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Volume 103 • Number 242 • Friday, December 13, 2013 • PO Box 188 • 111 E. Jenkins • Maryville, MO
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Snow on Christmas Day means ‘Fiesta’ time Shoppers dreaming of a new car Christmas
By JIM FALL Daily Forum Executive Editor What is a bigger deal with kids — of all ages — this time of year than whether it snows on Christmas? Probably nothing, unless it’s whether a particular name appears on the “nice” list maintained by a certain old gentleman who resides at the North Pole. So having a white Christmas sets up as being an even bigger deal than Missouri vs. Oklahoma State in the Cotton Bowl or the Super Bowl that the Kansas City Chiefs have a remote shot at making. Of course, Maryville having a white Christmas is a pretty decent bet. And to make things even more interesting, Melanie Smith and her team at the Greater Maryville Chamber of Commerce have joined Todd Hill and his crew at Tri-State Ford in a friendly wager with every snow-loving kid in Nodaway County. If the kids win, some lucky resident gets, at best, a brand-spanking new 2014 Ford Fiesta provided by Tri-State Ford. At the least, there will be a series of two dozen massages from Baker Chiropractic and Rehab to some fortunate participant — all depending on whether it snows a legitimate two inches or more on Christmas Day. If Old Man Winter does de-
(KEVIN BIRDSELL/DAILY FORUM) Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Melanie Smith and Tri-State Ford’s Todd Hill stand beside a 2014 Ford Fiesta that will be given away to some lucky shopper — if it snows two inches or more on Christmas Day.
scend on Maryville with at least two inches of snow on the 25th, a drawing will select a winner from among those who have registered at participating Maryville businesses and boosters. The lucky winner will receive the car, now on display on the Nodaway County Courthouse lawn.
No snow, there will still be a winner, but in that instance the prize will be the massages. So, what are the odds on a white Christmas for Maryville? Oh, somewhere between 50 and 75 percent, according to historical weather records, but less than 25 percent if the source is the most recent forecasts from the National
Climatic Data Center. This week’s cold snap, which did bring enough snow to produce a Fiesta winner last weekend, is supposed to moderate today with mostly cloudy skies and a high of around 34 degrees. The weather for Saturday’s NCAA Division II football semifinals between the Northwest Mis-
souri State University Bearcats and traditional playoff rival Grand Valley State is scheduled to hover around a high of 24 degrees for the 2:30 p.m. kickoff. The wind chill factor will be below that, however, as winds of 13 miles per hour are predicted throughout the day. There is a 10
See FIESTA, pg. 3
Eight-plex planned for North Main
(PHIL COBB/DAILY FORUM) A demolition crew reduced a derelict house to rubble Wednesday at the corner of West Halsey and South Walnut Streets. The structure was the 15th to be removed during a continuing City Hall campaign to rid Maryville of abandoned or unsafe buildings.
By TONY BROWN Daily Forum News Editor New construction on property cleared of derelict or substandard housing — especially in the
so-called Campus Town zoning overlay district east of Northwest Missouri State University — will continue next year following approval of plans for a new apartment complex by the
Maryville City Council. A total of 15 old houses have come down since the council ramped up efforts to clear out blighted structures nearly two years ago, and the latest “infill”
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construction proposal is the third on cleared Campus Town real estate since the overlay was created in 2012. A fourth new house on formerly blighted property is going up on East First Street behind the Eugene Field Elementary School campus. The most recent Campus Town construction plan was submitted this fall by landowners Gregory and Miraya Barmann and calls for a new eight-plex on a double lot at West Ninth and North Main Streets. The development will include 30 off-street parking spaces, five more than required, and adjoin a right-of-way earmarked for construction of a Ninth Street hiking/biking trail next year. Both the council and the Maryville Planning & Zoning Commission approved the proposal despite the fact that it comes up short with regard to zoning requirements governing site area, rear setback and “maximum impervious coverage,” the amount of land covered by buildings, sidewalks and parking spaces. City Manager Greg McDanel
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said the commission and council agreed to exempt the project in those areas because the exceptions are relatively minor, and because neighboring residents posed no objections. A similar apartment complex already stands across the street from the proposed construction site to the north. Though the Barmanns’ proposal fails to meet the letter of the new Campus Town code requirements, McDanel said it very much aligns with the spirit of the zoning overlay, which was created to encourage development of new high-density housing between Main Street and the Northwest campus. Such developments carry the double blessing of providing safe, modern housing for students and other apartment dwellers while boosting municipal property tax revenues. “All of these projects have involved low-assessed value properties and are replacing them with high-assessed value properties,” McDanel said. The other two proposed Campus Town developments, both of
Record....................... 2 Religion..................... 5 Sports.................... 7, 8
See APARTMENT, pg.3
Classifieds................. 9 Comics.................... 10 Community Life.... 11