MINUTES

CITY COUNCIL MEETING

GLADSTONE, MISSOURI

REGULAR MEETING

 

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2002 

 

 

PRESENT:      Mayor Anita Newsom

Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross

Councilman Dan Bishop  

Councilman  Shirley Smith

Councilman Les Smith

 

City Manager Kirk Davis

Assistant City Manager Laura Gay

City Counselor David Ramsay

City Clerk Marilyn Ahnefeld

 

 

Mayor Anita Newsom opened the Regular February 25, 2002 City Council Meeting at 7:30 PM in the Gladstone City Council Chambers.

 

Item 3. on the Agenda.        PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

 

Mayor Anita Newsom led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag in which all joined.   

 

Item 4. on the Agenda.        APPROVAL OF REGULAR FEBRUARY 11, 2002 CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES

 

Councilman Bill Cross moved to approve the Regular February 11, 2002 City Council Meeting Minutes as written.  Councilman Les Smith  seconded the motion.   The vote:  All “aye” - Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.   (5-0)

 

Item 5.   on the Agenda.        CONSENT AGENDA

 

Following the Clerk’s reading,  Councilman Les Smith moved to  approve the Consent Agenda as read;  Councilman Bill Cross seconded.  The vote:  All “aye” - Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.   (5-0)

 

CONSENT AGENDA DETAIL

 

Councilman Les Smith moved to adopt RESOLUTION NO. R-02-21, affirming and ratifying the actions of the City Manager in executing a contract with Phillips & Jordan, Inc.  for removal  and disposal of ice storm debris. Councilman Bill Cross seconded.  The vote:  All “aye” - Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.   (5-0)

 

 

Councilman Les Smith moved to adopt RESOLUTION NO. R-02-22,  authorizing acceptance of work under contract with Wornall Secure Business Solutions for the Water Treatment Plant Video Security project and  authorizing final payment in the amount of $34,829.56 from the Combined Water & Sanitary Sewer Fund.   (Project #0291)   Councilman Bill Cross seconded. The vote:  All “aye” - Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.   (5-0)

 

Councilman Les Smith moved to adopt RESOLUTION NO. R-02-23,  authorizing execution of a contract with Shaughnessy Fickel & Scott Architects for engineering services in connection with construction of  new Fire Station #1 in an amount not to exceed $121,140. and renovation of Public Safety headquarters in an amount not to exceed $79,160 from the Fire Protection Sales Tax Fund. Councilman Bill Cross seconded.   The vote:  All “aye” - Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.   (5-0)

 

Councilman Les Smith moved  for APPROVAL OF FINANCIAL REPORTS for the month of  January, 2002.  Councilman Bill Cross seconded. The vote: All “aye” - Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.   (5-0)

 

REGULAR  AGENDA

 

Item 6. on the Agenda.             Communications from the Audience.

 

None. 

 

Item 7. on the Agenda.             Communications from the City Council.

 

Councilman Les Smith  noted that the snow fencing/barricade material used  around the  falling  70th & N Baltimore wall (Robertson property) has collapsed and a resident asked him if it could be shored-up.   Mr. Smith requested an update on that situation by the next City Council Meeting. 

 

Councilman Smith  said there has been a lot of discussion recently about economic development  and he notes in the Missouri Municipal League Newsletter that  sales tax collections are up across the state yet we continue to have an 8% deficit in our budget.  He is not convinced that we can continue to state that our decreased revenues  are due to a slow economy, there must be other reasons.  Business must be down and he hopes we will really get aggressive in pursuit of some sales tax generating businesses for our commercial areas.   Mr. Smith said  we have spoken lately about the fact that  because of our financial condition there is a hiring freeze.   He asked City Manager Davis what effect  a hiring freeze might have on the progress on the Council’s goals and objectives for this year. 

 

City Manager Davis said he does not feel that any of the positions that were frozen, in fact we are trying to fill those positions now,  should have any impact on Council’s goals.       He would not anticipate any of them having any impact on Council goals with the exception of a Construction Coordinator which would obviously impact the infrastructure construction, although that position was frozen over the winter which has traditionally been a slower time in terms of construction but that will start gearing up.        

