I surrender.
I’ve taken to actively trying to avoid online coverage of the Taylor Swift/Travis Kelce romance, or whatever it is that they have going. Wish me luck in this endeavor.
Not a huge fan of some of Kelce’s antics anyway, but as you know I am a big fan of Taylor Swift after our much-publicized (well, exclusively publicized in this column space) conversation backstage at Sandstone 16 years ago.
But I’m waving the white flag on consuming the Taylor/Travis social media overkill. At least for a bit.
Taylor, it’s not you, it’s me. Thanks for understanding. Maybe we can reconnect at a later time.
Fashion trend watchers, keep your eyes peeled. I read a piece the other day saying a trend returning in 2024 will be the wearing of short sleeve t-shirts over long sleeve tees. Now if you spot someone sporting this look you can say “Foley said it would be like this.”
Fellow members of the sports betting community, I’m here to tell you the remodeling of the sportsbook at Hollywood Casino in KCK near Legends is now complete. The revamped sportsbook opened last Wednesday, Dec. 27 with major upgrades.
It is real. And it is spectacular. I mean, not spectacular by Vegas standards, but spectacular by sportsbook standards in this part of the country.
Much improved. More fan-friendly, bigger and better televisions, full service bar, a scrolling electronic ticker with scores, schedules, injury updates and such. Major upgrade over the sportsbook offering previously found at Hollywood. Check it out and let me know what you think.
You saw our recent front page stories on the new 15,000 seat outdoor amphitheater planned in Riverside. The Landmark was the first media outlook to break the news, with a screaming headline on a story by Valerie Verkamp in our Dec. 13 edition.
Fox4 was the second outlet to report the story after the folks at that TV station saw The Landmark’s scoop.
I’m thrilled that a top-notch concert venue will be built in Platte County. Kudos to Riverside and Live National Entertainment for making it happen. The idea of more concert options right here in Platte County is exciting. Live music fans, and there are a ton of us, can’t wait for this to become a reality. Planned opening date is the spring of 2025.
We’ll keep you posted on updates.
Landmark readers have been on quite a roll with some quality Landmark On the Road pictures submitted to us lately, have you noticed? We had the Friddell family in Spain, Ron Thiewes hunting in the snow in Alaska, and the Wassmer family at the Olde Course in St Andrews, Scotland.
The Landmark has the most interactive readers. Impressive. Keep taking a copy of the paper on your trips to notable places, snap a photo and email the goods to ivan@plattecountylandmark.com.
As you’ll see in our front page story, there was “no reportable action” to come out of the more than hour long closed session of the Platte City Board of Aldermen last Wednesday night. The closed session was called to discuss a “personnel-related matter,” with the city’s legal counsel present inside the closed session.
There seems little doubt the closed meeting surrounds Marji Gehr, city administrator, after reports of in-house drama and alleged potentially awkward HR issues at City Hall have circulated in the community for months.
It’s too early to read any conclusion into the fact that “no reportable action” was taken in last week’s closed meeting. Sometimes personnel matters like this percolate for a while.
According to online records, Brad Wallace, the former public works director for Platte City who was the subject of a bizarre, long and sympathy-seeking email distributed by city administrator Marjorie Gehr after I inquired about his job status in mid-November, remains in jail charged with harassment in the first degree and armed criminal action after allegedly pointing a gun at the head of a woman on the day he had a barricaded standoff with the Platte County Sheriff’s Department in December. Authorities say they heard at least one gunshot fired inside the home while they were on scene. That wild incident occurred just a few weeks after Gehr’s public soliloquy, which sounded like something written more by a close ‘friend’ rather than someone in the role of Wallace’s supervisor in the taxpayer-funded workplace.
At the time of his December armed barricade that kept cops at bay for several hours, Wallace was already on probation after assaulting a man sitting at the same table at a Platte City restaurant back in May. That assault occurred while Wallace was still employed by the city and others on the city payroll were present at the time of the assault.
In court documents related to the May assault that resulted in the victim needing medical attention, a Platte County Sheriff’s Department deputy referred to Wallace as “a risk to the public,” citing the nature of the incident and the severity of the injuries of the victim. Surprisingly, strangely and dangerously, the city kept Wallace on staff as public works director for three months even after he had pled guilty to the violent assault.
Wallace at present remains in the county jail without a bond option. His next court hearing is set for Jan. 9. Online court records indicate he does not currently have an attorney representing him.
(Email Foley at ivan@plattecountylandmark.com but don’t send him any Taylor/Travis updates)