Shipping container issue resolved at Ash Grove aldermen meeting

During the Ash Grove Board of Aldermen meeting on Monday, Aug. 1, Alderman Brian Welch took issue with an Ash Grove resident having a shipping container in her yard. During the board’s meeting on Monday, Aug. 15, it appears that issue was resolved.
During the meeting’s study session, Welch and Christy Owens discussed whether she had a valid permit for the shipping container in her yard. The permit was produced, and it appeared that it was, in fact, valid. Welch apologized to Owens. Later, he said he had misunderstood the legal definition of a “temporary building,” which was the source of his objection to the storage container.
"I guess we found out the definition of a ‘temporary building’ means ‘accessory building,’ so my argument was wrong,” he said.

Board to accept new waste removal fees from WCA
During the regular meeting, the board voted to accept new fees for waste removal service from WCA after their current contract with the city expires on Sept. 1 of this year. Max Murray, who represented WCA, said the new contract would have an increase in rates for some services, due to a 13.1-percent increase in the Consumer Price Index.
Under the new contract, regular services would increase from $10.13 per month to $12.13 per month, senior services would increase from $9.12 per month to $10.99 per month, and the cost of additional carts would increase from $5 per month to $7 per month. There would continue to be a five-percent energy surcharge as long as diesel costs more than $5 per gallon, and the city would continue to receive free municipal service, free recycling service and free community event service.
The board also voted to sign a contract with the Greene County Office of Emergency Management (OEM). Under the agreement, the OEM will provide the city with a host of services, including the development and maintenance of pre-disaster emergency management plans and training, write and coordinate a Local Emergency Operations Plan (LEOP), and coordinate the LEOP with state and federal agencies, among other services.

Speed limit in school zones to be 20 miles-per-hour
Additionally, the board passed an ordinance limiting the speed limit to 20 miles per hour in established school zones on the day that school is in session. The school zones are: Prairie Lane between 507 E. Prairie Lane to 614 E. Prairie Lane, Walker Street between 501 E. Walker Street to Maple Lane and Maple Lane Street from Wells Street to Prairie Lane.
The ordinance also authorized the purchase and placement of signage to designate the school zones and speed zones. The ordinance went into effect when the signs were put in place.

In other business
The board also voted to accept a bid by Top Shelf Tree Care, LLC to remove a damaged tree on Webster Ave. for $1,650, provided they produce proof of insurance, and voted to set a date for a public hearing for the 2022 Tax Levy. The hearing will be held on Monday, Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. The board then voted to hold a special meeting following the tax levy hearing to accept the 2022 Tax Levy and decided to hold their next regular meeting on Aug. 29 as the first Monday in September will be Labor Day.
The board also voted to approve of the destruction of public records which had met their retention schedule, approved a change of street light service at College and Crestview and the 200 block of Calhoun, approved the purchase of a replacement cutter and jetter head for a sewer machine for a total cost of $1,600, and voted to set the starting wage for the new code abatement official at $17.50 per hour.

Coble, Robinson accuse Jones of lying
In the Interested Parties portion of the meeting, the board heard from Dolores Coble and Alecia Robinson, both of whom brought complaints against Alderman Jackson Jones. Coble said Jones had been “spreading lies about me and my business, Mama Loca’s Café.” Robinson said Jones had made a false statement about her regarding her brother, Andy Robinson in the days leading up to the election on Tuesday, Aug. 2 (Andy Robinson had urged Ash Grove voters to vote against Proposition Fire; Jones is on the board of the Ash Grove Fire Protection District). Robinson accused Jones of saying of her brother, “His sister even thinks he’s an idiot.”
Robinson claimed that Jones had “violated (his) oath of office,” and asked the board to remove Jones as a board member. However, City Attorney Mel Gilbert said Jones’s statements did not rise to the level of impeachment and said anyone who wanted to see a board member replaced should run for the office themselves at the next election. Jones made no comment in response to Coble or Robinson.