The meeting was called to order by Mayor Jones at 7:06 p.m. 

The Pledge of Allegiance was given. 

The Minutes of the August 25, 2003 Board of Aldermen meeting were submitted for approval.  A motion was made by Alderman Anderson and seconded by Alderman Buermann to approve the Minutes.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed. 

None. 

CITIZEN COMMENTS 

John Dames, Reinke Road:  Mr. Dames described damage and vandalism that has been frequently happening to his property including the mail box being knocked down, and two house windows shot out with a BB gun.  Previously he observed a car full of apparently drunk kids verbally harassing a woman walking along the road.  She didn’t know them.  When he called the Police, he was told that was a minor incident and there’s nothing that could be done about it.  The last shooting incident was 2 weeks ago and it was reported to the Police.  The community as a whole suffers when these incidents are not taken seriously.  He said other neighbors have experienced their mail boxes being knocked down and other vandalism. 

Steve Lekitch, 1035 Camargo:  Mr. Lekitch requested that repeat offenders of yard maintenance and the housing code be given more strict penalties in an attempt to get them to comply.  He said a Chesterfield ordinance explains a repeat violator as follows:  “In all cases where the violation of public or private property is a repeat or continued offense on such property after the expiration of the time period set out in Section E, which is the initial violation of the warning period, the warning notice provision of this section need not be observed.  Each day a violation continues after the expiration of the warning period to abate such violation shall constitute as a separate offense.”  He suggested that this definition be considered for Ballwin’s use.  The current ordinances are ineffective because they are not discouraging the repeat violators. 

BILL # 3250 - AN ORDINANCE GRANTING AN AMENDMENT TO THE SITE DEVELOPMENT PLAN, APPROVED VIA ORDINANCE NO. 1807 PASSED ON APRIL 14, 1986, TO DICK DEAN ECONOMY CARS FOR A SPECIAL USE EXCEPTION FOR FRONT YARD PARKING AND THE OUTDOOR DISPLAY AND STORAGE OF MOTOR VEHICLES. 

Mayor Jones said that this bill had a first reading at the last Board of Aldermen meeting on August 25.  The legislation was held over because there was no representative present from Dick Dean Economy Cars to answer questions from the Board. 

Alderman Gatton pointed out that vehicles are being parked on the sidewalk along Steamboat Lane.  This is a public sidewalk maintained by the City.  The sidewalk is being destroyed by vehicles parking on it.  The company has been asked not to do this, but it continues to happen.  Pat Dean said that the transporters have been told not to park on the sidewalk.  They are supposed to unload further up Steamboat Lane and then back up into the Bank’s parking lot or completely unload in the Bank parking lot.  Mr. Dean said he will send them a letter with instructions on where to unload the trucks.  He will also install parking ties to prevent the cars from driving over the sidewalk.  Customers park along and on the sidewalk.  He said he will also post signs if this will solve the problem.  Mayor Jones suggested that the Dean staff supervise the unloading of vehicles. 

Alderman Suozzi said she would like grass between the curb and the sidewalk.  This would be an extra barrier for the vehicles.  This was a requirement of the original Special Use Exception in 1987. 

Alderman McDowell said that residents have complained to the Aldermen about the sidewalk being blocked by parked cars.  The City is willing to help find a solution that will work.  Alderman Gatton said that if the blacktop is removed between the street and sidewalk and replaced with sod, this will help people to understand that this is a sidewalk and not a parking area. 

A motion was made by Alderman Gatton and seconded by Alderman Buermann for a second reading of Bill No. 3250.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3250 was read for the second time. 

Mayor Jones said that since this is a petition for a special use exception, to vote in favor of the petition, this Board has to determine that the petition would not substantially increase traffic hazards or congestion; would not adversely affect the character of the neighborhood; would not adversely affect the general welfare of the community; would not over‑tax public utilities; would not adversely affect public safety and health; is consistent with good planning practice; can be operated in a manner that is not detrimental to the permitted developments and uses in the District; and can be developed and operated in a manner that is visually compatible with the permitted uses in the surrounding area. 

