BREAKING NEWS ALERT: Landmark columnist Guy Speckman is at risk of getting booted out of his presidency of the Team Tony Club. He has committed a potentially impeachable offense. Formerly all-in on everything positive about State Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, including expressing kinda awkward admiration for Tony’s pet dog, this week Speck rips to shreds Tony’s piece of legislation that offers counties the chance to adopt a real estate tax freeze for seniors age 62 and over. It is what’s known as Senate Bill 190.
“This may be one of the dumbest ideas I’ve read in a while,” Speck writes in likely one of his final acts as chair of Team Tony.
Hope I didn’t spoil it for you. You’ll want to head on over to Speck’s column on page 3 to read the rest. In the meantime, Speck might need some synergy and a safe haven from the Team Tony enthusiasts. He doesn’t ask for much but I’m sure he’d prefer a place stocked with Bud Light.
There allegedly was an alleged sexual assault in Platte City’s alleged Riverview Park last week.
Since Platte City police are offering very few details about the alleged incident and being very tight-lipped–almost to the point of being CIA-level weird–on the most basic of questions I tossed at them, I can’t tell you anything about the alleged situation other than what we are reporting in our front page story. I asked many basic questions that would have generated helpful info we could distribute to the public but the answer I most often received from the police chief was “that’s something we’ll keep close to the vest.” I got the impression the chief felt like I was verbally waterboarding him or something.
This forces us to guess some things: 1. Maybe police are working with an alleged victim who gave them practically no information; or 2. Maybe police need help understanding that when they’re looking for the public’s help in solving a crime, the media is here to work with you, not against you. 3. Maybe both of the above are true.
Joe Wellington, police chief, has been a good chief and has been good for the department. But generally speaking, when police are seeking help from the public in solving a crime it’s a good idea to give the public as much information as you can, at least a little something that might spark a thought or a memory of something seen or heard. There are some basic things that you can tell the public that would not at all hamper an investigation. Right now all we’re getting from police is that a woman told police she was sexually assaulted in a secluded area of the park around noon last Tuesday and that the alleged suspect is a tall white male who was wearing a black shirt. Well, um, okay. Got it. We’ll put the word out.
I don’t like the media’s chances of generating helpful tips from that information. The phrase “help us help you” comes to mind. Can we at least get a guesstimated age of the alleged perpetrator? Guess not. We did get that the suspect is tall and white, for what it’s worth, and has at least one black shirt in his wardrobe, apparently.
If anyone out there knows a tall white male of any age who was wearing a black shirt around noon on Oct. 10, maybe go ahead and tell Platte City police. See if they consider it to be helpful. If they ask any follow-up questions, don’t answer with “that’s something I’ll keep close to the vest.”
Police did say “while we are investigating this incident we ask that anyone who may have been in Riverview Park on Tuesday (Oct. 10) between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. please contact us at 816-858-5150.”
So credit to them for saying that much, I suppose.
What I can tell you is that you should put Riverview Park on your list of Platte City’s best kept secrets. You never hear much conversation about it. And some city officials readily admit the park doesn’t get as many visitors as they’d like. Portions of the park are generally secluded, but I wouldn’t be in a panic mode over this alleged incident. Just be aware of your surroundings and practice safe habits, such as walking with a friend.
A decade or so ago Riverview Park had the reputation of being a place some folks occasionally used as a dumping ground for unwanted items. It is much improved. This week I drove to Riverview to take a look and snap some photos after becoming aware of the alleged incident, and I must say the park is actually pretty impressive. It’s not perfect and it’s not anything close to Platte Ridge Park, of course, but still it is impressive in its own way. It struck me as being much better maintained than it was a decade ago. Seems like a nice, quiet, scenic place to get away. A guy who was driving through the park at the same time I was there taking photos stopped his vehicle to tell me he had just seen about 12 deer cross the park’s roadway and stroll into a nearby timber. Now that’s cool, I’m sorry that I just missed it.
Surprised by the hidden attraction Riverview has become, I went to Google to check out some reviews. The park overall is getting a 4.4 rating on a scale of one to five. Here are some of the more positive reviews about Riverview made by folks using Google.
•“We take our dog up here from time to time, we all like it pretty well. Playground: Since the playground was upgraded a few years ago, it’s much better. Dog-friendliness: The park supplies bags for you to clean up after your dogs. Very convenient. Plenty of room for our dog to run and get rid of some energy.”
•“Great park, tucked away in the woods. One of our favorites and it’s never very busy!”
•“Googled parks in Platte City while there for lunch at Dairy Queen. My kids enjoyed the playground equipment and swings very much. It was very hot out so we were the only brave souls there. There are shade trees all around the park and a nice breeze so it made the heat more bearable. I recommend this park for lots of fun.”
•“Nice shelter house, recently upgraded playground area with several slides and swings, our kids enjoy going here. Large grassy area for frisbee, kick ball, soccer, or kite flying. A small fishing pond. Basketball court, walking trails, a 9-hole disc golf course.”
•“Nice quiet park with beautiful views. The playground is nice and well maintained. They also have basketball courts, a LARGE soccer field and a small but nice disc golf course. Plenty of room to enjoy with family and pets.”
(If you have helpful info you don’t want to keep close to the vest email Foley at ivan@plattecountylandmark.com)
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