KANSAS CITY, Mo – The proposed landfill project in South Kansas City continues to face strong opposition. Several community members took to the podium at the highly anticipated public gathering held by the City of Raymore last Thursday.
Many of them cited concerns about safety, property values and quality of life.
“This is a fight that we have to continue and we will resolve it,” said Rep. Mike Haffner who proposed House Bill 909 to stretch the buffer zone between a community and a landfill from half a mile to a mile. “Will we need a landfill in the future? YES. And today? No. In five years? NO.”
Since Thursday night’s meeting, the Missouri House Committee on Local Government has advanced Haffner’s bill.
Also in the last week, attorneys for residents of the Creekmoor neighborhood of Raymore filed a 15-page letter warning everyone in connection with the development, ownership and operation of the landfill of potential legal liability.
“The developer said on Tuesday that this would be a regional fix to a regional problem. However, she is against a bill that would allow regional subsidies, for example. This tells me everything I need to know about his amazing plan,” said one of the community members during the public meeting.
During that testimony before a Missouri House committee, one of the landowners, Jenny Monheiser, pleaded with lawmakers not to change the rules mid-game.
“My heart is not to hurt anyone, it’s always to help people, which is why we’re proposing this solution for the region,” Monheiser said.
Haffner says the city should continue to follow the regional plan.
“The regional plan is established: let’s follow the regional plan instead of affecting the property, livelihoods and literally the lives of all these hundreds of people who are sitting behind me,” Haffner said.
The next hearing on HB 909 has been set for Monday, February 27 at 4:30 pm with the Administrative Oversight Committee on Rules in the Missouri State Capitol.
