In my notes from the July 13, 2009 committee meeting I noted there was brief discussion regarding the levy issues popping up again. It stemmed from an article in the Belleville News Democrat. It was discussed that the previous plan of the counties in the levy districts pay 33% of the costs in repairing the levies and the federal government would pay the other 66%. That deal is apparently going away and the federal government is no sure how much if any money will be put into the fund to repair/work on these levies.
Further discussion on the subject took place on July 20, 2009 at the regular session council meeting.
I also requested a copy of the developed/undeveloped map along with its corresponding spreadsheet last week Tuesday July 21, 2009 in my FOIA requested. I'll post what I can here when/if I get the info I requested.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Comments to "School Tax" discussion on "Topix"
I’ll be upfront and let you all know I have thought very hard before weighing in on this subject because if you didn’t know my wife is a teacher at the middle school here in Columbia.
I would have to say that from my personal experience I could never repay some of the teachers in my life for what they have given me. This includes teachers from college, high school, and grade school. Teachers frame your children for the future. I have met many of the teachers in the Columbia school system and all that I have met care deeply for the children walking through the doors every day of every school year. I am not sure why you would want to reward them any less than you can.
It appears from the information posted on “Topix” there are seven administrators whose average salary is $103,701. Is this too much for a district of over 100 teachers at three different schools? It seems fairly on target with surrounding Missouri districts. It would seem logical to me that the seven administrators are the principal and vice-principal of each of Columbia’s three schools and the superintendent, I am not sure if this is true but like I said it seems logical to me.
If you think about the wages for administrators in terms of comparison to the private sector it really does not seem wrong. Say I owned a chain of distribution sites. I have three sites with about thirty employees each and I paid my manager and assistant manager at each branch around $100K would anyone complain? Not if they were successful. Then if I paid myself the CEO in the neighborhood of $100K no one would have anything to complain about.
I would also hope any of you value your child’s education more than what you may value results in any private industry example.
I am not sure what caused this debate other than your tax bills coming in the mail last week. Which everyone received last year and the year before, right? If this is your first year in Columbia in your new house then you should have known what your tax bill would be this year before you bought your house. These tax costs should be no surprise to anyone.
Getting your bill should not be the time when your alarm goes off; it should have gone off long ago. Posting on a site such as “Topix” and complaining behind a generic username does nothing in the grand scheme of things. All the negative comments there could realistically be coming from the same three or four people.
Call your alderman and school board members for answers, come to meetings when they have them and ask questions. Change comes with involvement and realistically you cannot hope that the school board and aldermen of Columbia take any action based on the opinions of anonymous posts on a website that churns more negative than positive about all of the people that represent you.
As always feel free to email me at levi.ottwell@gmail.com
I would have to say that from my personal experience I could never repay some of the teachers in my life for what they have given me. This includes teachers from college, high school, and grade school. Teachers frame your children for the future. I have met many of the teachers in the Columbia school system and all that I have met care deeply for the children walking through the doors every day of every school year. I am not sure why you would want to reward them any less than you can.
It appears from the information posted on “Topix” there are seven administrators whose average salary is $103,701. Is this too much for a district of over 100 teachers at three different schools? It seems fairly on target with surrounding Missouri districts. It would seem logical to me that the seven administrators are the principal and vice-principal of each of Columbia’s three schools and the superintendent, I am not sure if this is true but like I said it seems logical to me.
If you think about the wages for administrators in terms of comparison to the private sector it really does not seem wrong. Say I owned a chain of distribution sites. I have three sites with about thirty employees each and I paid my manager and assistant manager at each branch around $100K would anyone complain? Not if they were successful. Then if I paid myself the CEO in the neighborhood of $100K no one would have anything to complain about.
I would also hope any of you value your child’s education more than what you may value results in any private industry example.
I am not sure what caused this debate other than your tax bills coming in the mail last week. Which everyone received last year and the year before, right? If this is your first year in Columbia in your new house then you should have known what your tax bill would be this year before you bought your house. These tax costs should be no surprise to anyone.
Getting your bill should not be the time when your alarm goes off; it should have gone off long ago. Posting on a site such as “Topix” and complaining behind a generic username does nothing in the grand scheme of things. All the negative comments there could realistically be coming from the same three or four people.
Call your alderman and school board members for answers, come to meetings when they have them and ask questions. Change comes with involvement and realistically you cannot hope that the school board and aldermen of Columbia take any action based on the opinions of anonymous posts on a website that churns more negative than positive about all of the people that represent you.
