The Honorable Mayor

and members of the City Council

City of Warrensburg, Missouri

Dear Mayor and Council Members:

SUBJECT: City Manager Report for the March 9, 2009 City Council Study Session

Council Letter No. 09-036

March 6, 2009

Inspire a Shared Vision
Challenge the Process
Enable Others to Act
Encourage the Heart
Model the Way

The quotation for this City Manager Report centers on the leadership concept of
"Inspire a Shared Vision.”

City Council Meetings, Study Sessions, and Executive Sessions

Our City Council Meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 9, 2009, and we plan to have an Executive Session at  6:00 p.m. at the City Hall Annex to discuss legal and real estate issues.  We anticipate that the Agenda for the 7:00 p.m. regular March 9 City Council Meeting will include the following:   

• Resolution to Pay Bills;
• Public Hearing and First Reading of an Ordinance Establishing Procedures and Regulations for Ham Radio Towers;
• Public Hearing and Ordinance Amending the Zoning Ordinance on the Definition of Principle Use Per Lot;
• Appearance of Bob Cochran requesting a letter of support to the State Division of Liquor Control to continue liquor sales at Expressways;
• Ordinance Approving a Contract for the Highway13 Intersections;
• Ordinance Approving a Contract for the Fire Station No. 2 Parking Lot;
• Ordinance Approving a Contract for Spring City-Wide Cleanup;
• Ordinance Approving a Contract for Spring Bulky Waste Pickup;
• Ordinance Approving a Contract for the 2009 City Mowing Program;
• Ordinance Approving the Final Payment for the Fire Department Remodel Project;
• Ordinance Approving a Contract for Traffic Engineering Services at Gay and Burkharth.

Possible items for the March 23, 2009 City Council Agendas include:

• Resolution Authorizing a Task Force to Review Sports Tourism, Use of Joint Facilities and possible Sports Authority;
• Ordinance Authorizing a City/County Emergency Management Agreement;
• Ordinance Authorizing an Agreement to provide Emergency Access from Cayhill Subdivision East to Enterprise Avenue;
• Ordinance Establishing a City Tree Board;
• Ordinance Approving a Contract for Engineering of the Downtown Revitalization Phase III (Pine Street) Project.

Council Communication and Projects
You have communicated to City staff, as a group or individually, requests for information on certain issues.  The following are some of those items:

Wage and Benefit Study Nearing Completion
City staff is compiling a staff memo and PowerPoint on a review of the pros and cons of each approach to implementing the wage and benefit study and this report should be ready for your review prior to the upcoming City Council meeting and will also be submitted next week to the Department Directors and the Wage and Benefit Committee for their review and comment.

Cost estimates for each approach is now being developed and a complete review of the City’s financial situation and the existing budget is now taking place.  City staff is waiting on the final numbers of the second quarter sales tax receipts and we anticipate that all budgetary and cost estimates for each approach will be complete for the City Council’s review  and discussion at a Study Session prior to the March 23 City Council at 6:00 p.m. at the City Hall Annex. 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Wage and Benefit Committee for all of their hard work and also express appreciation to Chris Lowe, Rachel Denfeld, and Penny Harris for their work in reviewing the information and crunching all of the numbers.   

City Staff to Begin Surveying Restaurants on Smoking
At the request of City Councilmember Nimmer, City staff is proceeding to develop a telephone survey to ascertain what City restaurants and bars presently allow or disallow smoking and if allowing smoking what additional restrictions they provide.  This should provide basic information if the City Council should decide to review this issue further.  In addition, we have been in contact with a representative, Jessica Rhodes of Main Street, of the Hospitality group of Warrensburg Area Partners in Prevention (WAPIP) to seek additional input from Warrensburg establishments. 

Quarterly Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Report Now Ready
Attached is the (SIC) report for the latest quarter that was prepared by Carl Larkerbrink in our Finance Department.  This report stems from State Sales tax information.  We now have a full year of quarterly information and this report will not only assist the local Chamber of Commerce, but will also be used by the City to examine sales trends and to assist us in recruitment of additional retail establishment.    

