Board of Aldermen

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR BOARD OF ALDERMEN MEETING OF MONDAY, JULY 19, 2021 BY VIDEO CONFERENCING ON ZOOM AT 200 HIGHLANDS BOULEVARD DRIVE CALL TO ORDER Mayor Mike Clement called the Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL AND STATEMENT OF QUORUM Roll call showed those present were Alderman Nolte, Alderman Hudson, Alderman Ottenad, Alderman Huether, Alderman Baumann, Alderman Toben, and Mayor Clement. A quorum was present. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES July 6, 2021 Board of Aldermen Regular Meeting Alderman Ottenad made the motion to approve the minutes of the Tuesday, July 6, 2021 Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting. The motion was seconded by Alderman Baumann and carried unanimously, with no objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. ESTABLISHMENT OF ORDER OF ITEMS ON THE AGENDA Alderman Ottenad made the motion to approve the Order of Items on the Agenda, as submitted. The motion was seconded by Alderman Baumann and carried unanimously, with no objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. CONSIDERATION OF PETITIONS Correspondence from Karen Markowski, 587 Arblay Place “John and I live at 587 Arblay Place in Manchester. We are beekeepers and have been for several years. Our Bee Mentor is a very close friend of ours who’s been beekeeping for over 17 years and introduced us to beekeeping organizations to learn more about saving honeybees. John and I are active members of two beekeeping organizations. John & I want to address a few comments that were made in the Board Meeting on June 21st. We want to correctly inform you and others listening, so that we can clear up misinformation you were given and give you a little better knowledge on honeybees and beekeeping. 1) It was stated that a beekeepers should receive extensive training from accredited beekeeping associations. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 1 Just so you know, beekeepers have to have much knowledge, plus constantly maintaining their hives and making sure feeding water bottles inside their hives are full, to help their honeybees survive. John & I, as well as many beekeepers we know, are active members of different organizations, such as: St. Louis Beekeepers Association, Three Rivers, Jefferson County, Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Associations, just to mention a few. We attend meetings regularly & have been for years, to learn from each other and our Bee Mentors, as well as share our own beekeeping experiences. Everyone also benefits from guest speakers these organizations bring to our meetings, to give us valuable beekeeping information. 2) It was also mentioned that a hive could have 20-100 pounds of honey and that beekeepers have to have a home business to sell their honey. First of all, John & I grow cucumbers, and we can harvest over 100 cucumbers a year. We can’t eat that many cucumbers ourselves. But this doesn’t mean we have to have a home business selling cucumbers. We keep honeybees to ensure their survival and help with pollination. Having honeybees around to pollinate flowers and gardens, as well as the health benefits of local raw honey, could certainly increase property value. Just so you know, a beehive may produce any amount of honey, including zero pounds, as John and I have also unfortunately experienced a couple years ago. Plus, just this past month in June, three of our four hives had to start all over again. It is very important to keep over 80 pounds of honey in a hive to be sure your bees have food to survive, especially to help winterize the bees so they don’t die of starvation. If a hive doesn’t have enough honey, you have to take some frames of honey out of another hive that hopefully has honey to spare and insert these frames into hives that need honey to feed their bee colonies. When John and I are lucky enough to have a harvest, we give most of our honey away to many of our family members and close friends, so they can reap the health benefits like we do, and also enjoy eating & sharing our own pure natural raw honey with their families. What little surplus we may have left; we are happy if other individuals want to buy our honey to enjoy the same benefits. This money just goes back into our bee equipment. We don’t run any business out of our house and we don’t ever plan to. We appreciate that Alderman Rich Bauman wanted to learn more about this topic from us last year, so he too, could educate an individual that might have a concern about a honeybee hive. We strongly feel, as many of our beekeeper friends do also, that people should learn a little about beekeeping before