Board of Aldermen Meeting and Finance & Administration Committee

Meeting Agenda

Finance & Administration Committee Meeting Notice

The Ballwin Board of Aldermen Finance & Administration Committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, February 23, prior to the Board meeting at the Donald “Red” Loehr Police and Court Center at 300 Park Drive, to discuss reinstituting the local bid preference.  No official action will be taken at this meeting. 

This meeting and all other meetings are open to the public and the building is handicapped accessible.

Robert Kuntz, City Administrator

Residents of Ballwin are afforded an equal opportunity to participate in the programs and services of the City of Ballwin regardless of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, familial status, national origin or political affiliation.  If you are a person requiring an accommodation, please call (636) 227-8580 (V) or (636) 527-9200 (TDD) or 1-800-735-2966 (Relay Missouri) no later than 5:00 P.M. on the third business day preceding the hearing.  Offices are open between 8:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. Monday through Friday.

Meeting Agenda

Meeting Minutes

MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN MEETING
CITY OF BALLWIN – 300 PARK DRIVE
February 23, 2009

The meeting was called to order by Mayor Young at 7:00 p.m.

             PRESENT                                               ABSENT
MAYOR WALT YOUNG 
ALDERMAN TIM POGUE 
ALDERMAN JIMMY TERBROCK 
ALDERMAN KEN BUERMANN 
ALDERMAN JANE SUOZZI 
ALDERMAN JAMES ROBINSON 
ALDERMAN FRANK FLEMING 
ALDERMAN RAY LEMBKE 
ALDERMAN RICHARD BOERNER 
CITY ADMINISTRATOR ROBERT KUNTZ 
CITY ATTORNEY ROBERT E. JONES 

The Pledge of Allegiance was given.

MINUTES

The Minutes of the February 9 Public Health & Safety Committee meeting were submitted for approval.  A motion was made by Alderman Pogue and seconded by Alderman Buermann to approve the Minutes.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.

The Minutes of the February 9 Board of Aldermen meeting were submitted for approval.  A motion was made by Alderman Buermann and seconded by Alderman Robinson to approve the Minutes.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.

PRESENTATION

Proclamation:  Mayor Young presented a Proclamation in recognition of Ballwin resident Brigadier General David Irwin for his outstanding accomplishments in military service which began in 1982.  Mr. Irwin has held command leadership positions of increasing responsibility from section leader through command of the 129th Field Artillery Battalion and the 70th Troop Command.  His most recent position has been as Director of Operations and Planning, Joint Force Headquarter, Missouri National Guard. 

TIF Report:  Laura Radcliff, with Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, provided an analysis and status report on the TIF funding obligations with respect to Olde Towne Plaza.  Ms. Radcliff said that the bonds currently available are trading at a rate below par.  She suggested refunding the bonds to free up municipal revenue and eliminate the possibility of inability to pay the bonds with lower than expected revenues.  The existing bond holders could be offered to buy back their bonds with a rate that is higher than the current price but below par.  A smaller bond issue could be used to take in all of the old bonds.  In order to get the interest rate down, it would require guaranteed annual appropriation by the city, with a limit on the maximum payable. 

City Administrator Kuntz said that the municipal revenue participation is presently capped.  If the annual receipts do not meet debt requirements, the City is obligated to make a supplemental appropriation of up to a stipulated percentage or $250,000, whichever is less.  He said that Ballwin’s bond contributions are covered for 2009.  Under a refinance, there would not be a cap.  With any shortfall between the debt payment and the amount of revenue, the city would be responsible.  He said that this would be an unwelcome situation for the city. 

Mrs. Radcliff said that if a bond issue is offered at lower interest rates, this will bring down the payment and there are safeguards in place so that the city should not have to dip into the general funds. 

Alderman Boerner asked, although there would not be an obligation to pay more than $250,000, this could tarnish the city’s financial reputation if we did not make up the difference.  City Administrator Kuntz said that in the opinion of the bond holder, this could happen. 

Alderman Terbrock said that approximately $2 million would be saved. 

Mayor Young said that the length of leases of these stores should be considered.  If a major store is lost, the city could be responsible for the entire amount. 

Alderman Boerner asked about Ballwin’s security in the property.  Mrs. Radcliff said there is no security in the property.  City Administrator Kuntz said that Ballwin is not responsible for the difference and has no security in the property. 

City Administrator Kuntz said that the choices are to either maintain the current legal agreement with a cap on our obligations, or to restructure and take away some of the exposure cap, in exchange for the potential of favorable terms on principal and the amount outstanding. 

