Martin City CID meeting

The Martin City Community Improvement District held its monthly meeting on Thursday, December 13.

A presentation on Smithfield Foods sustainability was given by guest speaker Brent Vernon, manager at the Martin City Plant located at 13825 Wyandotte. He said Smithfield Foods is working toward being landfill free company by either transferring waste to energy or recycling it. They hope to see a reduction of waste by 25 percent in 2025. The move is in response to criticism that Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest hog processer, produces millions of gallons of untreated fecal matter.

The Martin City plant is one of 56 Smithfield plants and one of 35 packing plants. In 2017, it produced around 125 million spiral sliced hams. The corporation plans to invest $2.6 million in capital improvements at the Martin City plant. The plant was once known as Farmland. Prior to that, it was owned by Armour.

CID Manager Vickie Wolgast showed images of the new banners to be displayed along 135th Street. The red banners with a smiling sun will be replaced by red banners with a train locomotive.

There was discussion of tearing down the Martin City sign at 135th Street and 150 Hwy due to the structure’s instability. It would be replaced with a newer, safer sign.

The Phase III road improvements at 135th Street and Washington had to be reconstructed, according to Volgast. Large trucks coming off Washington onto 135th St. had a difficult time maneuvering around the newly built median, which extended up to the intersection. The street was closed and the median rebuilt to allow for more turn space.

Kansas City Police Department spokesman Aaron Whitehead said the police department was looking for new recruits. There are currently 1340 police officers in the police force. They are looking to add 51. He also announced that aggravated assaults and burglaries were down in Martin City.