independence Chamber of Commerce, Commerce Bank (their competitor), the Truman Heartland Community Foundation (who moved out a few weeks ago), and immediately to west located in the National Historic Landmark District, Hillcrest Ministries (family homeless shelter). Actually, families who need the services provided by Hillcrest because of, for example, “bank” foreclosures, don’t even have a place to park except for the street. If you haven’t figured it out, Independence if full of ironies, but this one takes the funnel cake. But, wow, those are some good-looking posts. Great job BofA! You might swing by there during Santa-Cali-Gon and admire all four of these wonderful bright yellow posts. And while you’re there, ask the good folks selling parking spots for $5.00 to clean up the mess when they are done so the parking lot will be ready when the chains go back up for the next 361 days. Yes, I would hope the clean up would include the mess that was there before they started. I know that is above and beyond the call of duty, but good folks always seem to forget that this area is a “Presidential Neighborhood.”

As postscript to this postscript and in breaking national news, just a few days ago, Warren Buffett has agree to invest $5 billion in BofA whose stock shares have been dropping over financial worries in the economy. A few recommendations to Mr. Buffett; you might suggest changes in the management structure at BofA. When all decisions are made in Charlotte, NC concerning the management of their assets world-wide, sometimes they miss the target when it comes to important local interests and concerns. I guess we should extend a “Welcome to the Neighborhood” to Warren Buffet & Co. who will actually end up owning a piece of this parking lot. Yes, that’s right, now Warren Buffet will be involved in Santa-Cali-Gon.

Foundation Loses its Footing in Truman’s Neighborhood

After two decades in the Commerce Bank Building at Truman Road and Osage, the “Truman Heartland” Community Foundation is moving to the Little Blue Parkway. This move comes right after the US Department of the Interior announced the expansion of the Truman National Historic Landmark District that placed the new and improved district on three sides of the Commerce Bank block. The district expansion announcement is intended to invoke community pride and a desire for institutions and families to want to reinforce their presence in an area that was truly near and dear to the heart of President Truman. Now the Foundation joins the list of other institutions that have left Old Town to improve their lots and to better serve the community. Local families have to make these decisions all the time; whether to stay in their home and neighborhood or to move to another part of town or another community where it perceived to be more stable and prosperous. A reoccurring theme from the National Trust for Historic Preservation has been just two words: “Place Matters.” These special historic spaces and districts are not intended to be admired and studied from afar. Successful historic districts nation-wide are ones that are relevant to today’s modern living. They are places where people live, children attend school, employees work, shoppers spend money, souls worship, and tourists walk. The new and improved-expanded Truman National Historic Landmark District will only be successful when all aspects of our community appreciate and respect these spaces. Are we there yet? Good luck to the good folks at the Truman Heartland Community Foundation in their new space on the southern edge of town, but please, don’t forget about Truman’s true heartland, his beloved neighborhood.

A Towering Example of Citizenship

We need to extend a big “Thank You” to Noland Towers at 130 E. College here in Old Town Independence. Why? Is it because they maintain their buildings & grounds beautifully and provide good, clean, affordable housing for our senior citizens? Heritage House does these things also, so should we thank them? What makes Noland Towers special is the fact that they are paying their taxes and have been for decades. Now this may not sound like such a big deal, but here in Old Town it is. In fact, with the exodus of the hospital, I believe that leaves the Noland Towers property as the largest contributor of property tax revenue for local governments here in Old Town. They are a towering example that for-profit business entities, especially those in the real estate business, do not have to be charities to maintain a successful presence here. Just their occupation of that property generates revenue for schools, libraries, local governments, emergency medical responses, public transportation, and police protection (all elements of quality of life especially important to senior citizens). We hear of the conservative, religious, tea party movement where taxes are considered, in some cases, a sin. I believe just the opposite. It is actually our civic and, yes, our Christian duty to support our community, to support the less fortunate and disadvantaged, to support our most valuable resource (the education of our youth), and to provide planning & programs to make Independence “The Place to Be.” Yes, it is true, here in Independence the disadvantaged also includes retail developers and empty seats at the Events Center but, for the most part, tax revenue goes toward important things. Thanks again to the good folks at Noland Towers, “A Beautiful Place to Live! Have a Nice Day!”

Thank You National Park Service!

