October 2015 • 71st Edition
Waldo’s 23rd Annual Fall Festival The 23rd annual Waldo Fall Festival was one of the best yet! We couldn’t have asked for better weather, volunteers, entertainment and vendors. As with every year, we had a mixture of new and treasured old. Taking place on Saturday, September 19th in the CVS parking lot of 75th Street and Wornall, the festival far exceeded our expectations. Thank you to each table and food vendor for providing information, goods and delicious treats. A special thank you to our three presenting sponsors; Kansas City Neighborhood Tourism Development Fund (NTDF), Google Fiber and the Waldo Area Business Association. Our tent sponsors: Schloegel Design Remodel, City Gym, Canopy Road Real Estate, LLC, Allstate Insurance, KC Coring and Cutting Construction Co., and Pooches Paradise Day Spa & Resort; Event Sponsors: Almar Printing, Armour Oaks Senior Living, Coffee Girls, Dumit Rug Cleaners, Gregory McGee Co., Gunter Pest Management, Jerry Singer Automotive Services, Morgan Miller Plumbing, One More Cup, Southside Carpet, Southwest Body Shop, Tropical Sno, Waldo Pizza, and Wornall Automotive. Thank you to each of our entertainers: Jim Cosgrove, Pooches Paradise dog show, St. Elizabeth band, Betty Tillotson’s School of Dance tap-a-thon, Waldo Gymnastics and our special closing act, The Grisly Hand. Hope to see everyone next year!
Four New Waldo Walk of Famers Mayor Pro Tem Scott Wagner and honorary Mayor of Waldo Becky Beck helped kick off the start of the festival. This year we had the pleasure of honoring four special Waldoians with a Walk of Fame stone. Dave Wirken of Wirken Electrical: “Reliable & Dependable;’Wirken’ Behind the Scenes; Electrician Par Excellence, the Waldo Spark Plug.” Mary and Sam Gromowsky of Almar Printing: “Generous Givers; Inseparable Pair; Leaving Their Imprint, Waldo’s Heart and Foundation.” Marti Lee, executive director of Southtown, Waldo and Brookside: “Infectious Energy; ‘All Hands on Deck’ Attitude; Fiercely Frugal Yet Always Generous, an Engaging Leader.” We also introduced Patrick Sanders, Patrick’s Bar & No Grill, as our new Waldo Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem, Stacy Neff, of One More Cup. Please check out our website at www.waldokc.org for more photos! Thanks to everyone for making this year the best yet! Be sure to stop by and refresh your memory on how the monument and fountain came to be and those who played a major role in making it happen. Special thanks to wordsmith, Becky Beck, for creating the words for the plaques, Paul McMillian for the outstanding photography and JerUSAlem Stone for the beautiful stone inserts.
Project Blackbird LLC in Motion One would never guess that right here in the heart of Waldo there is a company making great strides in the high end motion graphics for major corporate and television network brands. Owners Chris Bird and Cameron Pierron of Project BlackBird, LLC, located at 508 W 75th Street, have been in operation for the past four years and recently received accolades in the Kansas City Business Journal for creating “teaser videos” for Weird Al Yankovic’s latest album, “Mandatory Fun,” which has finally reached #1 on the Billboard Charts. “The teaser videos we created for "Weird Al" Yankovic #mandatoryfun have received over 300,000 views on YouTube!” shared Chris. Project BlackBird, LLC prides themselves on delivering the highest level of quality and consistency every time. They are great at solving problems others cannot using extensive experience and innovation. Bird and Pierron have also been busy upgrading their wired networking to accommodate faster than gigabit network. Thank you Project BlackBird for your contribution to technology and to Waldo!
Brookside Gardens is Sparkling in Southtown You wanted it, now you have it! Brookside Gardens, an amazing event space, is now available at 624 E 63rd Street. The building, formerly known as the Alanz Theater, has been entirely transformed. “We’ve basically gutted the entire structure,” stated owner Joe Dugdale. A new roof, and façade, complete with an historical panel, can easily be seen from the front view. The wooden frames around the windows were all crafted onsite. Once you experience the interior you will want to start planning your next party. The elegantly refurbished wood floors are complimented by the stunning concrete bar countertop and library paneling. If bridal accommodations are needed, they can be found at the top of gorgeous wooden staircase that leads to the bridal suite. Of course music is a must at any event and Platinum Productions of KC, a DJ Company, provides professional sound, lighting and video systems. Outdoor seating is abundant on the rear deck with retractable garage doors that invite the fresh air inside. Joe and Ann Dugdale and their son, Josh, have been operating event spaces for eight years and would love to assist in planning your next gathering of any size. Brookside Gardens can host 250 guests and floor plans are flexible. Call Joe at (816)935-7904 or visit www.heritageeventspaces.com for more information. Brookside Gardens has truly added Sparkle to Southtown!
