Excelsior Springs City Council: March 21, 2022

Summary of the Excelsior Springs City Council meeting from March 21, 2022.

Casa Di Vite located at 216 Spring Street was granted a 353 redevelopment agreement, allowing the owners to offset some of the renovation expenses through abatement of personal property taxes. According to the mo.gov website “Cities with Urban Redevelopment Corporations can access this incentive to help redevelop blighted areas by abating some or all of the property taxes for up to 25 years.”

The City entered into an agreement with Pullman SST, Inc. for the Hall of Waters SAT Grant Repair Project addressing some of the pressing structural issues facing the Hall. See our previous article on those structural issues here.

Melinda Mehaffy, Economic Development Director for the City of Excelsior Springs presented the annual report for the Community Development Department, highlighting the progress being made in the City. See her presentation below, or by watching the video.

Nate Conyers gave the Annual update on City’s MS4 Storm Water Program. Read the full report below.

A resolution was made to consider withdrawal from MPR Coverage Pool in order to prepare to take new bids for service. In her letter to the council, City Manager, Molly McGovern said “We are very pleased with the services we receive from Midwest Public Risk and are seeking a new proposal from them to remain in the group, in addition to seeking quotes from MO Perm, a similar group providing services to municipal governments and private insurers. This resolution is intended to meet MPR bylaw stipulations to provide 90-day advance notice that the City is considering alternate service providers for the benefit year that begins July 1st.”

Approval was given for the purchase of a replacement irrigation pump for the city-owned golf course. In their letter to the council course officials stated, “It has been determined that the pump station’s Variable Frequency Drive has burned out and is in need of replacement. Without it, the station cannot operate and we are unable to irrigate the golf course. The Flotronix station, built in the early 1990s, is no longer supported and parts are extremely hard to come by.” The contract to replace the pump station was awarded to Presley Solutions at a cost of $38,073 by a unanimous council vote.

Approval was given to Police Chief Dull for the purchase of portable narcotics analysis equipment at a cost of $27,349.64. In his letter, Chief Dull stated:

The TruNarc Handheld Narcotics Analyzer tests for almost 500 substances, including narcotics, stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens, analgesics, precursors and cutting agents. Notably, the TruNarc device allows potentially dangerous substances to be tested without direct contact. Additionally, the TruNarc device has been recognized by Missouri’s courts as being a presumptive test for evidentiary purposes. Currently, the department utilizes the Missouri Highway Patrol’s Crime Lab for testing suspected narcotics, with a usual turnaround time of approximately eight months or more, whereas the TruNarc device delivers real-time results. The TruNarc device would greatly enhance the department’s ability to investigate narcotics activity and swiftly file felony cases at the circuit court level.

Chief Dull and Melinda Mehaffy, following scheduled maintenance protocol, asked separately for permission to destroy old records that were past the date of requirements to hold said documents. Permission for both requests was approved unanimously.

Excelsior Springs City Council Meetings are normally held on the first and third Monday of each month at 6:00 PM. Meetings are streamed courtesy of the Excelsior Citizen on our Facebook Group, Facebook Page, YouTube Channel, and at ExcelsiorCitizen.com.