speaking to City Board Members and others in a Board Meeting. As we all are aware, honeybees live in the wild, whether you have a box in your yard or they’re living in your trees. They are declining in abundance in many parts of the world. Beekeeping is one of our hobbies. It’s hard work and sometimes long hours, trying to figure out what your hives need throughout the year. But saving honeybees starts with us beekeepers, as we do our part to help them survive since they are a necessity for our environment. By the way, for those of you who asked me before or others that don’t know, it’s always risky to move a beehive any time of year, because you take a big risk of losing all the bees Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 2 in your hive. One final comment: John and I didn’t want to just stand by and let someone, with a lack of beekeeping knowledge, misinform all of you just because someone is unhappy with the location of a beehive in a neighbor’s yard which is in City Code Compliance. We just wish people would be more neighborly or mind their own business and try to educate themselves with some beekeeping knowledge so they can understand honeybees’ docile nature, and not just complain about everything by misrepresenting facts and making false accusations about beekeeping and beekeepers. Life is way too short. Thank you all for your time and for reading this. Karen & John Markowski” Comments from the Public Mayor Clement read a letter that was sent to him regarding deer. “Dear Mayor, I don’t know who should get this comment and you may have many other comments along these lines so I hope you will forward to the appropriate party. I have been fighting deer for several years and this year is no exception. The only exception is that I have worked to plant deer resistant plants and protect my gardens as much as possible. I’ve also tried every product out there and nothing keeps them away. Not only does nothing keep them away, they continue to be more and more bold. I’m worried that they will attack my dog as their fear continues to wane. This morning I walked out on my covered porch to find they had passed my garden and pulled a pot of flowers off it’s stand and proceed to eat the entire pot of flowers. I know that a thinning of the herd happens every year but they are still extremely plentiful and the boldness seems to increase every year. What is being done to control the deer population in Manchester? Whatever has been done is not enough as I see 7 and 8 at a time running through my neighborhood. I have never contacted the city for any complaints and have lived here more than 30 years. I don’t see this problem being addressed appropriate to reducing the number of deer. Thank you for your time. Julie Treloar 914 Gervas Dr.” Mayor Clement stated he did respond back to her and he really feels that the City has done as much as they can do. He identified to her where he lives and said he sees the herd and the City is doing what it can to stabilize the deer herd. Mr. Jim Naumann, 27 Pas Drive, said he would like to know where the Board stands on preserving Manchester’s history. He said in support of Manchester Victorian homes Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 3 (Manchester and Old Sulphur Springs). Both homes have been tagged as condemned. He understands that they are both privately owned, and he supports the City on making revenue. He feels these two homes are Manchester’s treasures. He wonders if there is anything that Citizens can do to help Manchester keep their history and charm. He wonders if we can preserve these buildings. REPORTS FROM THE MAYOR Mayoral Proclamations Mayor Clement presented proclamations to Manchester friends, residents, and staff. Mayoral Reports Mayor Clement stated Manchester held another successful recycling event. 411 vehicles came through to recycle and dropped off items. The total recycled was 24,000 pounds. Mayor Clement acknowledged the first Community Band Concert in Paul Schroeder Park since the beginning of the pandemic. It was a perfect evening and the band sounded great. Mayor Clement reminded everyone of the Tons of Trucks event held on July 29. The Tons of Trucks has always attracted a lot of people and they suspect it will continue to attract many. REPORTS FROM THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR 14401 Manchester Road (Sunup Express) Report – Mr. Mike Herman Mr. Herman stated that he prepared a letter for the Board and through June 1st they are still continuing to work. He said they are starting excavation on the parking lot. He said due to issues not completely within the control of the owner as been stalemate. He said most of the things will be addressed