The Board of Aldermen held a regular meeting on Tuesday night September 15, 2015 at 7:00 PM. Those present included Mayor Greg Richmond, Alderpersons Calvin Wilson, Alice Kezar, Keith Kohley and Roger Coe. Also present were City Supervisor David Brodie, Tax Collector Meghan Sexson, Emergency Management Director Denis Kolb, Police Chief Curt Drake, Officer Adam Miller and City Clerk Paula Brodie. Also present were Lois Kolb, Kevin Condreay, Carol Coe and Rita Greene from the McDonald County Press.
The Mayor called the meeting to order at 7:00PM.
The Board discussed the minutes from the regular meeting on September 1, 2015. Ald. Wilson moved to approve the minutes from the meetings on September 1, 2015. Ald. Kezar seconded. Ald. Kohley, Wilson and Coe voted aye with Ald. Kezar abstaining because she was not present at the meeting on September 1, 2015.
The Mayor asked if there were any Citizens present who had a comment: He acknowledged Kevin Condreay who stated that he was present to ask the Board to average his water/sewer bill as he had a leak in his toilet, and has since fixed it. Ald. Kezar moved to average his water/sewer bill. Ald. Coe seconded. Ald. Kohley, Kezar, Wilson and Coe voted aye with 0 nays.
The Board discussed the following old business:
- The Board discussed the Lester Kramburg Properties. The Mayor noted that the Board had given Mr. Kramburg 90 days on June 16, 2015 to see what he could get accomplished with the house; the two trailers; the high grass and the weeds. The Board noted that they had been working with the Kramburg family for two years and not much has been done. Ald. Wilson stated that he had been inside one of the trailers and that he believed it would take a lot to repair it and he did not think that it would be worth fixing. Ald. Wilson stated he felt it was time to tell them that they need to remove both trailers or to start condemnation procedures on both trailers. David Brodie stated in the past the Board had asked the Fire Chief to go with them to inspect buildings that they thought might need to be condemned. Ald. Wilson moved to have David contact Fire Chief Keith Estes and see if he would go with David to inspect the trailers to see about whether or not they needed to be condemned. Ald. Kohley seconded. Ald. Kohley, Kezar, Wilson and Coe voted aye with 0 nays.
Ald. Wilson asked about what was happening to the Brewington house. He was told JR Fisher had purchased the Brewington house and that he had made marked improvement on the clean-up of the property. The Mayor asked about the Procter Trailer and the Carey property. The Clerk noted that the Procter property was in probate and the Carey property had been moved out of and she assumed their bank was trying to get ownership of the house. In the meantime the City employees have been mowing both properties and the charge for the mowing was added as a lien on the property taxes.
2. The Board discussed the purchase of a new patrol car. Ald. Kohley informed the Board that the Dodge Charger that he had brought to the last Board Meeting for them to look at had been sold by the Smith Auto Group, so it was no longer available. Ald. Kohley noted that the Board could order a Dodge Charger under the State Contract from Fletcher Dodge in Joplin for $24,905.00. The cost was $3,000.00 more than the one from Smith Auto Group but would be a 2016 Dodge Charger. He noted that the car would have to be ordered and it would take up to 120 days to get it. Chief Drake noted that the Board could order whatever color they wanted to. Ald. Kohley stated that the Car would have the Police package in it. The Mayor suggested since the Dodge Charger that they had looked at was sold, there was no hurry to purchase a new one and he suggested discussing it during the budget sessions. Ald. Kohley noted that he and Curt had visited with the Clerk about the financial standings of the City. The Clerk told the Board that this time she had included with their packets a breakdown on the bill sheets of how much the city revenues were this year minus expenditures and balances of all the accounts so that they would all be aware of the financial welfare of the city. She also noted that she had included the cash bank balances, restricted account balances and Certificates of Deposit amounts. She noted that though the accounts were all in the black, the balances were not a lot. She also noted that there was money in each bank balance that had been accumulated from past years. She stated that the amounts carried over from year to year have dwindled but all of the accounts were still in the black. Chief Drake stated that the price Fletcher Dodge quoted would only be good until December 31st 2015 and under the State contract it would need to be ordered prior to the 31st. Ald. Wilson noted that for a new light bar and installation they would need to spend about $2500.00 above the price of the car. Ald. Wilson moved to purchase a 2016 Dodge Charge from Fletcher Auto. Ald. Kohley seconded. Ald. Coe, Kohley, Kezar and Wilson voted aye with 0 nays. The Board decided to keep the Ford Expedition and place the Crown Vic out for bid. They also agreed to order the car in the same color of gray to match the Dodge Patrol Truck.
The Board discussed the following new business:
1. The Mayor noted that the Hunte Corporation had turned in an application for a Kennel License to have a pet rescue and adoption center. The name of the Kennel will be Shake a Paw Center for Rescue and Adoption. Ald. Wilson moved to allow Ryan Boyle, from the Hunte Corporation to purchase the kennel license. Ald. Coe seconded. Ald. Coe, Kohley, Kezar and Wilson voted aye with 0 nays.
The Department heads gave the following reports:
Curt Drake- told the Board he had an individual that he would like to interview for a reserve position. He stated that his name was John Wynn, that he had worked with him in the past and that he felt that he would work well with him and Adam. He asked the Board if it would be OK for the Mayor to sit in the interview and then if he and the Mayor agreed to hire Mr. Wynn could they go ahead and do so. The Board agreed to let the Mayor and Curt decide whether or not to hire him as a reserve.
Denis Kolb- had nothing to report.
David Brodie- noted when he came to work this morning the chlorinator at the well on Barlow Street was not working and the pump at the School Street Well had stopped working. He noted that they had gotten the chlorinator working but he had to call Reavis the pump people at Crane to come over and look at the well on School St. He said they ended up pulling the pump and motor and believe that the motor was struck by lightning. He said they ordered a new motor and that it should be in tomorrow afternoon.
He said that he had asked Hunte to cut down their water use as much as possible because the pump at the City Hall did not pump as much water as the School Street well.
– asked the Board to consider how the mowing is going to be maintained at the ballpark. He stated that it takes him and David Sarratt two afternoons a week to mow but does not include any weed eating. He said that he had hoped to not mow but every two or three weeks during the fall but now because of the league using the fields one night a week they were going to have to keep it mowed more often. He wanted the Board to know that they have many other jobs that need to be done, things like fixing pot holes, brush cutting, replacing street signs and various other things. He asked the Board to consider looking into what could be budgeted to hire someone to mow. The Board agreed to discuss the situation during the budget sessions.
– he noted that Ald. Wilson had asked him about getting some tires for the 1996 Ford Truck. He said that Goodman Gas and Service had given him prices for 4 different tires, but he would recommend the ones for $139.00. The Board agreed to have him buy two tires.
Paula Brodie – noted the employee bar-b-que date has been changed to Sept 27, 2015 at 2:00PM
The Board discussed the bills including transfers in the amount of $30,900.68. Ald. Wilson asked about the bill from C-Mart and Ald. Kohley asked about what was wrong with the dump truck. Officer Miller stated that sometimes he had to get his car filled up after the Mini Mart was closed so he would go to C-Mart to get the car filled and David explained what repairs were done on the dump truck. Ald. Kezar moved to approve the bills including transfers in the amount of $30,900.68. Ald. Coe seconded. Ald. Kohley, Kezar, Coe and Wilson voted aye with 0 nays.
Ald. Kohley moved to adjourn. Ald. Wilson seconded. Ald. Coe, Kohley, Kezar and Wilson voted aye with 0 nays.