The Garden City Telegram
Email this story | Add Your Comment
| Read (0) Comments
Group moving forward with Clutter memorial
Published 7/9/2009 in Local News
By STEPHANIE FARLEY
HOLCOMB — As Bob Rupp, a member of the Clutter Memorial Committee, came before the Holcomb City Council Wednesday night, he didn't explain to them what kind of man he feels Herb Clutter was.
Click to Purchase Photo Reprints!
Laurie Sisk/Telegram - The Clutter Memorial sits Wednesday morning ready to be unveiled in Holcomb Community Park.
Instead, Rupp let the council read for themselves about Clutter's contributions to the Holcomb and Finney County communities before Clutter, his wife, Bonnie, and their children Nancy, 16, and Kenyon, 15, were murdered at their home on Nov. 15, 1959.
Rupp attended Wednesday's meeting after some members of the council expressed concern in June over the proposed location of the Clutter family memorial in Holcomb Community Park. The concern included Councilman Lary Cole wondering if there was a more prominent site in the park for the memorial than the northwestern area by the picnic tables. Councilman Gary Newman also said during the June 24 meeting he felt someone from the committee should have made a formal request for the memorial and any help or other requests of the city for the memorial.
Rupp apologized to the council at the start of Wednesday's meeting for not occasionally attending the council meetings to give updates on the project.
Mayor Jamie Jarnagin told Rupp he thought everything was all right now, that the council is on the same page with the committee and project. The council in June approved 3-2, with Newman and Cole opposing, the proposed location of the memorial.
Rupp passed out copies of a publication with an article about Clutter, telling council members he didn't feel any of them knew what the Clutter family was to Holcomb. And Rupp hoped reading the article might give the council a better idea of who Herb Clutter was and why Rupp and other committee members want a memorial to the Clutter family to occur.
Rupp reiterated Herb Clutter had done many great things during his life as the council read the story, which spoke of Herb Clutters's contributions, including working with 4-H, a member of the Methodist church and being instrumental in the legislative process that created the Kansas Wheat Commission.
"So now, I'd like to make some requests," Rupp said after the council had finished reading.
"I assume on location ... everything's finalized," Rupp asked of the council being OK with where the memorial will be constructed.
"I think we're OK on everything," Jarnagin told him, adding that Rupp could stake out where the memorial will be.
Rupp also asked for the city's OK on installation of an electrical outlet near the memorial, as well as electricity and a light for the monument. He also spoke about the committee's landscape plans for the monument, including planting perennials and installing a drip irrigation system that will connect into the city's watering system for the park.
Rupp said he'd like to see the name "Holcomb Community Park" remain the same for the area but asked if the park could be dedicated to the Clutter family and memorial.
Holcomb City Attorney Bill Heydman said the city could pass a resolution recognizing the dedication. Newman said it would be nice for Councilman Greg Cox, who served as liaison between the committee and council, to read the resolution during the memorial dedication planned Sept. 12, ahead of the 50th anniversary of the killings in November.
The council OK'd all of Rupp's requests, with Jarnagin also giving the go-ahead to city staff to relocate the swing set away from the memorial in the park.
"It's gonna happen. It's going to be great," Rupp said of the planned dedication and memorial.
In other business, Jarnagin announced he plans to leave the council sometime in August and hand over the position of mayor to Cole. Jarnagin is moving outside the city, which prevents him from being able to continue serving as mayor. Jarnagin said he'll let Cole oversee the budgeting process.
The council set a budget workshop for 7 p.m. July 14.
With Cole becoming mayor, a vacant council spot will open up, requiring the council to seek applicants. Cole will look through the applicants and recommend an individual, who then must be approved by the council.
Found 0 comment(s)!
Twitter Updates
