Chamois aldermen at their meeting Tuesday, Sept. 14 discussed potential ways to spend the approximately $70,000 awarded to the city by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). 

The funds will be split, with half of the funds deposited within the next month or so and the remainder of the money awarded next year. Kelly Sink of the Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) explained acceptable uses for the money.

“Most everybody I’ve talked to hasn’t made any hard and fast decisions about what they’re going to do with the money,” Sink said.  “The funds are basically to help with COVID going forward, recovering from the pandemic and so on.”

Sink went on to explain that the city has until 2024 to use the funds but the timeline can be stretched until 2026 if the project is underway by 2024.

“You have a pretty big window to identify projects,” Sink said. “There isn’t a huge rush on this like last year.”

Mayor Elise Brochu and aldermen discussed a variety of ideas including classes to help area residents with financing and budget, rebates on utility bills, improvements to broadband, and a local food bank. 

Alderman Matt Shockley brought up using the money for street repairs.

“Streets are specifically something you cannot do,” Sink said.

The item that aldermen seemed most enthusiastic about was in replacing all the city’s water meters with automatic meters. The city had originally hoped to make that part of the upcoming water project but it added up to more money than the city had to spend at the time.  

Utilities Supervisor Danny Kirsch will check with engineers and get an estimate on added automatic water meters to the water project using the ARPA funds. Sink noted that any improvements for water and sewer for the city would be an allowed use for the funds.

Sink provided aldermen with a proposal sheet that outlines eligible activities and expenditure categories to track and outline any projects for which the aldermen may want to use the funds. Sink noted that the first report on the ARPA funds must be made by Oct. 31 and then annually after that. The city has set up a separate account for ARPA funds so that the money will be easier to track. Sink noted that the account can be an interest-bearing account and that the interest is not encumbered and can be put into the general account.

In other business, the city’s property tax will remain the same at 5.774% for the upcoming year. The rate is already at the maximum rate allowed without a vote by the citizens of Chamois. 

* Aldermen decided there will be no adjustments made to any water bill unless a meter reading is taken before and after and the city is informed before the water is used. The issue seems to come up at every meeting that residents want credit for filling their pool or power washing their house but call after the water has already been used. City Clerk Michelle Stanley will put a notice in each bill this month that this is the new procedure.

* City residents will see a slight rate increase in their water bills in January. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has raised the primacy fee for the coming year. The fee was $3.24 per year for each water meter. The new rate will be $5.28 per year. The city bills this fee to residents as a monthly charge.

* The city received $128.03 from a case that was taken to court in which a city resident turned on the water after the city had turned the utilities off because they were not being paid. Charges were dropped after the resident paid for the water that had been stolen. This case happened before the city imposed a $1,000 fine for reconnecting the water after it was shut off by city officials.

* The city of Chamois officially owns the property at 321 East Missouri.  Someone had bought the property on the courthouse steps and donated the property back to the city. The property currently has an abandoned two-story building on it. Kirsch will be getting bids from area businesses to tear down the building so that it is no longer a public hazard.

* Brochu and Alderman Jeffrey Connor will be attending a board training seminar on Oct. 28. Brochu noted any of the other aldermen are welcome to attend.

* Aldermen approved outstanding bills for $8,961.17.

* Chamois has the following account balances: cemetery ($10,206.17), city cemetery ($19,916.69), city park ($2,251.59), general fund ($68,575.03), meter deposits ($21,724.43), sewer ($32,407.07), sewer bond reserve ($26,583.78), sewer repair ($6,902.62), water ($145,761.62), and water repair ($28,851.78).

* The city holds five certificates of deposit totaling $12,066.90.

* The next meeting is scheduled for Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.