The Missouri Ethics Commission requires candidate/committees to file reports eight days prior to a municipal election, detailing income and expenditures. In Grain Valley, committees for three school board candidates reported income and expenditures for their campaigns.

Common Sense Coalition for Pollard
Income: $5200 ($1239.30 additional in-kind)
Income detail: 
$1000.00 Teresa McBride (Jan. 2023)
$4000.00 Lance Pollard (Jan. 2023)
$100.00 Lance Pollard (January in-kind)
$1139.30 Lance Pollard (February in-kind)
$200.00 Terry Pollard (March 2023)

Expenditures: $4660.49
Expenditure detail:
$3283.43 campaign signage
$25.75 campaign checkbook
$208.16 signage hardware
$1100.00 Anthony Lonsdale/text services
$43.15 lunch with volunteer
 
Committee to elect Sarah Swartz
Income: $1850
Income detail: 
$750 Sprinkler Fitters LU 314
$500 Jeffrey Wolff, Pink Hill Properties (March 2023)
$600 in gifts from individuals totaling $100 or less

Expenditures: $1,734.68 on signage and signage supplies

Additionally, MO NEA-PAC reported $145.64 in expenditures in support of Swartz. 
 
Committee to elect Julie Taylor
Income: $2100
Income detail: 
$250 Tara Patel/Patel Group (December 2022)
$250 Sally Downey (March 2023)
$400 Julie Taylor (March 2023)
$500 Pink Hill Properties LLC (March 2023)
$700 in gifts from individuals totaling $100 or less

Expenditures: $2070.25 in sign printing

Additionally, MO NEA-PAC reported $145.63 in expenditures in support of Taylor.

     The Grain Valley High School Swim & Dive team is offering swim lessons for children 5 years of age and older.  Available lesson times are 4:00-5:00pm Monday or Thursday, 7:00-8:00pm Monday or Friday, or Saturday mornings 9:00am - 11:00am.
     Semi-private lessons are $45 and may be reserved by completing a form at the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfXWCjYm_aBvkSSZZsk8dY7WlA2VEdjO__E5APeUMAvi2aMBA/viewform?urp=gmail_link

     Voters head to the polls Tuesday, April 4th. Polls are open from 6:00am - 7:00pm. For a sample ballot and polling place lookup, visit Jackson County Election Board ballot information and polling place lookup. 
     Grain Valley voters will vote on Board of Aldermen candidates in each of the City's three wards, and select three candidates out of seven candidates running to serve on the Grain Valley School Board.
     A bond issue to fund a new high school gymnasium and fieldhouse addition, and a $.03 sales tax on recreational marijuana will also be decided by voters.
     Voters are required to provide photo ID in order to vote (see JCEB graphic below). If you do not have a photo ID, a provisional ballot may be completed. 
     Visit our Voter Resources page for additional information. 

Prior reporting:

Board of Aldermen candidate Q&A 

Board of Education candidate Q&A

City, County both consider ballot measure to add sales tax on recreational marijuana

On the Ballot: School bond issue to fund new high school gymnasium/fieldhouse addition

Visit our News page and click on the "Elections" category in the sidebar or type a candidate name or issue in the search bar to view results. 
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April 4, 2023 Municipal Election
Jackson County Election Board sample ballot: Legal-Notice-of-Election-04.04.23-General-Municipal-Final.pdf (jcebmo.org)
Ballot and polling place information: Jackson County Election Board ballot information and polling place lookup