As always feel free to email me at levi.ottwell@gmail.com
Truancy Ordinance - Updated Videos 8-6-09
Video of the discussion at the July 20, 2009 council meeting will be added this afternoon.
I understand that the ordinance mirrors what the county already has in place. I also understand that truancy may be a growing problem in Columbia. I have not seen the actual ordinance to comment on its specifics but the idea behind it makes perfect sense to me and I agree it needed to be in place for the upcoming school year.
I would have liked to see this at least be discussed before it was brought to be approved at a regular session council meeting. It could have been brought up in any number of committees or merely talked about by Tom Adams or Chief Edwards at a council meeting as something they were working on. To have Tom and Joe working on an ordinance since March with really no discussion with the council seems odd in my mind.
I would expect any department or city official working on an ordinance for around four months to come to the council at least once for input, questions, or discussions. Do I think Joe or Tom are overstepping their bounds, no I simply think some time should have been devoted to the issue before it being brought forward to a vote with no previous discussion.
I will post the actual ordinance here once I receive a copy via my FOIA request I filed with the city last week Tuesday. I was notified last night they wanted to get me a signed copy of the ordinance, I should have it sometime today.
Link to Ordinance I received 7/29/09
I apologize to everyone for not getting all three videos up in the original posting. I would also like to note that an article by Kevin Darr which shows support form Superintendent Settles on the Truancy Ordinance.
I wrote the above article based on the discussion that took place at the council meeting on July, 20 in which few details of the ordinance were discussed. After review I see this ordinance as a positive thing to have in place. I still support my previous statements that serious topics such as this should receive as much time in a committee meeting as lesser subjects.
I understand that the ordinance mirrors what the county already has in place. I also understand that truancy may be a growing problem in Columbia. I have not seen the actual ordinance to comment on its specifics but the idea behind it makes perfect sense to me and I agree it needed to be in place for the upcoming school year.
I would have liked to see this at least be discussed before it was brought to be approved at a regular session council meeting. It could have been brought up in any number of committees or merely talked about by Tom Adams or Chief Edwards at a council meeting as something they were working on. To have Tom and Joe working on an ordinance since March with really no discussion with the council seems odd in my mind.
I would expect any department or city official working on an ordinance for around four months to come to the council at least once for input, questions, or discussions. Do I think Joe or Tom are overstepping their bounds, no I simply think some time should have been devoted to the issue before it being brought forward to a vote with no previous discussion.
I will post the actual ordinance here once I receive a copy via my FOIA request I filed with the city last week Tuesday. I was notified last night they wanted to get me a signed copy of the ordinance, I should have it sometime today.
Link to Ordinance I received 7/29/09
I apologize to everyone for not getting all three videos up in the original posting. I would also like to note that an article by Kevin Darr which shows support form Superintendent Settles on the Truancy Ordinance.
I wrote the above article based on the discussion that took place at the council meeting on July, 20 in which few details of the ordinance were discussed. After review I see this ordinance as a positive thing to have in place. I still support my previous statements that serious topics such as this should receive as much time in a committee meeting as lesser subjects.
Meyer land at 1700 Ghent Road Update
I think we can all say that these people were shown no preferential treatment in getting their land divided. It appears any complaints the Smith party may have had about the Meyers getting to do something they couldn't do are gone.
I have to wonder if Diane Smith has been notified that the Meyers were forced to conform with every requirement she was asked to. Still waiting to see if anymore comes of her claims against the mayor.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Commitee Meetings July 13, 2009
Alderman Row was not in attendance at this meeting.
Municipal Buildings, Property, and Capital Improvements
• Fire Department Brick Replacement
The brick on the Fire Station need to be replaced or repaired, it was the belief Alderman Oberkfell to replace all of the brick. Repair of some flashing and some steel in the chiefs office are also believed to be needed. An estimate of $13,000 was made by Williams Brick of Waterloo. Specs were given to the chief by Oberkfell, these will be reviewed by the chief and Ron Williams to put the work out for bid.
• Police Station Roof Update
Lakeside Roofing will do the work and add sloping to the currently flat roof system on the building. They will also add gutters and downspouts for the total price of $34,087. The insurance company will pay out $25,770 which puts the city on the hook for around $8,000 out of pocket. Hejna noted that there was $4,000 in this years budget for roof repairs to this building.