Efforts to Obtain Global Strike Force Command at Whiteman Continue
As previously indicated, the State’s Department of Economic Development is now taking the lead on the Global Strike Command Project.  The final meeting was a regional committee held Friday, March 6, 2009.  A final briefing paper was developed by the State of Missouri to support this important project.

Emergency Access from Cayhill East to Enterprise Being Reviewed
In light of the East Highway 13 Loop project at the intersection of Highway 50 and the impact that this will have to our residents and emergency safety organizations, we plan to meet with representatives of Cayhill, the property owners, and the County next week to discuss the first draft of a contract that would provide the construction of a Veterans Road emergency access.  We anticipate a contract will be ready for your review at your upcoming March 23 City Council meeting.    

Recent City Manager Activities, Meetings and Events

Since our last City Council meeting, your City Manager attended a Warrensburg Census Committee meeting, reviewed and finalized Public Work Director candidates for an April 2 interview date, and appeared before both a Missouri House and Senate committees on support of a State resolution seeking the Global Strike Command at Whiteman.  In addition, I met with Department Directors on the 2009 budget, attended a Warrensburg Ambassadors Meeting, City Branding Committee meeting and met with Mr. Robert Compton and Mr. Bob Cochran.   I also attended the first Warrensburg Arts Commission meeting, the final Missouri Department of Economic Development Global Strike Command at Whiteman, and went to Kansas City for the beginning of the MIAA university basketball tournament.        

Upcoming City Manager Activities, Meetings and Events

Next week I plan to attend a Warrensburg Census Committee meeting, a Pioneer Trail Planning Commission Board Meeting, a WAPIP meeting, a Base Community Council luncheon, and a West Central Missouri Administrators luncheon.  

The week after, I plan to participate in our monthly KOKO Radio show, attend the Warrensburg Traffic Commission meeting, and attend a retirement reception for our Public Works Director, Robert Crumb.  I will be out of Friday for a vacation trip to Branson.

Economic Partnership Activities

As is our custom, attached are the monthly reports from Warrensburg Main Street, Inc. and the Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center.  Johnson County Economic Development Corporation reports on a bi-monthly basis.  The reports from these Warrensburg Economic Partners are not only being provided to keep you informed, but are also available for interested citizens.

As always, if there are any questions on any matter, or if you need additional information on this report, please contact either myself or any of the Department Directors noted in this report.  You may always contact me on any subject at any time by e-mail or mobile phone or leave a voice mail message at (660) 747-9180.  

FIRE DEPARTMENT
Phil Johnston, Fire Chief

Firefighter Recruitment Continues
Conditional offers of employment have now been sent to 12 of the 14 persons whose names are on the current part-time firefighter eligibility list.  Interviews occurred with each candidate.  Two candidates withdrew from the process (one withdrew after the interview but before a background check began, and another withdrew after receiving an offer of employment).  One candidate was not offered employment.  Four of the new part-time firefighters joined the Fire Department on March 2, and two more will join on March 9.  The remaining five candidates are in varying stages of the medical and drug testing process.  As soon as we receive confirmation of their successful completion, they will become part-time firefighters.
 
Fire Station 1 Remodeling Project Now Being Finalized
There are some final remodeling projects that remain.  We are still waiting for a door to replace one that was installed but does not open or close correctly, some window coverings that are still on order, the completion of some wiring is needed, and the resolution of other items that have been communicated to the project manager.

New Pre-Fire Planning Ready to Begin
Battalion Chief Jim Kushner, Fire Department Training Officer, and Justin O’Neal, Fire and Emergency Prevention Officer, met recently with Information Technology (IT) Manager Penny Harris to finalize the process of placing pre-fire plan documents in the Fire Department’s computer software.  The fire crews have completed more than 300 individual pre-fire plans since the program began almost one year ago.  These documents contain emergency contact information, building and contents information, access and utility information, and other important information that might be needed during emergency situations at the occupancies that have been visited by firefighters.  I hope to be able to informally show these pre-fire plans to the City Council at an upcoming meeting.  A lot of effort has gone into producing these plans, and the Fire Department will continue working on this program on a continuous basis.  Once a pre-fire plan program is initiated, it must be continued on at least a semi-annual basis to ensure accuracy and familiarity.  Pre-fire plans will be printed and carried on Fire Department vehicles until they can be quickly and reliably accessed by computer from Fire Department vehicles. 
 
