Presiding Commissioner Kevin Austin addressed the Grant City Council Wednesday and said that there continued to be a teen drinking problem, especially in the Hy-Vee Parking Lot at night hours. He said that current sheriff Terry Sheddrick was doing what he could but that the city could use a night watchman for the weekends and that there was a continuing problem with teen drinking in the city. In addition, he said that Country Corners, the business that he owns, was broken into again with $10,000 worth of cigarettes stolen. He said that college kids were supplying high school freshmen and sophomores with drinks and that one night when he drove by at 3 in the morning, "the Hy-Vee parking lot was completely full of kids who were totally drunk." He said that he feared that one morning, one kid would be killed in a wreck. In fact, he said that one night he observed a truck pull over and drop off a "whole truckload" of beer cans along the road; sure enough, another car full of teens came by later and picked them up.
Austin said that Sheddrick's position was that he could do nothing without a sign against loitering posted by Hy-Vee because they cannot go onto private property unless they actually observe a crime being committed. The US Constitution protects US citizens against arrests without probable cause and against searches without a warrant. In the past, Austin said that law enforcement's response was to come by and pour beer cans out without arresting anyone. "It doesn't look for for the city, Hy-Vee, or the county to have this problem continuing," he said. Subsequently, Austin told the Sheridan Express Tuesday that he had met with Donnie Waldeier, the manager of the Grant City Hy-Vee, who had agreed to cooperate.
Austin said that part of the problem was a lack of supervision from parents. "I've talked to some parents about this," he said. "Some are willing to help, but others feel that the Hy-Vee parking lot is like a babysitter for them. I actually had one parent tell me, 'At least I know where my child is.'" Austin said that it was better for parents to have their children hauled in than for them to get a visit from the sheriff to tell them their child was just killed in a car wreck. Austin said that he didn't have that problem at Country Corners because he said that the kids knew that if he found them there, they would be escorted off. Casey's has a "no loitering" sign prominently posted on their property and will prosecute persons for loitering on their premises.
The council voted to proclaim October 3rd as National Lion's Club Appreciation Day; Mayor Roach signed the proclamation afterwards.
Economic Developer Charity Austin reported that the city has been given the go-ahead to proceed with the Downtown Renovation Project that is being paid for with the $367,500 appropriation from the federal government. An engineer will come in two weeks to begin work on the project. It will involve decorative lighting on the outside of the square as well as curb and sidewalk work. There will also be handicapped access on the corners. The city will handle the bidding for the project while the MODOT will administer the money. The city will seek to use as many local contractors as possible in the project. State prevailing wage requirements will apply.
The city will close off all of the square on Saturday, September 26th for the Fall Festival and part of the square for the remainder of the event.
Jim Larson reported on the progress of the project for the new firehouse. They met with the architect Thursday and are in the process of drawing up the plans as well as surveying for the land needed. The city will sign over the property south of the basketball court to the Fire Department as part of the project. The city said that they could demolish the building with the equipment that they have; if the fire department were to demolish it, Larson said that it would add to the cost of the project. The plan is to get bids early next year and to start construction shortly afterwards. None of this will be contingent on purchasing any of the old railroad property. Presiding Commissioner Kevin Austin ruled out moving the sheriff's office there, saying that there was no money or feasibility to move him there.
Public Works Director Carl Staton reported that the mower tractor was fixed and that city employees were working on the lagoon. The Pool Park has been tiled; a leak at the booster station was fixed and a pump was switched out at the lift station. The city put a yield sign on the intersection of High Street and Lover's Lane and a stop sign on the south end of East Avenue. Staton met with the engineers over the proposed water main project and city crews took down a tree that was in the way of the Nature Trail. There was a leak on the main leading to the Middlefork plant south of Worth; there was a sewer issue on 3rd street that turned out to be on the customer's side of the line. Staton got his water license and is currently undergoing training for sewers; the council voted to pay for two nights of lodging for Staton and Water Superintendent Greg Miller down at the Lake of the Ozarks late in October for training.
Clerk Ayvonne Morin reported that the Missouri Rural Water Association was willing to help with the replacement of the 11-mile water main as well as with getting al the city's sewer lines, water lines, and hydrants on GPS. Morin will find out more information about the project and report back to the council.
The council voted to join the Northwest Missouri Wholesale Water Commission. Councilman Bruce Downing said that there was "not a whole lot of choice" in the matter. The city will not be obligated to buy water from the commission and it was expected that they would not begin supplying water to the region until 8-9 years down the road. The council appointed Water Superintendent Greg Miller as the city's representative to the board and councilman Bruce Downing as the alternative representative. The contract specifies that the city's representative shall be the Water Superintendent and that the alternate representative be a councilman appointed by the mayor.
The city got a letter from Middlefork Water Company stating that their water passes all DNR tests and is perfectly safe to drink. Mayor Roach suggested that someone from the city could attend Rural Water District meetings, saying that it would help with communication between the city and the Rural Water District. The council agreed to send a cover letter offering to attend the meetings if needed. The Rural Water District buys water off of the city; the contracts between the city and both the Rural Water District and Middlefork Water Company are up for renewal in 2011.
90 of the 175 surveys that are needed for the $1 million 11-mile water main project have been returned; there were concerns expressed that the penciled numbers on the forms meant that forms could be traced to individuals. The city explained that the surveys were beyond their control and that they were done by the Missouri Department of Economic Development and not the city. The numbers cannot be used by either the city or the DED to identify individuals.
The next step in the Nature Trail Project will be to move a light pole that is in the way of the trail and to mark out the second stage of the trail. The county may donate some time to the project; it was estimated that the light pole could be moved a day. The city learned that Dudley Davidson and Dennis Downing had skid steers that might be used for the project.
The city got the paperwork turned in for the bathhouse project for the pool; the Missouri Department of Revenue has recommended approval for the project. The city will learn by October whether or not they have gotten approved for the project.
The council voted to retain the water in the pool over the winter citing decreased pressure on the walls. The consultant involved with the plan refused to make a recommendation, citing the fact that putting a pool within a pool as the city did was unique and that there were no precedents on whether to keep water in or drain the pool as the city had the old one. The leak in the pipe was determined to be small enough that it did not need fixing. The city will do work on the pipes that lead from the drains so that they will not freeze during the winter. In the spring, the city will flush the pipes.
Emergency Management Director Pat Kobbe and Mayor Roach will attend a Department of Homeland Security Oversight Committee meeting.
The council awarded the contract for updating the city's codes to Sullivan Publications for a cost of $520. There have been 33 new pages of ordinances passed by the city since the last time the codes were updated two years ago. The vote was 3-1 with Bruce Downing opposed. Supporters of the motion said that the work was needed to keep the books from getting into the state they were in 10 years ago, when it cost the city thousands of dollars to update them. Downing said that the cost for the work was too high.
The city is in the process of putting in a bid to the state to host the Department of Revenue office. The city will have to put up a video camera in the office for security purposes; the 33 pages of paperwork for the bid are due by September 29th.
Clerk Ayvonne Morin reported that the city had gotten a letter from the DNR informing them about grant opportunities to pay for the engineering phase of the 11-mile water line from Middlefork to the city. The paperwork is due by October 30th; the council directed the city to pursue the grant.
