Monthly Archives: October 2013

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Gov. Jay Nixon today issued the following statement on the release of the Tax Foundation’s 2014 State Business Tax Climate Index, which found that Missouri has the 7th most favorable corporate tax structure in the nation.  The Tax Foundation ranked Missouri’s overall business tax climate as 16th in the nation, better than all but one of Missouri’s eight neighboring states. “This independent report reaffirms Missouri’s status as a low-tax state with a stable and competitive climate for businesses to grow and invest,” Gov. Nixon said. “As Governor, I have worked to enhance our nationally-recognized business climate by cutting taxes in targeted, fiscally responsible ways and by making strategic investments in education and workforce training.  Today, it is clear that these proven, fiscally responsible strategies are paying off for Missouri families and businesses.  I look forward to continuing to work with legislators on common sense policies that will keep Missouri’s economy moving forward.” A link to the report is available here.   http://taxfoundation.org/article/2014-state-business-tax-climate-index

By Torleif Sorenson on 10/8/13 – See more at: www.oobgolf.com/content/fore+play/making+tracks/1-7298-Tom_Watson_To_Design_Kids_Course_in_NW_Missouri.html#sthash.dRiUsblr.dpuf  Maryville, Missouri is a town of about 12,000 residents roughly two hours northeast of the Kansas City area and is home to Northwest Missouri State University. Some hoidy-toidy big city-types will probably never go there. Eight-time major champion Tom Watson has — and for good reason. Last week, the Kansas City native and his chief golf course architect Bob Gibbons were surveying some rolling prairie next to Maryville’s Mozingo Lake Golf Course, plotting land for a kid-friendly, 9-hole golf course. In making this track, Watson, Gibbons, and a local dentist named Bruce Twaddle want no heroic, U.S. Open-style holes. Watson explained the concept to St. Joseph News-Press reporter Bryce Mereness: “This course is designed for beginners, for kids or anybody, really, to play the game where you aren’t forced to play 400-yard par-4s or 500-yard par-5s, or 180-yard par-3s — things that are manageable for beginning golfers. “That’s the whole idea for this, to make it fun for them and not too long, where they can hit a shot and get rewarded for it.” Twaddle was in Scotland in 2011 on a golf vacation when a local caddie pointed to a short, kid-friendly layout (usually known over there as an “academy course”) — and a humorous sign that made Twaddle do a double-take when he saw it: “They had a sign there that said, ‘No adults allowed unless under the direct supervision of a child.’ That’s when the light went off [sic]. Everyone I related that story to, it made sense. “It’s an easy sell because we have the land, we have the resources to do this, and we have the people in the community who believe in young children and want to help develop them.” Twaddle was born and raised in Maryville, earned his D.D.S. at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and moved back home to practice dentistry. Twaddle has been spearheading the fundraising, which has brought in $25,000 thus far, with additional commitments of $100,000. The estimated final cost is around $550,000. And if things go as some people hope, some of those kids using this 9-hole academy layout may eventually play NCAA Division II golf next door at Mozingo Lake for the local university. Currently, there is only a Northwest Missouri State Bearcats women’s golf team. When the course is complete and opened in 2015 (as anticipated), this writer may just have to detour off Interstate 35 just to visit this course and see how it turned out! Contributions to the fundraising are being handled by the Nodaway County Economic Development Corporation, a 501(C)(3) non-profit organization. If you wish to pitch in with a contribution of your own, you can send a check to: Nodaway County Economic Development PO Box 456 Maryville MO 64468-0456 Contributors sending a check should write “Mozingo Lake Junior Golf Course” in the memo line, so that contributions get routed to the correct account. – See more at: http://www.oobgolf.com/content/fore+play/making+tracks/1-7298-Tom_Watson_To_Design_Kids_Course_in_NW_Missouri.html#sthash.dRiUsblr.dpuf  

Maryville Daily Forum By Staff Report Posted Oct. 4, 2013 @ 7:52 am A group of local golf enthusiasts seeking to create a nine-hole youth course at Mozingo Lake Recreation Park have received a big vote of confidence from one of the game’s all-time masters — Tom Watson. A native of the Kansas City area, where he still lives, Watson ranked as one of the best players in the world during the 1970s and ’80s, winning eight major championships and heading the PGA Tour money list five times. The fairway legend visited city-owned Mozingo Lake Golf Course this week to walk the site of the proposed youth course, which his company has been asked to design. If built, the course would occupy roughly 30 acres of open ground northeast of the Mozingo Lake Golf Course clubhouse. Dr. Bruce Twaddle, a Maryville dentist who is leading efforts to establish the youth course, said the extent of involvement by Tom Watson Design has yet to be determined, but that Watson himself left Maryville impressed. “To provide a place for young people from all around the surrounding community here to come learn the game and have fun at it, that’s a tribute to Bruce Twaddle and the people of Maryville to make this happen,” Watson said in an exclusive interview taped during his visit. “Great ideas start with a lot of people scratching their heads. ‘Well that’s a good idea, but how can we make it work?’ Well, right now, I think the train is starting to roll pretty fast. Jump on board because it’s going to work.” The effort to create a youth course at Mozingo began several months ago after Twaddle and others began discussions with The First Tee, a “youth development organization” that seeks to put golf clubs into the hands of children and teenagers. Twaddle said Thursday those talks have reached the point where The First Tee’s Kansas City chapter is expected to endorse the Mozingo initiative. The central issue now, he said, is money. Cost of building a youth course at Mozingo and creating a sustainable youth golf program to serve the Maryville region is estimated at $550,000 said Twaddle, who added that a not-yet-named foundation has agreed to donate $25,000 outright and to provide an additional $75,000 match providing the same amount of cash can be raised locally. So the immediate goal, Twaddle said, is to have $175,000 in hand for the youth course before the end of the year. He said Watson’s warm endorsement should serve as a major boost as the fund drive continues at both the individual and corporate levels. During the Maryville interview, Watson said he was impressed both by Mozingo’s physical attributes and the community’s commitment to expanding opportunities for young people. “It’s great to have a nice piece of land, such as this land right here at Mozingo Lake,” Watson said. “It has the rolls to it, it has natural holes set up where you don’t have to do much moving of the earth to make a golf course here. “… (But) the defining factor is the people behind the project to make it work. This community has gravitated toward this project. The way the people are looking at this project it’s very important for this community, and they’re going to get it done. “That’s the most important factor of a project like this. It’s not the lay of the land, it’s not the golf course, it’s the people behind it who will then be the coaches for the kids to get these kids started at the game.”