2015 eastern jackson county progress report 2015 - section d

February 28 - March 2, 2015 D1PROGRESS IN EASTERN JACKSON COUNTY

Progress in eJCw w w . e x a m i n e r . n e t

Unilever jobs contract extension pennedTHE EXAMINER FEbRuARy 28 - MARcH 2, 2015SEcTION D

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With one move, Inde-pendence is turning a worrisome threat into growth and long-term stability for hundreds of manufacturing jobs.

Construction is under-way on the expansion of Unilevers plant on 35th Street just west of Noland Road.

The nearly 200 jobs at the plant had been at risk since the announcement in mid-2013 that Unilver was selling its Wish-Bone and Western salad dress-ing division. For another year or more, the plant would keep making those products under contract with the new owner, but, according the Indepen-dence Economic Devel-opment Council, Unilever had no long-term plans for the plant.

EDC President Tom Lesnak and others worked to get the company to consider alternatives and keep the plants $10 mil-lion annual payroll going.

That came together last May, when the company announced it would start making soups, sauces, gra-vies and side dishes sold under the Knorr and Lip-

ton brands, replacing the salad dressing production. That new production is being shifted from Can-ada. The plant also will continue to make iced tea mix, as it has for years.

The upshot: a $99 million investment by Unilever in its 53-year-old plant, the preserva-tion of existing jobs and the addition of about 70 more. Average pay is about $48,000, higher than average for the area.

Unilever, based in both Britain and the Neth-erlands, makes a wide range of consumer prod-ucts, including Caress and Dove soaps, Ragu, Q-tips, Ben & Jerrys Ice Cream, Suave shampoo, Klond-ike bars and Lipton Tea. Worldwide, it has about 174,000 workers.

The company is getting about $20 million in state and local incentives for its Independence expansion. Lesnak said the compa-ny was persuaded to stay in Independence in part because its been satisfied with its workforce here, and he said the plant has a secure future.

I think it gives us another 25 years, he said at the time of the announcement.

The plant will undergo an increase in square footage, change in products produced plus an increase in jobs.

Construction underway at the Unilever plant in Independence. | JeFF Fox / The Examiner

D2 February 28 - March 2, 2015PROGRESS IN EASTERN JACKSON COUNTY

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Future for IPL looks brightBy Mike [email protected]

Independence Power and Light took some large steps toward signifi-cant long-term changes in 2014.

Before the City Coun-cils renewable energy resolution that passed in July, IPL had already planned to close the coal-

fired Missouri City Power Plant and switch the Blue Valley Power Plant exclu-sively to natural gas for energy production one of the councils directives in that resolution. Mis-souri City, which was not even fired up this past year, will cease opera-tions by Jan. 31, 2016, while Blue Valley will have completely switched

to natural gas also be next January (one unit will switch in April). In fact, Blue Valley received its final shipment of coal last month.

Two big questions remain regarding Mis-souri City:

1. Whether to retire the plant (estimated cost $900,000, according to IPL Director Leon Daggetts report to the council last month) or dismantle it and refur-bish the land (estimated $18 million);

2. If groundwater sam-pling indicates IPL will simply be able to cap the ash pond for a significantly smaller sum than the esti-mated $10 million it woul take to haul the ash away.

IPL requested fol-low-up on half of the eight bids received in December for a possible 5-megawatt solar farm, which would be about 35 acres of city owned land off Bundschu Road. Negotiations for that are ongoing.

Another point from the councils energy resolu-tion was that IPL make a voluntary commitment to increase the percentage of electricity produced from renewable sources to 10 percent by 2018 and 15 percent by 2021; and solar farm would go along with the 15 megawatts per day the city purchases from Smoky Hills Winds Proj-ect II near Salina, Kansas. The 15 megawatts repre-sents about 5 percent of IPLs intake. Daggett also reported last month that IPL is in contract negotia-tions for a purchase agree-

ment for additional wind power and anticipates having a recommendation to the council within a month or two.

The city purchased the property of the old the Medical Center of Inde-pendence in 2014 and is planning to renovate the former medical office building that remained on the site (the hospital build-ing was torn down) into a new office building for IPL.

Daggett said the initial design of that building includes the use of solar or wind power and could possibly reach Leadership in Energy and Environ-mental Design (LEED) Gold certification, the second-highest level of energy production and conservation practices. Renovatoin designs were scheduled to be com-pleted last week, bidding should be finished by June 18 and IPL is shoot-ing for a March 2016 completion of the project.

