TRAUMA LESSONS FOR THE STREET & ON THE JOB
The Independence Police Department Embraces New Approaches
Using a soft voice and leaning forward in a sympathetic stance, Officer Grant Hedrick gently questioned the person who had just been the subject of an emergency call – the cowering man was convinced he was being watched by an outside force of some kind. "What is it that is bothering you?" Officer Hedrick asked. "Can I help?" The man, hunched over, began to straighten, then mumbled a response.
Officer Hedrick slowly continued his line of inquiry. “How are you feeling?” Then he asked if there was anything the man might need – including some medicine he might have on hand. If so, what was it? Where was it kept?
As the seconds led to minutes, the conversation became two-way, and it appeared that a sense of trust was being established. "That was really good," said Sgt. Tyrone Jenkins of the encounter.
It was all part of a training exercise being overseen, in part, by Sgt. Jenkins, the coordinator at the time for the county sheriff’s office of crisis- intervention-team training. The training program, which was held at the Independence Civic Center last December, asked first responders and police officers to role-play difficult and troubled individuals who often are reported by 9-1-1 calls.
Then Sgt. Jenkins and others observed as certain attendees – Officer Hedrick among them – used the tools they learned to deal with a peer pretending to be in the throes of a mental health crisis.
Officer Hedrick earned praise from Sgt. Jenkins for continuing to prod in a non-confrontational way while gathering facts that could help determine what the man was experiencing.
What did this distraught person see that was so unusual? (It wasn't what he was seeing – he knew he was being spied on through the wall). Where was the threat in the wall? (It was the light socket). The steady, soft-toned talk was effective, the sergeant observed.
Officer Hedrick, who joined the Independence Police Department four years ago, demonstrated what Sgt. Jenkins said is the kind of soothing presence needed when dealing with the challenge of someone in an altered mental state.
A few in attendance ventured a guess at what the symptoms showed, as the example unfolded. Was it schizophrenia? A psychotic episode? A drug-induced break with reality?
Sgt. Jenkins cautioned that trying to determine an underlying cause to diagnose wasn't the aim. The approach – neutral, non-threatening and reassuring – was a way to obtain information and avoid physical force in taking the person into custody. In short, to build rapport through empathy while still maintaining officer safety.
Why is this so important? Being able to understand and manage emotionally overwrought individuals, some of whom have serious mental health issues, increases the capacity of local first responders and law enforcement in several ways, according to the Oregon Center on Behavioral Health and Justice Integration, a partner of the Oregon Health Authority.
Newer approaches, such as those that were the subject of the December training, cut down on incarcerations that could be considered inappropriate; Provide the means to better identification of individuals who need help from mental health providers; Foster relationship-building among agencies, leading to better access to mental-health assistance.
And helping law enforcement personnel broaden their perspective on criminality is important to Independence Police Chief Robert Mason. A decade ago, Chief Mason didn't consider the Independence Police Department to be first responders for those in a mental health crisis. He'd always appreciated that the "human element" could de-escalate a situation – the trusting connection that some police officers seem capable of making with an alleged perpetrator when an arrest is made. Now, that quality isn't just seen as valuable. It's essential, he said.
"Mental health is a big issue," he said, an observation backed up by data. A third of those with serious mental health issues go without services in any given year, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. The result: Anxiety disorders, including post-traumatic stress, are part of the mix in the commission of crimes.
For example, one of the IDP officers recently answered a call in which an instance of stealing grocery items was reported by a local market. When the officer showed up, the alleged thief hurled one of the items at him. "This officer almost immediately suspected schizophrenia," Chief Mason recalled. So instead of arresting the man, the officer engaged him in conversation, then followed him home. That's where he left him – at home.
He (the officer) was pretty convinced he was delusional," Chief Mason said. The next day the man was taken into custody, from his home, without incident. "I have to say, when I heard about this, I had a few questions," he said. However, upon learning the outcome, "I couldn't say it wasn't the right decision."
