The Clinton City Council met October 3 in regular session. Absent were Councilwomen Debbie Smith, Shelley Nelson, and Councilman Cameron Jackson. Following roll call, the Pledge of Allegiance was recited and the previous meeting’s minutes were approved.
A personal appearance was had by Rolland Peck – who stated a complaint about the “rough road” conditions of Vansant Road. “The whole road needs to be resurfaced,” he told the council. It was explained to Mr. Peck that Vansant had recently been declared a major connector road (a road that connects one highway to another) and it has opened the opportunity for grants for repairs/reconditioning for it. “It’s on the radar,” said Carla Moberly.
Joel Long, Regional Airport Manager, reported to the council. “There is a lot going on [at the airport],” said Long. The airport received a couple of very important grants which are being used on fairly large and important projects: the runway rehab project (which will allow the runway to accommodate jets), and the airport’s terminal project, which has not started but will soon. It was noticed that local contractors will be doing the project – which Mr. Long thought good for the city in general.
Councilman Roger House gave the Public Works report. The request for closing the square on October 28th for the “Scare Fair” was approved. As mentioned above, Vansant Road was designated a major collector road – which should help the city obtain grants for that road. The council approved the city contributing $169,000 to the OakStar Drive project (which had been discussed at a special council meeting). Also: MoDOT is starting its lane-work soon centered mainly around improvements at the north and south junctions.
Public Works reviewed a map that designated ditches and areas the city mows – following up on a request from a previous council meeting where a citizen requested a ditch be mowed by the city. The next step is to develop criteria for determining which things should and should not fall under the city’s responsibility.
The Hurt Park renovations are continuing and are nearly finished. The slide that was ordered for the park should be here in six to eight weeks. Final work at the Artesian outdoor pool is being completed, too.
As mentioned at a previous council session, the city is exploring external management for its aquatic centers: a meeting was held with Midwest Pool recently to that end. The company has requested more information from the city’s Park and Rec staff. The city is now looking to see what the budget might allow for outside managerial operations of the pools.
The bid to relocate the boilers and equipment is being revised. Be advised: the indoor pool will have to shut down for approximately two weeks to make this happen. Tentative schedule for that to happen is late October. Also, a new water line will be installed (at no cost to the city) at the Antioch Park Urban Conservation Trail. A new ADA parking is being planned as well.
At Waste Water: issues with the SCADA system continue to occur without resolution. Work to resolve the problems is ongoing. The Waste Water Plant is also seeking a different company to perform semi-annual inspections on critical equipment. Manhole inspections are complete and the final report from those will be included in the plans for the I & I (Improvement plan for Waste Water). The council approved a stand-alone line from spectrum internet to the Waste Water Plant - mainly because of the need for reliable internet access considering the computer systems at the plant.
It was reported that the manhole access adjacent to the Henry County Jail had multiple non-flushable items in it including e-cigarettes and other materials. The jail was informed of this for corrective measures to be put in place,
The MoDOT grant reimbursements for the ATS program are now up to date (through August). Also, Community Development Director Chuck Bailey is working on declaring the structures at Fourth and Jefferson and at Fifth and Oak Streets as dangerous structures (to get the demolition process in motion).
The Public Safety report was given by Councilman Gene Henry. He reported that the Clinton Fire Department received an opportunity to apply for a grant in the amount of $20,000 for the purchase of new radios. Recall that the Fire Tax was for apparatus and not equipment. The council gave the go-ahead to apply for the grant.
The first and second readings for Bill No. 2023-35 were held (agreement with Westport Construction regarding the airport terminal project): the council approved the bill. It was noted there was an increase to the airport association from $105,000 to $150,000. The last raise to the association was in 2013. Bid openings for the Commerce Drive Extension will open October 26.
The Mayor had nor report, however, City Administrator Christy Maggi reported there were two meetings held in regards to the Stoneridge Homeowners Association (about the sewer system for that subdivision). The HOA has obtained an engineering firm to compare costs of upgrades versus tying into the Clinton sewer system. She also reported that work at OakStar Drive is scheduled to start October 16th and it hoped will be done by the first week of November.
The Clinton City Council adjourned at 6:40 p.m.
