CHAMOIS — Water leaks, preparations for winter weather, and a possible partnership with State Technical College of Missouri were among the items discussed by the Chamois Board of Aldermen at its Wednesday, Oct. 28, meeting.

The board unanimously authorized Ralph “Rube” Cramer to contact State Tech about having students work on the city’s generator. Mayor Shawn Mitchem said Cramer had approached him about the possibility of involving the college and wanted to discuss the proposal with both the city and the fire department.

Alderman Justin (Jay) Bathke said the arrangement could provide students with experience while helping the city address upkeep on the generator. Mitchem said his understanding of Cramer’s proposal was that the city would pay for parts, without a charge for labor.

Alderman Darrell Chrisenberry said State Tech had performed similar work on equipment for the sheriff’s office. Bathke made the motion authorizing Cramer to contact the college, with Chrisenberry seconding.

• Water system issues remained a recurring topic throughout the meeting, including an unresolved leak near Morton’s Funeral Home and difficulty locating the property’s water meter and shutoff.

Mitchem said the property was being sold, and he had spoken with the new owner about access to the building and could arrange for someone to open it when Aaron Lachowicz of Mid MO Operations was available to investigate. Bathke said two water mains run along different sides of the building, and they had not determined where the leaking water originated.

Bathke said he and Lachowicz had searched in the gravel without locating the meter. He also said he had been unable to find it when he previously worked in maintenance.

City Clerk Meghan Birmingham said maps do not show some of the shutoffs.

• Birmingham said drainage ditch planning also remained pending because meter repairs and other work had taken priority.

• Later in the meeting, Birmingham corrected the water usage figure in her report to 1,066,300 gallons. She reported 215,000 gallons of unbilled water used for flushing and other activities, including the Chamois Day water fight, and a water loss figure of 26%.

Mitchem said repairs had been made in the men’s restroom at the park, but the metal toilet and drinking fountain were still leaking. Birmingham said Lachowicz was continuing to look for a leak and had explained that an underground leak can be difficult to locate until water surfaces.

• The board also discussed notification problems associated with the previous smoke test after residents complained about smoke entering their basements.

Mitchem said the city had notified dispatch, but the notice had not been broadcast. “I had a nice little talk with (911 Director Ron Hoffman), and I said, ‘You want us to sign up for Smart 911, but yet when we call, where’s it going?’” Mitchem recounted.

He said Hoffman attributed the mistake to a new employee, but apologized, accepted responsibility for the missed notification, and provided his cell phone number so the city could contact him directly before future tests. (In later conversation, Hoffman said the dispatcher was experienced, but had not understood Mitchem wanted the information disseminated via Smart911.)

Bathke recommended notifying residents a week before the next test and issuing a reminder the day of testing. He suggested using the city’s website, posted notices, and Smart911 to reach residents, including those who do not use Facebook.

Birmingham said Lachowicz was still developing a plan for the smoke testing work and looking at how other cities handle responsibility for repairs.

• With winter approaching, aldermen agreed to postpone work on the city’s zero-turn mower until spring and focus on the snowplow and salt spreader.

Mitchem said the mower was backfiring, and Bathke said it was losing power and not cutting properly. Bathke said a mechanic had previously been unable to reproduce the problem. The board unanimously approved his motion to wait until spring for the work, with Alderman Dylan Barnes seconding.

• The city also needs additional road salt. Mitchem estimated approximately seven bags remained, and the board tabled the item pending pricing from Mike Nolting.

• Bathke said Mike Jones could weld a crack in the snowplow blade, but he still needed to arrange the repair. Board members also discussed having Jones inspect the salt spreader, including its rusted mounting bracket. The snowplow item was tabled pending further arrangements.

• A proposal to place some city bills on automatic payment was also tabled until aldermen could review a list of accounts.

Birmingham said former Treasurer Theresa Walter had requested the agenda item before leaving and wanted the board to identify which bills should be paid automatically.

Mitchem said checks that had gone missing resulted in additional costs, including $30 stop-payment fees. Birmingham identified electric bills and Republic Services as accounts to consider, although she said automatic payment availability would need to be checked.

