Board of Aldermen

MINUTES OF THE PUBLIC HEARING OF TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2024 PROPOSED 2024 PROPERTY TAX LEVY CALL TO ORDER Mayor Mike Clement called the Public Hearing of the Board of Aldermen to order at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL AND STATEMENT OF QUORUM Roll call showed those present were Alderman Streeter, Alderman Dodge, Alderman Huether, Alderman Ottenad, Alderman Toben, Alderman Baumann and Mayor Clement. A quorum was present. PUBLIC HEARING The following notice of the public hearing was then read: “The Board of Aldermen of the City of Manchester will hold a public hearing at 7:00pm on Tuesday, September 3, 2024, via Zoom and in person at the Manchester Justice Center, 200 Highlands Blvd, at which time citizens may comment to the proposed 2024 Property Tax Levy for the City’s General Operating Fund and Debt Service Fund.” Speaking as a proponent, Director Shawn Sieve, stated the total assessed value increased by 1.97%, bringing the City’s total assessed value to 535 million dollars. Director Sieve also stated there will be no increase in residential real estate, commercial real estate, or personal property. Commercial real estate will slightly decrease due to the TIF values being added to the City’s assessed values. COMMENTS FROM OPPONENTS, QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC There were no opponents. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Clement closed the public hearing at 7:03 p.m. Public Hearing 9/03/24 Proposed 2024 Property Tax Levy Page 1  MINUTES OF THE REGULAR BOARD OF ALDERMEN MEETING OF TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2024 AT 200 HIGHLANDS BOULEVARD DRIVE CALL TO ORDER Mayor Clement called the Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. ROLL CALL AND STATEMENT OF QUORUM Roll call showed those present were Alderman Streeter, Alderman Dodge, Alderman Huether, Alderman Ottenad, Alderman Toben, Alderman Baumann and Mayor Clement. A quorum was present. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES August 19, 2024, Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting Alderman Ottenad made the motion to approve the minutes of the Monday, August 19, 2024, 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 presented. The motion was seconded by Alderman Baumann and carried unanimously, with no objections from any members of the Board of Aldermen. CONSIDERATION OF PETITIONS Comments from the Public Kevin Ahlers, resident at 1618 Wild Berry Court, spoke about his experience as a crossing guard from 2018-2022. He shared his experience about the traffic and kids walking to school in the morning and leaving once school was out. He stated his concern about how the traffic could be increased with the addition of the Early Childhood Center (ECC). Paul Bracher, resident at 343 Autumn Creek Drive, read a statement released by the City on July 9, 2020, titled “Policing in Manchester.” This statement was signed by Mayor Clement and former police chief, Scott Will. He speculated the resignation of former police chief, Scott Will, and questioned the disparagement agreement between the City and Scott Will. Melissa Copeland, resident at 610 Wren Avenue, spoke about events at Southwest Middle from July 29th to August 1st and traffic from drop off and pick up was terrible. Wren Hollow and Southwest Middle both had “Meet the Teacher” on the same day at the same time. She suggested looking into some restrictions or a way to break up the time for “Meet the Teacher” and work with the residents and work together for the children and make changes. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 09/03/2024 Page 1 Jeanette Nissenbaum, resident at 918 LaBonne Parkway, spoke about the great experience they had with all the construction going on LaBonne Parkway. The construction workers did a phenomenal job, they were polite, and they can see the light at the end of the tunnel. REPORTS FROM THE MAYOR Mayoral Proclamation – Sergeant Evan Waters – MSRO Lifetime Achievement Award Mayor Clement read a proclamation to Sgt. Evan Waters in achieving the Missouri School Resource Officer Lifetime Achievement Award. This award highlights the importance Sgt. Waters has made in creating safe and supportive educational environments. Mayoral Reports Mayor Clement acknowledged Michelle Melguin’s hard work in planning the 50-year resident luncheon at the Lazy River Grill last Wednesday. We hosted almost 90 residents in this celebration. Mayor Clement spoke about the forecast for this weekend’s Homecoming Parade and events. Mayor Clement mentioned the Flags of Valor event beginning Monday, September 9th, and runs through September 15th. Mayor Clement stated a special event will be held on Wednesday, September 11th, at 5:30pm at the Veteran’s Memorial. Mayor Clement shared there will also be a POW/MIA ceremony on September 20th, at 10:00 am at the Veteran’s Memorial. Mayor Clement reminded everyone the PSA Testing is still available and highly recommends signing up. Tests are October 5th, 10am-2pm at the Justice Center. REPORTS FROM THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR Introduction of Police Officer Ryan Dudley and Police Officer Angela Mims Acting Police Chief, Ed Skaggs, introduced Police Officer Ryan Dudley and Police Officer Angela Mims. Introduction of Deputy City Clerk Brianne Bueckendorf City Clerk Michelle Melugin introduced Deputy City Clerk Brianne Bueckendorf. Sulphur Spring Court Traffic Discussion City Administrator Justin Klocke gave a presentation regarding a traffic assessment on Sulphur Spring Court. The assessment took place from April 1st – April 11th and showed that the average speed was 14.7 miles per hour. The peak hours for traffic is from 5-6pm. The volume of traffic on this road averages 1,993 cars that travel up and down this road. This does raise concern about the safety of the street as the roads are narrow and there are no sidewalks. The high volume of cars tends to be coming from neighboring cities from the west and there are cars making illegal turns on certain parts of the street. City Administrator Justin