West Newsmagazine 12-16-20

12 I NEWS I
December 16, 2020
WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
Wishing You
A Very
From Representative
Bruce DeGroot
District 101
@WESTNEWSMAG
WESTNEWSMAGAZINE.COM
Wildwood City Council prioritizes
its five-year goals and objectives
By CATHY LENNY
At its Nov. 23 work session, the Wildwood
City Council discussed what might
become the municipality’s five-year strategic
goals and objectives for 2021 to 2025.
Developing a list is the first step in the
three-stage process.
Council members expressed their specific
requests, some of which affect large
portions of the city, such as providing
rural internet access and managing watershed
erosion. There were also more specific
requests for each ward. Those items
were grouped into eight categories, which
council members ranked by priority.
Interim City Administrator Steve Cross
tabulated the results to come up with a
priority list that begins with the council’s
most important items. They include:
• Rural internet
• Financial resource development
• Erosion control
• Public works
• Administrative
• Economic development
• Lake Chesterfield
• Enhanced green space
Providing rural internet access once
again was listed as the city’s top priority.
Currently, the Rural Internet Access
Committee is looking at three proposals
and those associated costs to provide rural
internet service.
Financial resource development was priority
number two. That category includes
finding additional resources to make the
city less reliant on sales tax, including
pushing for a so-called Wayfair internet
sales tax for online sales. That measure
would need to be approved by the Missouri
legislature.
Erosion control came in third and is
another ongoing problem within the city.
Controlling watershed erosion, shown here on Caulks Creek, is a
high priority for Wildwood in 2021.
(Source: Joe Garritano)
It is currently being addressed by the
Watershed Erosion Task Force. The city
has been working with R. David Hammer,
Ph.D., professor emeritus, Department
of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
University of Missouri, to address erosion
problems in the nine watersheds. A current
increase in his contract amount with
the city to $35,000 from $20,000 is under
consideration by the council.
Additionally, an increased contract
amount was approved for Jon Jones at
Wright Water Engineers, Inc. to develop
cost estimates for anticipated repairs in the
watersheds. That amount was increased to
$22,000 from the original $10,000 contracted
amount.
Fourth on the list is public works,
which includes numerous projects such
as the Old State Road shared-use path,
Hwy. 100 and Eatherton Road safety
improvements, a roundabout at Old State
and Ridge roads, and sidewalk improvements
along Strecker Road. Some of
these projects are already included in
the city’s 2021 budget under capital
improvement projects.
Administrative projects, number five on
the list, might encompass city personnel
issues, such as hiring an arborist, or revising
Chapter 410 of the city code regarding
trees.
Economic development came in at
number six and could include a “Shop in
Wildwood” promotion or hosting a wine or
independent film festival in town.
The last two items on the list dealt with
finding solutions for Lake Chesterfield and
enhancing the city’s green space.
The next step in the process is to prioritize
sub-goals under the eight categories
and determine the financing for those projects.
Discussion of that step was anticipated
at the Dec. 14 work session, which
occurred after press time.
“I’m looking forward
to evaluating income
sources, which will
include a review of
potentially reallocating
funds from other areas
of less interest to our
residents and making
some of our events and
programs budget neutral,”
Mayor Jim Bowlin said.
The final step will be
to determine specific
line item details or action
items, such as who will
implement the projects
and suggested target
dates.