CHAMOIS — Chamois aldermen moved closer to formalizing a partnership with Friends of Chamois Cemetery (FCC) during their May 27 meeting, discussing a memorandum of understanding that could transfer most cemetery funds to the nonprofit organization while establishing long-term responsibilities for cemetery maintenance and improvements.

The discussion came on the heels of the successful Memorial Day cemetery re-dedication ceremony, which FCC President Michael Nolte said generated thank-you notes, emails, text messages, and favorable comments from attendees and donors.

Nolte thanked city officials, volunteers, and community members for their efforts in organizing the event, and said the group plans to continue restoration work throughout the summer. Upcoming projects include resetting damaged tombstones, installing additional improvements funded through private donations, and preparing for the organization’s first cemetery walk, scheduled for Oct. 4.

The proposed agreement would leave ownership of the cemeteries with the city while granting FCC authority to oversee maintenance, restoration projects, fundraising, cemetery mapping, record-keeping, and event coordination. The agreement would also give FCC responsibility for pricing and selling cemetery plots and custody of funds generated through those sales. The city would retain responsibility for maintenance of Crescent Road, which provides access to the cemeteries.

While the agreement addressed future plot-sale revenue and fundraising activities, aldermen spent much of the discussion debating how existing cemetery funds held by the city should be handled. A significant portion of the discussion focused on approximately $21,011.37 held in the city’s cemetery account and an additional $2,581.14 in the cemetery fund. At the suggestion of Alderman Darrell Chrisenberry, aldermen discussed transferring the larger account to FCC while retaining a smaller reserve for insurance costs and emergency repairs.

Aldermen Justin Bathke and Mercedes Durham said the financial provisions were the portion of the agreement still needing revision.

Nolte said the two concerns he had heard from city officials were what would happen if FCC ceased to exist and how future maintenance of Crescent Road would be handled if cemetery funds were transferred.

Aldermen said they wanted additional language added to the memorandum addressing what would happen if the nonprofit organization were ever dissolved. Several members supported including a provision requiring any remaining cemetery funds to revert to the city in that event.

“Thinking that there are eight of the 10 very active members of FCC, hopefully our actions speak louder than words in terms of commitment to this project,” Nolte said. “And none of us, I’ve heard, are planning to retire, after Monday. And all of us are deeply, or even more deeply, committed to staying on the board, and to helping to manage and improve the cemetery, so there’s no fear of that.

“The other thing I might say, joyfully, as President of FCC, I’ve had a chance to get to know every single one of you as individuals, and the rest of the board has not done that and not had that opportunity to do that,” Nolte continued. “And I’m saying to the board, ‘Don’t worry about building up trust between the city council and the FCC, these guys are solid.’ I mean, I think if FCC, if all of us just fell into a crack tonight, I think you guys would fill in those seats for FCC. The cemetery would never go back into the state of abandonment that has been.”

The proposed agreement does not currently include language describing how the city could terminate the arrangement if a future board determined it was no longer in the city’s interest.

Nolte said FCC also plans to pursue additional funding sources beyond existing cemetery funds and annual donations. “FCC is pretty committed to seeking endowments through the summer from companies,” he said, adding that the organization intends to continue cultivating relationships with major donors and demonstrating visible improvements at the cemetery.

Insurance requirements for future cemetery events also emerged as a concern. Treasurer Theresa Walter explained that the city was required to obtain event insurance for the Memorial Day ceremony and would need advance notice for future events in order to secure appropriate coverage and determine costs.

Nolte said FCC intends to continue hosting annual cemetery walks and is already looking ahead to the cemetery’s 200th anniversary in 2028. He said the organization’s goal is to continue improving the cemetery and attracting visitors to Chamois.

The board directed FCC to revise the memorandum to address insurance and fund reversion language before submitting it for review by the city attorney. Final action was tabled until a future meeting.

In a related action, the board approved spending up to $100 for an additional directional signage identifying the cemetery’s lower road as Lower Loop.

The board also approved a bid from local contractor Zach Strope to repair the city park grandstand after receiving two bids for the project. Mayor Shawn Mitchem said Strope’s proposal was slightly lower than a competing bid from Grayson Light because Strope proposed reducing the height of the structure by about one foot.

The city approved transferring $58,855.96 in American Rescue Plan Act funds to various city accounts to reimburse payroll-related expenses. According to Walter, the transfers included $55,743.63 to the general fund, $1,297.29 to the water fund, $1,350.75 to the sewer fund, $315.75 to the cemetery fund, and $90.79 to the park fund. More than $10,000 in ARPA funds remains available for payroll reimbursement before federal spending deadlines expire.

