Today's Feature

Offered Assistance.

The Carthage Public Works Committee met Tuesday afternoon in a regular session. Missouri Department of Transportation Area Maintenance Superintendent Tim Houdyshell was present at the meeting to offer resources and training for street clearing during ice and snow storms.

According to Houdyshell many cities had trouble keeping streets clear during the recent snow storms. He told the committee that he would be offering assistance and training to local communities who seek more information. Houdyshell’s area of coverage with MODOT spans from the Oklahoma line to the Green County line, running south of Joplin. He told the committee that he has 24 trucks running around the clock out of Joplin.

The committee expressed appreciation for the offer and got contact information from Houdyshell.

The Peachtree development agreement discussion on the agenda did not see much actual discussion. In the previous meeting the committee and development owner Dr. Michael Woody looked at three proposed changes to the Community Improvement District (CID), an extra tax which is to be imposed on the retail businesses in that area to help pay for project development and maintenance. Woody’s proposed changes included the an increase to the amount listed for the project cost cap, due to the fact that the numbers in the agreement are outdated. The committee asked Woody to provide newer and more accurate figures.

Woody was present at this meeting and provided the new figures, which he said could be plugged in to the agreement. Woody noted that new estimates did not reflect electrical costs, traffic signals and some other engineering fees.

Committee chair Tom Flanigan said that the committee was not prepared to make a decision immediately, but said that the numbers would be studied and discussed again at a later meeting.

During staff reports, Street Commissioner Tom Shelley said that one of the Street Department spreaders had been damaged recently due to a wild turkey flying through the passenger window of the moving vehicle. Shelley said the department was fortunate that the event had not caused the driver to wreck the truck, but added that the damage done would cost approximately $1,200 to repair. The turkey was found to be dead upon arrival at the street department.

Stench Report:

Wednesday,
12/20/06

No Stench Detected on Carthage Square

It was located just out the kitchen door and I can remember goin’ in as a kid and seein’ all those potatoes stacked in bins. Only taters I’d ever seen came in sacks.

I’m sure there were other stocks of goods in the cellar, but all I remember is all those tater eyes watchin’.

It wasn’t a place we were allowed to play, and I didn’t much care at the time. We were much more content just yellin’ down the vent pipe and rollin’ down the earth slope that formed the roof.

As far as I can remember there was never a lock on the door. I suppose there wasn’t much fear of tater snatchers back then.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

Dear Tom and Ray:

Here in the nation’s capital, we have some streets or parking lots with sings that say "back-in parking only." I was ticketed when I overlooked this. My question: What’s the advantage of requiring drivers to back in to a parking space? The spot where I was ticketed was on a wide two-way street. I can’t see how backing in is safer than backing out. Or is this just to make it easier for the ticket writer to access your windshield? - Carroll

TOM: It actually IS safer, Carroll. By the way, we’re talking about parking spaces that are perpendicular, or at an angle, to the curb - not parallel-parking spaces.

RAY: These are spaces that require you to drive past the parking space, stop and then back in.

TOM: The primary advantage is that it’s not terribly dangerous to back in to a space - because the cars behind you can see you stopping and signalling - and it’s a lot safer to pull OUT going forward.

RAY: Look it at from the other point of view. If you park in the traditional way, you’ve pulled hood-first into an angled space. Now, when you back out, your trunk goes out first. Where are you? You’re at the front of the car. While your car’s butt is sticking out into traffic, you can’t see if there are cars coming, because your view is blocked. Also, the cars coming down the street have no real warning that you’re about to back out.

TOM: Whereas when you back in to a space and then pull out, you pull out hood-first, so you are quickly in a position to see over the hoods of the cars next to you and see if any traffic is coming.

RAY: So, believe it or not, Carroll, you have discovered evidence of intelligent life in our nation’s capital. Congratulations.

RACING
By Greg Zyla
Sponsored by Curry Automotive

NASCAR Faces Pivotal Year

I received a great letter in response to my column about franchising NASCAR’s Nextel Cup teams. Here is his letter:

Greg, I agree with your assessment on NASCAR franchising its Cup teams, and also feel 2007 will be a pivotal year for NASCAR.

First, if it doesn’t get its TV ratings up after 2006’s significant drop, there will be trouble with the networks and sponsors.

Second, like you said in your column, there will be a large number of major sponsors wondering why their cars are on the trailers going back to the shop and not on the starting grids. That will force their account managers to steer their clients away from NASCAR team sponsorships.

Third, NASCAR has already been backed into the wall on the past champion’s provisional and bigger teams buying rides from guys like Derrike Cope or Kevin Lepage. These bigger-team owners manage to fork out $100,000 for trick setups and qualifying engines in hopes of a well-heeled, but loser team like Michael Waltrip Racing paying them double that $100,000 to get their sponsors in the field.

Fourth, without franchising, once-strong teams like the Wood Brothers, PPI and Morgan-McClure may be forced to shut down. What will be left is exactly what NASCAR feared, multi-car teams like Roush, Hendrick, Gibbs, Penske, Ganassi and RCR dominating the tour.

Franchising teams is the only way to fix problems 2, 3 and 4. But I’m afraid that by 2008, it will too late to help the older, one-car teams, while sponsors for Michael Waltrip Racing, for instance, will be searching the "out clauses" in their contracts.