Third candidate files for PV Ward 4 seat, bringing on Feb. 28 primary

With the filing deadline passed, three candidates have thrown their hats into the ring for the Ward 4 seat on the Prairie Village City Council that will be on the ballot this April, prompting a February 28 primary election.

Ward 4 includes much of the Corinth Hills subdivision, as well as the neighborhoods between 79th and 83rd Streets and Nall Avenue and Lamar Avenue.

Timothy Pickell, a private practice attorney with an office in Westwood, filed for the seat Tuesday morning, joining incumbent Dale Beckerman and challenger Brooke Morehead. Pickell made an unsuccessful attempt to the Republican nominee for Kansas Governor in 2006. (We weren’t able to connect with Pickell Tuesday night for comment on his run).

In an email message to PVPost.com Tuesday, Morehead said she was running based on her “professional business experience and the passionate concern for our city.”

She said she feels the Community Improvement District deal between LANE 4 and the city was “one-sided and short-sighted” and that she supports “the use of hard earned, tax-payer money through government oversight and accountability. If elected, I will make sure we get a fair deal.”

Morehead is an art dealer whose business, Prairiebrooke Arts, has been named a 25 Under 25 Small Business by the Kansas City Business Journal. She and her husband have two grown daughters who attended Corinth, Mission Valley and SM East.

Beckerman said his first term in office has been marked by a focus on protecting the city’s infrastructure and service while working through difficult financing challenges. Beckerman currently sits on the finance committee and is the council president.

“I’ve spent a lot of my time and attention on the financing of street improvement projects,” Beckerman said. “At 60 years old, we’ve got a lot of streetwork we need to attend to.”

Beckerman, a partner with the law firm Deacy & Deacy, was asked to run for the seat in 2008 by his predecessor, Pat Daniels.

“He asked me to think about running, and I was motivated because I really like this city — we’ve been here since ’77 — and I think it’s generally governed well and thought I could continue that,” he said. “We knew then that we were going to be facing some really challenging financial situations over the next few years. I’m not afraid to make hard decisions, so I thought I was a good fit.”