Willow Springs City Council met in regular session Thursday, May 20. Among the business conducted in the meeting, the board of alderman appointed Vance Farmer to the position of Willow Springs Fire Chief.
Below is the minutes from the monthly meeting:
Present: Mayor Brooke Fair, Alderman Danny Bradley, Alderman Susan Rackley, Alderman Troy Yonker, Alderman Phill Knott, City Attorney Zane Privette, City Administrator Beverly Hicks, City Clerk Heather Duddridge, Deputy City Clerk Gena Brook, City Marshal Bryan Hogan.
Guest: Joe Wagner, Pat Bryan, Tom Pringle, Frank Vanhorn, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Owings, James Crawford.
ANNOUNCEMENT OF QUORUM
Announcement of Quorum: City Clerk Heather Duddridge called the roll.
Mayor Fair opened the meeting of the Board of Alderman at 5:02 pm with a quorum present
AGENDA APPROVAL
Motion by Alderman Yonker, second by Alderman Rackley to approve the agenda. Motion carried 4-0.
CONSENT AGENDA
Motion by Alderman Yonker, second by Alderman Bradley to approve the Consent Agenda which included Approval of Minutes – (RM 4/15), Approval of Bills for Payment, Receipt of Financial Reports, and YMCA, Department Head’s & Board’s Reports. Motion carried 4-0.
VISITORS
Susan Swift – RV Park: Realtor Tom Pringle was present and is the listing agent for the former KOA Campground, who informed council that the property had been on the market for 20 years. Seller Pat Bryan was also present. The potential buyer Susan Swift was present by telephone during a short portion of the discussion. Swift’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Owings, were present.
Pringle informed council that Swift and Bryan have signed a contract for sale contingent on the decision of Council to amend the ordinance regarding the 10-day stay restriction.
Pringle and Owings also talked about Swift’s short and long-term goals, and the vision she has for the property, including music in the park, tent camping sites, and RV camping sites. However, they also informed council that Swift would not move forward with the purchase if the restriction was not amended or removed from the ordinance.
Council expressed concerns about the current 10-day restriction written in the ordinance, but also felt that some restrictions need to remain in order to prevent an individual setting up one RV for a permanent residence on a B-2 Commercial zoned property.
City Administrator Beverly Hicks provided information from her research of other city ordinances and suggested a permit to allow long-term stays, such as those who travel for work purposes. City Attorney Zane Privette agreed that a permit would both satisfy City Ordinances and the private owner of the property.
Council unanimously agreed for Privette, Hicks, and Swift to work together on an agreement to amend the ordinance that would work for both parties and present in the form of an ordinance amendment in the June meeting.
EXISTING BUSINESS
MoDOT Building Update: City Administrator Beverly Hicks informed Council that the City’s lease expires in March 2022 and shared some concerns about the future of these buildings. Hicks informed Council that the upkeep and maintenance has increased.
Hicks also stated that the Willow Springs School District requested a feasibility study to see if the school would benefit from using the buildings as a vocational education facility and she expects to have more information at the August meeting.
Pool Repair Update: City Administrator Beverly Hicks brought an update to council regarding the repairs and final week of preparation to open. All repairs have been made, including those that were unexpected. It was recently discovered that the pool pump installed years prior was not the proper size and the water park will not prime. However, the parts have arrived to remedy both situations and Brad Grogan has been working diligently to complete the project. Lifeguard training is being conducted in Houston until our water issues have been fixed. Both Hicks and Deputy City Clerk Gena Brook have assured Council that the pool will be open as soon as possible.
Hicks stated that the City has expended $167,332.50 to date, which has exceeded the original budgeted amount. She requested the amount of $72,332.50 to be transferred from the pool reserves to the General Fund to cover those extra expenditures in repairing the pool properly.
Motion by Alderman Yonker, second by Alderman Knott to transfer the amount of $72,332.50 from pool reserves to the General Fund. Motion carried 4-0.
February Cold Weather Event Update: City Administrator Beverly Hicks informed Council that the Missouri General Assembly approved a $50 Million relief fund for municipal utilities. The Department of Natural Resources is providing an interest-free loan with a payback period of five years. Hicks believes this is a better option for both utility customers and the City to cover the $740,000.00 energy bill due to the bitter cold temperatures between February 10, 2021 and February 20, 2021.
Hicks informed Council that the City’s portion has already been secured, but she needs an official decision from Council to move forward.
Motion by Alderman Knott, second by Alderman Yonker to move forward with the interest free loan program approved by the General Assembly to aid municipal utilities with wholesale electric costs incurred during the February 2021 cold weather event. Motion carried 4-0.