Welcome Back, Michael Forbes Grille! Opening their doors in 1985, Michael Forbes Grille was first located in Waldo before moving into Brookside, 128 W 63rd Street, in 2012. On April 22, 2015, the restaurant caught fire and has since been under renovation. With determination to open back up as quickly as possible, the restaurant has undergone an extensive renovation inside and reopened on Monday, September 28, 2015. If you are searching for a cool cocktail, delicious entrée or would like to enjoy the beautiful fall weather on a quaint sidewalk table in Brookside, Michael Forbes Grille can check all those items off your list. Owner Forbes Cross, Chef Matt Cross and 40 hardworking employees are excited to welcome you back, 7 days a week, with brunch on the weekends. Please check out their website for daily hours of operation: michaelforbesgrille.com. Brookside is very excited to have them back and wish them nothing but success! Please check out their new menu, interior and décor. Some things may have changed, but you can bet it remains a local and friendly neighborhood restaurant. We are proud to highlight their grand re-opening and wish them the best of luck!
2015/2016 Link Directory Hits the Streets The annual directory of the Southtown, Waldo, and Brookside businesses is coming hot off the press this month. If you are receiving this newsletter, you will be receiving a copy in the mail. Feel free to stop by the Southtown Planning Center to get additional copies. With a print run of more than 8,000, we have plenty to share. If your neighborhood, organization, or business would like to have multiple copies to distribute to employees, residents or customers, just contact the Southtown Planning Center, 816-523-5553, to arrange to pick up a handful or a box! It’s a great way to get the word out about all the terrific businesses and organizations in our community. Let’s shop local and patronize our area businesses and services!
Brookside Trick or Treat Street Please join us for Brookside’s Trick or Treat Street on Saturday, October 31st from 3pm to 5pm. Area businesses will be open and passing out candy. We ask that children are accompanied by an adult and use the crosswalks with crossing guards. We are looking forward to all of the fun costumes! Where: 63rd Street and Brookside Plaza When: Saturday, October 31, 2016 from 3pm to 5pm This year will be spooktacular!
Waldo Board of Director Nominations The annual election of the Waldo Area Business Association (WABA) board will take place at the November 18 monthly luncheon. The following is the slate of board members proposed by the WABA nominating committee. Debby Allmon, Schloegel Design Angela Cronk, Hagoyah Bethany Dyche, HJM Architects Peggy LaPierre, AFLAC Angie Lile, LileStyle Productions
Robert McCain, Reese Nichols Aaron McDonald, Center of Life Chiro. Jeff Morgan, Morgan Miller Plumbing Stacy Neff, One More Cup Kate Nielsen, On Tap
Chris Robb, Parkway Wealth Advisors Patrick Sanders, Patrick’s Bar No Grill Rob Schlicht, Research Med. Center Jerry Singer, Singer Automotive Theresa Van Ackeren, Family Bicycles
End-of-the-Year Gift Giving As you begin planning your “end-of-the-year” gift decisions, please keep the Southtown Foundation on your list. Southtown’s mission is to facilitate the linkages and partnerships among the community stakeholders to create an environment for economic development and growth, strengthen existing businesses and welcome new ones, promote the area resources and achievements, initiate corrective actions where needed and maintain the community as a great place to live, work, and do business. The Southtown Foundation is a 501C3 organization and your contribution is 100% tax deductible. To donate, send your check to the Southtown Foundation, 6814 Troost Ave., KCMO 64131, or donate on-line at http://southtown.org/stc/southtown-foundation-501c3organization. Note: Membership dues benefit the Southtown Council, a 501c4 non-profit organization and are a business expense, not a charitable deduction. The Council provides the management services of the organization, while the Southtown Foundation provides the community projects and activities that benefit the entire community.
Southtown, Waldo, Brookside Monthly Events Monthly Luncheon Wednesday, October 21, 11:45am Guest Speaker: Susan Sundberg Health Markets Insurance Agency
Upcoming Events: Michael Forbe’s Wine Walk Thursday, October 15, 5pm-10pm 63rd St and Brookside Plaza
Location: St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church 6401 Wornall Terrace Catered by: Summit Bar & Grille $12/person Required RSVP by Oct.20 to 523-5553 or natalie@southtown.org
Brookside Trick or Treat Street Saturday, Oct. 31, 3-5pm Throughout the Brookside Shops
Monthly Networking
Wednesday, October 28, 5-7pm Mike’s Wine and Spirts 8447 Wornall Rd
Missouri Bank hosted the September PM Networking.
Everything Waldo T-Shirts “Everything Waldo” shirts for sale at $15. Please contact the Waldo Business Association if you would like to purchase one. 816-523-5553
Thank you to Research Medical Center for printing The Link.