A travesty! The latest update on the Waldo street artwork

By Kathy Feist

What had brought pride to Waldo and south Kansas City had been destroyed only weeks after it had been celebrated.

The painting of the Waldo insignia at the intersection of 75th and Wornall marked the completion of a $14 million Wornall Reconstruction Plan that was first introduced in 2015. A ribbon-cutting ceremony at the intersection was held on October 16.

On Halloween night, that artwork had been defaced by tire burnouts during a sideshow.

“It feels like a big black eye after all our businesses have gone throughout the last decade,” said Sean Anderson, Executive Director of the Waldo Area Business Association and Waldo CID.

According to the Kansas City Police Department, officers began receiving calls regarding the sideshow around 12:13 am. But it wasn’t until 12:39 am that a patrol car became available. A police surveillance helicopter was also dispatched to the scene.

“We had several officers who work in that patrol division respond to several calls of sideshows,” said a KCPD spokesperson Officer Alayna Gonzalez in a statement to the media. “Officers were able to successfully deploy stop sticks on a couple different vehicles, but I am not seeing if anyone was taken into custody or not in the call notes.”

Two vehicles struck the stop sticks, according to the police report.

A witness to the activity posted on Reddit that many of the street racers wore masks and recorded the scene with their cell phones. Vehicles trying to navigate the intersection had glass bottles thrown at them and doors kicked as they tried to move.

KCPD is investigating the incident and tracking down leads,” said 6th District City Councilman Johnathan Duncan. “The City intends to prosecute the individuals who damaged the intersection.”

“This is the first time as far as I know that 75th and Wornall has been chosen for a sideshow—usually it’s 85th Street or Bannister,” said Anderson in a statement to the Telegraph. “The big mistake was not securing the logo with rumble strips and other implementations to protect it. We would love to see the intersection restored, given that it will be protected and not put a target on our community.”

Replacing the street logo is estimated to cost $40,000, according to City Public Works. While the logo appears to be painted, in actuality it has been melted on the concrete with thermoplastic.

“Public Works is looking into what it will cost to remove the current logo, repair damages to the brick crosswalks, install sideshow prevention grooves, and replace the logo with a smaller version,” said Duncan.  “While removal of the damaged logo could happen relatively quickly, replacement won’t occur until temperatures rise in the spring.”

In the meantime, KCPD says they will continue to pursue the case.

“Detectives continue to investigate and they are making headway identifying the people involved in this,” said a police spokesperson in a recent update. “They are confident they will be able to work with prosecutors for consideration of applicable charges.”

Anyone with knowledge of the vandals is encouraged to call anonymously the Crime Stoppers Tips Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477).