With all the turmoil in Washington DC with the budget talks, federal folks at the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service did get something right. Wednesday, the Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, officially announced the boundary expansion of the Truman National Historic Landmark District. This should be a time of celebration and pride, but more importantly; this should be a call for us as a community to roll up our sleeves and get to work. This means all the newly designated properties are now eligible for several tax credit programs for rehabilitation and preservation. This means our beloved Courthouse which has been struggling for funding is now eligible for more grants. Logic and common sense leads most folks to conclude that what is important to the nation should also be important to local citizens. So let’s move forward to expand the local Truman Heritage District boundaries to align with the national boundaries. And last but not least, this means our Tourism Department, economic development community, Chamber of Commerce, Community Development Department, and our business community of bankers, realtors, restaurants, etc. have more ammunition to promote our historic community. Congratulations to the citizens of the United States for this effort led by past Superintendent Jim Sanders and the entire team from the NPS. Thanks also to local citizens to traveled to Washington DC to provide testimony in the public hearings. You will probably here on City 7 at Monday’s City Council meeting city officials take credit for this action. The fact is that direct decisions by the City Council to approve several demolitions on Truman Road actually caused the NPS to go back to the drawing board with the application and reduce the boundaries of the district (you won’t hear that on City 7). City Hall will deserve praise and credit only after the local Truman Heritage District boundaries are expanded to match the federal district. Preservation happens primarily at the local level. It sounds like the Historic Preservation Manager position at City Hall is not just important but will be critical to the future success of the new and improved Truman National Historic Landmark District. By the way, that position is currently vacant.

Happy Founder’s Day!

Hope everyone will be taking part in the celebrations. It is a day we remember those who came before us, who took a chance and settled here at the edge of the frontier, and who outfitted the wagon trails that settled the western half of the country. It will be a day that we want our yards to be spruced up and have the stars and stripes proudly displayed. Visitors will be walking on the sidewalks so be sure to wave and welcome them. We have a lot to be proud of living here in Independence. Even our name projects a spirit of patriotism and pride. It was Pulitzer Prize winning author and noted historian, David McCullough, who said in reference to this area, “I can’t think of another piece of landscape of similar size where so many things happened that have been of significance in to the story of America.” That means our Founder’s Day is not just important to those of us who live here, but it is even more important to all citizens of this great nation. So when is Founder’s Day? This day is actually easy to remember and you won’t even need to mark it on your calendar. You see, practically every day is Founder’s Day here in Old Town Independence. It is celebrated 361 days a year. In fact, everything we do to make our properties shine is a celebration of our tremendous history. From the Truman Home National Historic Site on Delaware Street, 20,000 visitors from all over the world walk our sidewalks and view our streetscapes. Very few communities have the opportunities to shine and celebrate what we have here in Old Town Independence. So let’s observe Founder’s Day!!! But why only 361 days a year and not 365? Well, there’s this event called Santa-Cali-Gon on Labor Day weekend where we actually make it difficult for visitors to get to many of our historic sites and where we actually reward those who have paved over our history with lucrative parking sales. Yes, that’s right, we actually have more incentives to bulldoze than we do to preserve here in Old Town. So, please, as you greet folks today and tomorrow and the next day and the next and ……………… , wish them a “Happy Founder’s Day.” If someone asks you about Founder’s Day, then tell them “except for 4 days in September, every day is Founder’s Day here in Independence!”

Is it Time to Clean the “Chamber” Pot?

We were pleased that the independence Chamber of Commerce (ICC) decided to locate here in Old Town, especially on the north side the Square where acres of blighted asphalt remained in the fallout of Urban Renewal. Their new building was attractive and we figured the local business community and civic leaders would not tolerate the new ICC headquarters being adjacent to undeveloped and blighted empty spaces. But we were wrong. As it turned out, the open space was actually critical for ICC’s Labor Day festival, Santa-Cali-Gon, its primary source of revenue. We appreciate The Examiner’s recent reporting about concerns in the local business community and, yes, past reporting about situations down in the Little Blue Valley. It’s interesting to read in The Examiner that the ICC Board spokesperson defending the executive leadership of ICC was the same spokesperson for the City Manager and the City Council in a meeting in early March defending their stealth approach to millions of dollars in debt payments after short falls in the Bass Pro development. Now I’m no accountant and do not think organizations should be judged solely on their bookkeeping. If it were me, I would first judge the current ICC leadership (board members & executives) on performance by asking the following questions:

· Are ICC leaders offering appropriate leadership in the community and at City Hall when it comes to present economic conditions, especially at the Bass Pro development?

· Is ICC promoting not just business development in Independence but also promoting members to actually live within the city limits of Independence?

· Is ICC promoting attractive economical development tools offered by state and federal governments, i.e., Historic Preservation Tax Credits for historic properties and tourism-related business opportunities?

· Is ICC taking advantage of its location in the heart of local tourist sites and The Square to promote Heritage Tourism?

While traveling recently through a small community 500 miles from here (pop. less than 1,500) we picked up a wonderful 48-page full-color magazine promoting local businesses and tourist sites published by the local chamber of commerce. It was obvious that the local chamber was not just supporting its own organization but was promoting the local community and surrounding towns while focusing on its strengths: heritage tourism. There was a sense of community, cooperation, and pride with all the businesses and sites. We ended up staying 3 nights and spending a few bucks. And it was about 50 miles to the nearest Interstate Highway. Here in Independence, we have so much more to offer travelers. But I’ll ask one more question. Are we as a community prepared to take advantage of these opportunities?