Committee of the Whole
• Meadow Ridge West Condo Association
An ordinance will be drafted by Tom Adams the city attorney for the Columbia Police to have jurisdiction on the associations private property. This ordinance will only be worked on by Tom if the association first agrees to pay for all legal costs the city will have in dealing with the drafting of the ordinance. The city only has one other agreement of this type and that is with the owners of the Market Place complex.
•Veterans Parkway
This was discussion on changing the names of Parkview and Edelweiss to Veterans Parkway at the beginning of November. A memorial will be placed along what is now Parkview between the evergreens and the road near the Blue Jays football field.
This was something that was presented in ’07 and the council told the group that if they could get all the landowners to agree then the name change could occur and they could place the memorial in the park. Sketches were presented last winter regarding the memorial, no final design was presented but the understanding is that the bronze sculpture has already been ordered, the council has no real idea if it resembles the sketches at all. The consensus was they agreed to it and they figure the memorial will look fine. They seemed to think the memorial would be a solider helping a child.
I like the idea of having the memorial and the name change. Alderman Agne thinks the name Veterans Parkway should be used on a more prominent street in town. I feel they are fairly major streets in the community.
This will affect all people who own property along these streets; if you have not been notified or do not wish to have your address changed I would suggest calling City Hall ASAP, it could be a pain to get your address changed on everything you get in the mail and if you’re a business your stationary will be obsolete.
• Legal RFQ Submissions
The aldermen were asked to give their impression of the submissions along with any specific items they would like to have reviewed before a selection is made. The city attorney is appointed by the mayor with the council’s approval on a yearly basis. The labor attorney is determined by a vote of the council. Tom Adams is in place until spring of 2010 as the city attorney. The following notes are some highlights of the discussion on the subject.
Ebersohl – fixed rate or hourly rate? The city does not want a 1 or 2 year associate they would prefer a partner. Which partner would handle the city’s issues?
Stumpf – The city attorney and the labor attorney should be two separate law firms for diversification.
Hutchinson – What will be included in the retainer fees if optioned, what do the firms include in other cities umbrella retainer plans?
Roessler – Law firm that handles a diverse array of legal issues with a good retainer plan.
Oberkfell – The city should have on “pointman” contact at the law firm they select.
Hejna – Do other Cities have attorney present their council meetings? Answer form Hutchinson, “Yes”
Niemetz – Fixed rate prices for handling certain issue that arise frequently. Hourly rate could be an issue if they charge for everything and really nickel and dime their clients.
Hejna – Would the mayor simply give his recommendation or update the council with his progress and answers from the law firms. Hutchinson said he would present his recommendation with bullet points on what he finds with each law firm he speaks with regarding the issues the council has given him to review and look for.
Agne liked law firms 1, 4, & 5 and C, D, & E
Hejna liked Helper Broom rather than Gallop, Johnson, Newman
Brad liked Helper Broom & Sandberg Phoenix
• Other Items
The surplus auction held July 11th made $11,400. Action Auction received $463 while the city had a net income of $10, 185.
Dr. Hunter with the Osage Nation would like to make some changes to the Programmatic Agreement so it was not signed by the city.
Some discussion took place regarding the levy and the lack of federal funding to those districts.
The funding for the poor road conditions of the road by McDonalds going to marketplace may come from state sources as the owner may be getting some funding for allowing the old car dealership to become a park & ride lot.
License, Insurance, Claims, CEMA, and Contracts
• Steel Workers Health Insurance
The agreement was reviewed by Mark Weissman and some changes will be made. The insurance company did note that their rates did increase by 11% but offered no real reason why.
Personnel
• Executive Session for an update on the collective bargaining negotiations & employee salaries and an update on an EEOC complaint.
Municipal Buildings, Property, and Capital Improvements
• Fire Department Brick Replacement
The brick on the Fire Station need to be replaced or repaired, it was the belief Alderman Oberkfell to replace all of the brick. Repair of some flashing and some steel in the chiefs office are also believed to be needed. An estimate of $13,000 was made by Williams Brick of Waterloo. Specs were given to the chief by Oberkfell, these will be reviewed by the chief and Ron Williams to put the work out for bid.
• Police Station Roof Update
Lakeside Roofing will do the work and add sloping to the currently flat roof system on the building. They will also add gutters and downspouts for the total price of $34,087. The insurance company will pay out $25,770 which puts the city on the hook for around $8,000 out of pocket. Hejna noted that there was $4,000 in this years budget for roof repairs to this building.
