Montrose - Daily Press

Daily Press Editorial

So what’s going on in Olathe?

That question is on the tongues of many lately. Eight longtime municipal leaders and employees have resigned, the latest being Mayor Wayne Blair. Others who have departed include key personnel from municipal operations, law enforcement, financial management, recreation.

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In Olathe, they’re creative in showing the door. Last November, voters passed Ballot Issue 2B which was deigned to eliminate Sale’s job. The ballot measure passed by one vote, hardly a mandate, and since Sale’s subsequent resignation, there’s been little mention of a successor. Sale suffered a heart attack Saturday. He is covering in Grand Junction. We wish a speedy and full recovery.

If one word could sum up the general feeling in Olathe, perhaps it’s hostility. Trustees Ted Jiron, Bob Lindstrom, Lou Cooper, Woody Palmer, Dan Kelso and Linda Steele have seemingly created a collective atmosphere fraught with suspicion and talk of threats. A recent investigation by the town’s insurance carrier determined there has been no wrongdoing by the trustees. Yet former recreation director Don Perkins, who along with others asked for the investigation, said earlier this month the investigation was an example of the town “covering its ass.”

Kelso charged in Tuesday’s editions how the Daily Press isn’t interested in reporting the “truth,” preferring rather to “sling mud.” Fact is - eight key municipal leaders, longtime community leaders with almost 100 years of collective community service to Olathe and its citizens - have resigned in the last year. Like it or not, that’s news.

Olathe is a community of 1,600, with more than 400 families. It has clout. Consider this: all those new schools and school renovations in Montrose and Olathe were completed because Olathe voters said so. Similar referendums in 1997 and 1998 failed; in 2002, the ‘“It’s About Pride” committee included Olathe in a big way and Olathe voters supported the measure by a 60/40 vote, putting the measure over the top. It’s hard to imagine either place without these new schools, given our recent growth.

We all know Olathe is famous for its Olathe Sweet Corn and its annual August festival that put the community on the music map since 1992. Two years ago, its high school wrestling team won the state championship. It’s a proud community, what with its own industrial park and a commitment to succeed.

That’s why it’s hard to understand the trustees’ endgame. If the intent was a wholesale housecleaning, having people submit resignations is one way to get there. But nonetheless, it’s still a messy business and one that should disturb us all.

— We welcome letters to the editor on what’s happening in Olathe with its municipal staff and leadership.

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