Council pospones decision on chamber directory

By Ralph Pokorny

Nevada Daily Mail

The Nevada City Council voted 4-0 to postpone, until their Sept. 4 meeting, consideration of a recommendation from the city's ad hoc tourism committee to provide the Nevada-Vernon County Chamber of Commerce with $10,000 to underwrite the cost of producing an expanded version of its annual membership directory, called "Living a Life that Matters."

"We all live lives that matter. We want to illustrate that with a new publication," Gina Ensor, Nevada-Vernon County Area Chamber of Commerce executive director, told the council during a special council meeting Monday night.

She said that this publication would be a great tool for economic development, tourism and other purposes.

Each community in the county could have its own space to tell its own story, she said.

Ensor told the council that they are proposing that the chamber will do all the work of compiling the magazine-format publication, hiring a designer and contracting the printing. As the chamber has done in the past with its directory, the chamber will also sell the advertising, with chamber members receiving a lower price for ads than non-chamber members. The chamber would be responsible for distributing the publications to other chambers of commerce, visitor centers and other places where tourists look for information.

She told the council that the tourism committee would receive unlimited space for editorial content and advertising.

In response to a question from the council, Ensor said that the chamber would provide no money toward the cost of the publication.

For 2012 the chamber printed 5,000 copies of their directory at a cost of about $6,100.

Ensor told the council that the chamber is going to go ahead with this new format for the publication, with or without the city partnership.

The council also voted 4-0 to approve a recommendation from the tourism committee to spend $700 to help pay for cable television advertising for the annual Christmas Open House.

In other business the council:

* Voted 4-0 to accept the low bid from Coastal Energy Oil of $2.17 per gallon, or $26,040 for 12,000 gallons of CSS-1H Slurry Oil for the city's street slurry program.

* Voted 4-0 to postpone consideration until the Sept. 4 council meeting consideration of a special use permit for Villa Nevada Trailer Park. The council wants additional assurance that the new owner of the trailer park is going to fix any recurring problems.

* Voted 4-0 to pass on first reading a general ordinance to re-enact the city's financial disclosure ordinance for the city manager.

* Voted 4-0 to pass on first reading a special ordinance approving a contract with Vernon County for property tax assessment service. The fee for assessment of property is $200 per month, or $2,400 per year.

* Held a public hearing and voted 4-0 to pass on first reading a special ordinance accepting an enlarged easement for the city's north sewer interceptor line. This is needed for annual inspections and maintenance.

* Voted 4-0 to pass on second reading a general ordinance amending Chapter 34, article III of the city code, clarifying on-site security requirements and modifying the length of stay allowed for itinerant workers and students in RV parks in Nevada.

* Voted 4-0 to give final approval to a contract with Sproul's Construction Inc., Lamar, for the Safe School Sidewalk Enhancement project. This will construct a new ADA compliant sidewalk from the Nevada High School to the downtown area at a cost of $135,131, to be paid for with a Missouri Department of Transporta-tion Enhancement Funds grant.

* Voted 4-0 give final approval to a special ordinance setting the 2012 property tax levies at 67.78 cents per $100 assessed valuation for the city general fund and 20 cents per $100 assessed valuation for the library fund.

* Voted 4-0 to pass on second reading a special ordinance approving a lease with Cole Reed for T-hanger stall No. 2 for $45 monthly or $495 annually.