The City Council approved discounted power rates for Unile-ver after it announced a

significant fortcoming expansion, as well as for the schools, as well as more forgiving tem-perature thresholds when delinquent customers face possible disconnection.

Daggett told the council that a preliminary report on IPLs ongoing rate study that a modest increase should be expected at some point over the next five years, but there will be no increase this year and Daggett said he probably will budget for no increase next year, as well.

Sugar Creek revealed late in 2014 that the city has been pushing for a solar panel farm at the site of the old BP refin-ery. Mayor Matt Mallin-son said the city has an unsigned contract with an unnamed company ready to go once there committed customers. The proposed solar farm would generate 12 to 18 megawatts of electric-ity. The mayor said that Amoco (BP owns what was formerly Amoco) paid for engineering study for the project.

The plant will undergo an increase in square footage, change in products produced plus an increase in jobs.

ToP: Crews have begun the work of razing the vacant Medical Center of Independence building at the corner of east 23rd Street and R.D. Mize Road. The building will be demolished by the owner, Truman Manor LLC, before the land and the adjacent three-story medical building (background left) is sold to the city of Independence for $1.5 million. The city plans to use the medical building for Independence Power and Light offices. | KaRL ZInKe / The Examiner BoTToM: The Independence Power and Light Blue Valley Plant is being converted from coal to natural gas as part of the city's energy future plan. | SheILa DaVIS / The Examiner

Now located in IndependenceCrossroads Hospice, Kansas City, is proud to an-

nounce the relocation of our central office to Inde-pendence. The move has brought an exciting time of growth and change for us.

Serving the community for 16 years has been an hon-or. Crossroads is committed to being at the forefront of the hospice care industry continually shaping the way palliative care is viewed and administered. Our new location in the Marketplace Shopping Center will allow us to be more visible and efficient in serving those on our service.

In addition to our office, we have new opportunities to serve the community as a whole. Our beautiful build-ing has a conference center that we hope organizations will utilize often. Our complimentary Grief Recovery Method groups are a resource provided through the Crossroads Hospice Charitable Foundation as a Gift to the Community.

We are also proud that our Veteran Recognition pro-gram has achieved Level 4 status with the We Honor Veterans program.

Crossroads Hospice is happy to be in Independence and grateful for the warm welcome we have received. Please contact us 24/7 with any questions at 816-333-9200.

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Grain Valley Mayor Mike Todd envisions a downtown friendly for small business when the improvements for Main Street are completed.

The second phase of the Missouri Depart-ment of Transportations transformation of the main arteries in the city got underway in mid-February.

Already completed is the rebuilding of the Interstate 70 interchange and the rerouting of U.S. 40. Now work is started on rebuilding and widen-ing Main Street through town.

It started with relocat-ing utility lines and train signals the week of Feb. 9. A pre-construction meet-ing was held on Feb. 19, and the main work on the road is expected to start soon.

When it is done, Todd said it will have more curb appeal. He is asking residents and those who travel through Grain Val-ley to be patient while the work is done.

The construction company wanted us to close Main Street at first so they could get it done faster, but we said, No, we cant do that, Todd said. Thats our main artery through town and too many businesses would be affected.

We will have some delays. There will be days when its down to one lane, but when its done it will be worth it.

Todd said the road

will be wider with a left-hand turn lane to relieve congestion. It will also feature a new set of side-walks, with one side of the street wider so it can allow for bicyclists.

And instead of just ditches, it will have curbs and gutters, he said. It will have a much nicer appearance and it will really improve traffic flow through the middle of town. And people will be able to walk anywhere, and that should help businesses downtown.

Right now drivers are able to park along Main Street but those spots will be eliminated to allow for the widened road and the sidewalks. In its place, the city will build a new park-ing lot next to the inter-section of Main and Wal-nut streets to make up for those spaces. Todd said it will be within easy walk-ing distance of the small businesses downtown.

Its a good size lot, Todd said. It will have additional parking, in fact it will have more parking than whats there cur-rently.

When the work is com-pleted on the road, side-walks and parking lot, the mayor sees small busi-nesses making a return to downtown.

Weve got quite a few empty storefronts at this time, but when its com-pleted, in the short term I think those will start fill-ing up again, Todd said.

In the long term Todd sees possibly more com-mercial development replacing some older housing near downtown

between Yennie and Wal-nut streets.

As people move out, they are taking down those houses, Todd said. Soon there will be a solid block open for possible redevelopment. Wed like to see them build more buildings that fit in more with the old town kind of look. We see more retail and small businesses there.

