JANUARY
Jan. 5 – Platte County Commissioners approve the county’s 2022 budget with boosted funding for law enforcement; Parkville area Eagle Scout Cayo Dominguez-Heithoff built an informational kiosk at the Charlotte Sawyers Nature Area in Parkville; Park Hill South junior Cahmai Crosby scored nine points in the William Jewell Holiday Classic in Liberty.
Jan. 12 – The Kansas City International Airport new terminal’s exterior skin is nearing completion as crews place more than 170 individual glass panels on the concourse building; Due to a surge in COVID-19 infections, the Park Hill School District’s Board of Education reinstated the district’s masking mandate at a special meeting; Parkville resident Angela Hagenbach and her sister Joyce Johnson explored their family history in Weston through the city’s new Black Ancestors Awareness Campaign; Parkville Board of Aldermen gave preliminary approval to a sewer rate increase.
Jan. 19 – Platte City first grader Logan McGee kicks karate stereotypes with her love of martial arts; Lake Waukomis moved from the second county commission district to the first, making the population split between the two commission districts more even; Marqus Wilson, 22, received 25 years in prison after a jury convicted him of a 2018 first degree robbery of the Waffle House near KCI Airport; The Federal Aviation Administration held virtual meetings to add and amend air traffic patterns at KCI.
Jan. 26 – Parkville resident Larry Roberts, the former owner of Sugar and Spice Catering, delivered cinnamon rolls to his quarantined son and his family as COVID-19 surges; The Park Hill School District was forced to close school for two days due to the high numbers of sick and absent staff; Pirate Hall of Fame announces the induction of LeAnn Fadler, Donna Hulett and Dave Lane; Edgerton businessman Douglas Auxier pleaded guilty to enticement of a child and was sentenced to six years in prison; Dustin Williams restoration business brings old audio equipment back to life; the City of Parkville considers the future of two controversial historical markers containing poorly-worded references to slavery.
FEBRUARY
Feb. 2 – Orange top beams signed by Platte County High School students were hoisted into place in the new gym at the high school reconstruction project; A winter storm was expected to move in with several inches of snow accumulation in the forecast; Northland nurses deliver a premature baby on a flight to Hawaii; the Park Hill Board of Education extended the district mask mandate due to continued problems with sick staff and students due to COVID-19; The Platte City Board of Aldermen approved a rezoning order paving the way for a large industrial project east of Interstate 29.
Feb. 9 – Alexa Barton was hired as Parkville’s new city administrator; Platte County Commissioners announce a round table on possible renewal of the county’s Roads Tax; Ruth and Liz Marr chronicle life in Platte County’s Missouri River bottoms in their new book, “The Richest Soil Grows the Deepest Roots;” Tensions were high in Parkville with a public meeting dominated by arguments between audience members and elected officials.
Feb. 16 – A plan bound for Washington DC was forced to land in Kansas City due to an unruly passenger; A Park Hill High School staff members was placed on leave for repeating racist language; A Commerce Bank on Highway 45 near Parkville was robbed; Five inmates were charged in the December 2021 riot in the Platte County Detention Center in Platte City with more charges pending; Platte County High School drama performed Clue at the school in Platte City.
Feb. 23 - A record snowfall was reported at KCI Airport, with seven inches of snow measured at the terminal and dozens of flights canceled; Actual snowfall totals varied from three to 11 inches across the metro area; Two people died Sunday, Feb. 20 in what may be an alcohol-related crash in rural Platte County; Parkville public survey finds residents don’t want athletic fields in Platte Landing Park; Bill Graham notes that international tensions ripple down to Platte County.
MARCH
March 2 - Dirt work on Platte City’s new city hall building off Marshall Street started, with progress able to pick up due to fairer weather; Four more inmates were charged in the jail riot that caused damage to the county detention center in late 2021; Grayden Denham received four life sentences plus 115 years for Edgerton quadruple homicide and arson; The Banneker School restoration project continues with a new effort to ‘sell’ bricks to restore the historic structure; The Park Hill School District has narrowed its field of candidates for the next superintendent to three, including one current district administrator, Dr. Mike Kimbrel.
March 9 - The City of Parkville’s ethics commission found outgoing mayor Nan Johnston in violation of several ethics complaints levied against her by a resident; Dr. Mike Kimbrel was named the next superintendent of the Park Hill School District; The Platte County Commission tapped Gordon Cook to look into options for renewal of the county Roads Tax.
March 16 - The Parkville Board of Aldermen scheduled a special public meeting to discuss the recent findings of the city’s ethics commission, the mayor’s reaction to those findings and local media coverage that followed; Platte County R-3 students Declan Taylor and Caleb Harper gave a joint presentation on their auto-immune disorder, alopecia, which causes hair loss; A Farley man, Andrew J. McCardie, has been charged in federal court with producing and distributing child pornography; The Platte County R-3 School District named its new Kansas City middle School Platte Purchase Middle School.
March 23 - Parade of Hearts raises funds, awareness in wake of COVID-19 pandemic with Riverside, Parkville, Platte City and Weston hosting hearts; Platte County schools, municipalities and other non-profit organizations received more than $200,000 in parks outreach grant funding; Tracy police chief Frank Thurman received a quilt from Quilts for Cops after being injured in the line of duty in 2021; Parkville mayor Nan Johnston was reprimanded by the city’s ethics commission, with the board of aldermen accepting the recommendation in an emotional meeting.
