META — At their April 16 meeting, Meta aldermen focused primarily on two culvert issues identified on Linn Street and John Deere Lane, both requiring further evaluation before repair work proceeds.

“The one on John Deere Lane has caved in,” City Clerk Deidra Buechter said. “The one on Linn Street, the end is caved in, but it also has another culvert running perpendicular to it.”

City officials are working to determine ownership responsibility before committing to repairs.

“We don’t know if that’s our culvert that has broken and fallen in, or if that is a resident’s culvert,” she said. “We see the center of it; there’s a culvert on both sides of the hole.”

To resolve the issue, the city plans to utilize local contractor B&W Dirt Works and More LLC of Westphalia, which is already working in town. Buechter said that since he was already in Meta, the city approached him about digging a short distance to find out where the culvert went.

In other business, the city’s new septic system installation was completed recently, with only minor complications during the process.

“They hit the water line and had to repair it, but other than that, it went pretty smoothly,” Buechter said.

Crews had anticipated the possibility of striking the line and had already shut off water service before installation.

“The biggest thing was they just had to replace it,” she added.

• Buechter told aldermen the city earned a clean bill of health following the annual inspection of its well by Flynn Drilling.

“The well inspection went well, and everything was A-okay, just as always, from them,” she said, noting the inspection was completed on April 1.

• Meta’s annual Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) was distributed to residents without issue. “That went out in the mail, and we did not get those back, thankfully,” Buechter said. “I can go ahead and certify that with DNR, and we can put a check mark behind that until next year.”

The report confirmed compliance across the board. “Our water is good,” she said. “There’s no discrepancy. There’s no bad stuff in our water. We had no violations for 2025.”

• The board declined a resident’s request to organize a city-sponsored cleanup or hazardous waste disposal option after reviewing cost estimates and consulting with City Attorney James Klahr of Lauber Municipal Law.

A resident asked the city to provide dumpster service for the disposal of long-stored materials, including oil containers not accepted by Republic Services, even during the city’s annual clean-up.

“She had lots of dried-up oil buckets and wanted someplace to go with them,” Buechter said.

However, previous attempts at similar programs saw little participation. “We did have a junk day, and no one chose to utilize it,” said Buechter.

Documentation provided to the board outlined rental costs, material limitations, and restrictions on hazardous waste, further complicating feasibility.

“It is not in the city’s best interest to do something like this at this time,” Buechter said.

• Aldermen approved a request from St. Cecilia Parish to sell alcohol by the drink at its annual summer picnic on July 12 at the Citizens’ Civic League.

Mayor Ivie Helton provided a formal letter stating the city has no objection to the request.

• Buechter told the board that Cajun Catfish, a food truck from Jefferson City, was told it could not operate in Meta without proper documentation and was instructed not to return.

“They have not submitted any business license or Osage County health inspection, or anything like that,” she said. “So they’ve been asked not to come back until they can provide that.”

The company did not apply for a business license or provide the necessary documentation.

• Incumbent Alderman Otto Wankum was re-elected, while Mikayla (Deeken) Wankum was newly elected to the board after Lance Juergensmeyer chose not to run again.

Because the number of candidates matched the available seats, neither race appeared on the ballot.

• The city received an application for seasonal employment from a high school student. Aldermen plan to interview him before the next meeting.

• In a short report, Lauber Municipal Law provided an update on one property owner.

“The attorney wanted to let us know that the one property he took to court has started painting their house,” Buechter said.

FINANCIAL NEWS

• In her regular monthly financial report, Treasurer Karla Buechter noted income/deposits of $25,992.03 and debits of $10,116.29 for a balance on hand as of March 31 totaling $653,795.03; the money market balance was $143,817.34, the CDBG balance was $103,403.12, and two certificates of deposit totaled $177,548.09, giving the city a total of $1,078,563.58 in all accounts.

WATER UPDATE

• A total of $7,032.89 in water sales was recorded in February, with $1,845 charged for trash, $240 in late fees, and $247.16 in sales tax. Total charges were $9,365.05 with a previous surplus of $1,444.45 and payments received in the amount of $8,722.09, leaving a positive balance of $801.49.

Clerk Buechter noted that the US Postal Service returned almost all water bills on April 21 because the label was too small. City employees hand-delivered them.

• Meta’s water loss was 28.6%, with 542,501 gallons pumped, 348,322 gallons sold, 1,000 gallons flushed, 3,000 gallons used by the fire department, 350,000 gallons in tower overflows, and 155,179 gallons unaccounted for.

• The next meeting will be held on May 14 at 6:30 p.m.