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Press Release
Get Ready for Click It or Ticket
- May 9, 2008
Contact: Sgt. Greg Collins
Phone: 913-742-6847, E-mail:
gcollins@ci.shawnee.ks.us
Drivers in Johnson County Kansas
are warned to be alert to heightened traffic enforcement, beginning May 19,
as additional officers of The Shawnee Police Department will be placed on
the roadways to aggressively enforce Kansas occupant restraint and other
traffic laws. Supported by a grant from the Kansas Department of
Transportation (KDOT), the officers will be participating in the Kansas
Click It or Ticket enforcement campaign through June 1.
Look for strict enforcement of the
Safety Belt Use and Child Passenger Safety Acts. Together, these acts
specify that all front seat passengers must be buckled in and that vehicles
may be stopped if a person under the age of 18 is observed unrestrained
anywhere in the vehicle. In the event that a passenger under the age of 14
is unrestrained the driver will be cited. Where a driver or passenger, aged
14 through 17, is seen to be unrestrained, that person will be cited.
Children under the age of four must be secured in a federally-approved child
safety seat; children, ages four through seven, must be securely belted in
to an approved booster seat; and children, ages eight through 13, must be
safety belted. In addition, the act prohibits persons under the age of 14
from riding in any part of a vehicle not intended for carrying passengers,
such as a pickup bed.
The Shawnee Police Department is
among 130 law enforcement agencies, statewide, including the Kansas Highway
Patrol, participating in Click It or Ticket. The aim is to drastically
reduce the number of preventable deaths and injuries that occur when
unbelted drivers and passengers are involved in traffic crashes. According
to KDOT’s Bureau of Traffic Safety, traffic crashes last year claimed the
lives of 414 people. Tragically, of those who died, about 70 percent were
not belted in. By contrast, almost 90 percent of those not injured were
belted in.
Kansas City Area Historic Trails Association Honors Parks and Recreation
Director - May 6, 2008
The Kansas City Area Historic Trails Association (KCAHTA) awarded Shawnee
Parks and Recreation Director Neil Holman an Award of Merit at their Annual
Membership Meeting on April 30, 2008 for his vision and leadership in the
acquisition, preservation and historic trails interpretation in Pioneer
Crossing.
Pioneer Crossing is located at the east entryway to the City on Shawnee
Mission Parkway and features two sculptures designed by local artist Charles
Goslin. Goslin's original sculpture of a wagon train has been re-created in
a life size, 3-D brick monument. The sculpture of Dick Williams, Wagon
Master is created in native limestone and bronze.
Pioneer Crossing Park includes native grasses and plaques commemorate
each of the pioneer trails that crossed through Shawnee city limits
including the California Road, the Fort Leavenworth Military Road, the Santa
Fe Trail, and the Oregon Trail.
Craig Crease, President of the KCAHTA, commended Director Holman and the
City stating that “There is, bar none, no more magnificent tribute to the
trails in the Kansas City area than this park.”
Founded in 1993, the Kansas City Area Historic Trails Association is a
not-for-profit association whose members are working together to preserve
and protect the historic routes, sites and trail remains.
For more information contact: Vicki Charlesworth, (913) 631-2500
Shawnee Police Department
“Party Patrols" April 17,
2008
In conjunction with the upcoming
area high school proms and graduations, the Shawnee Police Department Underage
Drinking Task Force will be conducting “Party Patrols.”
The goal of the party patrols is to
locate parties where underage drinking is taking place. Once the parties are
located, either by complaints from neighbors or tips received, enforcement
action will be taken against those who are drinking underage, hosting the
party, and furnishing the alcohol to minors. These patrols have recently been
successful, targeting two underage parties the weekend of April 12th,
resulting in the arrest of 17 minors for underage drinking. The purpose of the
Task Force is to prevent underage drinking and to reduce alcohol related motor
vehicle accidents.
In conjunction with these patrols,
officers will be checking liquor stores, convenience stores, and grocery
stores to ensure they are not allowing minors to purchase alcohol.
Shawnee named a "Tree City USA" for 11th Consecutive Year - April
16, 2008
Shawnee has been named a Tree City USA community for the eleventh
consecutive year.
The Tree City USA designation is given to cities meeting four standards, which
are having a tree department, a tree care ordinance, a comprehensive forestry
program and having an Arbor Day observance.
Last October, the City teamed with the Bayer Corporation for NeighborWood, an
Arbor Day event, where over 200 trees were given to Shawnee residents to
plant. This year's NeighborWood is scheduled for October 11 at Garrett Park.
The Tree City USA program is sponsored by The National Arbor Day Foundation in
cooperation with the National Association of State Foresters and the USDA
Forest Service.
For more information, contact the
Parks and Recreation Department at 631-5200.
Councilmember Mickey Sandifer receives Leadership Award
March 14, 2008
Shawnee Councilmember Mickey Sandifer
of Ward 4 received the Leadership Fellow Bronze Certificate of Achievement
from the National League of Cities (NLC) for his completion in the first level
of the leadership program. This program is offered through the NLC’s
Leadership Training Institute which provides local officials with professional
development opportunities that accentuate the vital personal skills and
abilities needed to facilitate positive change and innovation within their
communities. Participation in this program allows local officials to organize
professional development around the critical skills necessary for excellence
in leadership.
The Certificate of Achievement in Leadership Program is built on five core
leadership competency skills that are essential for local elected officials
including:
- Cornerstone, personal leadership and growth development,
- Competent Practitioner, leading effective governance,
- Communicator, effective communications and media relations,
- Collaborator, building communities through inspiration and empowerment,
- Catalyst, leading innovation and managing change.
Councilmember Sandifer completed his certificate requirements at the
National League of Cities Conference in Washington, D.C.
Councilmember Sandifer will be formally recognized at the NLC Congress of
Cities Conference in Orlando, Florida this November.
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