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Record of Proceedings

Public Works Board Meeting - May 21, 2025

Board of Aldermen & Boards — Tuesday, May 27, 2025
BodyCrestwood, Missouri
SessionBoard of Aldermen & Boards
DateTuesday, May 27, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:10:26

Original source
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0:10

It's usually a little cards or something.

0:20

The 21 May 2025 Public Works Board Meeting.

0:28

Start off with the budget of regions.

0:44

Undergone the individual liberties.

0:57

Shirley Rocall.

1:00

Okay.

1:03

Chairman Lady.

1:05

Here.

1:06

Rosie Beth is excuse.

1:13

Here.

1:14

Neil Chase?

1:15

Here.

1:17

Here.

1:19

Ryan Belgi is excused.

1:21

Alderman Ballast.

1:23

Here.

1:23

Alderman Larson.

1:25

Director of Public Works, James Swindle.

1:28

Still here.

1:36

Okay.

1:36

Um do I have a motion to approve the uh the minutes from the uh last meeting uh from 18 September 2024.

1:48

I know it's uh a while back, but I had a chance to look at those.

1:52

I I looked at them.

1:54

I motioned uh approved a minute.

1:56

Okay, can we hear a second?

1:58

A second all in favor say aye.

2:00

Aye.

2:01

Any opposed say nay.

2:03

Okay.

2:06

Okay.

2:08

Now we're at the uh public comments section.

2:12

Do we have anyone from the public that would like to say anything about anything?

2:18

Yeah, about anything.

2:19

I'm okay with that.

2:21

Absolutely.

2:23

But need you come.

2:28

But if you could come to the to the microphone, please.

2:30

And tell me if I'm not a prong.

2:34

State your name and and your address.

2:36

Mine, my name's Martha Kratzer, it's 9036 Maplegrove Drive.

2:42

And this is my neighbor, Una Hoffman, who and your address is 9029.

2:48

9029 Maple Grove Drive.

2:51

And the reason we came tonight to is to get some guidance about sewer laterals, because Una's having some major problems and has had problems for a while.

3:04

And she's talked to people up here, she's started to put in paperwork, etc., but is not having a lot of good direction on what it entails, whether it could be covered or not, etc.

3:19

etc.

3:20

And and part of I mean when she was telling me, I mean, I I was trying to figure out what year I had my lateral done, but I know it was could be a good 15 to 20 years ago.

3:32

And at that point, um mine was covered by the city completely.

3:38

Um's one now she's being told that it may or may not be covered, but has a lot of roots in it, um, a lot of holes in it, etc.

3:48

She's been a resident in this house for 28 years in another house in Crestwood for 15 years.

3:55

So 43 years she's been paying into the whole um the whole system.

4:02

So we're here to shake whatever tree we can or whatever to find out what what she does next and how we can get you know some resolution or partial payment or whatever for her situation.

4:16

Would you like the process?

4:17

Sure.

4:18

Uh so Una and I have been in email contact.

4:21

Do I need what can I go sit down or we'll talk?

4:25

Uh so you hit what you just said at the beginning about that is her lateral is shown to be full of roots.

4:33

And the the city's program does not cover roots because that's a maintenance function that falls underneath the homeowner, the residents to clean annually or biannually or whatever that is.

4:45

So when did that change?

4:48

Because mine was a roots issue when I had mine replaced.

5:01

That's certainly been the uh what the what the what the sewer of lateral policy has has stated, and as far as I know when Chris uh our mid city administrator got here, it was the same policy that the board had enacted, so that had to be 2015-16.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Water And Wastewater Management█████████████████████████████████████████████59%
Public Works███████████14%
Public Safety████████11%
Procedural█████7%
Parks and Recreation█████6%
Public Engagement██3%
Summary of Proceedings

Public Works Board Meeting - May 21, 2025

The Crestwood Public Works Board met on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at 7:00 PM in the Aldermanic Chambers. The meeting covered approval of prior minutes, public comments regarding sewer laterals, department reports on recent projects, selection of a Vice-Chair, and a discussion to amend the Sewer Lateral Policy.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes: The minutes from the September 18, 2024 meeting were approved unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Public Request on Sewer Laterals: Martha Kratzer and Una Hoffman, residents of Maplegrove Drive, requested guidance on sewer lateral coverage. Una Hoffman described a complete blockage since April 30, 2025, costing $10,000 for a repair that only provided temporary relief. Director of Public Works James Swindle explained that the city’s program covers breakage, not routine root maintenance, which is the homeowner’s responsibility. He offered to review Ms. Hoffman’s documentation and assist with next steps.

