— NWS alert feed for Independence (39.0911,-94.4155), office CWA EAX, zone MOZ037, fetched 6:01 a.m. Sept 17
Today: sunny, high near 91°F, heat index values as high as 100°, wind WSW around 6 mph. Tonight: mostly clear, low around 72°, heat index still reaching 98°. Friday: sunny, high near 92°, heat index near 99°, S wind 5–10 mph. Saturday: mostly sunny, high near 91°, SW gusts to 18 mph, slight chance of showers/thunderstorms 20% after 1 p.m. — then Saturday night: showers and thunderstorms likely (60%), a tenth to a quarter inch possible. Sunday: showers and thunderstorms likely (70%), high near 80°; Sunday night: 80%, low around 65° — the heat finally breaks. Hydrate if you're outdoors today and Friday, and have a rain plan for Saturday-evening plans.
— NWS forecast for Independence (39.0911,-94.4155), NWS Kansas City/Pleasant Hill (CWA EAX), zone MOZ037, fetched 6:01 a.m. Sept 17
Tonight's Board of Adjustment meeting (Sept. 17, 6:30 p.m.) is listed as Canceled on the city events page. The big one is Monday, Sept. 21, 6 p.m., Regular City Council Meeting, Municipal Commons first floor — City Manager Troy Anderson's first reading of the special-election schedule for the recalled First District seat is expected (his recommendation as outlined: February primary, April general; candidate packets likely available in early October). Also upcoming: StayWell Committee Tuesday, Sept. 22 at the Municipal Commons, and the police chief finalists open house Thursday, Sept. 24, 5:30–7:30 p.m. The 180-day moratorium on new data-center/battery-storage applications (approved July 6) continues while the city writes stricter rules. City government
— City of Independence, Board of Adjustment Sept 17 (canceled) · City, Sept 21 council meeting · City, StayWell Committee Sept 22 · KMBC, recall next steps · City, data-center moratorium (July 6)
The Kansas City Star sued to force release of the deal paying former chief Adam Dustman after his Aug. 15, 2025 resignation — city records show he has continued to be paid after resigning, in an arrangement officials have not explained publicly. A Jackson County judge ruled this week the deal can stay shielded, citing Missouri Sunshine Law exemptions. The article also notes the department's turnover: two deputy chiefs retired earlier this year — one not voluntarily — leaving IPD without its highest-ranking commanders. Meanwhile the city's four chief finalists (Dull, Hebbe, Kirchhoff, Turner) meet the public Thursday, Sept. 24 at the Midwest Genealogy Center; the city targets naming a chief by end of October, with interim chief Doug Brinkley still holding things down. Public safety · Sunshine Law
— Kansas City Star, finalists + lawsuits · KCTV5, Sept 10 · City of Independence, Sept 10
The Independence City Council unanimously voted Monday to indefinitely postpone a change order on the design contract for Truman Connected Phase 2 — the ~$9M corridor project extending south on Sterling Avenue from Winner Rd. to U.S. 40 (ADA sidewalks, bike lanes, signal changes, a proposed roundabout; funded partly by a $3.5M federal Carbon Reduction grant and $719K CMAQ grant). The revised plan would have cost an extra $118,212 to study. Nearby residents spoke against it — calling the roundabout unnecessary and saying repaired sidewalks, storm drainage, and flooding fixes should come first — while others urged the council to proceed. Infrastructure
— KSHB 41, council postpones Phase II study · KSHB 41, residents question the project · City, Truman Connected project page
A power outage at Independence Square — first reported around 9:30 a.m., still ongoing at 11:30 a.m. per KSHB — closed Jackson County offices in the Truman Courthouse for the day, with IPL's outage viewer showing roughly 130 customers affected around the square. (KSHB's story is dated Monday, Sept. 16; posted as reported.) Public services
— KSHB 41
The city announced “Love Where You Live: IndeCleanup,” Sept. 27–Oct. 4 — a community-wide week of cleanup projects with city resources and partners. IPD continues investigating the fatal motorcycle crash Sept. 12 on eastbound I-70 at Sterling Ave. and the Sept. 8 fatal crash at southbound Noland Rd. and I-70 — the department's second in under a week; victim identities withheld pending family notification. Public safety · Community
— City of Independence, Sept 14 · City of Independence, Sept 12 · City of Independence, Sept 8 crash
No ISD board-meeting agenda is posted further forward than Sept. 8, so there's nothing verifiable to preview this cycle; the next regular meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 13. The story to keep an eye on from last week: the Examiner reports (Sept. 15, paywalled — summarized from the headline) that the district plans to raise its property tax levy slightly for 2026 to keep revenue steady as assessed values fall. Background from the board's Sept. 8 action (AI-drafted recap of the published packet): the board set the 2026-27 tax rate at $5.5009 (operating levy $4.5891, up from $4.3254; debt service $0.9118 unchanged), citing an expected 6.3% drop in assessed values inside the district. ISD
— The Examiner, Sept 15 (paywalled — summarized from the headline) · ISD board meeting list · ISD Sept 8 meeting packet (PDF)
The latest batch on the ATC record is still dated 09/11/2026: licensee Casey's Marketing Company filed Original Package Liquor, Sunday Original Package, and Permission–Employ Minors for five Independence stores, all status Active. The headline one: New filing: CASEY'S #4347 (Original Package Liquor, Sunday Original Package, and Permission–Employ Minors) at 11109 E 23RD ST S, filed 09/11/2026. Same three licenses the same day for CASEY'S GENERAL STORE #2213 (1110 E. 23rd St.), CASEYS 4351 (4208 S Noland Rd.), GOODSTOP BY CASEY'S #4343 (11715 E US Hwy 24), and CASEY'S #4342 (17600 E 39th St S). Public record
