The Laredo Board of Aldermen approved matters relating to a proposed Community Development Block Grant to demolish structures in the city and agreed to seek alternative funding for a water standpipe project during a meeting Wednesday night at
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The Laredo Board of Aldermen approved matters relating to a proposed Community Development Block Grant to demolish structures in the city and agreed to seek alternative funding for a water standpipe project during a meeting Wednesday night at the Laredo City Hall.
City Clerk Joyce Stimpson said Lance Rains from the Green Hills Regional Planning Commission met with the board to discuss a recent site visit by state officials concerning the CDBG project. Laredo was one of three area communities to have site reviews in anticipation of receiving grant funds for housing rehabilitation and/or demolition projects.
Mrs. Stimpson said that during the visit, state officials asked for additional letters from property owners who will have houses torn down as part of the project as well as the city having an asbestos inspector ready to do work should the project be approved. The council received three bids for the asbestos work, all of which were for $200 per home, and voted to hire Jim Linville of Trenton to do the work. The other bids came from firms in Carrollton and Lee’s Summit.
A total of 17 structures have been identified to be demolished. Letters have been received from seven of the property owners, agreeing to have the work done. Mrs. Stimpson said the other property owners can submit their letters to city hall no later than Tuesday morning so that they can be submitted to the state by Wednesday.
In a matter related to the project, Richard and Karen Gardner of Trenton appeared before the council concerning a home that was owned by Mrs. Gardner’s father, Clark Hannah, before his death. The couple said they had nothing to do with the property and asked that the city discontinue sending them letters concerning the demolition project. According to Mrs. Stimpson, Mrs. Gardner is the heir to the property, but that there have been no taxes paid on the property and that the property has not been put into probate.
The board voted to submit an application for a $50,000 low-interest loan from the Department of Natural Resources to help fund installation of a water standpipe. The city has received an estimate of $236,650 to do the project and had submitted a grant application to fund the entire project. It was suggested by the state to seek a low-interest loan from either the DNR or USDA to pay for part of the work and the board voted to go with the DNR loan, which had a lower interest rate, 2.4 percent, compared to 4.2 percent from the USDA.
The board said it would work with Frank Golden concerning the clean-up of property he owns in the city. Mrs. Stimpson said Golden was one of several property owners who received letters from the city, asking them to clean up their properties. Golden was asked to remove some old vehicles from his property. According to Mrs. Stimpson, Golden said that because he owns the property and pays taxes, no one can tell him what he could do with the property. He said he keeps the property mowed and that he may even bring more items onto the property.
The next meeting of the board will be at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 7, which is the regular meeting time. The meeting will be at the Laredo City Hall.