Several planning and zoning projects are on the Unified Government Commission agenda for Thursday, Jan. 7.
One project on 98th Street will have 270 multi-family units. The project at 1111 N. 98th St. is asking for a change of zone from agriculture to a planned apartment district for 270 multi-family units. Also, there is a master plan amendment for this same address from entertainment to medium density residential.
Also on the agenda is the approval of a plat of Ruffins Lot at Kansas Avenue and I-635, which is being developed by Phillip G. Ruffin, the former Woodlands owner, who also owns Treasure Island Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, and is a part owner with Donald Trump of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas.
The Homefields project, being built on the Schlitterbahn property near 94th and State Avenue, will be back on the agenda for the passage of an ordinance to issue sales tax special obligation revenue bonds. Although this already passed Dec. 17, it is back on the agenda because the electronic agenda Dec. 17 did not have the updated version of the ordinance.
The adoption of the Central Area Master Plan also is on the agenda.
There is also a 5 p.m. UG Commission special session on Thursday with a COVID-19 update, Convention and Visitors Bureau budget and marketing plan, and casino and Schlitterbahn funds.
Also on the 7 p.m. agenda:
• 6600 Thorn Drive, change of zone from single family district to planned heavy industrial district for existing industrial use and construction of a new metal storage building.
• 2909 N. 74th St., home occupation special use permit for arts and crafts production and storage, Teresa Brents.
• 6721 Kansas Ave., special use permit for temporary office trailer, Kirk Marcuson with International Food Products Corp.
• 611 N. 6th St., special use permit for short-term rental – Air BNB above the Epic Clay Studio, CHWC.
• 100 Osage Ave., special use permit for a temporary trailer to take employee temperatures during inclement weather related to COVID-19, Brian Curtin with National Beef.
• 1 Woodswether Road and 1R Woodswether Road, vacation of a street, MWT Bulk Services.
• 4520 and 4600 Shearer Road, preliminary and final plan review for a warehouse for Precision Cutting and Coring.
• 3104 Metropolitan Ave., preliminary and final plan review for fueling station and convenience store, James Koop with JE Real Estate.
• 7340 State Ave., preliminary plan review for Kansas City Kansas Community College student housing project, John Martin with Christie Development Associates.
• 815 Southwest Blvd., ordinance rezoning the property from general industrial district to two-family district.
• 2951 N. 115th St., ordinance rezoning property from agriculture district to single-family district.
• 2025 S. 51st St., ordinance rezoning property from single-family district to agriculture district.
• 1959 S. 51st St., ordinance rezoning property from single-family district to agriculture district.
• 4811 Parallel Parkway, ordinance rezoning property from limited business district to planned general business district.
• 433 Ann Ave., ordinance authorizing special use permit for continuation of a short-term rental-AirBNB.
• 709 N. 5th St., ordinance for a special use permit to continue short-term rental – AirBNB.
• 2903 Shearer Road, ordinance authorizing special use permit to continue temporary use of land to park a work vehicle.
• 4811 Parallel Parkway, ordinance authorizing special use permit for minor auto repair.
• 419 Armstrong Ave., ordnance authorizing home occupation special use permit for personal training.
• 1030 Orville Ave., ordinance authorizing special use permit for continuation of a day care center.
• 11501 Parallel Parkway, ordinance rezoning property from agriculture distrit to planned apartment district.
• 616 S. Valley St., ordinance authorizing special use permit for continuation of staff parking lot at John Fiske Elementary School.
• 10901 State Ave., ordinance rezoning property from agriculture district to palnned general industrial district.
• 1041 Berger Ave., ordinance vacating an alley.
• 1700 S. 38th St., ordinance authorizing special use permit for the continuation of farm animals, chickens, goats and cows.
• 809 Southwest Blvd., ordinance rezoning property from general industrial district to two-fam mily district.
• 6863 State Ave., change of zone from limited business district to planned commercial district to allow a fourth gas island pump.
• 5115 and 5125 Gibbs Road, change of zone from single-family, limited business and planned limited business districts to garden apartment district for a multi-family development, the Tower View Apartments. Also on the agenda is a master plan amendment to change these addresses from community commercial and low density residential to medium density residential.
• Grant agreement with the University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute for the RADx-UP program related to COVID-19 testing. The grant amount is $187,877 with no matech required.
• A resolution authorizing a survey of land for the Pump Station 15 Abandonment Project at 106th and Georgia.
• A resolution authorizing a survey of land for the 7th and Central intersection improvement project.
• An ordinance amendment concerning the towing or immobilization of motor vehicles from private property and creating a criminal violation for failure to comply with the provisions.
• 2619 N. 123rd St., replat of West Eden Estates, being developed by Bridgette Jobe.
• 139th and Hollingsworth Road, plat of Rottinghaus Addition, being developed by Tom Rottinghaus.
This is a virtual Zoom meeting. To connect or participate in the meeting, visit https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89681726738?pwd=U1UxUjhmUHovVkM2dWZRZWFFMlUyZz09.
The passcode is 597497.
The meeting also is available through phone access, dial toll free 888-475-4499.
The Webinar ID is 896 8172 6738.
This meeting also is expected to be available for viewing on UGTV on Spectrum cable and Google TV, as well as on Youtube.
