OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Special City Council Meeting: Election Results, Outgoing & New Council Members (April 20, 2026)

Video Archive — Monday, April 20, 2026
BodyColumbia, Missouri
SessionVideo Archive
DateMonday, April 20, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 20:40

Transcript — Verbatim
0:12

All right, good evening.

0:13

Welcome to this special meeting of the Columbia City Council on April 20th, 2026.

0:19

I'd like to ask our city clerk to please call the roll.

0:23

Ms.

0:23

Peters.

0:24

Here.

0:24

Miss Buffalo.

0:25

Here.

0:26

Miss Carroll.

0:27

Here.

0:28

Miss Elwood?

0:29

Here.

0:29

Ms.

0:30

Sample.

0:31

Mr.

0:31

Foster.

0:32

Here.

0:32

Mr.

0:33

Waterman.

0:34

Here.

0:35

All right.

0:35

So first on our agenda of the special item is resolution 6826.

0:40

Sheila, would you please read resolution 6826?

0:43

Council Bill 6826 is a resolution declaring the results of the municipal election held in the City of Columbia on April 7, 2026.

0:51

So this is a resolution that recognizes the election results and is primarily done for historical or record keeping purposes.

0:59

So we don't have a staff report per se or any discussion on it.

1:03

So I'll just ask Sheila to please call role on resolution 6826.

1:07

Council Bill 6826, Ms.

1:09

Peters.

1:09

Yes.

1:10

Ms.

1:10

Buffalo.

1:11

Yes.

1:11

Ms.

1:12

Carroll?

1:12

Yes.

1:13

Ms.

1:13

Elwood?

1:14

Yes.

1:14

Mr.

1:15

Foster.

1:15

Yes.

1:16

Mr.

1:16

Waterman.

1:17

Yes.

1:18

All right.

1:19

So up first we have recognition and comments of our outgoing council member.

1:23

So I'll ask Don Waterman if he has some remarks to make.

1:27

I do.

1:27

Thank you, Madam Mayor.

1:29

I was joking with Nick what I should have.

1:32

I was thinking about going and getting a printed copy of the old budget and saying, here, here's my comments.

1:36

So Nick told me they'd probably drag me out if I tried that.

1:40

So anyway, in all seriousness.

1:56

My time on council was also an opportunity to meet new people, make new friends, develop relationship, make connections, even with those who disagree with me.

2:07

It's also an opportunity to learn from other communities through the chamber's leadership visit.

2:12

Missouri Municipal League and their regional meetings, the newly elected officials training, which Christina, if you can, I really would recommend going.

2:20

It's held here in Columbia, so that makes it a little easier.

2:24

And the National League of Cities annual meeting.

2:27

From the leadership visit, one of the things we took from that was a recently approved downtown ambassador program.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████████████████████42%
Personnel Matters██████████████████████████26%
Community Engagement██████████████████18%
Affordable Housing████████8%
Arts And Culture██████6%
Summary of Proceedings

Special City Council Meeting: Election Results, Outgoing & New Council Members

The Columbia City Council held a special meeting on April 20, 2026, at 5:00 PM in the Council Chamber at City Hall. The meeting certified the results of the April 7, 2026 municipal election, recognized outgoing Fifth Ward Council Member Don Waterman, administered the oath of office to newly elected Council Members Valerie Carroll (First Ward) and Christina Hartman (Fifth Ward), and made several appointments. All votes were unanimous with Council Member Jacque Sample absent.

Declaration of Election Results

  • Resolution R68-26 declaring the results of the April 7, 2026 municipal election was read and adopted by a vote of 6-0-1 (Peters, Buffaloe, Carroll, Elwood, Foster, Waterman yes; Sample absent). The resolution was for record-keeping purposes with no discussion.

Recognition of Outgoing Council Member

  • Outgoing Fifth Ward Council Member Don Waterman reflected on his three years of service, highlighting accomplishments including progress on police staffing and recruiting, a policy academy, a median/pedestrian safety ordinance, moving the transmission line project forward, and opening discussions on the public safety sales tax. He urged the Council to continue pushing the transmission line project and the public safety tax. He thanked fellow council members, staff, and his wife. Mayor Buffaloe and City Manager Seewood presented him with a Resolution of Appreciation, a certificate for a heritage tree, stained-glass artwork with the City logo, and a framed photograph.

Oath of Office of Newly Elected Council Members

  • City Clerk Sheela Amin administered the Oath of Office to First Ward Council Member Valerie Carroll (re-elected) and Fifth Ward Council Member Christina Hartman (newly elected). Mayor Buffaloe presented each with a framed Commission of Office.

Comments of Newly Elected Council Members

  • Council Member Carroll expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve a second term, emphasized her commitment to centering constituent voices, and noted her excitement to complete work on affordable housing and other initiatives. She thanked her family and campaign supporters.
  • Council Member Hartman thanked her family and supporters for helping her understand the issues facing Columbia. She expressed appreciation for the previous council's work and stated her goal to continue Columbia's legacy as a great city where everyone can thrive.

Appointment of Mayor Pro Tem

  • Mayor Buffaloe made a motion to reappoint Council Member Nick Foster as Mayor Pro Tem. The motion was seconded by Council Member Carroll and approved unanimously by voice vote.

Board Appointments

  • City of Columbia New Century Fund, Inc. Board: Mayor Buffaloe made a motion to continue serving as the City Council liaison. Seconded by Council Member Foster, approved unanimously by voice vote.
  • CAM Stakeholder Committee: Mayor Buffaloe made a motion to appoint Council Member Betsy Peters as the City Council representative. Seconded by Council Member Elwood, approved unanimously by voice vote.

Key Outcomes

  • Resolution R68-26 adopted (6-0-1).
  • Council Member Don Waterman recognized and presented with tokens of appreciation.
  • Valerie Carroll and Christina Hartman sworn in as First Ward and Fifth Ward Council Members, respectively.
  • Nick Foster reappointed Mayor Pro Tem.
  • Mayor Buffaloe reappointed as liaison to New Century Fund Board.
  • Council Member Peters reappointed to CAM Stakeholder Committee.
  • Meeting adjourned at 5:20 PM, followed by a reception in Conference Room 1A/1B.

Meeting Transcript

All right, good evening. Welcome to this special meeting of the Columbia City Council on April 20th, 2026. I'd like to ask our city clerk to please call the roll. Ms. Peters. Here. Miss Buffalo. Here. Miss Carroll. Here. Miss Elwood? Here. Ms. Sample. Mr. Foster. Here. Mr. Waterman. Here. All right. So first on our agenda of the special item is resolution 6826. Sheila, would you please read resolution 6826? Council Bill 6826 is a resolution declaring the results of the municipal election held in the City of Columbia on April 7, 2026. So this is a resolution that recognizes the election results and is primarily done for historical or record keeping purposes. So we don't have a staff report per se or any discussion on it. So I'll just ask Sheila to please call role on resolution 6826. Council Bill 6826, Ms. Peters. Yes. Ms. Buffalo. Yes. Ms. Carroll? Yes. Ms. Elwood? Yes. Mr. Foster. Yes. Mr. Waterman. Yes. All right. So up first we have recognition and comments of our outgoing council member. So I'll ask Don Waterman if he has some remarks to make. I do. Thank you, Madam Mayor.

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