Alderman Terbrock asked what Mrs. Radcliff recommends.  Mrs. Radcliff said that if the terms of the leases are as she remembers, she recommends this.  If anything has changed, this would be questionable.

Alderman Robinson asked if there is an insurance product that might cover risks in the event of a catastrophic event.  Mrs. Radcliff said there is but the cost is very expensive.  City Administrator Kuntz said that this is more favorable for a natural disaster interruption.  He said there isn’t a sales tax decline policy. 

PENDING ISSUES
None.

CITIZEN COMMENTS

Lynn Goetz, 504 Kenilworth Lane:  Mr. Goetz said he believes that permit fees are too high for the city to benefit from construction rehabbing. 

PUBLIC HEARINGS
None.

NEW BUSINESS

LEGISLATION

BILL # 3563 - AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CITY OF BALLWIN TO NOTIFY ST. LOUIS COUNTY OF TERMINATION OF THE AGREEMENT TO PROVIDE ELECTRICAL CODE ADMINISTRATION.

A motion was made by Alderman Buermann and seconded by Alderman Lembke for a first reading of Bill No. 3563.   A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.  Bill No. 3563 was read for the first time.

A motion was made by Alderman Suozzi and seconded by Alderman Pogue for a second reading of Bill No. 3563.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.  Bill No. 3563 was read for the second time.

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3563 with the following results: 
Ayes – Fleming, Pogue, Lembke, Buermann, Boerner, Robinson, Suozzi, Terbrock.  Nays – None.  Bill No. 3563 was approved and became Ordinance No. 09- 06.

BILL # 3564 - AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ARTICLE III, SECTION 7-42 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF BALLWIN WITH RESPECT TO REPEAL OF ADOPTION OF THE ST. LOUIS COUNTY ELECTRICAL CODE AND ADDING A NEW SECTION 7-46 ADOPTING THE 2008 NATIONAL ELECTRICAL CODE AND PERMIT FEES THEREUNDER.

A motion was made by Alderman Terbrock and seconded by Alderman Lembke for a first reading of Bill No. 3564.   A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.  Bill No. 3564 was read for the first time.

Alderman Pogue asked about the County licensing and requirements.  City Attorney Jones said that he reviewed the St. Louis County Electrical Code (Chapter 1102).  He said there is a comprehensive set of requirements regarding licensing of electricians and various electrical services.  That code is applicable to persons performing electrical services throughout the entire county, regardless if it is in the unincorporated portion or municipalities.  He said that St. Louis County is empowered by State code to license and require licenses of electricians.  He said the County Code is fashioned after the National Electrical Code.  The County requirement will still apply to those who do electrical work in Ballwin.

A motion was made by Alderman Suozzi and seconded by Alderman Lembke for a second reading of Bill No. 3564.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.  Bill No. 3564 was read for the second time.

A roll call was taken for passage and approval of Bill No. 3564 with the following results: 
Ayes – Robinson, Boerner, Lembke, Pogue, Suozzi, Terbrock, Buermann, Fleming.  Nays – None.  Bill No. 3564 was approved and became Ordinance No. 09-07.

Alderman Lembke said that although this legislation is not changing the fee structure, it is an attempt by the Board to make it easier for people to do remodels and schedule electrical inspections. 

CONSENT ITEMS:  (Budgeted items which are low bid and do not exceed expenditure estimates and/or items which have been previously approved in concept.)

A. Fitness Equipment
B. Telephone System Upgrade

A motion was made by Alderman Robinson and seconded by Alderman Pogue to accept the Consent Items.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.

MAYOR’S REPORT
None.

CITY ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT

Government Center Ramp:  City Administrator Kuntz said that there is a required change in the design of the ramp, which is lining up the entrance stairway with an existing beam.  This must be done to complete the project.  He requested a motion to proceed with the change up to $14,000. 

Alderman Pogue said that this is the second incident of errors regarding this architect.  He said the last error cost us in excess of $50,000 wherein he designed piers that could not be used.  He performed this work at no additional charge.  He asked if restitution is possible for these costs.  He said this has cost the City $60,000 due to his errors. 

City Attorney Jones said that since this is not a design-build contract, restitution would probably not be possible.  He said he can review the contract. 

Alderman Terbrock said that we paid the architect $50,000 basically for nothing that worked.  Alderman Boerner asked would the $14,000 for the additional change order been incurred if the design had been done correctly the first time.  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said that this work would have to be done.  It may cost more to have this done as a change order than if it had been included in the original plan.  Alderman Terbrock said that there is a change order fee.  The price to do this work will be inflated because the work must be done.  If this would have been on the original plan, it would have been substantially cheaper to complete this portion of the work. 

