Welcome back to Between the Lines. Please proceed. This column isn’t going to read itself.
Count me among the many folks pumped for the new amphitheater/concert venue on the way in Riverside. Ground was broken for construction (see front page photo/cutline) of the 16,000 seat venue that by all descriptions is going to be a “world class” addition to Platte County.
It is scheduled to be completed for concert season 2026.
The Jason Maki Sunshine requests at Platte County haven’t gone away. If anything you might say things intensified just a bit earlier this month. More on that a few paragraphs down the road.
Maki, to his credit, provided an assist to the county by exempting certain emails from his requests, which will cut down on the county’s time in reviewing for privileged information. Remember, entities cannot legally charge a Sunshine requester for “review time.” Maki has agreed to exempt emails from his request from the prosecutor’s office, the sheriff’s department, and public administrator’s office. But any email that has been sent to any of these departments from one of the commissioners will be produced.
In addition, Maki and the county agreed that the county will not move forward with searching county-issued phones. His Sunshine request is specific to the three commissioners. If the commissioners do not have a county-issued phone, but are conducting county business on a personal phone “they have pierced the corporate veil and that information should be produced,” Jera Pruitt, county clerk and records custodian, wrote in a response to Maki, as the two worked to tighten down Maki’s request.
Here’s where it gets good. Maki seems to be honing in on text messages between county commissioners using their personal cell phones. Maki did emphasize for the county clerk that he is requesting all text messages to or from Commissioners Scott Fricker, Dagmar Wood, and Joe Vanover “in which they discuss public matters on their personal phones, iPads, or PCs, etc.”
Raise your hand if you realize what it would mean if there is proof two county commissioners were discussing county business with one another via text message, even if on their personal cell phones. Keep in mind there are only three county commissioners. So two county commissioners constitute a quorum.
In general terms, if there’s proof of at least two county commissioners discussing county business with one another via texts or email accounts this would be very bad news for the county and very good news for Maki.
We promoted the idea of early voting in this column space a couple of weeks ago. On the front page you’ll see that the two-week early voting period has become wildly popular with Platte Countians, as of Monday early afternoon already 10,000 have made the trip to the Platte County Board of Elections to cast ballots ahead of the Nov. 5 election. That is crazy. Crazy in a good way.
There are 72,574 active registered voters in Platte County, so by Monday afternoon about 14% of voters had already done their deed ahead of time. Chris Hershey, a director for the Platte County Board of Elections, says he expects by Election Day more than 20% of local registered voters will already have cast their ballots. That’s amazing.
What also is amazing is the speed and efficiency at which election workers are processing voters who show up for early voting. I went late in the day on Friday, the room was full and there was a bit of a line but the process moved quickly and smoothly. It was super easy and I highly encourage doing it. Kudos to the poll workers.
From the department of slightly weird news: Seven Missouri county poll challengers have filed pre-election challenges on alleged election law violations. One of those counties where challenges have been filed is Platte County. “We have received seven challenges on behalf of a Platte County Republican challenger,” said Wendy Flanigan, a director for the Platte County Board of Elections, on Monday.
It’s a bit bizarre in that the challenges really don’t deal with any situation specific to Platte County. The challenges primarily deal with statewide procedure. Some of the allegations being levied by these poll challengers across the state include accusations that: early voting is unconstitutional; Missouri election law dictates that election ballots must be folded to conceal distinguishing marks before being cast; paper ballots should be legally counted by hand, not by tabulating machines; tabulators have an inability to distinguish voter intent; etc.
Just reporting this for awareness sake. I would not expect any of those challenges to be upheld in time to affect the Nov. 5 election. The challenges are coming awfully late in the game even though those statewide conditions being challenged have been known for quite some time.
“These are the first challenges we have received. We have shared the complaints with the Missouri Secretary of State since they seem to address statewide procedures rather than specific violations in Platte County. It is unclear what resolution he is seeking,” said Chris Hershey
Actually heard this question posed on a Kansas City sports radio station during the Royals recent playoff run: “Will Salvador Perez overtake George Brett as the best Royals player ever?”
LOL. Is this for real? Whichever radio clown even proposed that as a question needs to spend some time watching Royals games from the mid-70s to the early 90s. The whole world knew Brett was a great player. Salvy is a good player. It’s my feeling he is valued more by Royals fans than he is by baseball observers in other cities. In other words, I don’t think the rest of baseball views Salvy in the same rose-colored lens that Royals fans see him. I mean, have you noticed his plate discipline? Like Brett, Salvy by all accounts is a great dude off the field with a gravitating personality. But come on. Perez isn’t even close to Brett in the ‘best Royal of all time’ category.
Ask that question about Bobby Witt, Jr. in 15 years and there might be cause for a legitimate debate.
(Find Foley laughing at ‘hot takes’ on Kansas City sports talk radio. Email ivan@plattecountylandmark.com)