This is really going to beautify things and bring us new business.

Todd said Grain Valley is already seeing benefits from the completed I-70 interchange, and said more may be coming soon.

Were already seeing an increase in tax rev-enues with the theater, Advanced Auto and the new McDonalds. And were expecting to make some announcements in the next month or two about some new business north of the interchange and near it. We knew once we got it done that it would start spurring interest. Its a great loca-tion.

And Todd hopes the same will happen down-town on Main Street.

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The Groves Branches Out Into the Neighborhood

With Forest View Wellness Bistro

Recently, health care and well-care has allowed retirement years to be length-ened and managed in beneficial ways, and older adult communities and pro-grams have adapted to maximize wellness for those in their retirement years. Carrying on its tradition for being progressive, The Groves joins this mindset by branching out and creating its own innovative, wellness atmosphere. Forest View Wellness Bistro opened publicly Nov. 13, 2014 with a ribbon-cutting and the sup-porting presence of the Indepen-dence Chamber of Commerce. This new environment fosters opportu-nities for continued vitality through programming and classes designed to meet the positively changing adult, age 55 and beyond.

An adaptation of a Chicago-based concept, the idea is to come in for a cup of coffee, and stay for a class or two, among friends. The Forest View Wellness Bistro now welcomes the neighborhood and community in to experience and en-joy a menu of opportunities it offers. Unique classes revolve and support all six areas of the wellness model social, occupational, spiritual, physical, intellectual, and emotional. Choices vary from meditation classes to modified yoga classes, to water fitness in the heated, saltwater pool, to being a part of a creative writers group. Challenging the intellect through classes like Kokology and touching on current scientific trends with TED talks, the older adult has many ways to build his or her wellness in a supportive, beautiful environment.

Cindy Schulte, the Community Wellness Coach for this new programming is excited to offer these opportunities and expand further, with cutting-edge brain health and wellness programming, which is not offered currently in this capacity, at any other local facility. With a passion for brain health science, Cindy is certified as a Brain Fitness Facilitator with the American Senior Fitness Association, and is also among 70 people nationwide to become a Certified Total Brain Health Coach for Dr. Cynthia Green. Well-known for appearances on health shows like Dr. Oz, The Today Show, and also a continuous contributor to Prevention magazine, Dr. Green is best known for her Total Memory Workout plan, which Cindy will facilitate at the Forest View Wellness Bistro beginning in 2015. She will also be continuing a favorite class called Noggin Joggin, which allows students to explore their cogni-tive abilities and neuroplasticity, beyond just that of memory.

As a part of Forest View Wellness Bistro, high-end, healthier choice food vend-ing is also offered. With only four locations in the Kansas City metro area enjoying the same type of open vending, this healthier vending option allows electronic payment with only a fingerprint login to a preloaded account. Nutritiously-inclined sandwiches, salads, juices and other foods can be consumed while enjoying free Wi-Fi between classes.

Open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday in the Birchwood Building at The Groves, (1600 W. White Oak, Independence, Mo.), classes and times are listed monthly in a Course Catalog as well as benefits in becoming a member of the Forest View Wellness Bistro. Sample a featured entre (class), swap poetry recipes (writings) or simply taste current events (TED talks). Whatever ones appetite, nurturing VITALITY is the primary focus at Forest View Wellness Bistro to LIVE WELL!

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Officials at the ISD launch business classesBy Brandon [email protected]

The Independence School District will be transforming all three of its high schools, as well as Independence Academy, into Ford Next Generation Learning Career Acad-emies over the course of future school years.

Truman, Van Horn and William Chrisman high schools will offer five Career Academies, with the debut of the Comput-er Science and Industrial Technology Academy in the 2015-16 school year. Other academies slated

include Health & Public Services and Arts, Educa-tion and Business for the 2016-17 school year.

Each high school will offer courses in all five acad-emies, so a students home school will not change.

We will transport stu-dents within the district to participate in these programs for a portion of the day, Dr. Dale Herl previously said.

The Independence Chamber of Commerce introduced the district to the FNGL initiative in late 2013, and then it approached the Ford Motor Company about

becoming one of its learn-ing communities. FNGL is an educational outreach program by Ford that promotes career and col-lege readiness through the collaboration between community leaders, orga-nizations and local busi-nesses. After developing a master plan that took a year and a half to devise, ISD become one of 18 exclusive FNGL com-munities in the country. The master plan proposed the creation of Career Academies, which are described as personalized small learning communi-ties within each of our

high schools that guide students towards success in their chosen career.

