Crossroads Advisory Commission

Crossroads Special Business District Advisory Commission MEETING MINUTES APPROVED MEETING DATE: Thursday, March 17, 2022 LOCATION: City Hall CALLED TO ORDER: 8:01 AM MEETING ADJOURNED: 8:36 AM NEXT MEETING: Thursday, April 21, 2022 NAME PRESENT ABSENT Heidi Butts-Wiegand X Joshua Tonnies X Kelly Ruesing X Alison Kinderfather X Chris Westmeyer X Vacancy Vacancy Sarah Richardson, Council Liaison X Eric Peterson, City Liaison X Also in attendance: Sgt. Jason Flanery – Webster Groves Police Department Fran Sudekum – Administrative Support In the absence of a current Chairperson, Eric Peterson ran the meeting. MOTION: A motion to approve the January minutes was made by Heidi Butts-Wiegand, seconded by Joshua Tonnies, and unanimously approved. Chairperson Election Heidi Butts-Wiegand volunteered to be the new Chair. Kelly Ruesing stated she was going to nominate Ms. Butts-Wiegand or Chris Westmeyer. No other nominees were suggested and there were no additional volunteers. Mr. Peterson asked if any of the Commission Members had any objections to Ms. Butts-Wiegand being the new Chair; no objections were made and all gladly accepted Heidi as the new Chair. Commission Vacancies Ms. Butts-Wiegand stated she has been encouraging Alan Nehring (Nehring Design) and Julie Campbell (Webster Art & Picture Framing) to apply to be on the Commission. The frequency of Commission meetings can be reduced to quarterly if monthly meetings are a roadblock to filling the vacancies. Streetscape Update St. Louis County has submitted the grant application for the streetscape project; it was reviewed before it was submitted. Mr. Peterson will send a copy to Commission Members. Awarding of grants has not yet been announced. Budget Review The budget worksheet was reviewed one additional time (see Appendix A). Heidi asked for clarification on how the Operating Transfer Out revenue is prorated for each of the three business districts. The split is based on the tax base and geographical size of the districts. Members recommended the budget as presented. Page 1 of 3 Trash Can Issue There is a very visible trash can located by the former Kaegel Drug location that is consistently not emptied each week; it is always overflowing and unsightly. This has been an ongoing problem for several months. Waste Management has the contract to empty all the trash cans in the three business districts; each district has issues with various cans not being emptied weekly. The Public Works Department coordinates any issues with Waste Management and will be connecting with them about the problem. Commission Members offered to support addressing the issue if it would help. Abandoned Sign Pole Base There is a concrete base near the sidewalk in a planting area between the McClain/Sanders Building property and the Art of Entertainment property. The Parks Department inquired into its history. Heidi believes it is the remnants of a sign from the long-demolished Louis IX Restaurant that was located on the property that now houses the McClain/Sanders Building; it may have live electricity. Parking Note Parking in the District has been working very well; previous issues have been resolved. BDC Update The business community survey is open until April 5th. It can be found on the Business Roundtable landing page within the City website. It’s not required to answer all the questions in order to submit responses. City/Council Update • Two propositions for Webster Groves will be on the April Ballot. Prop W asking whether to convene a City Charter Review Board and Prop U for an online use tax. Educational information for both is available on the City Website. • A public hearing cleaning up the Tree Ordinance is currently before City Council. • A Mayor/City Council candidate forum will take place next week hosted by the League of Women Voters and held on the Webster University campus and live streamed as well. • The Sustainability Commission has presented a Sustainability Plan to City Council during their work session. • Information submitted regarding the use of ARP funding via the Balance Act Software is available on the City website. Adjourned – Meeting adjourned at 8:36 AM. Page 2 of 3 APPENDIX A Page 3 of 3