The US 69 project in Overland Park is a dangerous mess. Shut it down already | Opinion
Road hazards
What are Overland Park and the state thinking with the 69Express project to widen U.S. 69? (April 24, 1A, “Johnson Co. road work adding U.S. 69 toll lanes will disrupt traffic”) They’d be better off closing it for the safety of the public and workers.
The patterns change daily. The off- and on-ramps are short, and the lanes are narrower than Ward Parkway’s. It is a danger to all drivers.
And all this for toll lanes? They should’ve shut down the highway for safety and sped up construction at the least.
- Joe DeMarco, Overland Park
Snuff them out
I agree with Brittany Mahomes 100% regarding enforcement of fireworks laws. (July 4, 2A, “Brittany Mahomes complains about Fourth of July fireworks”)
I live in Raytown, and at midnight on Independence Day, it sounded like a country at war.
Either enforce the laws or eliminate them.
- Donald Merker, Raytown
Have empathy
I am tired of people being unable to put themselves in someone else’s shoes. If you were lucky enough to pay off your student loans, count your blessings. (July 5, 5A, Letters)
My very first day at university, I was told that working while going to school was bad for academics and that we should rely on student loans and our parents to get through college. I did a decent job of minimizing the amount I took out — until graduate school.
I was misled by my program into believing that I had access to records and a skeletal collection for my thesis. My prospective graduate adviser sexually assaulted me before I ever began the program. I was offered admittance under another professor who similarly sexually harassed me and was not producing graduating students. Bringing this up as a Title IX complaint was not enough to get a deeper investigation into my program, because administrators were close with professors.
Nepotism runs deep. Colleges everywhere are criminally negligent.
Now, I am not saying that everyone experiences this, but I have come across many people who have.
Why would anyone want someone to suffer because you got yours? Selfish.
- Hunter Lee, Wichita
It’s on them
To the students crying that the Supreme Court invalidated President Joe Biden’s federal student loan relief plan: I say you signed on to the loan, and therefore it is your responsibility to pay the entire debt — not the government’s.
- George E. Burden, Lee’s Summit
What a tax mess
As a relatively new resident of Kansas City, I am having a hard time understanding the assessment process here. First, why does Jackson County give the contract to an out-of-state company? All money paid for the process of assessment goes to the economy of another state. That isn’t logical.
Next is the entire idea of drive-by evaluations. I own a condo in a building with more than 200 units at all stages: updated, under renovation and in their original condition. How can drive-by evaluation account for that? Again, no logic.
Now to my appeal process. First, the phone calls where I was on hold for 45-plus minutes several times. Finally, the county took my request for in-house photos, as I have made no improvements since closing in late 2019. I have original air conditioners, one 5-by-7-foot bathroom that needs new plumbing and updating, chips in my granite island and tile floors, and appliances that are on their last legs.
Next, I was was given an Ohio phone number to schedule my appointment. I was told after giving my personal info that someone in Kansas City would call me to set up an in-person appointment. No one called, while others I know have already completed their appeals. Now I am told there are no more appointments available.
I am one unhappy resident.
- Barbara Ruhmann, Kansas City