in the next week or two. Mr. Herman said the contractor says the completion date will be September 1, 2021. Alderman Ottenad stated that in her twenty years of being on the Board, she has never seen a development needing nine extensions to complete a project. Public Works Update (Dougherty Ferry Road and Construction Management) Director of Public Works Tyler Jaycox stated they are currently at a stand still with the Dougherty Ferry project because they have discovered a box covert that runs over the road and the top of the box covert turned out to be the driving surface. This is not common, so no one expected It. The contractor was doing what they were expected to do but it caused a hole in the covert. Manchester had to have Horner and Shifrin come out and design a new top of this box. The prices between the contractor and Horner and Shifrin Is different so they are in the process of negotiating a price. Director Jaycox stated one thing that came about during the last invoice billing period from Horner and Shifrin construction administration was they received an invoice and it came to Manchester's attention there was no more money left. After some internal discussions they have decided to have Horner and Shifrin construction administration department turn over their documentation on the project and he and Dave will finish out the project internally. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 4 Alderman Toben asked what a box covert is. Director Jaycox answered a box covert is a structure under the roadway. It runs under the roadway for stormwater or creeks. It gets water from one side to the other side of the roadway. Its basically a bridge under a roadway. Alderman Huether asked how this will affect the timeline for when this project is completed. Director Jaycox answered that the contractor was ahead of time, so currently they are still looking at a mid-September completion date. Six Month Financial Report Director of Finance Don Yucuis stated he was happy to report that almost all the funds or budgets are either over the 50 percent mark in revenues and our expenses are under. Director Yucuis stated he wanted to highlight the sales tax. The sales tax Is 50 percent of Manchester's General Fund Budget. It is a good indicator to see how Manchester is doing and at the 6 month mark we are at 55 percent of budget. List of Paid Bills (Warrant dates of 07-05-2021 to 07-18-2021) There were no questions. REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES Planning and Zoning Commission Mayor Clement stated they had one case on the agenda for a site plan for a new home and it was approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Veterans Commission Alderman Huether stated the Veterans Commission is gearing up for the four dates where volunteers are coming to help work on the Flags of Valor. They have over 100 volunteers helping get the Flags ready for the 20th anniversary of September 11 on Art Hill. Homecoming Committee Alderman Ottenad stated they met on July 14. They named Culvers as Business of the Year, Bob Strothkamp as Grand Marshall, and Kay and Bob Bell were named Citizens of the Year for the Manchester Homecoming. Alderman Ottenad reminded the Board of Aldermen they would need to get their own car for the Homecoming Parade. Audit and Finance Committee Alderman Baumann stated they talked about the 2022 Budget calendar, and they are still working on the next date for their next meeting. Tree Advisory Board Director of Public Works Tyler Jaycox stated they did meet on July 12; they discussed the Tree Trimming Project and the bid opening on July 21. They also discussed the 2021 trim grant they are using the funds to remove 20 Ash trees from City Parks. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 5 Director Jaycox stated that they also discussed the City-Wide Notification about Ash trees in resident's yards. ACTION ON OLD BILLS None ACTION ON NEW LEGISLATION BILL NO 21-2441 - 500 WOODS MILL ROAD FINAL SITE PLAN EMERGENCY LEGISLATION REQUESTED Alderman Hudson read Proposed Bill NO 21-2441, entitled: “AN ORDINANCE APPROVING A FINAL SITE DEVELOPMENT PLAN PER APPLICATIONS 21-SP-004 FOR A PARCEL CONSISTING OF 22.28 ACRES SUBMITTED BY MCBRIDE BERRA LAND COMPANY, LLC, OWNER UNDER CONTRACT”, by title only. Alderman Hudson stated Emergency Legislation has been requested, so he made the motion for approval of emergency legislation. The motion was seconded by Alderman Huether, and carried unanimously, without objection. Alderman Hudson read for the second time Bill NO 21-2441, entitled: “AN ORDINANCE APPROVING A FINAL SITE DEVELOPMENT PLAN PER APPLICATIONS 21-SP-004 FOR A PARCEL CONSISTING OF 22.28 ACRES SUBMITTED BY MCBRIDE