Alderman Lembke asked if this was an oversight by the architect.  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said yes.  It could not be built the way he originally designed it. 

Alderman Pogue said that we picked this architect because he initially designed the building.  How did he miss a beam that he designed? 

A motion was made by Alderman Fleming and seconded by Alderman Terbrock to approve the change order. 

Alderman Robinson questioned the available options.  City Administrator Kuntz said that the architect is not building the project.  He said the contractor is asking for the money because he has started the demolition and wants to know where the stairs will be reconstructed.  There is a change in the plan as to the exact location.  Alderman Robinson said that an option could be to negotiate the price of the change order.  He said that a change order fee is usually involved when the owner requests a change or there is an unforeseen obstacle that must be dealt with.  A change order fee is not extra work, it’s an administrative fee. 

Tom Wright, Wright Construction Company, said that the standard AIA construction contract has three options regarding changes.  A change can be made on unit price, lump sum, or time and material.  He said that the best value is to do the work on a time and material basis.  You will only pay for the cost that are expended plus whatever fee he is tied to in the contract.  He said there are several elements in the project that are potential change issues, which are concrete, canopy, and glazer.  He said that the change is not going to be more than $14,000, and probably not more than $10,000.  The three items are part of the bid.

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

Plan Review Fees:  City Administrator Kuntz said this is a proposal to draft legislation to enable the City to hire a private company to do plan review and pass the cost for complicated commercial building permit applications and plan reviews to a proposing agency.  This will not be a mandatory pass-through, but in instances where staff was unable to conduct a plan review, it will establish a fee schedule that will be imposed on the petitioner on the front end to incur those expenses on our behalf. 

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Pogue to draft legislation as proposed.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.

Recreation Fee Refund:  City Administrator Kuntz said this is regarding a recreation fee refund that was set out in legislation with the developer of Coachlight Subdivision, in exchange for certain improvements on City property.  The obligations have been fulfilled with the exception of some dead vegetation, the value of which will be deducted from the payment.  A motion is requested to release the escrow funds to Coachlight.

A motion was made by Alderman Suozzi and seconded by Alderman Pogue to release the recreation fee as proposed.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.

Kehrs Mill Funding:  City Administrator Kuntz said this is regarding submission of an application for a Federal Grant to upgrade and resurface Kehrs Mill Road.  He said this is a secondary option in the event the Stimulus application is not successful.  There are other programs being pursued by City Engineer Kramer.  This will remove the $1.3 million project which extends through three wards out of street appropriations so that it can go into the subdivisions and not have to be the only project for the year.  He said the application fee is $6,000, which is refundable if we are unsuccessful with the process.

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Buermann to authorize the application and pay the application fee.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.

Street Improvements:  City Administrator Kuntz said that bids were solicited for all aspects of our 2009 program.  Although much of this work is interrelated, separate contracts were solicited to encourage competition and cost effectiveness.  This year, the process was further complicated due to the volatility of petroleum prices.  Last year the contractor would only honor the price until July 1.  Some of the neighboring communities found that they were argued out of their unit prices because they wouldn’t guarantee them for an extended period.  A contingency plan is in place if this happens.  It is recommended that all contracts be awarded on a unit price basis to provide us with flexibility in dealing with variables such as additional slab replacements.  Surplus would be applied to crack sealing, although we reserve the right to expand the scope of other aspects to address additional street work.

Alderman Boerner asked if the volume is large enough to hedge our position on this with the price of crude since the price of asphalt is low.  City Engineer Kramer said that there is a small percentage of asphalt in oil products.  There is a formula to decrease the price of asphalt.  He said that it can’t be known today if the summer price will be up or down.  He said the price went up 50% last year.  It is believed that the price of asphalt will go down.  If it goes up, the contractor is still protected.  It is also recommended that Options 1 and 2 be included for the repairs to Warner Court and Clayheath.

A motion was made by Alderman Lembke and seconded by Alderman Buermann to award the packages recommended by the City Engineer for the seven contracts, with options 1 and 2 to include Warner Court and Clayheath. 

Alderman Boerner asked about the condition of Warner Court and Clayheath.  City Engineer Kramer said that Clayheath had a score of 4 out of 10.  Warner Court’s score was 3 out of 10. 

A voice vote was taken with 7 Aye votes, and Alderman Pogue voting Nay.  The motion passed by a vote of 7-1. 

Closed Session:  City Administrator Kuntz said there will be a closed session regarding personnel after adjournment of the open session.  The Board agreed.

CITY ATTORNEY’S REPORT
None.

ALDERMANIC COMMENTS

Speed Limit Policy:  Alderman Pogue said the Board has been provided with suggested changes to the Speed Limit Policy.  He said he would like to hold over discussion on the policy until the next Board meeting.