New filing: BLEU HOUSE BISTRO (Retail by Drink and Sunday by Drink) at 15800 US 24, filed 09/01/2026 — licensee Bleu House Bistro, Inc. (Corporation), status Active. Public record
First District voters recalled Councilman John Perkins on Sept. 1 with about 68% in favor — the first recall of an Independence councilmember in city history — after his March vote for Nebius data-center tax breaks; the Jackson County board hand-counted the district's 1,650 votes on Sept. 8. Perkins joins Bridget McCandless and Jared Fears, the two other yes-voters voted out in April — three of the five council members who approved the incentives are now gone. City Manager Anderson says the charter requires the council to promptly set a special election: he'll recommend a February primary (if more than two candidates) and an April general, with the schedule's first reading Monday, Sept. 21; candidate packets are expected in early October. Until then, the First District has no representation. A single special election costs an estimated $164,400. Leigh Phillips was first to announce for the seat. Ongoing
— KMBC, Sept 2 · KCUR, Sept 3 · NBC News, Sept 2 · The Examiner, recall election cost · Ballotpedia
Independence voters decide Nov. 3 on a $19.9 million general-obligation bond to repair five city-owned historic properties — Bingham-Waggoner Estate, Vaile Mansion, Truman Memorial Building, Old Fire Station One, and the 1827 Log Courthouse — with free resident admission to all five for the bond's 20-year life. Council put it on the ballot 7–0 on Aug. 17. As a municipal GO bond it requires a four-sevenths supermajority; a similar measure narrowly failed in 2025. This week's KSHB reporting on the 14-month collapsed retaining wall near the Truman home — a MoDOT right-of-way issue with repair contracts running into 2027 — is a live example of the maintenance backlog advocates cite. Ongoing
— Hoodline, citing the KC Star and the City of Independence · FOX4 · KSHB 41, retaining wall
The U.S. Supreme Court on Sept. 10 stayed a federal district court's order requiring Missouri to use the legislature's 2025 mid-decade map, leaving in place the Missouri Supreme Court's ruling striking that map down — so Missouri will almost certainly use the 2022 congressional lines in November, affecting how Independence voters are grouped in the 5th/4th districts. SoS Denny Hoskins has said his office will instruct counties to proceed under the 2022 lines amid a compressed ballot-reprinting window. Ongoing · Regional
Show Me 250: Paint Your Own Patriotic Flower Pot — Saturday, Sept. 19, 10 a.m. at the Bingham-Waggoner Mansion and Estate, 313 W. Pacific Ave.: free, first-come, all ages, with free property tours (rescheduled from the July 4 celebration due to heat). Also Saturday, Sept. 19, 11 a.m.–1 p.m.: Fellowship of the Field Picnic at George Owens Nature Park, 1601 S. Speck Rd. — potato sack race, nine-ring scavenger hunt, leaf-pin crafting, fishing, face painting, costume contest with KC Ren Fest tickets as prizes. $5 pre-registration / $10 at the door; register by Sept. 17 — that's today — or call 816-325-7115. Weather note: Saturday holds a 20% storm chance until showers likely overnight. Family
— City of Independence, paint-a-pot Sept 19 · City of Independence, Fellowship of the Field
The city is bringing neighbors, community partners, and City resources together for a community-wide cleanup week, Sept. 27 through Oct. 4 — cleanup projects and opportunities to care for neighborhood spaces. Announced Sept. 14; details and project sign-up on the city's news page. Community
KCUR's reporting from Labor Day week remains the local story with legs: 60 mph winds and penny-size hail toppled vendors' tents and booths at SantaCaliGon Days on the Square Sunday night, and organizers canceled the vendor portion Monday while keeping carnival rides open. Vendors — some with “rain or shine” contracts — say being sent home for the final day hurt, and question whether they'll return next year; organizers cited safety while crews assessed storm damage. Community
| Thu 9/17 | Sunny, high ~91°, heat index to 100° · Board of Adjustment CANCELED, per the city events page · Today is the last day to pre-register for Saturday's Fellowship of the Field picnic |
| Fri 9/18 | Sunny, high ~92°, heat index near 99° |
| Sat 9/19 | Show Me 250 paint-a-pot 10 a.m., Bingham-Waggoner Estate, 313 W. Pacific Ave. (free) · Fellowship of the Field Picnic 11 a.m.–1 p.m., George Owens Nature Park, 1601 S. Speck Rd. · 20% storm chance; showers likely overnight (60%) |
| Sun 9/20 | Showers and thunderstorms likely (70%), high ~80°; 80% overnight |
| Mon 9/21 | Regular City Council Meeting 6 p.m., Municipal Commons first floor — first reading expected on the special-election schedule for the recalled First District seat; data-center rules vote targeted for October |
| Tue 9/22 | StayWell Committee, Municipal Commons (in person) |
| Thu 9/24 | Police chief finalists open house 5:30–7:30 p.m., Midwest Genealogy Center, 3440 S. Lee's Summit Rd. |
| Sep 27–Oct 4 | Love Where You Live: IndeCleanup — community-wide cleanup week |
| Tue 10/13 | ISD Board of Education regular meeting (next scheduled, per the Sept. 8 packet) |
| Tue 11/3 | Election Day: $19.9M GO bond for five city-owned historic sites (needs 57.14%) · congressional elections under the 2022 maps per the SCOTUS stay |