Another change is the reliance on Salem's dispatch center, where recipients of those urgent phone calls seem very skilled at predicting when mental health issues are playing a role, he said. "Some of these people can tell just by the tone of the voice of the caller that something (psychologically) is going on," he said. In such cases, a Mobile Crisis Team may be called, which includes an officer trained in handling mental-health emergencies teamed up with a qualified mental health practitioner.
There are three main reasons for the rise in mental health-related police calls, according to Chief Mason. The first is that institutionalization often is a last resort. There used to be facilities to house the homeless who are suffering from a mental health crisis, but the state has closed many of them (see Q&A insert topic, State-Mandated Facility Closures).
The second cause is the rise in addiction, particularly to opioids. "We see this even in a small town," he said. Among some residents, the addiction may not surface for a relatively long time. "They're high-functioning, and then they're not," he said. And mental health is compromised. "They go hand-in-hand," he said.
The third reason is the rise in youth crime that seems linked to higher levels of maladjustment. However, this younger-based mental-health epidemic isn't yet fully understood. Is it because home-based discipline that teaches good boundary-setting has gone out of fashion? Does it have to do with the rise in social media, which is making face-to-face conflicts harder for teens and young adults to manage?
Is it the wider availability of drugs – marijuana now is legally kept in many medicine cabinets, along with prescription drugs?
"We don't know why," he said (see Q&A insert topic, Youth Behavior Changes & Drug Use).
The Independence Police Department Embraces New Approaches
Using a soft voice and leaning forward in a sympathetic stance, Officer Grant Hedrick gently questioned the person who had just been the subject of an emergency call – the cowering man was convinced he was being watched by an outside force of some kind. "What is it that is bothering you?" Officer Hedrick asked. "Can I help?" The man, hunched over, began to straighten, then mumbled a response.
Officer Hedrick slowly continued his line of inquiry. “How are you feeling?” Then he asked if there was anything the man might need – including some medicine he might have on hand. If so, what was it? Where was it kept?
As the seconds led to minutes, the conversation became two-way, and it appeared that a sense of trust was being established. "That was really good," said Sgt. Tyrone Jenkins of the encounter.
It was all part of a training exercise being overseen, in part, by Sgt. Jenkins, the coordinator at the time for the county sheriff’s office of crisis- intervention-team training. The training program, which was held at the Independence Civic Center last December, asked first responders and police officers to role-play difficult and troubled individuals who often are reported by 9-1-1 calls.
Then Sgt. Jenkins and others observed as certain attendees – Officer Hedrick among them – used the tools they learned to deal with a peer pretending to be in the throes of a mental health crisis.
Officer Hedrick earned praise from Sgt. Jenkins for continuing to prod in a non-confrontational way while gathering facts that could help determine what the man was experiencing.
What did this distraught person see that was so unusual? (It wasn't what he was seeing – he knew he was being spied on through the wall). Where was the threat in the wall? (It was the light socket). The steady, soft-toned talk was effective, the sergeant observed.
Officer Hedrick, who joined the Independence Police Department four years ago, demonstrated what Sgt. Jenkins said is the kind of soothing presence needed when dealing with the challenge of someone in an altered mental state.
A few in attendance ventured a guess at what the symptoms showed, as the example unfolded. Was it schizophrenia? A psychotic episode? A drug-induced break with reality?
Sgt. Jenkins cautioned that trying to determine an underlying cause to diagnose wasn't the aim. The approach – neutral, non-threatening and reassuring – was a way to obtain information and avoid physical force in taking the person into custody. In short, to build rapport through empathy while still maintaining officer safety.
Why is this so important? Being able to understand and manage emotionally overwrought individuals, some of whom have serious mental health issues, increases the capacity of local first responders and law enforcement in several ways, according to the Oregon Center on Behavioral Health and Justice Integration, a partner of the Oregon Health Authority.
