It was standing room only March 24 at Chamois City Hall as residents aired their grievances about problems in the city to the Chamois Board of Aldermen.

Residents discussed concerns with underage drinking, teenagers riding motorized bikes late at night through the streets, vandalism, theft, drugs, speeding, and child endangerment.

“I guess that’s where Riley (Lewis, the new town marshal) comes in,” Mayor Marie Slusser said.

“It is going to get handled because we’re starting to get all of our stuff taken care of so I can start writing tickets,” City Marshal Riley Lewis said. “I called the juvenile officer, and she is well aware of what is going on.”

“I’m tired of all of the underage drinking,” resident Tony Haley said. “I’ve got a 15-year-old and I don’t want him to go around the wrong people. My son is my world, and I don’t believe in that stuff.”

Several other residents agreed with Haley.

Slusser told residents that when they see illegal activity they should call 911 or they should call the Osage County Sheriff’s Office.

“Everyone has their phone on them, take pictures, videos, whatever kind of proof you can get so that we can get this taken care of,” Slusser said.

Lewis echoed the mayor’s instructions.

“I’ve talked to the juvenile officer, and she said I can legally write a 14-year-old a ticket,” Lewis said. “If that is what it’s going to take, that’s what is going to happen.”

Resident April Randal complained that there are teenagers all over town at late hours and they are riding motorized bikes on the city streets at 11 p.m.

“The state has changed those rules and now you have to have a valid driver’s license and insurance on those little bikes,” Lewis said. “If we see a teenager out there, they can’t legally ride them.”

Julie Massey was at the meeting to voice her concerns about the apartments where she lives.

“It is so disruptive,” Massey explained. “There are kids that come there that don’t live there. There is a teenager there getting alcohol from different people. It’s so ridiculous. They give him alcohol. They give him drugs. He sells his pills down there.”

Massey said that she has complained to the owner of the apartments, Scotty Dudenhoeffer, but not much has changed.

“I work,” Massey said. “I come home to my things vandalized, stolen and when I say something it is to no avail.”

Massey said that Dudenhoeffer likes to give people second chances and she is all for that.

“I get that but when it comes to the part that the things I buy and pay for from working a job are broken and we try to address this with the parents and they look at us like we are stupid and start laughing,” Massey explained.  “I’m not throwing stones, but they don’t work but they have the money to buy drugs and alcohol and not watch their kids, but they don’t have the money to replace things their kids are breaking because they are drunk and driving around town and doing all kinds of things.”

Slusser repeated that when residents see illegal activity, they need to report it to the authorities.

“Scotty can’t do anything about what is happening outside the building,” Slusser said. “I know he has policies in place, and he is aware there are problems. The only thing I can do right now is get all the ordinances in place so we can get Lewis here to take care of things.”

Slusser offered to call the Osage County sheriff’s office and see if they could increase patrols around the apartments.    

“I have a problem with everything they talked about and the trash,” resident Sheryl Wood said. “The trash is bad. It is really bad.”

“We have spoken with Scotty Dudenhoeffer about the trash situation but if the trash is overflowing that should fall on the landlord,” Slusser said.

The residents said that their neighbors simply throw trash out her door and it blows all over.

Several residents were also concerned about a 5-year-old who had allegedly been left at home by themselves while the parent was at the bar in town. Slusser noted that at any time someone can ask for a wellness check on a child.

She again asked residents to call 911 or the Osage County Sheriff’s Department when they see illegal activity.

“The more police presence we have in the city, the less problems we will have,” Slusser said.

Slusser agreed to get in touch with Dudenhoeffer and discuss the concerns that were brought up at the meeting.

Resident Christy Nolte is concerned about people speeding on the city’s side streets.

“People come off of Highway 89 and they don’t break, and they just fly down the road,” Nolte said. “They go faster than they do on Main Street.”

Nolte said that her daughter’s pet cat was hit by a speeding car and killed recently.

“To some people that may not mean much but it meant a lot to her,” Nolte said. “You are obviously speeding if you hit a cat in the city limits. It was a cat this time but next time it could be a child.”

Lewis promised to patrol the street more heavily and see if he couldn’t put a stop to some of the speeding in town.

“I think that the more police presence we have, the less trouble we are going to have,” Slusser repeated.

Both Slusser and Lewis said they were glad to see so many people at the meeting because it showed that people cared about what was happening to their community.

Although Lewis was hired months ago to be the Chamois marshal, he is still unable to enforce ordinances at this time. City Clerk Megan Birmingham reported that at this point all the paperwork the city needed to do has been done and they are waiting for the final approval from the judge. Lewis said that when the city gets the final ok that residents should call the 911 dispatch with any emergency, and for non-emergencies and ordinance violations, they could call Lewis directly.

Several members of the Board of Aldermen voiced concern with making Lewis’s cell phone number public on social media.

“I’m ok with it,” Lewis said. “All types of people have my number and I’ve never had a problem with it.”

Birmingham will post Lewis’s cell number on the city’s social media page, and it will be available to anyone who calls City Hall.

Lewis asked if the city had a curfew in effect for minors.

“If you can find the old ordinance, I think we do have one,” Alderman Jim Wright said.

“We have one in Gasconade for everyone under 17 unless they are accompanied by their parents,” Lewis said. “It works pretty good.”

Lewis will be available at Chamois City Hall on Saturday, April 20, from 1 to 4 p.m. so that people can buy a license for their all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) utility vehicles (UTVs), and golf carts. Residents who would like to purchase a license will need to bring a driver’s license, proof of insurance and cash or a check for $15.

Licenses are only available from Lewis and if someone can’t buy one on April 20, they should contact Lewis and he will meet them at a different time.

“This is what I do in Gasconade, and I am the only one that can write you a receipt so that way I pretty much know who’s got a license and who doesn’t,” Lewis explained.

Birmingham complained that during the meeting where there were a lot of people present it was sometimes difficult to hear what was going on and take notes.

“Last meeting things were a little crazy and I had a hard time as the keeper of the records,” Birmingham said. “There were people near me that were constantly talking, and I had a hard time doing my job. Who is supposed to stop them from talking?”

Slusser said that she was in charge of the meeting.

“But that last meeting was a little different because of everything we had on the table, so I let people have the chance to speak,” Slusser said.

“Which is great,” Birmingham interrupted.

“When things get out of hand, I know that everyone only gets two minutes but at the same time when there is a major topic I want to let everyone be heard,” Slusser continued. “I will intervene if I need to so you can do your job.”

Birmingham noted that this has only been a recent problem.

“Lately we’ve had a lot of people coming to meetings and I appreciate that,” Slusser said. “I want everyone to be a part of this. It’s not just the board. It’s not just the clerk. This is our town and if everyone from the town wants to come in and sit down that is great.”

“I want that too, but I want to be able to do my job,” Birmingham said.

Slusser repeated if that became a problem again she would intervene.