The Walmart store on North Kansas Expressway is among a handful of locations nationally that will undergo a complete remodel this summer. Renovations at the 2825 N. Kansas Expressway store are under way and should be finished in July, according to the retailer. In the next five years, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. plans to roll out the new look at 80 percent of its existing stores. In Springfield, each department of the store is being updated with new shelving, signage, flooring and product assortment, according to the news release. Overall, the store will appear brighter and more open, with wider aisles, low-profile shelving, a bright interior paint scheme, improved lighting and easier-to-read signs. Also, products that customers purchase the most will be grouped together. Wal-Mart said the remodel is based on customer feedback. Maps of the store's layout are available at the entrance and directional signs are located throughout the store. The Springfield store has hired about 50 temporary workers to help with the remodel.
Pension Board Shakeup
Four city of Springfield managers have temporarily abstained from the Springfield Police Officers and Firefighters Retirement System Board of Trustees because of possible conflicts of interest. Deputy City Manager Evelyn Honea, City Attorney Dan Wichmer, Human Resources Director Sheila Maerz and Finance Director Mary Mannix Decker will abstain from participating in pension board meetings and voting on any matters, the city said last week.
St. Louis attorney Dan Tobben raised the conflict-of-interest issue at the May 6 meeting of the Police-Fire Pension Fund Citizens Task Force, which is working to help the city find a solution to the pension fund's $190 million shortfall. Tobben represents the Springfield Police Officers Association and Firefighters Local 152; he said he believed Wichmer had a conflict serving on the board while also representing the city in legal matters that involve the board. Wichmer then said other city staff members could have conflicts serving on the board. City Manager Greg Burris opted to temporarily remove them until the citizen task force makes recommendations about board membership. Other city employees, who represent Police and Fire employees, remain on the board, and Burris has suggested an independent legal opinion will determine any conflict-of-interest issues there. In the interim, Burris has named Ken Homan to replace Honea as board president. Homan is a citizen representative on the board and is a senior vice president and senior portfolio manager for Springfield Trust Co., according to the city's Web site.
MoDOT and Minorities
A new division created by the Missouri Department of Transportation is charged with helping a specific group of businesses get involved with state construction jobs. Named External Civil Rights, the division serves minority-owned, women-owned and disadvantaged businesses and oversees MoDOT's affirmative action, equal opportunity and nondiscrimination programs. Those programs previously were housed within another MoDOT division, but the change will expand outreach and partnership programs. Learn more at www.modot.org/ecr.[[In-content Ad]]