Administrative Projects
Fire Department personnel are busy with a variety of administrative projects.  Members of the Labor Management Committee are preparing to guide the Fire Department in the development of a new Fire Department policy and procedures manual.  Battalion Chief Guy Parsons has been designing payroll spreadsheets to help increase the accuracy and efficiency of internal Fire Department payroll data processing.  Battalion Chief Jim Kushner has been working closely with Bill Graves of the Department of Public Works regarding the much-needed parking lot project at Fire Station 2.

Assistant Fire Chief to Attend National Fire Academy
On March 9, 2009, Assistant Fire Chief Sean Douglas will begin the first of a series of classes at the National Fire Academy in Maryland.  Last year, he was accepted into the Executive Fire Officer program.  He and approximately 35 other fire officers from around the United States make up the class that begins the four-year cycle this month.  He will attend classes for two weeks and then return to Warrensburg.  Additional courses will take place during the next four years.  This is an important undertaking for him and for us, and we wish him much success in this undertaking.  The Federal government pays for almost all of the program costs.

PARKS and RECREATION
Kory Alfred, Director

February 25, 2005 Park Board Agenda
The following items were on the February 25, 2009 Park Board meeting agenda.

• Smoking Policy for Parks and Recreation Events
• Volunteer Policy
• Nassif market study & pricing for the facilities
• Two closed session items

City/Parks & Recreation to Begin Reviewing Joint Policies
I met with the City Manager and Assistant City Manager regarding the development of joint policies and procedures relating to various issues.  Development of these policies and procedures will make operations between the City and Parks & Recreation much smoother and less ambiguous.  I anticipate a joint resolution regarding these policies on the March board meeting agenda and that the City Council would review the resolution in April. 

City-Wide Recreation Trail Plan Now Being Finalized
Staff met with consultants from Bucher, Willis, and Ratliff (BWR) concerning the second draft of the City-Wide Trail Plan.  Staff indentified areas of the plan which require more detailed specification and integration with the City-Wide Traffic Study, City Comprehensive Plan, and City Bike Routes.  I anticipate the next draft being submitted in March.

Nassif Aquatic Center Project Continues to Make Progress
The Nassif Aquatic Center project is progressing on schedule.  Construction of the bath house has begun.  The Lazy River is poured and the water slide has been erected.  Staff is in the process of setting fees and policies for the new facility.  The facility is planned to open this upcoming Memorial Day.

Nassif Aquatic Center Fees
I reported last month a marketing class at UCM was conducting a market study concerning the fees to be charged at the new Nassif Aquatic Center.  A presentation of the study by the students who gathered the data was on the last Park Board agenda.  Due to the deadline for ordering pricing signs for Nassif, the Recreation Committee met to review the proposed fees and results of the market study on February 12, 2009.  The committee approved the fees as proposed.  However, the committee directed staff to investigate an assistance program for those who can’t afford the new price structure to use the facility.  A copy of the study and proposed fees was provided to the Park Board at their last meeting.  Staff is still developing a program for those who can’t afford the new fee structure.  

PUBLIC WORKS
Bob Crumb, Director of Public Works

Street Department Activities
The crew was out all day Saturday plowing and clearing streets. 

This week plans are to tie in a storm drainage pipe crossing Water Street into the storm drainage system around area of the new building. This will alleviate an ongoing water problem on the east side of the street. The work is being done by the street crew to reduce additional contract cost. The crew has also begun fencing the lot around the facility as time permits which also is a cost savings project.

