The Trenton City Council approved two routine ordinances during a meeting Monday evening.
One ordinance authorizes the city to enter into an agreement with BRS Construction LLC to install Missouri Department of Transportation Type 2 rock blankets at two locations-the raw water intake on the Thompson River and on 28th Street at the Muddy Creek Bridge. The company will be paid $276,370 for repairs, which are to be completed by the end of March. The raw water intake portion of the work will cost $181,350, all of which will be paid for by the city, while the Muddy Creek Bridge work will cost $95,020, of which the city will pay $45,510 with the remainder being paid for by the county. FEMA funds will be used to pay 75 percent of those costs.
The council also approved an ordinance approving an agreement between the city and MODOT by which the city will accept the right-of-way in two areas as was agreed upon in July 2019. The areas in which the city will now have responsibility for maintenance of the right-of-way includes Oklahoma Avenue (referred to by MODOT as Business 65) from just north of the intersection of Ninth/10th Street and Oklahoma Avenue north to just south of the 28th and Oklahoma Avenue intersection. In addition, the right-of-way on Princeton Road/28th Street from near 21st Street to just west of the 28th and Oklahoma Avenue intersection will also be deeded to the city, with the city taking over maintenance.
Councilmembers gave the go-ahead to Street Superintendent Gary Dryer to pursue the purchase of a used dump truck, which is estimated to cost $30,000 to $35,000 and would replace an older model. The funds are included in the current budget and councilmembers had planned to purchase a different type of vehicle (10-wheeler), however, on Dryer’s recommendation, they agreed that purchasing another dump truck would make more sense with the amount of contracted hauling the city is currently doing. It was noted that the current trucks are at least 20 years old and one is currently being offered for sale through an online auction site.
Councilman Glen Briggs commended the street department crews for getting the streets cleaned following recent snow and ice events and a discussion was held concerning the need for sidewalks on Ninth Street to be cleared. It was noted that there is no ordinance requiring property owners to clear their sidewalks and that issue might need to be re-visited during an administrative committee meeting. Trenton Municipal Utilities crews were also commended for their work in getting utilities back on after recent outages.
Other action and areas of discussion included:
• the employment of Zach Underwood of Philadelphia, PA, as a city police officer. Underwood’s employment had been recommended by the Police Personnel Board and he is in the process of getting his Missouri POST certification and making plans to move to Trenton. It was noted that he has family connections in north Missouri.
• the possible need for a “triggering mechanism” that would alert the city that a new occupant is in a rental unit. A rental property owner has contacted council members to say he feels it is unfair that some rental properties are not being inspected because the utilities are not changed to the renter, meaning the city wouldn’t have a way to know the occupant has changed. The city’s ordinance states that properties must be inspected each time the occupant changes, with reduced fees charged for more than one inspection per year.
• Mayor Linda Crooks was asked to appoint two citizen members to the utility committee.
• held an executive session to discuss a legal matter, with no announcement made.
The next regular council meeting is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 25.
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