Newer approaches, such as those that were the subject of the December training, cut down on incarcerations that could be considered inappropriate; Provide the means to better identification of individuals who need help from mental health providers; Foster relationship-building among agencies, leading to better access to mental-health assistance.
And helping law enforcement personnel broaden their perspective on criminality is important to Independence Police Chief Robert Mason. A decade ago, Chief Mason didn't consider the Independence Police Department to be first responders for those in a mental health crisis. He'd always appreciated that the "human element" could de-escalate a situation – the trusting connection that some police officers seem capable of making with an alleged perpetrator when an arrest is made. Now, that quality isn't just seen as valuable. It's essential, he said.
"Mental health is a big issue," he said, an observation backed up by data. A third of those with serious mental health issues go without services in any given year, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. The result: Anxiety disorders, including post-traumatic stress, are part of the mix in the commission of crimes.
For example, one of the IDP officers recently answered a call in which an instance of stealing grocery items was reported by a local market. When the officer showed up, the alleged thief hurled one of the items at him. "This officer almost immediately suspected schizophrenia," Chief Mason recalled. So instead of arresting the man, the officer engaged him in conversation, then followed him home. That's where he left him – at home.
He (the officer) was pretty convinced he was delusional," Chief Mason said. The next day the man was taken into custody, from his home, without incident. "I have to say, when I heard about this, I had a few questions," he said. However, upon learning the outcome, "I couldn't say it wasn't the right decision."
Another change is the reliance on Salem's dispatch center, where recipients of those urgent phone calls seem very skilled at predicting when mental health issues are playing a role, he said. "Some of these people can tell just by the tone of the voice of the caller that something (psychologically) is going on," he said. In such cases, a Mobile Crisis Team may be called, which includes an officer trained in handling mental-health emergencies teamed up with a qualified mental health practitioner.
There are three main reasons for the rise in mental health-related police calls, according to Chief Mason. The first is that institutionalization often is a last resort. There used to be facilities to house the homeless who are suffering from a mental health crisis, but the state has closed many of them (see Q&A insert topic, State-Mandated Facility Closures).
The second cause is the rise in addiction, particularly to opioids. "We see this even in a small town," he said. Among some residents, the addiction may not surface for a relatively long time. "They're high-functioning, and then they're not," he said. And mental health is compromised. "They go hand-in-hand," he said.
The third reason is the rise in youth crime that seems linked to higher levels of maladjustment. However, this younger-based mental-health epidemic isn't yet fully understood. Is it because home-based discipline that teaches good boundary-setting has gone out of fashion? Does it have to do with the rise in social media, which is making face-to-face conflicts harder for teens and young adults to manage?
Is it the wider availability of drugs – marijuana now is legally kept in many medicine cabinets, along with prescription drugs?
"We don't know why," he said (see Q&A insert topic, Youth Behavior Changes & Drug Use).
Ten years ago, the quality of gentle persuasion was not one that sprang to mind when he was interviewing prospective police candidates, the chief said (photo at left). "What we look at now in hiring has changed," he explained. "The idea that bigger, stronger is better – not so important anymore," he said. Where once the criterion was "who looks like they can handle themselves in a fight" now it has become "who has good critical thinking skills?" (see Q&A insert topic, New Challenges and New Approaches)
The Independent Q&A:
Top Public Safety Officials on Trauma, Homelessness, Mental Illness and Other New Job Demands
Youth Behavior Changes and Drug Use
There are reports that trauma is impacting younger populations, and that, due to lack of treatment access, there is rising drug addiction in youth. Children are said to be coming of age without coping skills but with more access to illegal, self-medicating drugs. Is it true of Independence?
Independence Police Chief Robert Mason (photo at left): The age of kids who are having serious problems seems to be getting younger. I don’t have any stats to back that up. In general, that’s what seems to be happening. And there’s more co-parenting without living in the same house, which can be difficult.
