West Newsmagazine 10-11-17

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October 11, 2017
WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
I NEWS I 11
County Council Face off
Stenger says measures approved by council violate county charter
By JIM MERKEL
Two measures approved by opponents
of County Executive Steve Stenger on Oct.
3 have little chance of going into effect,
Stenger said.
The County Council, on a
4-3 vote, approved a bill calling
for the appointment of a
council legislative director. But
Stenger said he intends to veto
and doubted the chance of five
councilmembers voting to override.
He said the bill violated
Stenger
the county charter, which stipulates that
the council must get its legal advice from
County Counselor Peter Krane.
“[The bill] is really [the councilmembers]
trying to get their own attorney,” Stenger
said. “The charter is very clear that they do
not have an attorney.”
The county charter stipulates that the
county executive appoints the county
counselor, and the council approves the
appointment.
Stenger also said a resolution passed on
Oct. 3 has no teeth. The resolution, which
passed 4-1 with one abstention,
calls for the council to take legal
action to force Stenger to hire
more audit staff and other budgeted
county council positions. It further
calls for the hiring of Claytonbased
attorneys James P. Bick and
Elkin L. Kistner as special counsels
to do the council’s legal work at a
rate of $225 per hour.
“The council has no authority to enter a
contract with that law firm, whether they
passed a resolution or they didn’t,” Stenger
said. He said his office would notify the
law firm that if it does any work, the county
would not pay for its services.
County Council Chair Sam Page [D-District
2] said it was up to Stenger to decide
whether he’ll approve the legislative director
bill, noting that the county executive
vetoed a similar measure earlier this year.
As for the resolution on taking legal
action, Page said, “What happens
now is the county council is authorized
to go to court and answer
two questions.” One is whether
the court will allow the council
to appoint its own legal counsel.
If the court does, the next question
is whether the council can
fill staff positions without being
Page
blocked by the county executive. That’s up
to a court to decide, he said.
“This is an important issue for everybody,
and it’s time to go to court and try to
decide it,” Page said. “I would expect that
this takes a few weeks to sort out, and as
soon as we can have our position drafted,
we’ll file it.”
On the auditor position, Stenger said
there has long been two auditors, as there
are now.
He said that if there is a need for another
one, it’s because the present auditor, Mark
Tucker, isn’t qualified to do the job.
Among other things, Stenger said,
Tucker doesn’t meet the county
charter’s requirements of having
five years of accounting experience.
Voting for the resolution on
taking legal action and the bill on
the legislative director were the
four members of the anti-Stenger
faction in the council: Page, Hazel Erby
[D-District 1], Rochelle Walton Gray
[D-District 4] and Ernie Trakas [R-District
6]. Pat Dolan [D-District 5] voted against
the resolution. Colleen Wasinger [R-District
3] and Mark Harder [R-District 7]
abstained. Wasinger, Dolan and Harder
voted against the legislative director bill.
Manchester stormwater channel projects keep residents safe, property values high
By BONNIE KRUEGER
The next two stormwater channel
improvement projects unanimously were
approved by the Manchester Board of
Aldermen on Sept. 18.
The city has allocated $510,000 for the
Channel F stream bank restoration project
[near Sulphur Spring Road off Tulsa
Avenue] and $65,000 for the Channel
H stream bank maintenance project on
Leaside Court, in addition to a combined
$26,683.50 contingency budget for unforeseen
conditions for Channel F. The monies
for the projects were collected from the
Parks and Stormwater sales tax passed by
voters in 2000, and which annually has
collected between $1 million, in the early
2000s, and $1.6 million, currently. Being a
shared tax, a portion of the fund has been
allocated to the new Parks, Recreation and
Arts building currently under construction.
The fund also can be used for repairs and
improvements to the Manchester Aquatic
Center located in Paul A. Schroeder Park.
According to city officials, the half-cent
tax fund allowed for a much-needed survey
to be done in 2000 to evaluate watershed
and erosion issues stemming from the
Grand Glaize Creek and Fishpot Creek
channels. The survey company named the
channels alphabetically from A through J
and identified the most critical channels
needing attention, particularly to lessen the
impact on residential property.
Watersheds are basin-like landforms
defined by high points and ridgelines that
descend into lower elevations and stream
valleys. A watershed carries water that
is shed from the land after rain falls and
snow melts. Drop by drop, water is channeled
into soils, ground waters, creeks and
streams. Over time, erosion can occur in
the channels, requiring repairs.
Stormwater channel erosion in Manchester
Although some smaller storm sewer
issues were addressed earlier, the major
watershed channel projects did not start
until 2007 in Channel A, followed by Channels
B and C. Public Works Director Bob
Ruck said that the city works with the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers and Metropolitan
Sewer District [MSD] in conjunction
with the Missouri Department of Natural
Resources to formulate a plan to restore the
channels naturally. Decades ago, railroad
ties often were used, but today, rocks and
boulders are used to continue the channel’s
natural flow. Fences also are erected as a
safety precaution.
Repaired stormwater channel in Manchester
“The understanding is that once
it is fixed, it’s fixed for life,” Ruck
said.
The projects do not qualify for
federal funding, although in 2019,
MSD will subsidize $700,000
worth of stormwater projects. Larger scale
projects can take more than a budget year
to complete; some of the smaller projects
require four to six months of funds.
Following the completion of Channels
F and H, expected in 2018, the city
anticipates a $3 million stormwater relief
project in the Chadwick Subdivision. A
relief sewer will be constructed to eliminate
flooding in the areas of Villa View,
Brookdale and Briarhurst drives. Construction
is expected to begin in 2019, and
the city is projecting future projects to go
into 2020 and beyond to address Channel
D near Hanna Road.
“There are projects the survey indicated
needing minor repairs back in 2000 that
are becoming more critical as time passes,”
Ruck explained.
When restoration projects affect residential
properties, arborists and subdivision trustees
are invited to provide input to city officials
and the company contracted to do the work.
Ideal Landscape Construction, Inc. has
been contracted with the city to complete
the Channel F and H work. They have been
hired for nearly every stormwater project
in recent years; Ruck explained that stormwater
channel project work is highly specialized
and Ideal often is the best, if not
only, bid the city receives.
“For the greater residential population,
these are not exciting projects. But for the
residents affected, they are a vital part of
keeping our community safe and property
values high,” Ruck said.