Council votes 3-1 to nix its parks plan contract

The Nevada City Council voted 3-1 Tuesday night to give preliminary approval to a special ordinance terminating the city's contract with Adams and Associates to develop a master plan for the city's parks, with councilmen Russ Kemm, Bill Gillette and Bill Edmonds voting yes and Mike Hutchens voting no. Tim Wells was excused due to a family illness.

The termination agreement was pushed through the council Tuesday night after a motion from Hutchens to postpone consideration of the issue until the entire five-member council could be present to vote on the issue died due to the lack of a second. Gillette, Edmonds and Kemm voted against postponing a vote on the measure and Hutchens voted to postpone consideration.*

In other business the council:

* Voted 3-1 to postpone consideration of a general ordinance to allow the sale of package liquor in a gourmet food store on the Nevada Square or within one block of the Square. Gillette, Kemm and Edmonds voted yes and Hutchens voted no.

"Why are we postponing this?" Mike Hutchens asked.

"During the last vote on this Gillette abstained and I would like to have at least four councilmen here who will vote," Kemm told the council.

The measure failed to pass on Nov. 20, when the council voted 2-1 with Gillette abstaining and councilman Kemm, who proposed this change, was excused. Councilmen Wells and Edmonds voted yes and Hutchens voted no. A non-emergency ordinance requires at least three yes votes to pass.

The ordinance would require a gourmet food store to maintain an inventory of food equal to at least 40 percent of its total wholesale cost inventory at all times.

* Voted 4-0 to pass on first and second reading an emergency ordinance approving two change orders totaling $23,914 for the airport terminal project. Change order #2 approves spending an additional $19,964 to stabilize the soil and footings for the new terminal building at the Nevada Municipal Airport based on recommendations from structural engineers from both Jack Ball Engineers and Sprouls Construction. Change order No. 1, formalizes the approval the city council gave in October to allow STAR Loan funds to be used to pay for installing decorative stone to the exterior of the office area at the terminal at a cost of $3,950. The money for both change orders will come from a $250,000 STAR Loan the city has for construction work at the airport.

* Voted 4-0 to pass on first reading a special ordinance granting a special use permit to Mega Star Inc. for a trailer park at 603 E. Atlantic. The permit requires the owner to put a screening fence around the trailer park's dumpsters, which the owner said had already been done.

* Passed on first reading a special ordinance approving a change in the zoning at 818 N. Clay from R-1, single family residential, to R-2, two family, so that the property owner, Kelly LaPreze can build a duplex on the property.

* Passed on first reading a special ordinance authorizing the mayor to apply for and execute contracts to allow the city to receive federal assistance for the city's taxi coupon program through the Missouri Department of Transportation. This grant will partially fund the city's taxi coupon program.

* Adopted Resolution No. 1214 implementing an Adopt-A-Park program through the city's parks and recreation department.

* Adopted Resolution No. 1215 approving the city's use of US Bank for depository services and revising the list of authorized check signers for the general operations account, payroll-flex account, Money Market Account, flex benefits accounts, Community Development Block Grant account, and the municipal clearing account, as well as to establish a payroll clearing account to process pay checks.

* Gave final approval to a special ordinance amending the police department's 2008 budget so they can use a $8,100 grant to purchase new light bars for 11 police vehicles.

* Passed on second reading a special ordinance approving a services agreement with the Nevada-Vernon County Chamber of Commerce for tourism and marketing services. The $39,560 agreement is paid for with money from the city's 3 percent lodging tax at the hotels and motels within the city. The agreement includes $2,000 for a Web site and podcast marketing, $1,600 for travel and conference expenses and downtown Muzak service, $1,500 for Civil War Heritage project expenses, $6,000 for visitor center operating expenses, $25,000 for tourism payroll and benefits, $3,000 for Chamber of Commerce oversight fees and $400 for state and regional tourism program participation.

* More information about the controversy over the contract for planning services will be published in tomorrow's edition of the Nevada Daily Mail.