ISD believes the acad-emies have something to offer every student in our district, Independence Superintendent Dale Herl said in January.

The five Career Acad-emies have 15 combined pathways that could lead a student to over 30 pos-sible career areas. For example, the Industrial Technology academy has four pathways: Architec-ture, engineering, manu-facturing and construc-tion. There are multiple exit points for students as

well. High school gradu-ates can earn either an Industry-Recognized Cre-dential that allows them to immediately enter the workforce, enroll in some kind of post-graduate edu-cation program/appren-ticeship, or advance their studies at a vocational school or college.

Career Academies allows students to pos-sess 21st century skills, Herl said.

The academies will be implemented through what Herl called the three Rs: Relevance, rigor and real world experiences. Relevance is defined as

meeting the students (and todays globalized economy) needs; rigor meaning that students will be learning infor-mation; and real world experiences constitute as skills that directly apply to a students chosen field, plus the skills and knowl-edge that will be obtained through job shadowing, internships and more classroom projects--which require teamwork and critical thinking.

Teachers will be teach-ing the Career Academy courses as a team. Every

See aCaDeMIeS, D8

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It has been an excit-ing start to 2015 in Grain Valley as we prepare to wrap up our Main Street corridor improvement project. By the end of the year, widen-ing of Main Street south of I-70 to Eagles Park-way will be completed. Main Street is the gateway to our com-munity, and we expect the improved traffic flow to benefit residents and visitors, as well as assist in business development efforts.

Grain Valley con-tinues to be one of the

fastest growing cities in the metropolitan area. In 2014, 67 new single-family homes were built in our city, accounting

for almost 10 percent of Jackson Countys total number of new homes built. This growth tells a story we know all too well here in Grain Val-ley, and that is that our top-notch schools, low

crime rate and friendly community make for a great place to raise a fam-ily.

As Grain Valley grows, community safety

remains a source of pride. Real estate blog Movoto recently named Grain Valley as Missouris sixth safest city, based on FBI crime data. The report found that Grain Valley is the safest city on the Mis-souri side of the state line in the metropolitan area, as well as the safest city in Jackson County.

The City has taken several steps to ensure citizen safety and security continues. We recently restructured and stream-lined leadership within our police department, a move that added two new patrol officers to the ranks. We encour-age residents to sign up for important and timely law enforcement updates delivered straight to their smartphones through

Nixle.com. Also at City Hall, leaders continue to be responsive to issues raised by residents. After neighbors voiced concerns about pedestrian safety along Sni-A-Bar Parkway, the public works depart-ment in 2014 added new sidewalks to the roadway. In 2015 there will be mul-tiple capital improvement completed to improve and update Grain Valleys water, sewer and street infrastructure. While many of them will occur in the background and go unnoticed, they are criti-cal projects that will allow the city to grow into the future, without sacrificing the service and expecta-tions of our current resi-dents.

On the development front, Grain Valley has wrapped up an 18-month Comprehensive Master Planning process designed to guide the citys eco-nomic development and community development efforts for years to come. Through a series of public meetings, we were able to outline community needs and wants and then use that information to develop a plan for future growth. The full report is posted on the home page of the City of Grain Valley website.

Grain Valley expects to ramp up new business recruitment and exist-ing business retention in 2015 to take advantage of the improving business climate. Our Economic Development Task Force is exploring the possibility of undergoing a restruc-turing process that would ensure better public/private collaboration and a fresh approach to grow-ing our economic base.

City Hall and the Grain Valley Police Department made some important

leadership changes in 2014. Assistant City Administrator Ryan Hunt was promoted to Interim City Administrator, and in early 2015, the City promoted David Starbuck to Chief of Police from his previous post as Assistant Chief of Police. David is a familiar face in Kansas City law enforcement, and we are grateful for his continued service to our citizens.

As our community grows, the Citys admin-istration continues to improve and add events and activities for our residents and families. In the final quarter of 2014, we had our second annual Trail or Treat, which drew more than 2,000 citizens. The event coincided with the Roy-als epic playoff run, so the City showed the game on the Parks Depart-ments 16-foot inflatable Movie in the Park big screen. This ensured that our patrons could watch the World Series while enjoying the Halloween festivities. We look for-ward to again hosting Trail or Treat in 2015, and we encourage busi-nesses interested in being vendors for this fun event to keep an eye out for updates from the City.

