Three charged with robbing Aldi By ERIC COPELAND Managing Editor Three Liberty men have been charged with robbing the Aldi grocery store in Excelsior Springs Saturday morning. Tanner J. Standley, 17, Joshua L. Duckworth, 24, and Clint B. Brame, 25, are currently being held in the Clay County Detention Center on $250,000 bond apiece. According to a statement of probable cause filed by the Excelsior Springs Police Department, the three men went to the Aldi store, located at 1719 W. Jesse James Road, before 8 a.m. Monday, as an employee arrived to open the store. Two of the men approached her from behind, telling her not to move and to open the store. They then took several hundred dollars in currency and coins from the till, plus more than $3,000 in currency and rolled coins from the safe. The men allegedly also took the employee's cell phone and two cordless store phones, plus the store keys, then left with the money in a green trash can. A minute later, the employee reportedly called 911 using the fax phone in the store's office. Sgt. J.P. Fines of the Excelsior Springs Police Department, who responded to the robbery call with Officer John Syme, asked the dispatcher to relay the vehicle description to neighboring jurisdictions. A few minutes later, Kearney Police Officer Derrick Hager spotted and stopped the vehicle, backed up by Kearney Assistant Police Chief Barney Hatfield, Kearney Police Sgt. John Stewart and Clay County deputies. The suspects were detained and placed on an investigative hold, and recovered the trash can with cash, coins and Aldi gift certificates inside, as well as keys and various items of clothing that the employee said the men were wearing. Reportedly, the three men also stopped at the Wal-Mart store in Liberty, where they may have gotten an item that was used to make the Aldi employee believe they were armed with a gun. Duckworth said he had put his cell phone under his shirt to make it look like a gun. City picks RDG/Larkin for Master Plan contract By ERIC COPELAND Managing Editor The city's long-awaited Master Plan is still a year or so away, but at least it's one step closer. During a two-hour work session Monday afternoon, the Excelsior Springs City Council listened to presentations by the three firms who had expressed a desire to serve as consultant during the Master Plan process. Then, during their regular 6 p.m. meeting, they voted unanimously to direct City Manager David Haugland to enter into a contract with Omaha-based RDG Planning & Design and the Larkin Group. Only Councilman Ken Fousek hesitated in casting a vote for RDG/Larkin over the other two firms; he had, however, narrowed his choice down to RDG/Larkin and Shafer, Kline & Warren, one of the other two firms. Mayor Carolyn Schutte and Councilman Jim Nelson said they thought all three presentations -- Shafer, Kline & Warren, RDG/Larkin and Landplan Engineering -- were excellent, but they had their own reasons for choosing as they did. Landplan's PowerPoint presentation came first. The team from Landplan presented the longest talk, and proposed a schedule of 12 to 15 months to complete the process. As part of their presentation, they showed some of the work the group is doing for the city of Kearney. Shafer, Kline & Warren, or SKW for short, was the only one to not have a PowerPoint presentation. Still, the company has done several projects with the city and earned some points for their familiarity with Excelsior Springs. RDG and the Larkin Group was last. Larkin Group, also, has extensive experience working on projects in Excelsior Springs. Each of the three stressed a need to gather information and input from the people of Excelsior Springs, so that the Master Plan could truly reflect the community and earn the support of the residents. Questions from the council focused in on potential issues. Carolyn Schutte wondered how the different firms would deal with conflicting issues as they arose during focus groups, town hall meetings and other events. Fousek asked how the firms proposed energizing a downtown business community in what he termed a "Wal-Mart world." Fousek also asked each firm about its unique qualifications to tackle the Master Plan project. After all three presenters left and the council's regular meeting started, Mayor Pro Tem Ambrose Buckman and Councilman Sonny Parker said their minds were made up. Nelson said he was impressed with all three presentations, but was troubled that Landplan was also working with neighboring Kearney. Schutte said she felt RDG had done a better job of "selling the vision and process." Though he didn't have a vote, Haugland pointed out that he liked the way RDG's Marty Shukert described the Master Plan shelf life: a 20-year document, to be updated after 10 years, but reviewed every year. The actual contract will be approved at a later date. Woman drowns at Watkins Mill By ERIC COPELAND Managing Editor A 28-year-old Excelsior Springs woman drowned Sunday evening at the swimming beach at Watkins Mill State Park, located between Excelsior Springs, Kearney and Lawson. The body of Becky Drew was found by another swimmer shortly before 7 p.m. Bystanders and park rangers attempted to resuscitate her but were unsuccessful. She was not wearing a personal flotation device. The Missouri State Water Patrol did not indicate a specific cause for the drowning. Return to top