Discussion Items

  • Department Reports:
    • Alderman Dallas announced the Whitecliff community center groundbreaking on Friday, May 23 at 4:00 PM, updates on new businesses (Andy’s, Katie’s), police force at capacity, and a new playground at Crestwood Park.
    • Director Swindle reported on assistance to Richmond Heights after storm damage, completion of the Whitecliff bridge one month early (66.5% federally funded via MoDOT grant), a streetlight project adding six lights in underserved areas, Gravois Creek erosion project (estimated $550k, with $350k from MSD), a sidewalk grant from Spelman to Samoa, security vestibule installation at the public works office, MSD partnership to acquire and demolish three flood-prone homes on Sanders for parkland, and the annual concrete street replacement program.
  • Sewer Lateral Policy Update:
    • Director Swindle noted a $48,000 surplus in the sewer lateral fund for 2023 (total fund balance ~$405k) and proposed using excess funds for installing exterior clean-outs on private laterals—a service not currently offered as a standalone project. He argued this would help prevent future blockages and better utilize accumulated funds.
    • The board discussed risks of depleting surplus in years with high claims and the need for clear policy language. After clarifying that the proposal only applies to surplus funds and does not change existing coverage, a motion was made to support the amendment. The motion was seconded and approved (one initial opposition later withdrawn, no final nays). Follow-up discussion included licensing requirements for plumbers and potential liability of city-recommended contractors.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes Approved: Unanimous approval of the September 18, 2024 meeting minutes.
  • Vice-Chair Selected: Alderman Ballast was elected Vice-Chair by acclamation.
  • Sewer Lateral Policy Amendment Supported: The board voted to support Director Swindle’s proposal to add a line allowing use of surplus sewer lateral funds for exterior clean-outs. The amendment will be refined with clear process language and presented to the Board of Aldermen.
  • Next Meeting: Scheduled for September 17, 2025.

Meeting Transcript

It's usually a little cards or something. The 21 May 2025 Public Works Board Meeting. Start off with the budget of regions. Undergone the individual liberties. Shirley Rocall. Okay. Chairman Lady. Here. Rosie Beth is excuse. Here. Neil Chase? Here. Here. Ryan Belgi is excused. Alderman Ballast. Here. Alderman Larson. Director of Public Works, James Swindle. Still here. Okay. Um do I have a motion to approve the uh the minutes from the uh last meeting uh from 18 September 2024. I know it's uh a while back, but I had a chance to look at those. I I looked at them. I motioned uh approved a minute. Okay, can we hear a second? A second all in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed say nay. Okay. Okay. Now we're at the uh public comments section. Do we have anyone from the public that would like to say anything about anything? Yeah, about anything. I'm okay with that. Absolutely. But need you come. But if you could come to the to the microphone, please. And tell me if I'm not a prong. State your name and and your address. Mine, my name's Martha Kratzer, it's 9036 Maplegrove Drive. And this is my neighbor, Una Hoffman, who and your address is 9029. 9029 Maple Grove Drive. And the reason we came tonight to is to get some guidance about sewer laterals, because Una's having some major problems and has had problems for a while. And she's talked to people up here, she's started to put in paperwork, etc., but is not having a lot of good direction on what it entails, whether it could be covered or not, etc. etc. And and part of I mean when she was telling me, I mean, I I was trying to figure out what year I had my lateral done, but I know it was could be a good 15 to 20 years ago. And at that point, um mine was covered by the city completely. Um's one now she's being told that it may or may not be covered, but has a lot of roots in it, um, a lot of holes in it, etc. She's been a resident in this house for 28 years in another house in Crestwood for 15 years. So 43 years she's been paying into the whole um the whole system.

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