Views
Opinion column
by Murrel Bland
Newly elected Mayor David Alvey has made it clear that the issue of Kansas City, Kansas, firefighters selling shifts will be resolved after a thorough investigation of the issue by County Administrator Doug Bach and Interim Fire Chief Kevin Shirley.
That was his comment when he spoke to a group of about 75 persons at the monthly meeting of Congressional Forum Friday, Jan. 19, at Children’s Mercy Park. The Kansas City, Kansas, Area Chamber of Commerce sponsors the forum.
Mayor Alvey, who was elected last November and took office Monday, Jan. 8, said that after a thorough examination of the firefighters’ issue, he will “let the facts speak for themselves.”
Mayor Alvey’s comments were consistent with a front page article from the Unified Government public relations office that was published in The Wyandotte Echo, the official newspaper for the UG, concerning the trading time issue among firefighters. (The UG’s statement from its public relations office also was widely quoted in other media, including the Wyandotte Daily on Jan. 4 at https://wyandotteonline.com/no-action-on-kck-fire-report-after-ug-commissioners-no-show-tonight/.)
Mayor Holland raised the issue of selling shifts in a last-ditch effort Jan. 4. Mayor Holland failed to get a quorum of the commissioners, so no official action could be taken. Among the agenda information provided at this lame-duck meeting was a list of firefighters who traded shifts but failed to repay them by working. This, according to a report, cost the Unified Government $919,312.82.
The firefighters’ union, along with the police union, supported Mayor Alvey.
The firefighters’ issue won’t go away. It is an issue that is discussed among Unified Government employees, business leaders and rank-and-file Kansas City, Kansas, residents. Some political observers who supported Mayor Alvey may allege that the action by Mayor Holland was “sour grapes” because he lost the election. Others may point out that the issue needs to be resolved regardless of when it was brought up.
Mayor Alvey talked about other issues at the forum. He had praise for the development at Village West, but expressed a concern for more development in the rest of the community. He said he plans to appoint a liaison who will be a member of his immediate staff and can attend to the concerns of small business.
Mayor Alvey told of his experience at the Kansas City, Kansas, Board of Public Utilities when he first came on the board and the utility had only 19 days of cash on hand. He said it was necessary to raise rates to assure the financial viability of the BPU.
While on the BPU, he served on a policy committee of the American Public Power Association that fought for more reasonable federal regulations on coal-burning plants. This effort was able to help keep electric rates more reasonable. He also told of the BPU’s effort to waive fees for residential developers as an incentive for builders during the recent recession.
Mayor Alvey told of his concern about high property taxes, something he encountered while going door-to-door campaigning last year.
Mayor Alvey comes from Rockhurst High School, Kansas City, Mo., where he was an administrator. He received an undergraduate degree from Saint Louis (Mo.) University. He also studied at Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wis.; Creighton University, Omaha, Neb.; and the Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, Calif.
Mayor Alvey and his wife Ann Marie are the parents of four daughters, Juliana, Christiana, Mariana, Analisa and a son, Joseph. The family lives in the Turner community.
Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is the executive director of Business West.