Polk County Sheriff Mark Garton: Yes, I feel we are seeing this more and more – younger and younger kids being victims of serious trauma that end up addicted to some kind of drug as a result. I think that drugs – alcohol, tabaco, marijuana, prescriptions and other illicit drugs – are pretty available to minors, some more than others.
Deputy Chief Neal Olson, Polk County Fire District No. 1: I absolutely agree that trauma is impacting our younger populations. We are seeing an increase in calls for service regarding mental health in children. Although we do not see a large number of these patients, we often respond to the same patient multiple times with more severe problems than I have witnessed in years passed. As the adult population experiences an increase in mental health issues, we can expect to see those same problems in our youth. As adults struggle with drug, alcohol and other addictions, so do youth. I believe children are self-medicating much more easily and drastically than previous generations, specifically using marijuana.
Police Chief Mason: I think there is still a lot to learn about how we address these issues. Do we want 11-year-olds locked up? No, I don’t think we do.
Why are these problems surfacing now?
Police Chief Mason: A kid who used to act up got disciplined. But what can happen now when a child is seen as out-of-control? We get calls now from parents saying “I don’t know what to do. My kid says if I do anything they are going to call the Department of Human Services about me.” So, there are parents out there who don’t believe they have the right to discipline their kids. They don’t feel empowered to deal with it. Some are afraid of the system.
Sheriff Garton: Parents may be working one or two jobs, going to school, etc., and not be able to be at home as much as they once were. In some situations, there are kids raising kids, so when kids have to deal with trauma they don’t know how and may turn to drugs in an attempt to cope because they don’t know any better.
Deputy Fire Chief Olson: I think these problems have always been here. However, we are learning more about mental health, as a society, and addressing it. We are talking about trauma, we are talking about mental health, we are talking about drug addiction. We have come to a breaking point, a point where we can no longer ignore mental health and addiction.
State-Mandated Facility Closures
What about the adults who have mental-health issues, and then literally end up on the street?
Police Chief Mason: We get asked by the public to deal with this -- the homeless. But we can only do something about it if the people who own the property don’t want them there. We’ve had people say: “Well, why not take them to Salem? It is more equipped there to handle the homeless.” They don’t comprehend a homeless person wanting to be here, seeing this as their home, not wanting to leave. It can be hard to understand.
Sheriff Garton: It's not a crime to be homeless, unless there is trespassing. But we get calls from people who want us to go deal with someone who is sleeping on a sidewalk or something like that. We don’t have any true homeless shelters in Polk County, so it makes it difficult at times. We are not really the best people to deal with the homelessness issue, so we utilize the Polk County Resource Center, which has many services co-located within their office and can typically begin helping the situation immediately.
Chief Ben Stange, Polk County Fire District No. 1: We’re called upon for mental health issues among the homeless population. Communicating with these populations can be difficult. Our interactions are very brief and the help they need is obviously long-term. For us, however, the mental health problems in the homeless population aren't as large as in some other areas of the state. What people ignore, however, is the larger issue of mental health issues that manifest in a different medical condition.
Do you know how frequently that is happening?
Fire Chief Stange: It is extremely difficult for us to track this. We get dispatched on some calls in which the primary complaint is a mental health issue. But more often, we get dispatched on diabetic issues, hypertensive individuals, or people with various other medical issues that are taking place because their mental health issue has kept them from taking the steps to prevent these issues.
Can you elaborate?
Fire Chief Stange: This includes things like scheduling and keeping medical appointments, and filling and taking the appropriate medications, assuming the person is in a financial position to have access to these things. When we chart these issues, the manifestation is a physical health problem and we have short-term ways to help treat those health issues. The longer term, and additional underlying issue, is the mental health issue.
Deputy Fire Chief Olson: It is no longer "somebody else's problem.” I think the drug epidemic is compounding our mental health problem. Years ago, the drugs available were primarily opiates -- heroin and opium – and marijuana, alcohol and some amphetamines. Today, science has changed the face of the drug world, both legal and illegal. Marijuana is available in a
variety of forms and concentrations (with far greater potency).