Bathke requested a list so aldermen could decide which accounts to authorize at the next meeting.

• The board also postponed a decision on mileage reimbursement for Police Chief Riley Lewis, who was not present.

Birmingham said Lewis provides his own vehicle and equipment and had asked the cities he serves to reimburse mileage as fuel costs rise.

Chrisenberry said the board needed to clarify whether the request covered travel to and from Chamois, patrol mileage, or both, and obtain an average of the miles involved. Aldermen discussed a reimbursement cap and the possibility of providing fuel through an account with a monthly limit.

The board unanimously tabled the request until members could discuss it with Lewis.

• In other business, aldermen approved publication of an election advertisement and submission of insurance renewal information to obtain rates. Birmingham said the insurance paperwork was due Nov. 1, while current coverage expires Jan. 1.

• Chrisenberry said a donation would cover replacement of Birmingham’s failed printer and asked her to rank the three options she had identified.

• Bathke said he still needed to prepare a list of buildings for consideration under the city’s condemnation process.

• Birmingham said information requested for the bandstand renovation had not yet been received from the historical society.

• Work on the restroom doors remained pending while Alderman Mercedes Durham’s grandparents attended to family matters.

• The board tabled sidewalk discussions to give Birmingham additional time to research other cities’ practices and existing ordinances.

• Chrisenberry said law enforcement has been seeing recurring threats of school violence from students and urged residents to report such statements promptly, including those made in conversation or text messages.

He said threats investigated so far had been unfounded, but guns had been found on school property. He said the issues involved both high school students and State Tech.

“If a kid says that, or puts it in a text message, or somebody sends it to you. Please, for the love of God, get it to the cops as soon as possible,” Chrisenberry said.

• The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 25, at 6:30 p.m.

FINANCIAL

• The end-of-month bank balances for October showed a total of $591,256.14 (+$529.37) in checking, including General Fund: $60,856.76 (-$4,509.78 from previous month), City CDBG In & Out: $10.00, City Park: $2,173.11 (+$465.00), Cemetery Fund: $2,638.89, ARPA Funds: $12,084.78 (-$5,215.39), Water Fund: $290,487.91 (+$1,647.34), Sewer Fund: $123,939.97 (+$1,179.11), City Police: $1,240.75, Online Bill Pay: $52,864.45 (+$5,315.16), and Street: $44,959.52 (+$1,647.93).

Savings account balances totaled $103,965.76 (+$555.57), including Sewer Bond Reserve: $24,810.01 (+$15.62), City Cemetery: $20,949.30 (+$13.17), Water Repair: $30,268.37 (+$19.06), Meter Deposits: $20,959.10 (+$504.20), and Sewer Repair: $6,978.98 (+$3.52).

CDs totaled $12,342.93 (+$1,483.67), including one-year CDs: $2,138.44 and $1,483.67, and two-year CDs: $2,520.82, $5,200.00, and $1,000.00.

• Bills totaling $15,076.55 were approved for October.

• County Aid Road Trust (CART) distribution received from the state of Missouri for the month of September was $2,047.73 (-$8.84), including Motor Fuel Tax: $1,466.97 (-$32.11), Motor Vehicle Sales Tax: $427.78 (+$9.66), and Motor Vehicle Fee Increases: $152.98 (+$13.61).

• Other taxes collected for September totaled $6,021.65 (+$1,310.74), including Franchise Tax: $2,640.29 (-$167.58), Sales Tax: $3,378.75 (+$1,870.14), and Property Tax: $2.61 (-$391.82).

• For the period of Sep. 22–Oct 19, the city sold $8,435.45 in water, $8,562.50 in sewer services, and $4,015.00 in trash services. It collected a total of $16,712.38 and issued $195.00 in credits, resulting in a collection rate of 79.71% compared to current charges and leaving a balance due of $18,584.96. The report showed 204 residential accounts and 12 commercial accounts.

• The city reported 1,066,300 gallons pumped for the month of September, with 575,500 gallons sold and 215,000 gallons flushed, resulting in water loss of 275,800 gallons (down 300,180 gallons from the previous month), or 25.87%.