NEW BUSINESS
Water Department Equipment and Backhoe Discussion: Water/Sewer Department Supervisor Joe Wagner was present for the meeting and informed Council of the current issues with the department’s two backhoes. Wagner stated that both pieces of equipment are becoming more costly to repair. The Super M backhoe needs a new transmission with an estimated cost of $7,300.00 and a valve body with an estimated cost of $3,600.00. The Super L backhoe needs a new transmission with an estimated cost of $6,000.00. Wagner also stated that both backhoes need new hydraulic pumps with an estimated cost of $1,000.00 each. None of these estimates include labor fees. Any of the necessary repairs would require transport to Springfield and being down for several weeks, which could be a potential issue in the event of an emergency repair to the City’s utility system.
Council members inquired of the benefits of buying vs. leasing. Wagner stated that the Super M backhoe has a potential trade-in value of $15,000.00 to $17,500.00. However, he also stated that neither piece of equipment was worth trade-in.
Council also asked if the funding was available. However, they suggested going out for bid to see what options are available.
Motion by Alderman Rackley, second by Alderman Knott to proceed with the bid process for a backhoe. Motion carried 4-0.
Fire Chief Appointment: Alderman Troy Yonker informed the Mayor that the interview committee met on May 6 and conducted interviews of two applicants. The committee made a unanimous decision to recommend Vance Farmer for the position of Fire Chief.
Mayor Brooke Fair accepted the recommendation and asked for a motion to appoint Vance Farmer as Fire Chief for the Willow Springs Fire Department.
Motion by Alderman Yonker, second by Alderman Knott to appoint Vance Famer as Fire Chief for the Willow Springs Fire Department. Motion carried 4-0.
Dollar General Liquor License Application: City Clerk Heather Duddridge informed Council of Dollar General’s application to sell liquor in original package, including Sunday sales, and stated that Family Dollar has expressed interest in filing one as well.
Duddridge provided Council with a copy of the City’s ordinance limiting the number of original package retailers to one license per every 500 residents, which leaves the City with four available licenses that are already taken. However, State Statutes do not provide a limitation on the number of retailers. Duddridge also informed Council that the current ordinance limits the distance between liquor retailers from schools, churches, or places of worship to 300 feet. State Statutes have a minimum of 100 feet.
Duddridge and City Administrator Beverly Hicks stated that most cities mirror the State Statutes on both issues. Council agreed to amend the ordinance to mirror the State Statute, which will be read at the June meeting.
Motion by Alderman Yonker, second by Alderman Knott to move forward with amending the liquor license ordinance to be read in June. Motion carried 4-0.
Show-Me Courts Implementation: City Clerk Heather Duddridge provided Council with a copy of the Show-Me Courts (SMC) Municipal Implementation Manual as provided by the Office of State Courts Administrator (OSCA).
Duddridge informed Council that the purpose of OSCA implementing SMC was a direct result of issues within the St Louis area and Senate Bill 5. Duddridge stated that SMC was designed to move the Courts to a paperless system, allow the municipal divisions to be included in the statewide system, and give OSCA more oversight over all Missouri courts. While this has been an implementation process for the last two years, OSCA is requiring Willow Springs Municipal Court to go live on SMC by August 1, 2021.
Along with the implementation, OSCA has requested a separate bank account for municipal court, equipment upgrades, and an updated ordinance adding a $7.00 court automation fee, which is paid directly to the Missouri Department of Revenue. City Attorney Zane Privette also suggested adding a $4.00 non-negotiable payments fee to each case due to OSCA’s requirement that the courts accept all forms of payment. Duddridge states that while court costs are currently $29.50, the added fees would bring court costs to $40.50 for each case that has a guilty plea or conviction.
City Administrator Beverly Hicks expressed some of her frustrations with the process, including the accounting issues, budgeting, and other SMC implementation requirements. Hicks also stated that while the City can opt out of SMC implementation, all tickets written inside city limits would be sent to Howell County for prosecution, which would put a heavier load on the County Courts and slow the process down. Other concerns expressed by Hicks and Council would be safety and security inside city limits if the Municipal Court became obsolete.
Duddridge also informed Council that part of the SMC implementation includes the collection process and interception of tax refunds to collect unpaid court fines and costs. Duddridge said that there are contracts required between the City and OSCA, the State of Missouri, and a collection agency.
Council unanimously agreed that there does not appear to be any option and would move forward with the reading of resolutions and an amended ordinance at the June meeting.
Flood Insurance Rate Map update: City Administrator Beverly Hicks informed Council that engineers conduct studies regarding the floodplain, which would require property owners to obtain flood insurance if they were in the flood zone. The last update the City received was in 2011 and the most recent revision was April 7, 2021. There are still studies being conducted in our area and more revisions may come in the next couple of years. The purpose of amending the ordinance is a formality to show that the City acknowledges the recent most recent revisions to the Flood Insurance Study.
