Month: February 2015

Former KCKCC instructor honored in memorial reading and scholarship fundraiser

by Kelly Rogge

A former faculty member at Kansas City Kansas Community College is being remembered through the Riverfront Series.

Philip Miller taught English composition and literature at KCKCC as well as creative writing and learning center courses from 1976 to 2002, when he retired from the college.

He was a well-published poet, an editor, the co-founder of a long-running reading series and a promoter and supporter of literature in the Kansas City area for many years. Even after moving to Pennsylvania, he continued writing, publishing, editing and encouraging other writers.

One of Miller’s legacies is the Riverfront Reading Series, which began in the 1980s. The series continues, now sponsored by a six-member committee, and is headed by poet Phyllis Becker.

This year’s reading will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 15 at The Writer’s Place, 3607 Pennsylvania Ave. in Kansas City, Mo. In addition, there will be a silent auction, and refreshments will be served.

Donations collected will go toward the Phillip Miller Scholarship fund at KCKCC. The $500 scholarship will be awarded to one English or creative writing student in the Humanities Department at KCKCC each year.

During the reading, KCKCC faculty and students are invited to read their work. Readers are asked to read original poems on the themes of love (or anti-love) or are invited to read one of Miller’s poems.

His work can be found online or in his books, such as “Branches Snapping or Hard Freeze,” (available through Amazon). Other works by Miller can be found at Prospero’s Bookstore, 1800 W. 39th St. in Kansas City, Mo.

Those interested in participating are asked to send an email to [email protected]. Readers can also register the day of the event. If unable to attend the Poetry Reading, donations to the Phillip Miller Scholarship Fund can be mailed to KCKCC, 7250 State Ave., Kansas City, Kan. 66112. Put Attn: Dawanna Fangohr, professional assistant, KCKCC Endowment Association, on the envelope.

Checks should be made payable to the KCKCC Endowment Association and write “Phillip Miller Scholarship” in the Notes section.

Kelly Rogge is the public information supervisor for Kansas City Kansas Community College.

Maybe one more day until snow melts

After a cold morning when temperatures at 8 a.m. were at 8 degrees, Wyandotte County should warm up to a high near 29 today, according to the National Weather Service forecast. It could be another day before Wednesday’s snow melts.

Wind chills went down to zero at 4 a.m. this morning, according to the National Weather Service. Today, the warming trend starts. Tonight’s low will be 25.

Friday will be a sunny day with a high near 53, the weather service said. A south southwest wind will be 9 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph, according to the weather service. Friday night’s low will be about 35.

Saturday continues the warmer weather and sunny skies, with a high near 61, according to the weather service. Saturday night, the low will be about 39.

Sunday’s weather will be mostly sunny with a high near 57, the weather service said. Sunday night, the low will be 32.

Monday, the high will be near 48, and Tuesday, near 52, the weather service said.

Tuesday night and Wednesday, there will be a 30 percent chance of rain with the high on Wednesday near 49, according to the weather service.

Cooler weather is expected by forecasters to return mid-week.

Column: Single-family housing development needs incentives

by Murrel Bland

Wyandotte County is not attracting its share of new single-family home construction.

That was the message that builders and developers delivered at recent meetings of the Economic Development and Public Works standing committees of the Unified Commission.

Rusty Roberts, a builder-developer and chairman of the housing committee for Business West, told the members of the standing committees that Wyandotte County has about 8 percent of the area’s population, but only about 4 percent of the area’s new single-family home permits.

Statistics from the Homebuilders Association of Greater Kansas City reported that 4220 permits were issued for new single-family homes in Greater Kansas City during 2014; however, Wyandotte County only had 181 of those permits. Those numbers show increases when compared to 2013 when 4087 permits were issued in Greater Kansas City compared to 160 in Wyandotte County.

Roberts said that high property taxes in Wyandotte County discourage people from buying homes here compared to neighboring areas such as Basehor, Western Shawnee or Parkville.

Roberts cited an example of what taxes would be on a $265,000 home in the Piper community compared to the same home in Basehor. The tax rate in Piper is about $174 a thousand compared to about $140 a thousand in Basehor. That could amount to about $27,000 more for a Piper resident during the life of a 30-year mortgage, Roberts said.

“All units of government must become more efficient managers,” Roberts said. He said this is consistent with long-term goals of Business West that has encouraged public officials to hold the line on property taxes.

“Short-term, the Unified Commission needs to extend incentives by waiving sewer hook-up and building fees,” Roberts said. “This has helped some, but Wyandotte County still needs this incentive gain its rightful place in attracting the single-family housing market.”

Roberts said the cost of this incentive, estimated at $100,000 for 2015, would be recouped quickly with property taxes of about 25 new homes.

The Unified Commission will consider waiving the sewer hook-up and building fees for 2015 when it meets at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5, at City Hall.

Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is the executive director of Business West.