New Challenges and New Approaches
Has this changed the approach you use for doing your job?
Police Chief Mason: Today, the ability to communicate well and to arrive at a really logical conclusion given a set of facts is much more important. Society now is demanding that you cannot treat every situation as if the situation is a hammer and there is a nail. The core job has changed a lot. Using critical thinking skills on the job and finding solutions is essential.
Fire Chief Stange: We have a relatively young workforce. Most of our Firefighter/Paramedics are in their thirties. So, I think most of us have grown into our careers as this issue has received increased attention making us very conscious of it. I think the result is that our personnel focus a lot of their frustration at the system and not at the individual.
Sheriff Garton: Our job has changed a lot, especially in the last 10 years and it's going away from what you typically see on TV to more communication-based policing, along with community policing strategies. We hold different trainings than we have in the past, including crisis intervention training and conflict resolution. We have to adapt the best we can to every possible type of situation, because that’s what is expected of us.
Specifically, what are some the steps you are taking?
Sheriff Garton: We have also deployed a Mobile Crisis Response Team that works everywhere in Polk County. This team pairs a deputy sheriff with a mental health clinician who responds to mental health-related calls throughout the county. They’re really busy handling their own calls along with helping each individual agency in Polk County with mental health related calls, as well. This team has shown progress since its inception in late 2016. We are now able to deliver critical mental health service at the time of crisis, not days or weeks later. This is a complete shift from where we have been – and it has produced positive results.
Fire Chief Stange: In our strategic plan, adopted by our Board of Directors, one of our objectives is to "create process to help customers become less dependent on emergent response." The action steps are largely centered around creating an algorithm to follow in order to ensure that the patient is receiving the services they need. So, this is something we are very aware of, and interested in, being a part of the resolution.
Top Public Safety Officials on Trauma, Homelessness, Mental Illness and Other New Job Demands
Youth Behavior Changes and Drug Use
There are reports that trauma is impacting younger populations, and that, due to lack of treatment access, there is rising drug addiction in youth. Children are said to be coming of age without coping skills but with more access to illegal, self-medicating drugs. Is it true of Independence?
Independence Police Chief Robert Mason (photo at left): The age of kids who are having serious problems seems to be getting younger. I don’t have any stats to back that up. In general, that’s what seems to be happening. And there’s more co-parenting without living in the same house, which can be difficult.
Polk County Sheriff Mark Garton: Yes, I feel we are seeing this more and more – younger and younger kids being victims of serious trauma that end up addicted to some kind of drug as a result. I think that drugs – alcohol, tabaco, marijuana, prescriptions and other illicit drugs – are pretty available to minors, some more than others.
Deputy Chief Neal Olson, Polk County Fire District No. 1: I absolutely agree that trauma is impacting our younger populations. We are seeing an increase in calls for service regarding mental health in children. Although we do not see a large number of these patients, we often respond to the same patient multiple times with more severe problems than I have witnessed in years passed. As the adult population experiences an increase in mental health issues, we can expect to see those same problems in our youth. As adults struggle with drug, alcohol and other addictions, so do youth. I believe children are self-medicating much more easily and drastically than previous generations, specifically using marijuana.
Police Chief Mason: I think there is still a lot to learn about how we address these issues. Do we want 11-year-olds locked up? No, I don’t think we do.
Why are these problems surfacing now?
Police Chief Mason: A kid who used to act up got disciplined. But what can happen now when a child is seen as out-of-control? We get calls now from parents saying “I don’t know what to do. My kid says if I do anything they are going to call the Department of Human Services about me.” So, there are parents out there who don’t believe they have the right to discipline their kids. They don’t feel empowered to deal with it. Some are afraid of the system.
Sheriff Garton: Parents may be working one or two jobs, going to school, etc., and not be able to be at home as much as they once were. In some situations, there are kids raising kids, so when kids have to deal with trauma they don’t know how and may turn to drugs in an attempt to cope because they don’t know any better.