March 30 – Gov. Mike Parson came to the Northland to announce an $800 million Meta (Facebook) facility is coming to Twin Creeks at the Platte/Clay county line; A dangerous stretch of Highway 45 in rural Platte County claimed another victim; Eight candidates sought election to two open seats on the Platte County R-3 School District’s board of education; With no incumbent on the ballot, the seat of Parkville mayor was sought by four candidates, including Dean Katerndahl.
APRIL
April 6 – Weston resident and veteran Paul Schwennesen headed to Ukraine to provide assistance to the population during the Russian invasion; Bill Graham notices two important things amid the horror and valor within Russia’s war on Ukraine — local government service and press freedom; Dean Katerndahl moves from chair of the planning and zoning commission to mayor of the city in the April election; Mike Matousek and Shawn Chiddix earn seats on the Platte County R-3 board of education.
April 13 - Overcrowding at the Platte County Detention Center forced the sheriff to seek outside solutions, sending inmates to Clay and Buchanan counties; Platte County marijuana dispensary Beseme Wellness seeks to combat the ‘stoner’ stereotypes; Platte County government refunded tax monies paid in error by a number of large telephone service providers; A man was found dead in Riverside’s Line Creek.
April 20 - Hundreds turned out for a bright but chilly Easter egg hunt Saturday, April 16 at Renner Brenner Park in Riverside; More inmates were transferred from the county jail due to overcrowding issues; Platte County residents Kris and David Manthe volunteered for fun at Kansas City’s Planet Comicon pop culture convention; Local resident Martha Ramsey travels to Poland to assist refugees from the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
April 27 - The Northland Ethnic Festival was held Saturday, at Staley High School in Kansas City North; New mayor, aldermen and city administrator all take office in Parkville; A grand opening was held for Micheal Gunn Park in southern Platte County, with the park dedicated to a local attorney’s memory; A Prairie Village, Kan. man was convicted of starting a fire in a hotel room used as temporary shelter for the homeless.
MAY
May 4 - Platte County Commissioners moved ahead with plans to use $20 million in federal COVID-19 funds to rebuild county infrastructure; Parkville’s farmers market building was damaged in a hit-and-run crash; The Park Hill School District was again in the headlines for a possible criminal investigation of a staff member at the LEAD Innovation Studio and an alleged student assault at Park Hill High School; Serial child sex predator Robert Billings from Parkville was convicted after a four-day trial.
May 11 - The Platte City Special Road District has closed Winan Road from Highway 92 to Hoover Road for a widening project; Neighborhoods just south of Platte City had a scare when a police pursuit from Kansas City, Kan. concluded with a fatal shooting just south of Platte City; Sewer repairs add to a busy construction season in Parkville at Highways 45 and 9; British ‘war bride’ Dorothy Halastik shared her experiences; The driver who damaged the Parkville Farmers Market Building was cited for hit and run.
May 18 – Sheriff warns commissioners that there is no end in sight to the overcrowding situation at the county jail; Jason Westrem of Houston Lake pleaded no contest to attempting to kick off a mass shooting on the Centennial Bridge between Leavenworth, Kan. and Platte County in 2020; Alyssa’s Ride remembers fallen teen Alyssa Hutchens.
May 25 - Platte County High School seniors graduated at a ceremony at HyVee Arena in Kansas City; The Platte County School District reminds students to treat all drugs with caution after a group of students become ill from over-the-counter drugs; Students in the Platte County High School Athletic Leadership Team were awarded by the Greater Suburban Conference Sportsmanship Video Competition for their video on sportsmanship; Sheriff looked for solutions to house stray dogs after long time arrangement with local vet ends.
JUNE
June 1 - The Platte County Commission authorized the use of federal funds to make video courtrooms more accessible in the county; In the wake of the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, commissioners took time to talk about school safety and school resource officers in Platte County; Hillcrest celebrated 20 years of service to Platte County families.
June 8 - Platte County Sheriff’s Office officials participated in the federal human trafficking sting program ‘Operation Blue Ghost,’ netting 32 arrests in Missouri and Kansas late last month into early June; The Mid-Continent Public Library Platte City Branch will host a presentation on how Kansas City played a unique role in launching the gay liberation movement; The Buck O’Neil Bridge replacement project closes several roads.
June 15 - The cleanup from storms that struck Platte County was still under way, with Platte City plagued by power outages; The Parkville Farmers Market was struck by a truck for the second time in less than two months, this time causing significant damage to the structure; Platte City resident Rich Canning awoke to a tree in his bedroom.
June 22 - Camden Point’s annual Freedom Festival kicked off with a parade through the city; Unrest on the Mid-Continent Public Library Board due to Northland members and disagreements over the budget continues; Platte County officials are looking into options to place mobile jail units pioneered in Springfield, Mo. to Platte City to help deal with the overcrowding situation at the Platte County Detention Center; Kansas City Council considered solar panels at KCI.
June 29 - The Parkville Board of Aldermen approved a slate of permits allowing short-term vacation rentals in downtown Parkville; The Riverside Board of Aldermen last week approved the city’s membership in a state energy efficiency program; The Kansas City Current opened its new $18 million training complex in Riverside; A homicide in the Farley area was under investigation by the Platte County Sheriff’s Office.