2009 Street Maintenance Program to be Approved in April
Bids are ready to be advertised with bid opening scheduled for March 27, 2009 and presented to Council in April.

Curb and Sidewalk Program to be Approved in April
We received 13 applications for the program. Staff is currently in the process of prioritizing locations and getting the project out to bid.  The program will be ready to go out for bid in March and presented to Council in April.

City Bike Routes Work Begins
Work has begun on marking the Bike Routes.  You may notice stakes with a piece of plywood attached to them and a sheet of paper attached to the plywood around town.  These are the future locations for the bike route signs.  The actual signs should be put in the ground starting the week of March 2nd with the construction period lasting 3-4 weeks.  Reasbeck Construction is the contractor working on this project.

City Wide Traffic Study Now Available on City Web Site
The City Wide Traffic Study that was presented at the February 9 Council meeting is now available on the City’s website at www.warrensburg-mo.com for all interested community members.

Gay and Burkarth Traffic Study Should Begin
George Butler Associates, Inc. has been chosen to perform an engineering study of the area traffic from the Western Missouri Medical Center, Warrensburg Middle School and Sterling Elementary School.  The agreement should be submitted to Council at the March 23 meeting.

2009 Spring Cleanup Programs Will Happen on Weeks of March 30 and April 6
Bids were opened on February 27, 2009 with Heartland Waste as apparent low bidder for the Bulky Waste Cleanup and Richter Excavating as the apparent low bidder for the Brush and Limb Cleanup.  The contracts will be presented to Council at the March 9, 2009 meeting. Spring Cleanup is scheduled for the weeks of March 30 and April 6.

2009 City Mowing Program
Four bids were opened on February 27, 2009.  Calculations will be made and apparent low bidder will be presented to Council at the March 9, 2009 meeting.

Wastewater Plant Expansion Project Continues
The preconstruction meeting on the plant expansion was held on February 19.  The contractor plans to mobilize equipment this week.

Monthly WPC Utility Report
See attached

Highway 13 Intersection Project
This project will be presented to Council at the March 9, 2009 meeting for approval of the contractor and total bid.

Fire Station No. 2 Parking Lot Project Set to Begin
This project will be presented to Council at the March 9, 2009 meeting for approval of the contractor and total bid.

Johnson County Historical Courthouse
The plans for the Historical Courthouse are currently at Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) for final approval.

Public Works Maintenance Building Almost Complete
The contractor has begun the installation of drywall in the new Public Works Building.  Plans are to start building the parking lot and install curbing.  Access to the Maintenance Facility will be limited due to the removal of the existing entrance and portions of the asphalt lot.  An alternate entrance has been built on the west side of the property to allow access for City staff and Police Department’s refueling of vehicles.  Coil Construction’s current project schedule shows March 24 for substantial completion.  Due to weather conditions; however, the site work will certainly not be completed by the 24.

Major Site Work on Police Building Construction is Now Happening
Straub Construction began construction on February 17 and is maintaining an aggressive pace.  Utility infrastructure installation is going to dominate the majority of the project effort for the next few weeks assuming adequate weather conditions. 

City Hall Remodel Project for Fire Department Finalized
The Letter of Acceptance is forthcoming to the Council for approval.  A handful of punch list items remain but will be concluded in the next few weeks.
 
City Hall Remodel-Programming Phase Begins
George Butler Associates (GBA) has submitted a set of conceptual drawings for the City Hall Remodel project.  Included is an exterior elevation rendering that compliments the Police Building design in a city plaza theme.  Bob Crumb and Richard Pember will present the concept drawings to the Staff for their review and comment later this week.  Once the concept drawings are agreed upon we will enter into negotiations for a detailed design and construction phase services contract with GBA.   

Bids on New Animal Shelter Will Soon be Obtained  
We have received the architect’s second design submittal.  The GBA mechanical, electrical, structural and civil engineers are now preparing their initial design review documents.  We anticipate going out to bid early next week for the 2” water service line to the existing and new Animal Shelter buildings.  Currently the facility is being supplied with water from a well on the old sewer plant.  The well does not provide drinkable water and needs to be replaced with a water service line from a main located on West Pine Street.  In addition, we are working on a plan to bring in excess fill material from the Police Building excavation to the Animal Shelter for the new building pad and other required site work cleanup.