Mitchem also informed the board that local businessman Grayson Light had offered the city first consideration on the brick building next to the Catholic church parking lot. The building was discussed as a possible future city hall location.

Board members expressed interest in exploring the option but raised concerns about the cost of extending utility services to the property. Aldermen ultimately agreed to gather additional information on purchase price and utility costs before taking further action.

The board voted to seek bids on two city-owned properties, one on East Missouri Street and another on West Tennessee Street. Several other city-owned parcels were discussed but removed from consideration because they contain municipal infrastructure, are associated with the city park, or present potential environmental concerns.

Aldermen approved paying registration costs for any elected officials interested in attending the Missouri Municipal League’s Elected Officials Training Conference, an event for municipal leaders, featuring courses on the Sunshine Law, municipal budgets, public official liability, and ethics training, scheduled for June 11-12. The city will cover the $150 registration fee for participants who choose to attend.

The board also directed City Clerk Meghan Birmingham to review the city’s legal services arrangement. Aldermen questioned whether the city could potentially use a single attorney for both prosecuting and city attorney duties and requested additional information before considering any changes.

Other actions included approving the purchase of a replacement tire for the city’s skid steer and authorizing the city clerk and treasurer to accrue up to 30 hours of compensatory time annually, with any unused time eligible for payout at their regular rate of pay.

The board approved applying for state funding to assist with required lead service line inventory and replacement efforts. Birmingham said the city faces state and federal deadlines requiring completion of lead service line inventories and eventual replacement of affected lines. If grant funding is unavailable, the city may pursue low-interest loan funding through the same program.

The city also approved purchasing additional water meter sensors and continued discussions about relocating several water meters currently located inside residences. Officials said obtaining accurate readings from some interior meters has become increasingly difficult and estimated replacement costs could exceed $1,000 per location. The discussion was tabled until firm pricing is received.

Mitchem reported that several stop signs within the city have faded significantly and may need replacement. The board tabled action pending pricing information.

After discussing several instances in which payments to Republic Services were reportedly lost in the mail, the board authorized stop-payment orders on two outstanding Republic Services checks and directed Walter to begin converting eligible vendors to ACH payments. Aldermen said electronic payments would provide better accountability and reduce the risk of future payment issues.

The board approved a one-year extension for the city’s ongoing well project, pushing the completion deadline to June 30, 2027. Birmingham told aldermen the city’s engineering firm had submitted the extension request that day, saying the project had been delayed by waiting for state revolving fund financing for water tower repairs and by late delivery of a prefabricated building needed for the chlorination system. Birmingham said the extension was necessary to maintain the city’s Community Development Block Grant funding for the project.

Mayor Mitchem expressed frustration with the repeated delays, saying the unfinished project has prevented the city from pursuing other grant opportunities, including funding for sewer infrastructure improvements. Mitchem said he had requested a meeting with representatives of the engineering firm so they could explain the project’s status and continued extension requests directly to the board.

Despite those concerns, aldermen approved the extension after Birmingham advised that it was necessary to keep the project and its funding moving forward.

Birmingham told aldermen that organizers were proposing a flagpole dedication ceremony on June 14 for the new flagpole at the city park. No objections to the date were raised by board members.

Bills totaling $23,365.43 were approved for May, although approximately $6,710.66 was for replacement payments to Republic Serviced for checks lost in the mail.

The end-of-month bank balances for May showed a total of $584,012.15 in checking, including General Fund ($17,290.93), City CDBG In & Out ($10), City Park ($9,126.32), Cemetery Fund ($2,581.14), ARPA Funds ($71,169.95), Water Fund ($281,114.61), Sewer Fund ($136,953.70), City Police ($1,233.25), Online Bill Pay ($27,783.58), and Street ($36,748.67).

Savings account balances totaled $103,822.90, including Sewer Bond Reserve ($26,918.05), City Cemetery ($21,011.37), Water Repair ($30,230.47), Meter Deposits ($18,691.03), and Sewer Repair ($6,971.98).

CDs totaled $12,342.93, including two one-year ($2,138.44 and $1,483.67) and three two-year ($2,520.82, $5,200.00, and $1,000).

Water loss was 41% (341,825 gallons).

The next regular meeting is scheduled for June 24 at 6:30 p.m.