Doctors at the University of Kansas Health System video news conference discussed allergic reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday morning.
According to Dr. Marissa Love, allergy specialist, for the most part, severe allergic reactions to the vaccine are pretty rare. About one in a million people have a severe allergic reaction to it.
Anyone who has a severe allergic reaction to the first dose of the vaccine should be evaluated, ideally by an allergist, before getting the second dose, she said.
COVID-19 patients who have already recovered should still take the vaccine, according to Dr. Love. Some develop a natural immunity after getting COVID-19, she added.
“However, we don’t know how long that lasts,” she said. The vaccine itself has been shown to produce very strong immunity, and that is a better protection for the patient, she said.
Dr. Love encouraged patients who are on immuno-suppressant drugs to have a conversation with their specialist about getting the COVID-19 vaccine. They may need a different schedule based on which medications they take, she said.
For most people, the risk of getting COVID-19 is much worse than the potential effect of getting the vaccine, Dr. Love said.
Anyone with questions should ask their doctor about getting the vaccine, and if needed, they can be referred to an allergist.
Not every reaction to a vaccine is an allergic reaction, according to the doctors.
Many of the side effects are nonallergic reactions, Dr. Love said.
Dr. Love said initially they thought patients with asthma may have increased risk. Now, according to Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control, additional data doesn’t show an increased risk for severe disease or complications among asthma patients. Other conditions may cause more severe illness.
Those who are already taking allergy shots should wait 24 hours before getting their COVID-19 vaccine, Dr. Love said.
Dr. Hawkinson said those who get the COVID-19 vaccine are protected from getting severe disease, but not from becoming infected. Those who get the vaccine can still spread the coronavirus although they have been vaccinated, according to Dr. Hawkinson.
Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer at KU Health System, said about 30 percent of the workers at the hospital are declining the vaccine, which is about the same as other hospitals in the region. The workers offer different reasons for declining.
There are reports that some areas of Kansas only had a 50 percent vaccination rate for the health care workers; however, that could be caused by slow data reporting, he said. The public awareness campaign is necessary to get the message of safety across, according to the doctors.
According to Dr. Stites, vaccines save lives, and making the choice not to get it can affect everyone, especially those around you.
Flags to fly at half-staff Thursday for those who lost lives to COVID-19
Flags in Kansas will fly at half-staff on Thursday, Jan. 7, to honor Kansans who have lost their lives to COVID-19, according to Gov. Laura Kelly.
Kansas has passed the 3,000 mark for COVID-19 related deaths.
“It is with great sadness that I am once again ordering flags to be lowered to half-staff in honor of the Kansans who have lost their lives to COVID-19,” Gov. Kelly said in a news release. “My administration remains committed to fighting further spread of COVID-19, and I know Kansans will do their part to protect their neighbors and loved ones.”
Case numbers reported
KU Health System reported that the number of active COVID-19 patients on Wednesday morning was stable. There were 69 COVID-19 active patients in the hospital, a decrease of one from Tuesday, with 25 in the intensive care unit, a decrease of four from Tuesday, and 13 on ventilators, a decrease of one from Tuesday, according to Dr. Hawkinson.
There were an additional 65 COVID-19 patients in the hospital in the recovery phase, an increase from 56 on Tuesday, he said. A total of 134 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized, an increase from 126 on Tuesday.
Wyandotte County reported an increase of 128 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, Jan. 6, according to the Unified Government’s COVID-19 webpage. There were a cumulative 15,127 cases. There were no additional deaths reported Wednesday, for a cumulative total of 201.
The Mid-America Regional Council Kansas City Region COVID-19 hub on Wednesday reported 128,444 total cumulative cases, with, 1,543 total cumulative deaths in the nine-county Kansas City region. The average number of new hospitalizations was 162.
The state of Kansas had 236,818 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, an increase of 5,501 since Monday, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. There were 130 additional deaths since Monday, with a cumulative 3,027.
The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Wednesday reported 21,305,028 total cumulative cases in the United States, with 361,279 total deaths statewide .
Free COVID-19 testing available Thursday
The Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 test site at the former Kmart building at 78th and State will be open on Thursday, Jan. 7, with testing from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tests are free for those who live or work in Wyandotte County. The tests are nasopharyngeal swab tests. The Health Department no longer uses saliva tests.
The tests now are open to asymptomatic people as well as those who have symptoms or have been exposed to COVID-19. Check with the UG Health Department’s Facebook page to see if there have been any changes in the schedule. Bring something that shows that you live or work in Wyandotte County, such as a utility bill.
Free COVID-19 testing also is available from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 7, at Quindaro Community Center, 2726 Brown Ave, Kansas City, Kansas. Testing is provided by Swope Health.
More COVID-19 tests will be available Thursday at the Pierson Community Center, 1800 S. 55th St., Kansas City, Kansas. These tests are through WellHealth Management. For more information and to schedule a test, visit www.GoGetTested.com/Kansas.
Cards and letters of encouragement for caregivers at KU Health System may be sent to Share Joy, care of Patient Relations, 4000 Cambridge St., Mailstop 1021, Kansas City, Kansas, 66160. Emails can be sent to [email protected].