Finally, Grain Valley is making it a priority to stay connected to citizens through social media and our redesigned website in 2015. You can stay up to date on all the news from City Hall by liking our City of Grain Valley, Mis-souri page on Facebook, by following us on Twit-ter @MyGrainValley and by sharing your photos with us on Instagram at MyGrainValley.

Grain Valley Mayor Mike Todd

2014 was a big year for reinvestment and growth in Blue Springs. All you need to do is look around to see that new businesses are calling Blue Springs home, existing businesses are rein-vesting in their facilities and new houses are springing up around town.

I often say that great communities dont just happen. They are the result of hard work, excep-tional people and dedicat-ed partners. This includes our community stakehold-ers, government partners and the Blue Springs School District, recognized as one of the best school districts in the state.

Downtown Alive! has played a large role in welcoming many new businesses to the corridor and working to beautify and develop our historic downtown. Their efforts are gaining state-wide attention and they were awarded the Outstand-ing Public Partner Award by the Missouri Main Street Connection. To help support business development, the City constructed three new downtown public parking lots to expand options for visitors and businesses.

When I looked back at 2014, I saw a lot of teamwork. We continue to work with the Blue Springs Chamber of Com-merce and the Economic Development Corporation to bring quality busi-nesses and employment opportunities to our City. Together we have added hundreds of new job

City of Grain Valley Mayor On the Right Track

See RIGhT TRaCK, D8

City of Grain Valley Mayor Mike Todd


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Academies, cont.

opportunities, transitioning from a bedroom community into a place where residents can live, work and play. In the fall 2014, we announced the How to Open a Business in Blue Springs guide.

This new resource helps entrepreneurs and business own-ers easily start or relocate a business in Blue Springs.

One of the keys to maintaining our Citys vibrant community is continuing to invest in our infrastructure. In 2014, we focused

on supporting public

safety, transportation, infrastructure and main-taining our community image. One of our larg-est capital improvement projects includes the expansion of the Howard L. Brown Public Safety Building. I invite every-one to join us this fall as we rededicate this state-of-the-art facility.

Prompted by our com-munitys desire to improve mobility and accessibility

for all, we completed an evaluation of the Citys 168 miles of sidewalks. The audit revealed that 83 per-cent of the Citys sidewalks will need minor modifica-tions. We have posted a draft plan on our website that proposes a best prac-tices approach.

Also in response to resi-dent input, we partnered with Jackson County to open a new yard waste collection facility and

addressed recreational con-cerns with the development of the new Blue Springs Fieldhouse, scheduled to open late summer 2015.

One of my goals as Mayor has always been to increase resident involve-ment and diversity. In March 2014, the City Council unanimously approved the establish-ment of a Human Rela-tions Commission. I look forward to seeing this

group ensure that we are an inclusive community where everyone is accept-ed and valued.

I end by saying thank you! I appreciate our engaged residents, our dedicated community partners and all of the hard work and teamwork that makes Blue Springs a great place to live.

Blue Springs Mayor Carson Ross

instructor will also have shared planning time for lessons and participate in externships, or workplace training programs at businesses that are a part of the FNGL initiative, in preparation of teaching a more career-oriented cur-riculum. To accommodate this ambitious program,

the district has also sig-nificantly increased the number of dual-credit courses from 6 to 52 this current school year, a near ten-fold increase.

To date, 20 area busi-nesses have partnered in the ISD Academy pro-gram. The district expects the number to grow in the future. Some business

partners include: Alliant Techsystems, Bayer, Burns and McDonnell, Hollis + Miller, Truman Medical Centers, Superior Alumin-ium, the city of Indepen-dence and Mid-Continent Public Library.

The implementation of this initiative should allow ISD to reap in the benefits. FNGL Executive

Director Cheryl Carrier previously reported that one FNGL community experienced a 20 percent graduate rate increase over a five-year span, and students increased their SAT exam scores to apply at various universities.

This Career Academy program is already under-way. The Freshman Acad-

emy debuted this school year, with all Independence ninth graders required to devise a 10-year plan based on their career interests, plus visit a college and take part in a career skills fair. Students freshman year is also the time where they decide what Career Acad-emy to attend.

One of the competitive

advantages we can (see) in the effort of attracting high quality jobs to Inde-pendence is to have a cer-tificated workforce ready to go, Independence Economic Development Council President Tom Lesnak previously said. This program gives our community a huge advan-tage over competition.

City of Blue Springs Mayor Carson Ross

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2015 eastern jackson county progress report 2015 - section d

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