BERRA LAND COMPANY, LLC, OWNER UNDER CONTRACT”, by title only. Alderman Hudson made the motion that Bill NO 21-2440, become Ordinance NO 21-2326. The motion was seconded by Alderman Huether. A poll of the Board showed: Alderman Ottenad – aye Alderman Huether – aye Alderman Nolte – aye Alderman Hudson – aye Alderman Toben – aye Alderman Baumann – aye Mayor Clement announced that the motion passed 6 – 0, with no objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. RESOLUTION NO 21-0824 – MUNICIPAL WASTE REDUCTION GRANT Alderman Nolte read Proposed Resolution NO 21-0824, entitled: “A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MANCHESTER BOARD OF ALDERMEN ENDORSING SAINT LOUIS COUNTY’S GRANT PROGRAM FOR THE CITY’S WASTE REDUCTION EFFORTS”, by title only. Alderman Nolte made the motion for approval of Resolution #21-0824. The motion was seconded by Alderman Ottenad and carried unanimously, without any objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 6 RESOLUTION NO 21-0825 – CONSTRUCTION INSPECTION SERVICES Alderman Huether read Proposed Resolution NO 21-0825, entitled: “A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CITY OF MANCHESTER TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH STOCK & ASSOCIATES CONSULTING ENGINEERS, INC. IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED EIGHTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS ($18,000.00) TO PROVIDE THE CITY WITH CONSTRUCTION INSPECTION SERVICES FOR THE CHANNEL B – 1521 MAUTENNE – STREAM IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT”, by title only. Alderman Huether made the motion for approval of Resolution #21-0825. The motion was seconded by Alderman Hudson and carried unanimously, without any objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. RESOLUTION NO 21-0826, PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONTRACT – LASERFICHE ENTERPRISE CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Alderman Baumann read Proposed Resolution NO 21-0826, entitled: “A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CITY OF MANCHESTER TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED TEN THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED FIFTY DOLLARS ($10,250.00) WITH R&D COMPUTER SYSTEMS, LLC FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A LASERFICHE ELECTRONIC CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND TRAINING SERVICES”, by title only. Alderman Baumann made the motion for approval of Resolution #21-0826. The motion was seconded by Alderman Ottenad and carried unanimously, without any objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. RESOLUTION NO 21-0827 - PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONTRACT – ARCHIMAGES, INC Alderman Toben read Proposed Resolution NO 21-0827, entitled: “A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CITY OF MANCHESTER TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED SEVEN THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($7,300.00) WITH ARCHIMAGES, INC. FOR FURNITURE AND ARTWORK PROCUREMENT SERVICES AT THE EXISTING FACILITY LOCATED AT 14317 MANCHESTER ROAD”, by title only. Alderman Toben made the motion for approval of Resolution #21-0827. The motion was seconded by Alderman Ottenad and carried unanimously, without any objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. RESOLUTION NO 21-0828 – SPECIAL USE PERMIT EXTENSION – 14401 MANCHESTER ROAD (SUNUP EXPRESS) Alderman Ottenad read Proposed Resolution NO 21-0828, entitled: “A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING A NINTH EXTENSION OF TIME FOR THE EXPIRATION OF A SPECIAL USE PERMIT FOR 14401 MANCHESTER ROAD”, by title only. Alderman Ottenad suggested the Board not grant a 90-day extension but a 40-day extension, then it will fall inline with the September 1st date Mr. Herman gave. The Board agreed with the amended 40-day extension. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 7 Alderman Ottenad made the motion for approval of Amended Resolution #21-0827. The motion was seconded by Alderman Huether. It passed by a vote of 4 to 2. Alderman Baumann and Alderman Nolte voted against the Resolution. MISCELLANEOUS Comments from the Public Alderman Baumann asked Director Jaycox to email the Aldermen letting them know what stormwater and channel projects are on the list and when they plan on starting them and a completion date on storm water project issues. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Alderman Baumann made the motion to adjourn. The motion was seconded by Alderman Huether and carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 8:17 p.m. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 07/19/2021 Page 8