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Property valuations and taxes, investing in energy efficiency, political party influence in local government: Prairie Village council candidates talk issues at SM Post forum

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Candidates running for Prairie Village city council discussed a range of issues, from property taxes to sustainability initiatives at our candidate forum Tuesday.

Seven of the nine candidates seeking seats on the Prairie Village city council in November’s elections covered a host of issues at the forum we held Tuesday evening at Colonial Church in Prairie Village.

Ward 2 incumbent Serena Schermoly did not attend and did not provide any information about her absence. Ward 5 candidate David Morrison did not attend, and informed the Shawnee Mission Post Tuesday evening that a family member’s health issue had prevented him from attending.

If you missed the event in person, you can check out video below. We’ve got time codes listed for all of the topics we covered so you can jump to the issues that interest you most:

Prairie Village Council Candidate Forum

  • What makes you qualified to make decisions on behalf of Prairie Village residents, and how would you take into account the opinions of constituents who might disagree with you? Discussion starts at 12:10.
  • The council recently heard preliminary plans for a new public works facility, including early details about the costs that could be associated with achieving LEED Platinum status, the highest level of energy efficiency certification. Estimates suggested that cost could amount to as much as $800,000 above baseline. Would you support that expense? Discussion starts at 24:30.
  • Prairie Village has seen property values rising significantly in recent years — meaning the city’s property tax revenues have increased as well. How should the city be considering where to set its property tax rate in this environment? Discussion starts at 38:50.
  • Should political party affiliations have any place in city government? Discussion starts at 53:10.

About the author

Jay Senter
Jay Senter

Jay Senter is the founder and publisher of the Post.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in business at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, where he worked as a reporter and editor at The Badger Herald.

He went on to receive a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Kansas, where he earned the Calder Pickett Award. While he was in graduate school, he also worked as a reporter for the Lawrence Journal-World.

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