Search for Bidders for a New Cemetery Maintenance Building Now Taking Place 
The new Cemetery Maintenance Building is currently out for bid.  We will conduct a pre-bid meeting on March 3 and are scheduled for a bid opening of March 12.  The project should go before Council for approval at the April meeting.

Activities and Meetings of the Director of Public Works
The Director of Community Development, Tracy Brantner, Executive Director of the Johnson County Economic Development Corporation, and I met with the Director of the Department of Economic Development regarding the Community Development Block Grant for the Downtown Phase III project.

I will be attending the Transportation Advisory Council on Thursday, March 5 in Concordia.  I am the chair of the Council this year.

I have been meeting with the Public Works Project Managers on a weekly basis to coordinate all of the projects.  The Public Works Department is currently managing the following projects:
           

• Hwy 13 Intersections Project (William Graves)
• Fire Station No. 2 parking lot reconstruction (William Graves)
• Street Maintenance Program (Marvin Coleman, Assistant Public Works Director)
• Programming of City Hall (future remodel projects) (Richard Pember)
• Old Courthouse Project (Megan Douglas)
• Closeout of the Fire Department Remodel (Richard Pember)
• Public Works building, under construction (Richard Pember)
• Police Department building, under construction (Richard Pember)
• Sewer Plant Expansion Project, construction starts this month (Archer Engineers)
• Bike Lane Project, construction starts this month (Megan Douglas)
• Traffic Study of the Gay, Burkarth and Mitchell area (Megan Douglas)

The project managers will be presenting their various projects to the City Council for approval.  I will continue to assist after my retirement on a limited basis until the new director is on board.

POLICE DEPARTMENT
Bruce Howey, Police Chief

Police Department
Lunch Meeting Held with New Municipal Judge and Police Officers
On February 24 a lunch was hosted at the Annex for new Municipal Judge Jim Hall to get to know the staff of both the Warrensburg and the University of Central Missouri Police Departments.  This gave an opportunity for Judge Hall to speak and answer questions from both groups.  Over 30 persons participated. 

Dirt Work Moving Ahead with New Police Building Project
A considerable amount of dirt has already been moved by the contractor to ready the driveway and parking lot for the new Police Building.  This is the first stage of the building process.  The snowy weather from this weekend has slowed progress this week.  The Straub Construction job trailer has been set on the west end of the Depot parking lot. 

Elks Lodge Invitation for Dinner to Honor Emergency Services Workers
An invitation has been received for the Police Department to participate in a dinner sponsored by the Warrensburg Elks Lodge to honor emergency services workers on March 20. 

Animal Shelter

Petfinder and Adopt-A-Pet Web Pages Soon to Be Available
The shelter has been working with Petfinder to get our website link up and running again.  The Petfinder site has been down and is now back up and running.  In addition, the shelter also is working with Adopt-A-Pet, a website similar to Petfinder.  This website will post our animals on sixteen additional animal adoption web pages.  We are very happy to be allowing our animals even more exposure and a greater chance at being adopted.

ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER
Chris Lowe

Telecommunications staff from RSM McGladrey, our recently chosen telephone system vendor, is conducting employee interviews with staff to determine call flows.  This process is done with an eye on improving both internal and external customer service throughout the organization.

Support Services
Staff met several times by teleconference with the wage consultant and has spent many hours developing financial information to support the various methods of implementation.  I cannot stress enough how much I appreciate the efforts of Rachel Denfeld and Penny Harris who have put in hours and hours of data entry and technical support.  These employees have gone above and beyond the call of duty.  The City is very lucky to have this type of dedicated staff. 