 

Councilman Smith said goals and objectives basically mean “work for staff” from all that he has ever seen.  You throw that on top of  the Sister Cities Commission and the 50th Anniversary, even though  those are volunteer driven,  he has to believe  there is quite a bit of staff time involved.    Then you talk about policy governance models,  citizen based  strategic plan, changing our fiscal year,  which would be fairly time consuming.  Then,  with Director Buschor leaving he is sure that an adequate replacement  is high on the City Manager’s list  because of construction management issues

 

Councilman Shirley Smith         said she was interested in the audience questions at a recent forum for Council candidates and naturally they coincided with  what we already know to be major issues for us.  We are coming to the end of a year with this Council and we need to keep in mind that nothing is   ever totally finished  because it  carries over.  Beautification of N Oak was brought up  which they think of in terms of  beautification,  and we think in terms of economic development.  The  protection of our tax base, keeping up our neighborhoods, citizens involvement, trash collection,  and the ever popular community center were the other issues raised.   So we will hopefully continue on with these projects and the fire station project which I see we have moved forward with by letting the engineering contract tonight.    All these things just take time and we need to remember that these are the issues the people are worried about.  

 

Councilman Dan Bishop  said he would piggy-back somewhat on Councilman Les Smith’s remarks or question relative to the effect of these certain vacant positions on progress relative to the Council Goals set in October.  Mr. Bishop said he recalls we met in October for Goal Setting, so it has been over four months.  So we are a third of the way through this year if you go from Goal Setting to Goal Setting.     He knows that we have had some extraordinary things occur in the City.  We have had a catastrophic water main break,  we have had a natural disaster in the ice storm, and we have had to come to terms  with some recessionary conditions in the city.  Having said that, I sit here now at the last Council Meeting in the month  of February and I really have no knowledge of where  we are relative to some of the important goals that we talked about in October.     He thinks Councilman Les Smith hit  the ones on the head that would come to his thoughts.   One  is the Policy Governance Model and we as a Council agreed that we would like to  have decided on the best Policy Governance Model for the City by the year end.  He understands that two of the Councilmembers that sit at this table tonight are going to be gone within the next five weeks and there could be some thought that  well, we ought to wait and see who the new Councilmembers are and where they are relative to this issue.    But no matter what, you are still going to have three Councilmembers here who bought into this at goal setting and he for one would like to have some sense it is moving forward before he leaves here the first meeting in April.  Presumably something is happening with it, but he does not know.

 

Councilman Bishop said just to go on, we talked about neighborhood organizations and organizing neighborhoods and being more actively involved in nurturing  and working with our neighborhoods which is a drum he has beaten for the least three years and he doesn’t know where we are with that.    He doesn’t know where we are with Citizen Based Strategic Planning which he thinks is really big  and was in fact brought to the table by Staff two years ago with a desire to do that.  It was postponed  for a year which  he thinks was the right thing to do because we had a lot of things to wrap up.  The other one which  is big and he knows it  has a lot of ramifications but  still thinks it is the right thing to do if at all feasible,  is moving the fiscal year to start in October.    Those are things that come to mind without looking at any notes but he  was reminded of them by  Councilman  Les Smith’s  comments. 

 

Mr. Bishop said personally he would like to know where we are relative to our goals by the next Council Meeting  and he thinks it is appropriate to have updates of these at least given the fact that  we are a third of the way through this year between goal setting.   

 

City Manager Davis said  the thing you have to remember though is the time of your goal setting, because remember you talk about  a 12 - 18 month period and a lot of the things that you establish in your goal setting session in October are impacted by the budget and therefore don’t come forward generally until the following April.  Last year we gave an update to the Council in April on how the  goals affected the budget and he would be happy to give an update on where we are with the goals from last October.   Mr. Davis said he does caution that generally  we begin planning our budget for next year right now,  and we take into consideration those Council goals from that October time period and carry it forward.   Mr. Davis said  the fact that you haven’t seen anything is not  particularly unusual but he  certainly would be happy to provide some information to the Council.  On the Carver School of Governance issue, we talked about bringing that forward in January but there are some costs relative to that  and he held off until after we had gone through the mid-year budget to see exactly where were,   but it was our intent to bring someone forward from that institution.  There is a fee to bring them forward but I think they are the best people to really define for us the policy issues behind their thought process.

 

Councilman Bishop told the  City Manager he thinks he hears him saying that it has been the practice of staff to bring forward implementation strategies in conjunction with the annual budget.  Well, that is very unsatisfactory for him because he is going to be gone when that budget packet is sent out to the next Council.    City Manager Davis said he also just mentioned that he would be happy to bring forward information to the Council.  Mr. Bishop said he understands that,  and would appreciate that.  He was thinking in terms of a January time frame on the Policy Governance Model because he thought that had been talked about.  This was the first he had heard on why there had been a deviation from that here tonight, but thank you for the explanation and I would appreciate knowing by the next Council Meeting.  

 

Councilman Bill Cross had no communications at this time. 

 

Mayor Anita Newsom noted that the City Clerk had advised that March 6th is the last day to register to vote for the April election.  Persons may register to vote at  City Hall  and at all  Library branches.  

 

Item 8. on the Agenda.        Communications from the City Manager.