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3250 with the following results:  Ayes – Lembke, Buermann, Suozzi, Easter, Anderson, McDowell, Gatton.    Nays – None.  Whereupon Mayor Jones declared Bill No. 3250 approved and it became Ordinance No. 03-45. 

BILL # 3251 - AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING A BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF BALLWIN AND ST. LOUIS COUNTY, MISSOURI . 

A motion was made by Alderman Gatton and seconded by Alderman Lembke for a first reading of Bill No. 3251.   A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3251 was read for the first time. 

A motion was made by Alderman Suozzi and seconded by Alderman Gatton for a second reading of Bill No. 3251.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3251 was read for the second time. 

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3251 with the following results:  Ayes – Suozzi, McDowell, Buermann, Lembke, Anderson, Gatton, Easter.   Nays – None.  Whereupon Mayor Jones declared Bill No. 3251 approved and it became Ordinance No. 03-46. 

BILL # 3252 - AN ORDINANCE ALLOWING THE MAYOR AND CHIEF OF POLICE OF THE CITY OF BALLWIN TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH THE ST. LOUIS COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT CONCERNING TEMPORARY ASSIGNMENTS OF CITY OFFICERS TO THE COUNTY BUREAU OF DRUG ENFORCEMENT. 

A motion was made by Alderman Anderson and seconded by Alderman Lembke for a first reading of Bill No. 3252.   A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3252 was read for the first time. 

Alderman Lembke said this is an annual renewal ordinance. 

A motion was made by Alderman Easter and seconded by Alderman Buermann for a second reading of Bill No. 3252.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3252 was read for the second time. 

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3252 with the following results:  Ayes – Easter, Suozzi, Anderson, McDowell, Lembke, Buermann, Gatton.    Nays – None.  Whereupon Mayor Jones declared Bill No. 3252 approved and it became Ordinance No. 03-47. 

BILL # 3253 - AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 2, SECTION 2-297, PROVIDING FOR THE REIMBURSEMENT OF COSTS WITH RESPECT TO CERTAIN SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE CITY OF BALLWIN. 

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Gatton for a first reading of Bill No. 3253.   A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3253 was read for the first time. 

A motion was made by Alderman Suozzi and seconded by Alderman Lembke for a second reading of Bill No. 3253.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3253 was read for the second time. 

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3253 with the following results:  Ayes –Suozzi, McDowell, Anderson, Easter, Buermann, Gatton, Lembke.    Nays – None.  Whereupon Mayor Jones declared Bill No. 3253 approved and it became Ordinance No. 03-48. 

BILL # 3254 - AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR THE VACATION OF A PORTION OF THE RIGHT OF WAY FOR RIES ROAD IN THE CITY OF BALLWIN. 

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Buermann for a first reading of Bill No. 3254.   A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3254 was read for the first time. 

A motion was made by Alderman Easter and seconded by Alderman Suozzi for a second reading of Bill No. 3254.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3254 was read for the second time. 

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3254 with the following results:  Ayes – Easter, Lembke, Suozzi, McDowell, Gatton, Buermann, Anderson.    Nays – None.  Whereupon Mayor Jones declared Bill No. 3254 approved and it became Ordinance No. 03-49. 

BILL # 3255 - AN ORDINANCE IN THE CITY OF BALLWIN, MISSOURI, TO READOPT ORDINANCE No. 02-48 WHICH ESTABLISHED A PROCEDURE TO DISCLOSE POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND SUBSTANTIAL INTEREST FOR CERTAIN MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS. 

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Buermann for a first reading of Bill No. 3255.   A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3255 was read for the first time. 

A motion was made by Alderman Buermann and seconded by Alderman Anderson for a second reading of Bill No. 3255.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.  Bill No. 3255 was read for the second time. 