     Alderman Dale Arnold was formally censured for disclosing closed session business with the Jackson County Election Board and former mayor and current alderman candidate Chuck Johnston during a brief Board of Aldermen meeting on March 27th. Arnold was the only 'no' vote on the resolution (graphic of resolution provided below).
     As previously reported, Arnold faced the censure vote after an admitted call to the Jackson County Election Board (JCEB) in the days following the judge’s decision in a recent suit between the City and JCEB regarding revised ward boundaries, and for allegedly disclosing executive session information related to the suit to former mayor and current Board of Aldermen candidate Johnston.
     The Board also approved the second reading of an ordinance to amend the City’s Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use map, changing the zoning of 11.5 acres currently zoned for residential to light industrial to allow for two planned businesses to locate in the area near Creekside Village.
     In other business, Alderman Ryan Skinner raised concerns regarding the level of School Resource Officer (SRO) staffing at Grain Valley Schools in light of the most recent school shooting in Nashville earlier in the day. 
     "I think we are severely lacking in school resource officers in this city. I think that one of the biggest things the city has going for it is our schools," Skinner said.
     "The fact that we have eight schools and three SRO's, I think that is setting ourselves up for failure to be completely honest."
     Skinner asked Police Chief Ed Turner if he felt SRO staffing was adequate. 
    "The day and age we live in, it would be optimum to have an officer in every school," Turner said.
     "We need to come up with a plan...to work towards a goal of having an officer (at every school) that is a deterrent. (When these shootings happen) I've never once saw someone from the school district talking. When stuff hits the fan, it's us (city) up here who have to deal with it. I think we need to take the first steps to get the ball rolling in the right direction," Skinner said.
     Reached for comment, Dr. Amanda Allen, Grain Valley Schools Assistant Superintendent, Student and Community Services, said the district believes it is currently appropriately staffed.
     "Three SROs serve our schools. Our middle schools and high school each have an SRO designated at their school. SROs also check in on our elementary schools and early childhood center. Collaboration with the City of Grain Valley is ongoing and staffing needs are addressed as needed. Through our partnership with GVPD, we are appropriately staffed with SROs at this time but we will continue to monitor the need for additional resources," Allen said.
     The next scheduled meeting of the Board of Aldermen will be held Monday, April 10th at 7:00pm at City Hall. 

Additional related reporting: Quick News - Grain Valley News

      They bloom in early spring with white or lavender flowers, and they provide food and shelter for songbirds and butterflies. Native trees such as service berry and redbud benefit wildlife and add color to home and business landscaping, said Taylor Neff, MDC community forester. Neff and other MDC foresters recommend early blooming native trees and urge homeowners and landscape services to avoid planting non-native trees such as the invasive Callery pear cultivars.
     Profusely blooming Callery pear varieties do provide a brief burst of spring color, but they also pose problems, including becoming an invasive enemy to native plants.
      “They spread across natural areas and crowd out beneficial native species, Neff said.
     Callery pear varieties are seen blooming during spring in yards and in front of businesses because they have long been planted as an ornamental for landscaping. But they have escaped into forests, woodlands, pastures, parks, and right of ways where they are not wanted. Fast growing, they shade out native plants that also offer beauty and provide more benefits for wildlife. Callery pear varieties host few of the insects that birds depend upon as food. Birds do eat their berries, but that spreads the seeds and furthers the invasion.
     Callery pear cultivars planted as ornamentals have hybridized and become very invasive. Cultivated varieties of this plant available for sale include Aristocrat, Autumn Blaze, Bradford, Capital, Chanticleer (also known as Cleveland Select), New Bradford, and Redspire, among others. All are invasive and should not be planted. Individual cultivars are considered self-sterile but different cultivars planted near each other can cross-pollinate and produce fruits and viable seed. 
     Besides being invasive, the Callery pear varieties have drawbacks in landscaping use.
     “They commonly have a poor, multi-stemmed structure which leads them to break easily from wind, ice, and snow,” Neff said. “They can require a lot of maintenance.”
     Callery pear varieties are also fast growing, she said. This, paired with the poor structure, often means they are trimmed annually, rather than a more normal three-to-five-year pruning schedule you see with native species.
     Native trees that make good ornamentals are available, including spring blooming varieties. Missouri’s state tree, flowering dogwood, provides white blooms and is attractive in lawns if given shady locations. Serviceberry provides early white blooms but also red berries that are edible for people and songbirds. Other blooming choices include red buckeye, yellowwood, redbud, blackhaw viburnum, hophornbeam and chokecherry. A mix of tree species will provide a variety of blooms and benefits. Native trees host valuable insects that are important food sources birds, and they host the caterpillars for butterflies and moths.
     For more information about problems from Callery pear trees and how to remove or control them, visit   https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4MJ. A good source of information about native plants and trees for landscaping is available at http://www.grownative.org. To learn about an upcoming Callery pear buyback program in the Kansas City area sponsored by Deep Roots KC, visit https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4M3.

     City staff, elected officials, and representatives from McCownGordon Construction and Hoefer Walker gathered March 23rd for a groundbreaking at the site of the new police station, located near the City's Butterfly Trail. 
     Construction on the new police station is slated to take approximately one year to complete. Voters approved a $14,000,000 bond issue in April 2022 to fund the project.

     Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. will throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Kansas City Royals Opening Day at Kauffman Stadium on Thursday, March 30th.
     Fifty years after making his major league debut with the Kansas City Royals, White will now take the mound as Jackson County Executive. Executive White’s history with the K actually started even earlier when he took a job on the construction crew that was building the stadium. Executive White played 18 seasons for the Royals, was named an All-Star five times, won eight Gold Glove Awards and was elected to the Royals Hall of Fame.  
     “As a kid growing up on the city’s eastside, I would walk by Municipal Stadium and hear the crack of a bat and roar of the fans, dreaming that one day I’d get a chance to play for my hometown team. I am forever grateful to Mr. Kauffman for giving me an opportunity to make that dream come true,” White said. “It’s an honor to be part of the long-standing tradition of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch on Opening Day; I only wish my parents were here to see it. Thankfully, I have my wife Teresa, family, fans and friends to share in this special occasion with me. I am blessed beyond measure and as the Royals recognize the 1973 team, I am honored to stand with my teammates, wearing powder blue, with the number 20 on my back. See you at the K and Go Royals!”
     The Kansas City Royals will take on the Minnesota Twins at 3:10pm at Kauffman Stadium. 

            In my musings a couple of weeks ago you saw a photograph looking north on Main Street in Grain Valley. It was published in a book called “Results of County Planning.” The book contained photographs taken throughout Jackson County, where the roads were built at a cost of $10,000,000. Looking through the book, as I have done many times, prompted me to recall a couple of newspaper articles my mother had saved about the Celebration of Roads which occurred at Sni-A-Bar Farms in Grain Valley.

    Easter brings baskets full of jelly beans, marshmallow chicks, life-size chocolate bunnies and peanut butter eggs. But ponder this sugar shocking fact: Your child’s Easter basket likely contains over a month’s worth of sugar. Whoa! However, you don’t need to cut out candy completely. Decide on one or two candy favorites, but avoid buying candy to use as “filler” – that is what the colorful grass is for!
     Enjoying sweets in moderation is possible, but keep in mind there are plenty of simple and fun ways to reduce sugar in your basket.
     What are you waiting for? Hop to it! This year try adding in some new treats and toys for egg-stra health benefits and fun. No matter your age, consider these dietitian-approved favorites to help you get creative and start thinking outside the Easter basket:
     -Good Measure snack bars. These bars contain 5 or fewer grams of net carbs. Foods within this range are scientifically proven to have little impact on blood sugar. 
     -Catalina Crunch cereal. Made with the same delicious taste and crunch of your favorite cinnamon toast cereal you grew up with without the sugar. This cereal contains
      -Non-food treats. Help balance between celebrating and overindulging. Pick items that can be enjoyed well after Easter like a new coloring book, card game, bubbles or stuffed animal. Added bonus: No sore bellies after too many chocolate Easter eggs and candy! Coins and small bills make for exciting treasure as well.
 
     These two Easter baskets are filled with better-for-you goodies that every-BUNNY will love. For more tips to keep you and your family healthy, follow us on Facebook or Instagram @HyVeeDietitians.
 
Dietitian-Inspired Easter Basket (Kid-friendly)
All you need:
Enjoy Life dark chocolate bar
Annie’s organic white cheddar bunnies
Fresh fruits (clementines, kiwi, apples)
Made Good chocolate drizzled granola bar OR Made Good strawberry crispy squares
Zevia Kidz fizzy apple
Fun extras:
Easter Bunny stuffed animal
Hot Wheels toy car
Bubbles
Coloring book
 
Dietitian-Inspired Easter Basket (Teen/adult-friendly)
Zoet dark chocolate with sea salt 100-calorie bars
Boom Chicka Pop light kettle corn
Fresh fruits (clementines, kiwi, apples)
Cold brew coffee with RxSugar packets
Good Measure snack bar
Catalina Crunch cinnamon toast cereal
Fun extras:
Bath bombs
Scrunchies/hair ties
Card game
Plastic eggs filled with quarters/$1-5 bills
 
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     Service does not include medical nutrition therapy services. ONLY $25, waived with a $100 grocery purchase. See participating locations on https://www.hy-vee.com/health/hy-vee-dietitians/default.aspx.