Deputy Fire Chief Olson: I think these problems have always been here. However, we are learning more about mental health, as a society, and addressing it. We are talking about trauma, we are talking about mental health, we are talking about drug addiction. We have come to a breaking point, a point where we can no longer ignore mental health and addiction.
State-Mandated Facility Closures
What about the adults who have mental-health issues, and then literally end up on the street?
Police Chief Mason: We get asked by the public to deal with this -- the homeless. But we can only do something about it if the people who own the property don’t want them there. We’ve had people say: “Well, why not take them to Salem? It is more equipped there to handle the homeless.” They don’t comprehend a homeless person wanting to be here, seeing this as their home, not wanting to leave. It can be hard to understand.
Sheriff Garton: It's not a crime to be homeless, unless there is trespassing. But we get calls from people who want us to go deal with someone who is sleeping on a sidewalk or something like that. We don’t have any true homeless shelters in Polk County, so it makes it difficult at times. We are not really the best people to deal with the homelessness issue, so we utilize the Polk County Resource Center, which has many services co-located within their office and can typically begin helping the situation immediately.
Chief Ben Stange, Polk County Fire District No. 1: We’re called upon for mental health issues among the homeless population. Communicating with these populations can be difficult. Our interactions are very brief and the help they need is obviously long-term. For us, however, the mental health problems in the homeless population aren't as large as in some other areas of the state. What people ignore, however, is the larger issue of mental health issues that manifest in a different medical condition.
Do you know how frequently that is happening?
Fire Chief Stange: It is extremely difficult for us to track this. We get dispatched on some calls in which the primary complaint is a mental health issue. But more often, we get dispatched on diabetic issues, hypertensive individuals, or people with various other medical issues that are taking place because their mental health issue has kept them from taking the steps to prevent these issues.
Can you elaborate?
Fire Chief Stange: This includes things like scheduling and keeping medical appointments, and filling and taking the appropriate medications, assuming the person is in a financial position to have access to these things. When we chart these issues, the manifestation is a physical health problem and we have short-term ways to help treat those health issues. The longer term, and additional underlying issue, is the mental health issue.
Deputy Fire Chief Olson: It is no longer "somebody else's problem.” I think the drug epidemic is compounding our mental health problem. Years ago, the drugs available were primarily opiates -- heroin and opium – and marijuana, alcohol and some amphetamines. Today, science has changed the face of the drug world, both legal and illegal. Marijuana is available in a
variety of forms and concentrations (with far greater potency).
New Challenges and New Approaches
Has this changed the approach you use for doing your job?
Police Chief Mason: Today, the ability to communicate well and to arrive at a really logical conclusion given a set of facts is much more important. Society now is demanding that you cannot treat every situation as if the situation is a hammer and there is a nail. The core job has changed a lot. Using critical thinking skills on the job and finding solutions is essential.
Fire Chief Stange: We have a relatively young workforce. Most of our Firefighter/Paramedics are in their thirties. So, I think most of us have grown into our careers as this issue has received increased attention making us very conscious of it. I think the result is that our personnel focus a lot of their frustration at the system and not at the individual.
Sheriff Garton: Our job has changed a lot, especially in the last 10 years and it's going away from what you typically see on TV to more communication-based policing, along with community policing strategies. We hold different trainings than we have in the past, including crisis intervention training and conflict resolution. We have to adapt the best we can to every possible type of situation, because that’s what is expected of us.
Specifically, what are some the steps you are taking?
Sheriff Garton: We have also deployed a Mobile Crisis Response Team that works everywhere in Polk County. This team pairs a deputy sheriff with a mental health clinician who responds to mental health-related calls throughout the county. They’re really busy handling their own calls along with helping each individual agency in Polk County with mental health related calls, as well. This team has shown progress since its inception in late 2016. We are now able to deliver critical mental health service at the time of crisis, not days or weeks later. This is a complete shift from where we have been – and it has produced positive results.
