The Jefferson City Council were at odds on a couple of bills Monday night, with Jefferson City Mayor Carrie Tergin breaking a tie to approve an ordinance regarding city committee electronic voting.
Under the electronic voting bill, city boards, commissions and committees can vote electronically through video conference, telephone or internet. Committee members must provide written notice to the committee chair and city clerk at least 48 hours before the meeting to vote electronically and be counted toward the group's quorum. If the members do not provide advance notice, they can still vote electronically but will not be counted toward quorum.
The Jefferson City Planning and Zoning Commission, Board of Adjustment, Historic Preservation Commission, Transportation and Traffic Commission, Parks and Recreation Commission, Police Personnel Board, Plumbing Examiners and Review Board, Electrical Examiners and Review Board, Tax Increment Financing Commission, Facade Improvement Committee, and Transportation and Traffic Commission would be exempt from electronic voting, according to the ordinance.
Council members Ron Fitzwater, Carlos Graham, Rick Prather, Rick Mihalevich and Mark Schreiber voted against the ordinance, while council members Jon Hensley, Erin Wiseman, Ken Hussey, Laura Ward and David Kemna voted in favor. Tergin voted in favor of the proposal to break the tie.
Fitzwater said he was opposed to the ordinance as it could encourage non-participation in city committees.
"It sets up a cumbersome process and discourages people from participating," he said. "We need to encourage participation and encourage people to be at the meetings. I think it's going to lead us in the wrong direction. I just don't think it's the right direction we want to go."
Hensley and Ward argued the ordinance would allow people who are sick or busy to still participate in local government.
While she agreed with both sides, Tergin said she understood sudden illnesses can cause city committees to have quorum issues. She added if there are issues in the future, the council can discuss the ordinance again.
In September, the Jefferson City Council Committee on Administration sent the ordinance to the full council for discussion.
Other business conducted on Monday includes:
The City Council narrowly denied a preliminary Planned Unit Development plan by a 6-4 vote to construct one-story rental residential duplexes on 0.93 acres at 3410 Shermans Hollow, owned by Steve Lightner with Marketing Specialists Inc.
Graham, Mihalevich, Prather, Wiseman, Ward and Fitzwater voted against the proposal, while council members Hensley, Schreiber, Hussey and Kemna voted in favor.
Residents expressed stormwater concerns during the Planning and Zoning Commission last month. The properties would be at a lower grade and stormwater would be directed toward Shermans Hollow, said project consultant Patrick Kremer, with Central Missouri Professional Services.
While the West Point Homeowners Association is not opposed to rental properties in the area, association secretary Roger Weis said, it does not approve of rental properties being integrated in with residential home owners.
The Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval of the project previously.
The City Council unanimously approved several JeffTran fixed route reconfigurations.
"We're looking forward to making these changes because we think these will make the system more accessible and better for our riders," Transit Division Director Mark Mehmert said. "That's our ultimate goal."
It will take some time to implement the new routes, Mehmert said, but he anticipated the changes would be in effect by the beginning of 2019.
The Missouri Boulevard route - or orange route - will now have portions of St. Mary's Boulevard and will not include two stops between Kansas and Delaware streets. Those two stops have been reassigned to the Southwest fixed route.
On the Southwest route - or blue route - there will be stops at multi-family units near Rolling Hills Road and Capital City High School. St. Mary's Hospital and The Salvation Army Thrift Store have also been reassigned to this route.
The route portion on West Stadium Boulevard, between Edgewood and West Edgewood drives, was eliminated. The Southwest route that previously served St. Mary's Boulevard was reassigned to the Missouri Boulevard route, and Southwest Boulevard to Stadium Boulevard was reassigned to the High Street East Route.
The High Street East route - or green route - now includes services along sections of El Dorado Drive, Southwest Boulevard and Christy Drive, which would include stops at Community Health Center of Central Missouri and Capital Region Center for Mental Health. It also removed a stop on East Elm Street, a stop on Bald Hill Road and two stops on Stadium Boulevard.
Portions of Eastland Drive that were serviced by High Street East have been reassigned to the Business 50 East route.
The only change to the Business 50 East route - or red route - is it removed the St. Louis Road on-call route.
The High Street West route - or yellow route - will now include stops at Pathways Community Behavioral, Memorial Park Aquatics Center, the Jefferson City Department of Corrections and Continental Commercial Products. The change also removed two stops along West Main Street and one stop on Jaycee Drive.
The Capital Mall route - or black route - will not service Old Lohman Road, Leandra Lane and areas closer to Westview Heights. The stop at St. Mary's Hospital was reassigned to the Southwest route.
These changes came more than a year after contractor Lochmueller Group suggested changing the JeffTran routes following a transportation system analysis.
The City Council also approved a resolution Monday declaring the Parks and Recreation Commission plans to reimburse certain expenditures for city parks improvements outlined in the parks master plan using the proceeds of tax-exempt bonds or lease purchase obligations.
The Parks and Recreation Commission approved sending the reimbursement resolution to the City Council last week.
While the resolution says the city would not exceed $15.4 million in bonds, Parks Director Todd Spalding said the Parks department hopes to receive $11 million in bonds.
The City Council heard a $282,013 contract with Mid-State Pipeline Maintenance LLC to conduct stormwater projects on Chickadee Road and Mesa Avenue. The stormwater pipes have "reached the end of their useful life" and are currently failing, according to the proposed bill.
The council will vote on the bill on Nov. 5.
Last year, the City Council approved $750,000 for additional stormwater crew members and stormwater projects. While $500,000 was earmarked for large stormwater projects - such as the two stormwater projects on Chickadee Road and Mesa Avenue - $250,000 went toward funding a three-person stormwater crew, equipment and supplies.
The council heard a $99,300 contract proposal with A.J. Lawncare LLC to provide cemetery maintenance at Longview Cemetery, at 204 Scott Station Road, and Old City/Woodland Cemetery, at 1000 E. McCarty St. The contract, if approved, would begin Dec. 1.
The council will vote on the bill on Nov. 5.
The City Council also approved an agreement with the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission in which the commission would provide $163,886 in consolidated planning grant funds for metropolitan transportation planning services in the Jefferson City urbanized area. The grant requires a 20 percent local match of $30,729 from Jefferson City and $10,243 from Cole County, bringing the total for the program up to $204,858.