City Council

Page 423 CITY OF CARUTHERSVILLE January 6, 2020 Be it remembered the Council of the City of Caruthersville met in regular session Monday, January 6, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. in the Council room of the Municipal Building at which time and place the following were present: Sue Grantham Mayor Takella Motton City Clerk Lawrence Dorroh City Counselor Tony Jones Sergeant at Arms Bullington Councilperson Lyons Councilperson Cheek Councilperson Grable (Absent) Councilperson Hood Councilperson Reeves (Absent) Councilperson Rodgers Councilperson Duckworth Councilperson The number of members necessary to consider a quorum being present, the Mayor called the meeting to order and announced the meeting was in session for the transaction of business. The first order of business was the approval of the regular session minutes of December 16, 2019. Councilperson Cheeks motion for approval, second by Councilperson Hood with all in favor. Councilperson Hood motion for approval of reports and bills, second by Councilperson Lyons with all in favor. Mayor Grantham entertained a motion to change the meeting date from January 20, 2020 to January 21, 2020 in observance of Martin Luther King Day. Councilperson Duckworth made the motion, second by Councilperson Rodgers with all in favor. Mayor Grantham reported that the audit had been received from Smith & Davis CPAs, and that there were a few things cited such as the Water department and Collector department needing separation of duties, but the City cannot afford the accounting measures that it would take to accomplish those kind of guidelines, but the checks and balances that can take place will be executed. The closing of the accounts not affiliated with the City’s EIN need to be closed, and department heads need to be more forthcoming with providing receipts for credit card accounts. Police report; Chief Tony Jones reported that the department had received movies from the Highway Patrol and anyone is welcome to check out and view the movies. Karol Wilcox reported that they were still one man down, and looks forward to the return of the Humane Officer. The Shelter is looking at taking in approximately 15 dogs this week, two being in a  Page 424 vacant house in the basement. The shelter passed their annual inspection, and is awaiting inspection from the Department of Agriculture. The Stonewall dog problem has been taken care of, contact has been made with the owner for the dog problem on East 19th St., and measures will be taken if the problem persists. Fire report; Fire calls from December 17, 2019 through January 6, 2020 are as follows: 12/17; Structure fire on County Rd 548 in Steele, MO, a total loss, 12/17; Malfunctioning of a heating unit causing a smoke odor on Westwood, 12/24; Mutual aid to Kennett, MO to a structure fire a total loss, 12/25; Grass fire out of control on Route U, 12/27; Three vehicles on fire on N. Locust in Steele, MO, 12/30; Tractor trailer on fire on I55, extinguished upon arrival, 1/5; Electrical short in wall with minor damage on Carleton. There were 146 fire calls this year compared to 140 last year. Public Works; Paul Shaw reported that the crew is working on taking Christmas down, and he got in touch with Entegrity to replace bulbs in front of the Public Safety building. The Arts Council thanks everyone that was involved in making the City holiday ready. Code Enforcement; Barry Gilmore reported that he was working on the details of the clean up on Saturday, January 11, 2020 which will commence at City Hall at 9:00 a.m. weather permitting. There will be 3 categories consisting of mattresses, tires, and general debris. The next thing Mr. Gilmore wants to tackle will be the junk cars that are on county properties that can be dealt with, and a list is being compiled of tear downs within the City. Park & Recreation; Don Grable reported to the Mayor that parts are being ordered to fix the pool, which should be in approximately 2 weeks. Library report; Teresa Tidwell reported that there’s an event in January, Meet the Local Author; all the authors in the surrounding communities are welcomed to come and set up a table. The carpet is being ready to be laid, and they may have to rope off certain areas. Economic report; Jana Merideth reported that the follow up meeting for BLP will be Thursday January 9, 2020 at the Public Library. The focus group will be meeting from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. There a 4 groups that will have a chairman and secretary that will be meeting from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Each committee will meet monthly, and each chair will report quarterly to the local leadership team. The Parkway Commission is being funded through MODOT. Everything that Caruthersville spearheads will be promoted through the Commission. The Economic Development grant for an Economic Developer is highly competitive and Ms. Merideth proposes that the City acquire A2H expertise in grant writing. The next Action Team Economic Development meeting is Tuesday, January 28, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. On March 10, 2020 the University Extension will have a meeting from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., Count Me in Census, at the Library. Business from the Floor; Charles Cain inquired of the sinkhole on 13th and Ward. Mayor Grantham stated that it would be part of the bigger projects, and FEMA advised to do smaller projects first to get the ball rolling in being able to fund smaller projects within a matter of a week or so. With no further business to come before the Council, Councilperson Hood motion to go into closed session for the purpose of personnel and legal matters Councilperson Lyons second the motion Page 425 which resulted in the following vote: Bullington Yes Lyons Yes Cheek Yes Hood Yes Rodgers Yes Duckworth Yes Upon returning from closed session there was discussion of the Council meeting with the Park Board and making them aware of the financial status with the Recreation Center and what needs to take place on the bookkeeping side of the business. Counselor Dorroh stated that if a quorum would be meeting with the Park Board the meeting would need to be posted on the board in City Hall. With no further business to be discussed Councilperson Lyons motion to adjourn, second by Councilperson Hood with all in favor. ATTEST: ________________________________ Mayor ________________________________ City Clerk