LINN  — At the July 16 Linn city meeting, resident Kelsey Snyder voiced her concerns that the city is not following Missouri statutes when creating a budget. Snyder read from state statutes what was required in an official budget to the board. She compared the budget to other fourth-class cities in Mid-Missouri and found that the budget adopted by aldermen was much shorter and harder to access than other comparable cities.

Snyder also questioned why Chief Sam Ford was driving the Linn Police Department’s Tahoe to and from Jefferson City on personal business, why the city does not have policies in place for fuel and maintenance logs for all city vehicles, and whether city and police vehicles are receiving regular maintenance.

She noted that she was speaking for herself and other citizens who had commented on her Facebook post.

“People are fed up with the outrageous taxes we must pay,” Snyder said. “They are fed up with officers who harass and physically assault the citizens, and they are tired of a city clerk who does the bare minimum at her job.”

Snyder went on to say that City Clerk Carrie Grellner had provided her with incomplete information, had to be reminded to provide information, confirmed false information, and charged Snyder to get the real information.

“How am I supposed to trust any of the documents I get, and how am I to know that they aren’t forged documents with false information?” Snyder asked.

She went on to say she had emailed Mayor Dwight Massey and never received a reply.

Snyder was charged for the documents she requested per the Sunshine Law, and Snyder repeatedly referred to them as “extortion fees.”

“I’m just seeking transparency with the city,” Snyder said.

Mayor Massey thanked Snyder for her comments and noted that he would investigate the issues she had raised. He also explained that when a citizen makes a Sunshine Request for information, the city is allowed to charge a fee for those documents.

“When you make a formal request, then Carrie had to stop what she is doing and process it, and there are fees for that,” Massey said. “They are not extortion fees.”

Snyder asked Massey how long he has been the mayor of Linn.

“I’ve been the mayor for a very long time,” Massey said.

“If you have been the mayor for that long, how do you not know what a budget is?” Snyder asked.

“We know how much money we have,” Massey answered. “We know how much revenue we have coming in. We know what our expenses are. We know what our reserves are. I don’t have to have a lengthy budget to understand those things.”

“But by the law, you do,” Snyder answered. “Do you want me to sue you guys? You’ll have to stop spending all the money you have. It’s not that hard. Get a legal budget, and don’t charge me out the a•• in stupid fees.”

“The fees are statutory, and they are fair,” City Attorney Annie Willis said. All of the taxpayers pay for Carrie. If someone comes in with a Sunshine Law request that is burdensome and takes someone time, it’s perfectly reasonable to charge a reasonable fee.”

“Obviously, I’m not going to rewrite the budget tonight, but if you want to sit down with me and tell me what you think is missing, we can do that,” Massey said.

“Every single line the law tells you a budget should have is missing,” Snyder said.

“Again, I’m not going to rewrite a budget tonight, but if you want to schedule something with me, I’m open to that,” Massey said.

Snyder promised to email Massey that same evening to set up a meeting.

In other news, aldermen approved Ordinance #2024-010 to authorize Massey’s approval of the agreement between the city and the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) for shoulder work on Hwy. 50. The total cost of the project, which includes work throughout Osage and Gasconade counties, totals $14,538,348.68. Linn will only be responsible for the section of Hwy. 50 within the city limits, and the estimate for this part of the project is $91,348.68.

MoDOT Transportation Project Manager Mia Peters noted that the city may be responsible if there are additional costs, but if the actual cost is lower, the city will be refunded.

“I was pleasantly surprised by the cost,” Massey said. “I was concerned that it would be much higher.”

• Higgins Asphalt is preparing an estimate for work on Lee, 10th, and 12th streets. The firm will contact the city with the estimate and will be ready to start as soon as aldermen approve the project’s cost and scope.

PARK UPDATE

• Aldermen approved up to $6,500 in improvements for Linn City and Maguire parks. Linn Park Board President Neil Loethen was grateful for the approval and hoped that the projects would be well under the approved total. Improvements include a quick hitch to make hooking up equipment easier and more efficient for one person ($200), replacing the bathroom doors at Maguire Park ($1,500), grading and gravel for Maguire Park Road and walking trail ($2,000), clearing overgrown brush near Maguire Creek ($1,000), pickleball net and supplies ($1,300), and a new basketball goal, concrete for basketball court, and paint for court markings ($500).

• The first section of concrete has been poured for the All-Inclusive Playground. Mayor Massey noted that the next steps will be to put in drains and get things ready for the second round of concrete.

“It went very well,” Massey said. “It was good to see everyone come together and make it happen, but there’s a lot more to do.”

Massey encouraged anyone who had some time to volunteer to help with the remaining rounds of concrete.

• Loethen said that there has been some concern regarding State Tech students using the soccer fields at Maguire Park to play flag football. Loethen noted that there was some confusion among youth soccer coaches about scheduling. The soccer director proposed they would reserve the fields Monday through Friday for the entire evening through the fall.

“I feel like that is unreasonable and unacceptable,” Loethen said. “Because they didn’t communicate well on their end, they want to keep State Tech from using it.”

Loethen explained that youth soccer teams practice on the fields for free, and State Tech pays for the reservation.

“State Tech usually gives me their schedule before school starts, and they are very good to work with,” Loethen said. “They only use the fields two days per week.”

POOL NEEDS

• Alderman Bill Turner has been working with Pools Made Possible, and they found that the skimmer in the kiddie pool at the Linn City Pool is leaking.