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3255 with the following results:  Ayes –Buermann, Lembke, Anderson, McDowell, Gatton, Easter, Suozzi.    Nays – None.  Whereupon Mayor Jones declared Bill No. 3255 approved and it became Ordinance No. 03-50. 

A. Fire Hydrants

B. West Glen Village Parking

C. Manchester Dispatching

D. Soil Testing 

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Anderson to adopt the consent items.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed. 

Meeting Schedule:  Mayor Jones suggested the following meeting dates for Budget discussions:

October 27, 5:30 p.m., Capital Budget Workshop prior to the regular Board of Aldermen meeting;

November 10, 5:30 p.m., Operating Budget Workshop prior to the regular Board meeting;

November 24, 5:30 p.m., Final draft presentations (if necessary), prior to the regular Board meeting;

December 1, Planning & Zoning Commission Public Hearing – Capital Budget;

December 8, Adoption of both budgets at the regular Board of Aldermen meeting. 

December 9-13, National League of Cities Conference in Nashville, Tennessee. 

Mayor Jones suggested cancellation of the December 22 Board of Aldermen meeting.

A motion was made by Alderman Anderson and seconded by Alderman Gatton to cancel the December 22, 2003 Board of Aldermen meeting.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed. 

Midwest Waste:  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said that at the previous meeting the Midwest Waste representative stated that there would be a 15¢ per month increase in the fee because the State of Illinois had increased tipping fee taxes, and there was a provision in the agreement that allowed this to be passed on.  City Administrator Kuntz determined that this was incorrect.  Midwest Waste has the right to ask the City to allow the increase to be passed through to the residents.  They have decided not to do this at this time.  They may ask the City to consider this sometime after the first of the year.  There will not be an increase as had been announced at the previous meeting. 

Liquor Sales:  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said the State of Missouri recently amended the provisions of the sale of alcoholic beverages as it relates to the sale of package liquor on Sunday.  Presently package liquor cannot be sold until 11:00 a.m.  The new regulations allow local municipalities to allow package liquor sales starting at 9:00 a.m. on Sundays.  Ballwin’s ordinances currently do not allow this.  In order to adopt the change, it will require an amendment to the present alcoholic beverages code of the City of Ballwin.  There have been two inquiries from Ballwin businesses asking if the City was going to change the timeframe.  Ballwin is not required to amend its laws accordingly. 

Mayor Jones said the City should be consistent with State law. 

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Buermann to draft legislation for presentation and consideration at the next Board meeting to change the starting time from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. for Ballwin businesses to sell package liquor. 

Alderman McDowell said he is hesitant to change the ordinance just because someone else has made a change.  He doesn’t see a good reason for this change.  City Attorney Lucchesi said the reason to change the Ballwin ordinance is because most of the ordinances are in accordance with State law.  The issue is whether the Board wants to keep the ordinance in accordance with State law.  Alderman McDowell requested further in depth discussion before passing legislation.  Mayor Jones said that at this time, this is only a motion to draft legislation for consideration.  A discussion could be conducted when the ordinance is on the agenda for consideration. 

A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed. 

Outdoor Pool Use:  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said the Board recently made amendments to the City’s policy on the utilization of the outdoor swimming pool and other recreational facilities for employees.  The policy was adopted, and it was later discovered that in a separate section of the Policy Manual there is a provision that allows free use of the outdoor swimming pool by members of the Planning & Zoning and Board of Adjustment Commissions and their families.  Does the Board want the older policy to remain in effect as written? 