Alderman Pogue requested discussion regarding a personal matter at the closed session.

Code Infractions:  Alderman Fleming said there is a repeat offender in Ward 3 who complies for a brief period of time.  He said the goal is compliance.  He suggested that if the offense is a second or third repeat violation, a summons should be sent.  This is more effective than a letter in the mailbox, and has been effective on repeat weed violations.  Assistant City Administrator Aiken asked for guidance in determining what constitutes a repeat offender.

Alderman Fleming asked if trash kept in bags is a violation.  Assistant City Administrator Aiken said that the code requires all trash to be kept in cans, but this is commonly and widely violated.  If we attempt to enforce that regulation there will be many people in violation.  He said that perhaps the code should be evaluated. 

City Administrator Kuntz said that some time ago, the Board was provided a memo outlining enforcement procedures and philosophies.  He said that many issues are not set as guidelines or through legislation.  It’s a matter of philosophy or approach.  Treating everyone on a complaint basis is essentially what the Board of Aldermen has directed up to this point.  The list can be provided again, what the procedures are, and suggested that various situations be considered.  The approach can be adjusted. 

Alderman Fleming suggested that this be discussed at the Aldermanic retreat.

Alderman Robinson said that when someone has a large number of bags either on the side or behind the house, or in the garage, the code should be enforced.  He said that someone who puts out one bag of trash on trash day for pickup is not a problem.  If a Ballwin inspector is driving down a street and sees a violation, this should not be ignored and wait for someone to complain.  The violation hurts the subdivision.  He suggested that code violations be dealt with immediately. 

Alderman Robinson suggested that a separate court docket be established for housing violations.  This allows the prosecutor, the judge, and code enforcement department to have a designated period of time when they can isolate the issues and be more constructive in the enforcement.  The code enforcement docket could be at 4:00 p.m.  This will allow our people to be present without coming back to a full court room with other issues such as traffic violations etc. 

City Administrator Kuntz said that he will give this suggestion to the prosecutor and judge.  He said that code violation issues do not come to the court on a regular basis.  There could be 2 or 3 months without any violations.  He said that there is a designated staff representative that attends municipal court.  This is a salaried employee so that there is not an overtime issue.  He said that more information will be provided in the near future.

Blood Drive:  Alderman Buermann thanked the Parks & Recreation Department for promoting the Blues Blood Drive at The Pointe. 

Battery Recycling Program:  Alderman Terbrock said that Alderman Lembke has implemented a battery recycling program, partnering with Batteries Plus.  He said that 114 pounds of batteries were collected in 1 ½ months.  Alderman Lembke said that our Parks & Recreation Department has set up a table at The Pointe for batteries. 

Finance & Administration Committee Meeting:  Alderman Suozzi reported that the Finance & Administration Committee met at 6:30 p.m. on this date.  The committee recommends that the Board consider reinstituting a local bid preference. 

A motion was made by Alderman Terbrock and seconded by Alderman Buermann to draft legislation to reinstitute the local bid preference, according to the order in City Administrator Kuntz’s memo.  A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion passed.

Adjourn to Closed Session:  A motion was made by Alderman Buermann and seconded by Alderman Robinson to adjourn to closed session to discuss personnel.  A roll call vote was taken with the following results:  Ayes:  Aldermen Buermann, Lembke, Pogue, Fleming, Suozzi, Robinson, Boerner, Terbrock.   Nays:  None.  The motion passed to adjourn to closed session at 8:23 p.m.

Closed Session:
The Board convened in closed session at 8:30 p.m.  The Board discussed the discharge appeal which was filed by former Plans Examiner Chaitn Doshi.

A motion was made by Alderman Robinson and seconded by Alderman Terbrock to deny the appeal.  A roll call vote was taken with the following result:  Ayes:  Aldermen Buermann, Lembke, Pogue, Fleming, Suozzi, Robinson, Boerner, Terbrock.  Nays:  None.  The motion passed with a unanimous vote and the appeal was denied.

A motion was made by Alderman Buermann and seconded by Alderman Pogue to adjourn the closed session.  A roll call vote was taken with a unanimous result, and the closed session was adjourned at 9:15 p.m.

The Board reconvened in open session at 9:16 p.m.

Adjourn:  A motion was made by Alderman Buermann and seconded by Alderman Suozzi to adjourn the open session.  The motion passed unanimously and the meeting was adjourned at 9:17 p.m.

WALTER S. YOUNG, MAYOR

ATTEST:
ROBERT A. KUNTZ, CITY ADMINISTRATOR

MC