“We’re not sure if it is the pipe or the skimmer itself,” Turner explained. “The skimmer is cracked in several places. The rough estimate to fix it is $4,000.”

Turner explained that the kiddie pool may have additional problems. He proposed installing a splash pad in the same location for $2,400 plus labor. The splash pad could use the existing lines, and the work could be done inside the kiddie pool. The pool would then be filled in, and the area would be used for the splash pad.

“I kind of like the idea of a splash pad,” said Alderman Steve Boeckmann. It seems like we are always having trouble with the kiddie pool. It’s like every year it is something else.”

Turner agreed, adding that the city could add different features.

The large awning pole at the City Pool was damaged in a recent storm. The pool was closed when it happened, and no one was injured.

• Aldermen approved Ordinance #2024-009, which amends the city code by establishing “No Parking” on the north side of E. Lee Street between S. 12th Street and #1206 E. Lee Street. The change will allow for a drainage ditch to help with stormwater.

“If we can bring the water back to the new drop-boxes we put in, we can eliminate some headaches with 12th Street,” Massey explained.

The ordinance will go into effect Sept. 1.

SUBDIVISION PROJECTS

• Bartlett and West Engineer Hope Drennan outlined the next steps for the Lee Mar Hills Regionalization Project. Bartlett & West is requesting input from property owners on where the sewer lines were laid out.

“We kind of have it laid out where it would work the best, but if they want to tweak it a little bit, there is always give and take,” Drennan said.

Bartlett and West would like to schedule a meeting with the key property owners who will need to sign easements and have them approve the preliminary design so that Bartlett & West can move forward with a final design.

All the property owners who will be using the newly installed sewer lines must sign a service agreement by Oct. 24.

“That’s coming up quickly,” Drennan said. “It’s the same agreement we had for the Jaegers Project.”

Drennan hopes that they will be able to schedule an evening meeting at City Hall for the homeowners as they did for the Jaegers Regionalization Project.

“We have preliminary designs, so if there are little tweaks, it will be easy to change the design, and once we get it signed off on the alignments, it will be quick to get started and get the pipe in the ground,” Drennan explained.

Several issues have arisen with the Jaegers Regionalization Project in the past couple of weeks. One property owner was having problems with sewage backing up into the house. Bartlett & West contacted All Clear Plumbing, which found roots in the lines close to the house were causing the issues. The issue has been resolved.

Drennan admitted that the contractor has more grading and dirt work to do but also noted that it was the wrong time of year to seed grass.

“The warranty period is through the beginning of October, so we are going to work with the contractor if there are any areas that need more grading and seeding by the end of the summer to early fall,” Drennan explained.

UTILITIES WORK REQUIRED

Utilities Worker Aleks Rowinski noticed a gasket leaking at the lift station. The contractor came out and fixed it that morning. The gasket had been offset when it was originally installed. The problem was fixed, and the area around the leak was excavated and backfilled.

• Rowinski noted that he and his crew have been trying to stay ahead of the many issues that seem to keep cropping up. One problem that caused an overflow of wastewater at Maguire Park was traced back to a “wipe ball” that had blocked the flow of wastewater to the lagoon. Rowinski said that an eight-inch ball of wipes had been pulled from city sewer pipes.

Rowinski asked if the city could send out a request with the city water bills not to flush wipes of any kind into the wastewater system,

Turner asked Rowinski when he thought he would get the drain cleaned out on the Troesser property.

“As soon as we get a free moment,” Rowinski said. “We haven’t had a chance to catch our breath. When the crew is shorthanded, we fall behind, and it’s hard to catch up. We get to the things on our list when we get to them. It’s not a lack of wanting to get things done; it’s simply a matter of time.”

“I just don’t want there to be excuses,” Turner said.

“It’s not an excuse,” Rowinski said. “I need more hours in the day.”

Rowinski went on to say that there were many days that he and his crew did not stop for lunch because they were so busy.

“There are things that get scheduled, and we have to hold tighter to that schedule,” Massey said. We get diverted sometimes. It’s a learning curve. I don’t think anyone is doing a bad job. It’s going to take time and effort to learn to manage the time, and I know that’s where we are at.”

• Chase Waggoner sent a letter to the city offering his services as a professional city administrator on a part-time basis.

“We’ve never hired a city administrator, so we need to think about it and talk to him,” Massey said. “We’re going to need some help. We’ve had several projects come up all at once and others continue past their due dates. We’re going to have to find help or reorganize because I’m getting tired.”

Massey said that he has been covering a lot of the projects, and it is simply too much.

“I think it would be to our advantage to have someone help us,” Turner said.

Aldermen plan to develop a list of projects the city needs help on and see if they can set up a time to talk to Waggoner about what he thinks would be practical for him and the city.

• The board approved a deal with Lock’s Mill Propane to purchase the same number of gallons as last year for the pre-buy rate of $2.03 per gallon.

• The Linn License Fee Office is looking for a new employee.

• Aldermen approved outstanding bills for $128,320.14.

• Linn had the following ending account balances in their governmental fund accounts: general ($828,340.83), pool (-$16,166.36), park ($114,494.88), police training ($1,336.66), park-improvement and equipment (-$374,108.86), and pool-improvement and equipment ($1,948.24).

• The city had the following ending account balances in their business-type funds: water ($477,717.86), water replacement ($101,688.36), sewer ($411,104.13), sewer replacement ($47,454.81), and grants (-$87,672.72).

• Linn holds nine certificates of deposit totaling $1,316,521.86.

• The city will hold its next regular meeting on Aug. 13 at 5 p.m.