Fire Chief Stange: In our strategic plan, adopted by our Board of Directors, one of our objectives is to "create process to help customers become less dependent on emergent response." The action steps are largely centered around creating an algorithm to follow in order to ensure that the patient is receiving the services they need. So, this is something we are very aware of, and interested in, being a part of the resolution.
The CIVICS LESSON: When Unbuckled Breaks the Law
Thanks to a transportation grant, the Independence Police Department (IPD) recently conducted a special patrol effort to determine violators of the state’s seat-belt law. Officers volunteered to work overtime to scout for people not wearing the safety restraint. Regular IPD patrol staff conducted business as usual, while other officers looked for “telltale signs of non-compliance,” such as hanging straps, according George Lopez, a former IPD officer. “We can generally see when people are hurrying to get them on as we walk up to their vehicle, which helps confirm what we had observed before stopping the vehicle,” he said.
Thanks to a transportation grant, the Independence Police Department (IPD) recently conducted a special patrol effort to determine violators of the state’s seat-belt law. Officers volunteered to work overtime to scout for people not wearing the safety restraint. Regular IPD patrol staff conducted business as usual, while other officers looked for “telltale signs of non-compliance,” such as hanging straps, according George Lopez, a former IPD officer. “We can generally see when people are hurrying to get them on as we walk up to their vehicle, which helps confirm what we had observed before stopping the vehicle,” he said.
The INDY HOP: Historic Code is a Sign of the Times
Just when you thought code revisions at the City of Independence would reduce confusion over what is permitted, along comes … historic signage! Recently, the city’s Historic Planning Commission grappled with the code in a long and intense session, as new business owners of The Pearl on C Street, Kathryn and Jeff Tharp, sought to hang a sign at their shop. At issue: Where it would be hung, how it would be posted, the manner in which it would be viewed and the materials proposed to create it. Following close examination of a photo – showing the shape, size and appearance -- the pair won approval. Who knew controversy could ignite over an item most people read only for identification purposes, without giving it a second
thought? Well, one sign expert foresaw it, actually.
In a reference on the city website, Michael Auer, a historic preservation authority, labeled sign-evaluating tasks “a major paradox.” He served the National Park Service in that capacity. A call to Mr. Auer elicited this response: “I wouldn’t be too terribly comfortable speaking on a matter before a local review board.” However, Ed Matteo, who owns Independence Nursery and Water Gardens, seemed at ease addressing sign complications. His business displays a sign with the city name spelled wrong (see photo). “It’s been that way for years,” he said. “Only one person noticed it.” With its colors fading, he expects to get a new one in the near future “with all the right letters.”
Just when you thought code revisions at the City of Independence would reduce confusion over what is permitted, along comes … historic signage! Recently, the city’s Historic Planning Commission grappled with the code in a long and intense session, as new business owners of The Pearl on C Street, Kathryn and Jeff Tharp, sought to hang a sign at their shop. At issue: Where it would be hung, how it would be posted, the manner in which it would be viewed and the materials proposed to create it. Following close examination of a photo – showing the shape, size and appearance -- the pair won approval. Who knew controversy could ignite over an item most people read only for identification purposes, without giving it a second
thought? Well, one sign expert foresaw it, actually.
In a reference on the city website, Michael Auer, a historic preservation authority, labeled sign-evaluating tasks “a major paradox.” He served the National Park Service in that capacity. A call to Mr. Auer elicited this response: “I wouldn’t be too terribly comfortable speaking on a matter before a local review board.” However, Ed Matteo, who owns Independence Nursery and Water Gardens, seemed at ease addressing sign complications. His business displays a sign with the city name spelled wrong (see photo). “It’s been that way for years,” he said. “Only one person noticed it.” With its colors fading, he expects to get a new one in the near future “with all the right letters.”
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