Crash Course
Third party: Ducking into Dick Hollander’s beautiful home (past Mr. Hollander) was similar to stepping inside a small contemporary museum. If Dick isn’t a collector, he is an amazing thief (Letters, April 17).
The initial confusion of our arrival quickly resolved to nostalgia. Many of the guests recalled crashing parties to hang out with their teachers and visiting artists. I was welcomed to grab some wine. I was under legal drinking age, and Kathleen Collins made this very clear. She asked us to leave. So my roommate and friend thanked our kind host. I said good-bye to Pam Joseph, and we left.
I still receive postcards from Ms. Joseph and send her mail. I was very happy we got to meet.
Regarding Madam Gabriella, I was sad to hear of her death. She was a credit to her species and an inspiration to terriers everywhere.
Peregrine Honig
Kansas City, Missouri
Mass Appeal
Telling the Troost: Regarding Ben Paynter’s “Troost Colors” (April 17): The people on Troost need to know about the appeal process that is available to those who are cited by Neighborhood Preservation.
I was cited four days after buying a home. One of the things I was cited for was a driveway that had been deteriorating for ten years. I tried to explain to the inspector that the driveway was a high priority — it was diverting rainfall toward the foundation of the house. He said I had thirty days. The house I had bought took twenty days of work before my wife and I could move into it. No way I would get a driveway torn out and repoured in thirty days.
I was instructed by a very nice woman at Neighborhood Preservation that I could file an appeal. I did. I appeared before a diverse group of people who listened to the inspector and to me, and the result was one year to get my seven violations taken care of. There is a lot more to this story — but the important thing is that the appeal process is available. You must file within ten days of receiving a notice, and you must be very precise and fill out everything that you wish to talk about in front of the appeals board.
As of six to eight months ago, a $50 fee was attached to this appeal — probably an attempt to keep people from filing appeals. This is the system that all of the slumlords use to avoid repairs. A responsible, up-front person will get a fair shake from the appeals board. At least I did.
Mark Esping
Kansas City, Missouri
Ball Bearings
Tough as steel: Just finished reading Kendrick Blackwood’s “It Takes Balls” (April 10), which was given to me by my brother. We both worked at Armco and GST Steel.
It is sad to hear they are tearing down the plant that I put so many hard, hot hours into, but what’s even more sad is that NAFTA has taken all the good-paying manufacturing jobs out of our country. I had to retire in April 2001, and I, too, lost part of my pension and also my medical and life insurance. GST didn’t give a damn about their employees; their bottom line was production at any cost — one of the things that caused them to go under. I’m now working as a 911 dispatcher making $7 an hour with no benefits.
I put in applications at Harley Davidson for a machinist job and passed all their tests; I was told they would get in touch with me in a week or so. That was in November 2001. I know I wasn’t hired because of my age, but how do you prove that? I’m 55 years old, was looking forward to retirement and could have made it if GST hadn’t put the screws to me by dropping my insurance and retirement.
Bankruptcy is a very easy way for companies to screw their loyal employees. I worked many overtime hours in that Kansas City plant, and I will have to drive by the place and take one last look at it. I wish the new owners the best; I would like to see manufacturing make a comeback if we are going to preserve our way of life .
Dan Misel
Cowgill, Missouri
Blast reunion: Kendrick Blackwood’s article sure brings back memories for those of us who grew up in Northeast.
When you were in high school, you realized that a large majority of your classmates’ fathers worked there or indirectly for the steel mills and that many of your class would end up there. The ones who did directly out of high school had more money than the rest of us who went to college for quite a while — the salaries were high. The demise of Armco/Sheffield, etc., over the years changed the flavor of Northeast in many ways.
I miss the old Northeast, the community where you could leave your door unlocked, expect the police to bring home your drunk kid with a lecture, and the neighborhood that cared about its appearance. But like the 5-cent candy bar and the 78 record, all things have a life. Congrats to our steel guys for bringing back something that was essential to our community: jobs and money.
Dean Hughson (NE High Class of ’69)
Fountain Hills, Arizona