Klocke is suggesting that we propose additional traffic calming resources for us to consider and to work this into our budget for 2025. He also proposed that Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 09/03/2024 Page 2 we look into ways to divert traffic that is not originating from Manchester and find alternative solutions. There is a possibility to get the road reclassified and upgraded to provide us with more grants to improve this road. LaBonne Parkway Constrution Management Request – Director of Public Works – Errol Tate Director of Public Works Errol Tate stated that the construction on LaBonne Parkway has extended past its original completion date, and with the necessary extension to complete the project, there is an ask for an additional $34,309.93. This delay was due to weather, material and delays with the design of the ADA domes, sidewalks, and the cross sections of the road which caused us to utilize labor hours which exceed the 1,074 hours in their contract. Mayor Clement asked about the possibility of future delays and where the funds for the additional money would come from and if we had the funds available in the budget. Director Errol Tate cannot guarantee a future delay is avoidable. Director Shawn Sieve stated that funds would be available in the budget. City Administrator Justin Klocke stated we can provide the budget information and have the consulting company provide us with a more thorough answer on the questions asked. Alderman Toben stated he wanted to discuss the Early Childhood Center and present the Missouri law relating to it to the Board and residents. According to the law, no public facilities or utilities can be constructed in the municipality without the approval of the Planning Commission. If the City Commission disapproves, the Council can override the decision with a 2/3 majority vote. The School Board holds the ultimate decision-making power in this matter. Alderman Toben also stated that accusations of conflict of interest without evidence are unjust, as confirmed by the Missouri Ethics Commission. The Board has no control over the School Board's decisions regarding the center. Continuous efforts have been made to listen to concerns, including a traffic study. Citizens are encouraged to address their concerns to the Parkway School Board, as they have the final say. Collaborative efforts are ongoing to find a viable solution, but ultimately, the decision lies with the Parkway School Board. List of Paid Bills (Warrant dates of 08-19-2024 to 09-02-2024) There were no questions. REPORTS FROM THE COMMITTEES Planning and Zoning Commission Alderman Baumann stated that there is a dog training business that is looking to put their business in the planned business district. That recommendation came favorable to the Board. There is also a meeting a week from Monday as well as an Audit and Finance meeting. Mayor Clement stated an edit to the Audit and Finance meeting might happen so they will be able to attend both. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 09/03/2024 Page 3 Veterans Commission Alderman Huether stated they will be hosting Veterans at Homecoming. The next Veterans Commission meeting is September 5th at 5pm. Audit and Finance Committee Alderman Toben stated that the next meeting is Monday, September 9th via Zoom. Tree Advisory Board Alderman Dodge stated there was no report. Homecoming Committee Alderman Ottenad stated that the Homecoming Committee met on August 21st at the Parks Building. She spoke about Homecoming and what is included in the weekend events. OLD LEGISLATION None NEW LEGISLATION Resolution No. 24-0982 Channel B Improvements – Creek Stabilization Alderman Ottenad read Proposed Resolution No. 24-0982 entitled: “A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CITY OF MANCHESTER TO ENTER A CONTRACT WITH STOCK & ASSOCIATES CONSULTING ENGINEERS, INC, IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FOUR THOUSAND DOLLARS AND ZERO CENTS ($134,000.00) TO PROVIDE THE CITY WITH ENGINEERING DESIGN SERVICES FOR THE CHANNEL B – COUNTRY LANE WOODS – GASCONY CREEK STABILIZATION PROJECT,” by title only. Alderman Ottenad made the motion for approval of Resolution No. 24-0982. The motion was seconded by Alderman Huether and carried unanimously, with no objections from any members of the Board of Alderman. Bill No. 24-2544 Vacation of Trail Easement – Celtic Meadows Alderman Streeter read Proposed Bill No. 24-2544 entitled: “AN ORDINANCE VACATING A CERTAIN EASEMENT IN THE CITY OF MANCHESTER, MISSOURI, REFERRED TO FOR THESE PURPOSES AS THE ARBORS AT CELTIC MEADOWS TRAIL EASEMENT.” No further action at this time. Bill No. 24-2545 Establishing and Levying the Rate of Taxation for Real and Personal Property Alderman Huether read Proposed Bill No. 24-2545 entitled: “AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING AND LEVYING THE RATE OF TAXATION UPON ALL REAL AND PERSONAL PROPERTY IN THE CITY OF MANCHESTER FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2024.” Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 09/03/2024 Page 4 No further action at this time. MISCELLANEOUS Comments from the Public Wayne Hartmann, resident of 415 Cardiff Lane, questioned why we would be doing a traffic study if we do not have a say in the addition of the Early Childhood Center, why would we use money on performing a traffic study. City Administrator Justin Klocke stated that the study is going to happen because the City is aware that there are existing issues on that street already and we need to fully understand that so when we come to a conclusion, it’s well thought out and is a fully informed decision. Wayne Hartmann then asked if we have spoken to the School Board regarding the complaint. Mayor Clement stated that we do have contact with the School Board, and they will work with our contact to make it conform with our guidelines and regulations. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Alderman Toben made the motion to adjourn. The motion was seconded by Alderman Huether and carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 8:10p.m. Regular Board of Aldermen Meeting 09/03/2024 Page 5