 

City Manager Kirk Davis had no communications at this time. 

 

Item 9.  on the Agenda.        FIRST READING BILL 02-7,  approving the  Replat of Lots 67 & 68,   Stonebrooke 2nd Plat, Replat  (4106 NE 72nd Street) and directing the appropriate officials to affix their signature to the plat for recording.    (File #1173)     

 

Councilman Les Smith moved to place Bill 02-07 on First Reading;  Councilman Bill Cross seconded.  The vote:  All “aye” - Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.  (5-0)  The Clerk read the Bill.

 

Councilman Les  Smith  moved to accept the First Reading of Bill 02-7, Waive the Rule and Place the Bill on Second and Final Reading;  Councilman Bill Cross seconded. The vote:  All “aye” – Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.  (5-0)  The Clerk read the Bill.

 

Councilman Les Smith moved to accept the Second and Final Reading of Bill 02-7 and enact the Bill as Ordinance 3.825;  Councilman Bill Cross seconded.  

 

Roll Call Vote:  All “aye” – Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.  (5-0)

 

Item 10. On the Agenda.         FIRST READING BILL 02-8,  repealing Ordinance No. 2.846 and enacting  a new ordinance establishing a  “Code Board Of Appeals” for the City of Gladstone to hear and decide appeals of orders, and decisions of determinations made by the Building Official relative to the application and interpretation of Chapter 34 of the City Code, being the Building and Construction Ordinance. 

 

Councilman Les Smith moved to place Bill 02-8 on First Reading;.  Councilman Dan Bishop seconded.

 

Discussion.

 

Mayor Newsom said she understands that this legislation increases the  membership of the Code Board of Appeals to five  members rather than  the three members at present,  and there will  be a need to appoint the additional members to this Board.   Mr. Wingerson said that correct.    The vote:  All “aye” -  Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.  (5-0)  The Clerk read the Bill.

 

Councilman Les Smith moved to accept the First Reading of Bill 02-8, Waive the Rule and Place the Bill on Second and Final Reading;  Councilman Dan Bishop seconded. The vote:  All “aye” – Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.  (5-0)  The Clerk read the Bill.

 

Councilman Les Smith  moved to accept the Second and Final Reading of Bill 02-8 and enact the Bill as Ordinance 3.826;  Councilman  Dan Bishop seconded. 

 

Roll Call Vote:  All “aye” – Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.  (5-0)

 

 

Item 11. on the Agenda.        RESOLUTION R-02-24  adopting the 2002 State Legislative Program for the City of Gladstone.

 

Councilman Dan Bishop moved to adopt Resolution  02-24;   Councilman Shirley Smith seconded.

 

Discussion.

 

Councilman Dan Bishop commented that as he mentioned in the study session earlier this evening,  he certainly appreciates  City Counselor Dave Ramsay’s efforts on this matter.  It is obvious that he spent a great deal of time reviewing bills that were filed at the State Capitol and selected those that really are most applicable in their ramifications to the City of Gladstone.   He thinks that this is a better way of crafting a Legislative Program than adopting the MML Program in to to.     He is especially interested in the Bill filed by Representative Relford and is struck by the amount of money that Gladstone could realize.  Even if there were an equal distribution of 50%  of that  casino boat boarding fee among the municipalities in the State of Missouri, the figure of  $52,000 for Gladstone is substantial.  He thinks that if we avail ourselves of the appropriate application process for grant money there is potential for even more than that and he thinks this is an opportunity to bring greater fairness to the current situation  in the state.    He would only mention relative to the issue of certain sales tax exemptions that  he is not necessarily opposed to that in principle but he would like to see,  as City Counselor Ramsay discussed, that if we  are subjected to having certain items exempt  from sales tax that the State  make up the shortfall for  Gladstone.   He again thanked Counselor Ramsay and said he will be voting in favor of this resolution.

 

Councilman Shirley Smith said she too would like to thank City Counselor Ramsay,  the material provided bring to us more pointedly tell us  what is going on in Jefferson City that affects us and she thoroughly approves of the way we are doing it now.  

 

The vote on adoption of the Resolution.  All   “aye” – Councilman Les Smith, Councilman Shirley Smith, Councilman Dan Bishop, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Cross, Mayor Anita Newsom.  (5-0)

 

* * * * *

 

There being no further business to come before the February 25, 2002 Gladstone City Council Meeting, Mayor Anita Newsom adjourned the Regular Meeting.

 

Respectfully submitted:

 

 

__________________________

Marilyn  F. Ahnefeld, City Clerk            

                                                                         Approved as submitted:  ___

                                                                      Approved as corrected/amended: ___

 

                                           

              __________________________

                                                                                                                  Anita Newsom,  Mayor