Jackson County

Jackson County voters will cast ballots on Sept. 30 in a special recall election targeting County Executive Frank White Jr. On Up To Date, the county executive defended his efforts to work with legislators but said some of his colleagues are determined to keep him from accomplishing things.

White sent a letter to all Jackson County employees Wednesday announcing his decision — and then, the next day, announced he had been battling kidney cancer.

Jackson County property owners spoke before a Missouri House special committee this week about receiving huge property tax increases — with few options for appeals. “There’s no transparency; there’s no accountability; and there’s no guardrail," Blip owner Ian Davis told lawmakers.

Police say they face the “unprecedented challenge” of planning for the largest event the department has ever seen, with Kansas City hosting hundreds of thousands of young, potentially rowdy fans during a hot summer with 23-hour-a-day liquor sales.

Legislators originally approved the recall vote for August 26, but the Jackson County and Kansas City election boards said they could not possibly meet legal balloting requirements in that short timeframe.

Missouri ordered retroactive limits on property assessment increases in Jackson County. But, according to county assessor Gail McCann Beatty, that order means "inequities will remain."

A hearing for two court actions over the election date is scheduled for Aug. 1, while the Jackson County Legislature has an ordinance setting a new election day to consider.

Verifiable numbers are hard to come by in the bidding war for the Royals and Chiefs. Last year, the two teams generated nearly $70 million in city, county and state taxes, but it would take decades to generate enough revenue to make up the price tag of new stadiums.

County legislators met Friday morning to override White's veto. The election, which follows years of frustration with White from county legislators and community members, is scheduled for Aug. 26.

Frank White Jr., a former star second baseman for the Kansas City Royals who won eight Golden Glove Awards during his career, infuriated county legislators and a citizens group with his veto. "Eight Golden Gloves mean nothing!" said the Rev. Dr. Vernon Percy Howard, leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. "Bench Frank White!"

A lawsuit filed Thursday in Jackson County Circuit Court says two Independence police officers acted with malice and were reckless when they killed Maria Pike, 34 and her two-month-old baby Destinii Hope.

His sales tax proposal would give one pot of money to the Chiefs, another pot to Jackson County for courthouse improvements and a third pot to University Health. White was among the most vocal critics of last year's failed stadium sales tax proposal.