Mayor to speak at Membership Meeting
Mayor David Alvey will be the keynote speaker at the spring Membership Meeting at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 17 at the West Wyandotte Library Auditorium, 1737 N. 82nd St. The cost will be $25 a person and will include lunch. A reservation form is attached. Mayor Alvey, who was elected to his first term last fall, has deep roots in Wyandotte County. He was born and was raised in Wyandotte County; his great-grandfather, John Gibbs, settled in what was then Shawnee Township in 1869; Gibbs established the first school in the Oak Grove community. Mayor Alvey served on the Board of Public Utilities and the Planning and Zoning Commission. Before becoming mayor, he was assistant principal for faculty formation at Rockhurst High School, Kansas City, Mo.  He and his wife Ann Marie are the parents of four daughters and one son.

Search Committee names finalists for college president
The Kansas City, Kansas, Community College Board of Trustees will choose a new president from three finalists that a search advisory committee has recommended. These three were chosen from a group of 75 applicants. The finalists: Dr. Michael D. Calvert, President of Pratt (Kan.) Community College, was President of Central Community College, Grand Island, Neb., and held various administrative positions at Butler Community College, El Dorado, Kan. Dr. Barbara M. Hanson most recently was Chancellor at Louisiana Delta Community College, Monroe. She also was a vice president at San Jacinto College, Pasadena, Texas; a vice president at Cape Fear Community College, Wilmington, N.C.; and a dean at Arizona Western College, Yuma. Dr. Greg Mosier is the Executive Vice President at Rochester (Minn.) Community and Technical College. He was a vice president at Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology, Okmulgee, and a dean at Moberly (Mo.) Area Community College. The three candidates will visit the college March 26-28.

Deadline approaches to appeal valuations
Wyandotte County property owners have until Wednesday, April 4 to protest their recent property valuations. The 2018 annual notice of appraisal and classification forms were mailed to property owners earlier this month. Property owners who want to appeal their value or classification, or both, may do so by filling the valuation notice and mailing or delivering it to the Wyandotte County Appraiser’s office, 8200 State Ave., Kansas City, KS 66112. For more information, see the website www.wycokck.org/appraiser and click on property search.

BPU receives national recognition
The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada has again recognized the Kansas City Board of Public Utilities for excellence in financial reporting. This is the 36th consecutive year that the BPU has received the award. Lori Austin, the chief financial officer for the BPU, accepted the award on behalf of her entire department.

Zoning approved for home improvement store
The Unified Commission approved a change of zoning from agricultural to general business for a Menard’s store at 1301 N. 98th St., just west of the Schlitterbahn water park. The store will have more than 210,000 square feet of floor space. Construction could begin soon with a projected opening date within a year.

Governor praises RSI
Governor Jeff Colyer (who was then Lieutenant Governor) congratulated Wyandot Inc. for providing services for those facing a mental health or substance abuse issues. This diverts people from staying in more expensive state hospitals, emergency rooms or jails. That comment came earlier this year as a “re-grand opening” was held of RSI which is at 1301 N. 47th St.

Members always welcome
All Business West members are always welcome to attend the monthly board meeting of the Business West Board of Directors. The board meets the third Wednesday each month in the board room at The Dotte Spot Bar and Grill, 8123 Parallel Pkwy., in the Arrowhead Center.

For questions or comments, telephone 913-766-4300 or 913-406-6266 (cell) or email [email protected].