Alderman Easter and Mayor Jones agreed that these Commissions should not be entitled to anything more than the employees are entitled to.  Alderman McDowell said this is simply a courtesy and does not take anything away from the residents.  Director of Parks and Recreation Bruer read the policy in question from the Policy Manual as follows:  “The Mayor, Board of Aldermen, current members of the Planning & Zoning/Board of Adjustment, all full-time and part-time eligible employees of the City of Ballwin may utilize the outdoor pool during regular operating hours.”  She said this does not include the family members.  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said the question is should the family discounted rate be extended to the members of those boards and commissions in the same way as families of employees.  The new policy established several months ago did not include Planning & Zoning and Board of Adjustment at all. 

A motion was made by Alderman Easter and seconded by Alderman Gatton to remove the old policy and include Planning & Zoning and Board of Adjustment members in the new policy just like full-time employees which is complimentary use of all recreational facilities for the members, and families can use the facilities at a discounted rate.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed. 

Zoning Code Amendments:  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said this is an adjustment to the Zoning Code requirements in the R-4 district for recreational facilities.  The R-4 ordinance requires the provision of 15% of the site to be used in active recreational amenities.  There recently was an issue with Holloway Ridge Condominiums.  The people who bought the condos were not pleased with the recreational amenities that were originally approved for that development.  Currently R-4 is the only zoning district in Ballwin that still has this kind of requirement.  All single-family residential districts and the other multiple family district allows for the development of these types of living arrangements to pay a fee in lieu of providing recreational amenities on site.  The fee then goes into the recreational budget and is utilized for capital improvements for city-wide recreational facilities.  The current provisions date back to a time when Ballwin had few recreational facilities.  Since Ballwin now has extensive recreational facilities and programs, it makes sense to allow developments to make the contribution.  Most of the R-4 developments are small.  It is hard for them to have 15% of the site be used for recreational purposes.  Most developers don’t want to do this and would rather make the contribution.  He said if the Board is in agreement, he will take this matter to the Zoning Commission for its consideration.  He said this change would not prohibit developers from providing the recreational space; it would give them the option of paying the fee in lieu of the dedication.  The fee is based on a per-dwelling unit formula and varies from year to year depending on the recreation budget.  Generally it is approximately $1,800 - $1,900 per unit.  This is a one-time fee. 

Alderman Gatton agreed that all of the zoning classifications should be the same.  Ballwin has fantastic recreational facilities and it’s not necessary to ask property developers to provide these other facilities.

Assistant City Administrator Aiken said the next item deals with requests for remodeling of houses in which a separate living unit or an apartment is being created.  This is an accessory dwelling unit within the house.  When an accessory dwelling unit is put into a single-family house, it becomes a multiple family dwelling in a single-family residential district.  He recommended a new definition of “dwelling unit” that is a revamp of the current definitions that includes a list of specific facilities.  All of the listed facilities would have to be included in order for a space to be considered a separate dwelling unit.  A kitchen could be installed in the basement and not be considered a separate dwelling unit.  Most people are not intending to build a separate dwelling unit, therefore, they would have no problem eliminating one or more of the issues to prevent it from being a zoning code violation.  In the definition of “accessory dwelling” unit, it should be made clear that this is not an allowed use in the single family residential districts.  These should, however, be allowed in the commercial district by special use exception.  The zoning change portion would go to the Zoning Commission.  The definition section could be approved by the Board of Aldermen and would require an ordinance to do so.  Mayor Jones suggested presenting this to the Board as a unit instead of pieces.  The Board agreed that the Zoning Commission should review the portion that Mr. Aiken recommended.

None. 

Elmcrest Update:  Alderman Anderson requested that discussion on this item be postponed until Alderman Robinson is in attendance at the next meeting.  He said that progress is being made and that he and Alderman Robinson will need to meet with Director of Parks and Recreation Bruer and City Administrator Kuntz before the next meeting to make specific recommendations. 

Traffic Calming:  Alderman Gatton said that the traffic calming on West Glen Village Drive is going into place.  It’s not complete but is getting close. 

A motion was made by Alderman Easter and seconded by Alderman Buermann to adjourn.  The motion passed unanimously and the meeting was adjourned at 9:12 p.m.

MC