Committee of the Whole
• Meadow Ridge West Condo Association
An ordinance will be drafted by Tom Adams the city attorney for the Columbia Police to have jurisdiction on the associations private property. This ordinance will only be worked on by Tom if the association first agrees to pay for all legal costs the city will have in dealing with the drafting of the ordinance. The city only has one other agreement of this type and that is with the owners of the Market Place complex.
•Veterans Parkway
This was discussion on changing the names of Parkview and Edelweiss to Veterans Parkway at the beginning of November. A memorial will be placed along what is now Parkview between the evergreens and the road near the Blue Jays football field.
This was something that was presented in ’07 and the council told the group that if they could get all the landowners to agree then the name change could occur and they could place the memorial in the park. Sketches were presented last winter regarding the memorial, no final design was presented but the understanding is that the bronze sculpture has already been ordered, the council has no real idea if it resembles the sketches at all. The consensus was they agreed to it and they figure the memorial will look fine. They seemed to think the memorial would be a solider helping a child.
I like the idea of having the memorial and the name change. Alderman Agne thinks the name Veterans Parkway should be used on a more prominent street in town. I feel they are fairly major streets in the community.
This will affect all people who own property along these streets; if you have not been notified or do not wish to have your address changed I would suggest calling City Hall ASAP, it could be a pain to get your address changed on everything you get in the mail and if you’re a business your stationary will be obsolete.
• Legal RFQ Submissions
The aldermen were asked to give their impression of the submissions along with any specific items they would like to have reviewed before a selection is made. The city attorney is appointed by the mayor with the council’s approval on a yearly basis. The labor attorney is determined by a vote of the council. Tom Adams is in place until spring of 2010 as the city attorney. The following notes are some highlights of the discussion on the subject.
Ebersohl – fixed rate or hourly rate? The city does not want a 1 or 2 year associate they would prefer a partner. Which partner would handle the city’s issues?
Stumpf – The city attorney and the labor attorney should be two separate law firms for diversification.
Hutchinson – What will be included in the retainer fees if optioned, what do the firms include in other cities umbrella retainer plans?
Roessler – Law firm that handles a diverse array of legal issues with a good retainer plan.
Oberkfell – The city should have on “pointman” contact at the law firm they select.
Hejna – Do other Cities have attorney present their council meetings? Answer form Hutchinson, “Yes”
Niemetz – Fixed rate prices for handling certain issue that arise frequently. Hourly rate could be an issue if they charge for everything and really nickel and dime their clients.
Hejna – Would the mayor simply give his recommendation or update the council with his progress and answers from the law firms. Hutchinson said he would present his recommendation with bullet points on what he finds with each law firm he speaks with regarding the issues the council has given him to review and look for.
Agne liked law firms 1, 4, & 5 and C, D, & E
Hejna liked Helper Broom rather than Gallop, Johnson, Newman
Brad liked Helper Broom & Sandberg Phoenix
• Other Items
The surplus auction held July 11th made $11,400. Action Auction received $463 while the city had a net income of $10, 185.
Dr. Hunter with the Osage Nation would like to make some changes to the Programmatic Agreement so it was not signed by the city.
Some discussion took place regarding the levy and the lack of federal funding to those districts.
The funding for the poor road conditions of the road by McDonalds going to marketplace may come from state sources as the owner may be getting some funding for allowing the old car dealership to become a park & ride lot.
License, Insurance, Claims, CEMA, and Contracts
• Steel Workers Health Insurance
The agreement was reviewed by Mark Weissman and some changes will be made. The insurance company did note that their rates did increase by 11% but offered no real reason why.
Personnel
• Executive Session for an update on the collective bargaining negotiations & employee salaries and an update on an EEOC complaint.
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Fireworks 2009 Video
This is the video I shot of the fireworks on Sunday night. I edited it down quite a bit and at one time I had the camera at a 90 degree angle to the ground so the wide screen feature could capture more vertically (that is why the fireworks look like they are being shot horizontally to the ground at one point). Its dark at the start while the choir sings the national anthem.
2009 Fireworks
Here are some pictures of the fireworks on Sunday night taken from the hill at the entrance to Columbia Lakes. I think the fireworks were great and the atmosphere of the crowd down at the legion was great. Lots of people were there and it seemed everyone was having a great time.
Thanks again for the pics D. Auer. They're great photos.
Thanks again for the pics D. Auer. They're great photos.