Finance
Finance staff, especially Lonna Mayes, are now processing the highest amounts of monthly billings in the history of Warrensburg.  We are averaging over 850 bills per month.  If the pace continues, and it is expected to increase with the projects that have begun, we will process over 8,000 bills in the fiscal year and very likely will approach 10,000 in this fiscal year. 

We have just received preliminary information that our sale of surplus vehicles which you authorized us to replace with new, fuel efficient vehicles netted a return of $47,717.  These were the Crown Victoria’s and several old pickup trucks that had been in use in Community Development, Public Works and in the Cemetery.  We are very pleased to be able to upgrade our fleet and still realize significant cost recovery from the surplus sales.  Affiliated Auctioneers has really been a good service provider to us in the last couple of years in this regard.

Tracy Martens, Senior Account, gave birth to Haylie Nicole Martens, Monday, 02/23/09.  Haylie weighed 9 lbs 4 oz and is 22” long.  The family is doing fine and Leslie Martens is thrilled at having a little sister to mentor.  Congratulations to all the Martens’ household.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Barbara Carroll, Director of Community Development

Increase in Single-Family Residential Building Permits is Good News
The single family building permit activity for January and February of 2009 is up over last year’s figures for the same months.  The attached Community Development Report for the month of February shows 12 single family permits issued for the first two months of 2009, while 7 were issued for the same months in 2008 and 9 for the same months in 2007.  Also attached is a chart showing the number of single family permits issued by month for the last three years.  While the 2006 numbers are an obvious high point prior to the economy beginning to turn for the worse, the 2009 numbers for January and February are a positive sign for our local economy now.

Warrensburg 2010 Census Committee Stepping Up to Prepare for Census
The 2010 Census Committee met on February 23 and discussed the efforts to locate a local census office in Warrensburg.  A solicitation was made in mid-February by the General Service Administration for proposals for several Warrensburg locations.  More details about this effort will be shared as they become available.  The committee will be promoting an effort to get more people to install address numbers on their houses this spring.  Representatives from the committee will also be meeting with the local branding committee to finalize a local census logo to be used over the next year.

Downtown Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Pine Street Project Progresses
Bob Crumb, Tracy Brantner, and I met with Department of Economic Development staff on March 2 in Jefferson City.  Staff used this opportunity to update them on the City’s progress in securing engineering services for the downtown streetscape phase III project.  We also discussed general grant administration responsibilities related to the private match commitment.

Code Enforcement Compliment
Attached is a note from Tom and Sara Williams complimenting Code Enforcement Inspector, Ray Almaguer, on the progress being made in Broadview subdivision.  Ray has worked approximately 30 cases in the Broadview subdivision since June 2008.  The cases include general nuisance, garbage, trash, and junk accumulated in the yards, trash at the curb, and vegetation violations.

CITY CLERK
Cindy Gabel

• Monday, March 9, 2009, is an Executive Session at 6:00 p.m. and a City Council meeting is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.;
• Thursday, March 12 is the Base Community Council luncheon at noon at Mission’s End;
• Thursday, March 19 is Bob Crumb’s retirement reception at the White Rose Pavilion from 2:00 until 4:00 p.m.;
• Wednesday, March 25 is Student Government Day;
• Thursday, March 26 is the Quarterly Awards luncheon from 11:30-1:00 p.m. at the ABC Building;
• Tuesday, April 7 is Municipal Election Day;
• Thursday, April 26 is the Piccadilly Auction at the White Rose Pavilion.

On Wednesday, March 25, 2009, Robin Crouch and I will be hosting the annual Student Government Day at City and County offices.  This is an important event for high school students who are interested in City and County government.  A number of schools will be participating again this year.  The Mayor and City Council are welcome to attend and a luncheon will be held at the American Legion.  I will provide details as they become available.

Please provide me with your ordinance books and I will update them with the latest codifications.

City Managers Report available in .pdf

Main Street Report

Visitor Center Advisory Board Minutes 01/23/09

Visitor Center Staff Update

If you would like to receive an electronic copy of the City Managers Report send an email to:

CMmailing@warrensburg-mo.com