Crestwood Charter Review Commission Meeting – September 9, 2025

The Crestwood Charter Review Commission met on September 9, 2025, at 6:30 PM in the Crestwood Government Center to continue its review of proposed amendments to the City Charter. Chair Bob Sweeney called the meeting to order with a quorum present (Commissioners Sweeney, Sebben, Bozdeck, Johnston, Koehler, Pickel, Shipley, Yemm; Vedder was excused). The commission unanimously approved the minutes from the August 11, 2025 meeting. No public comments were made.

Discussion Items

• Review of Redlined Proposed Changes (Articles I–XV) – Staff member Jeff presented the final redlined version of all changes discussed over the past six months, highlighting areas needing clarification or substantive decisions.
• Term Limits (Sections 3.2 and 4.3) – Proposed changing alderman and mayor terms from three to four years, and limiting service to three successive terms in the same ward/office, with language clarifying resignations, removals, and the waiting period before re-election.
• Temporary Absence of Mayor (Sections 3.9, 4.7) – Added definition of temporary absence (mayor unable to perform duties for a limited time, office not vacant) and procedures for the president of the board of aldermen to serve as acting mayor, with limited powers (no veto or tie-breaking). The commission discussed whether “limited time” should be defined in the charter or left to ordinance; consensus was to let the board of aldermen define it via ordinance.
• Efficiency and Clarification Changes – Items such as consent agenda reading requirements (only title read once), audit certification frequency (no more than five years unless ¾ vote), and grammar fixes were grouped as “efficiency” or “clarification” items.
• Election Alignment to General Municipal Elections – Multiple provisions (initiatives, referendums, recalls, charter amendments, tie-breaking, and filling vacancies) were proposed to change from “next legally available election” to “next general municipal election.” The commission discussed cost savings (thousands of dollars per special election) versus potential delay of voter action. Concerns were raised about referendums on urgent matters, but the majority favored uniformity and a cooling-off period, noting the board can still address emergencies.
• Tie-Breaking Procedure (Section 8.3) – The commission decided to retain language referencing state law (rather than creating a unique city procedure) to avoid legal conflicts and simplify voter explanation. A 1947 tie vote was noted as the last occurrence.
• Biennial Budget – Minor clean-up language was presented, but the commission deferred in-depth discussion to the next meeting, with the mayor noting it could be a standalone ballot item.
• Grouping of Ballot Items – The commission agreed on five categories: (1) Clarifications (grammar), (2) Efficiencies, (3) Biennial Budget, (4) Municipal Election Alignment, and (5) Term Limits. They expressed comfort with 3–5 ballot items, consistent with past cycles.

Key Outcomes

• The commission approved the August 11, 2025 minutes (unanimous).
• Staff will produce a cleaned-up version of the charter with color-coded groupings and a spreadsheet, and will ask the city attorney for an opinion on whether the election-language changes are substantive or clarifications.
• Final decisions on which items to include and final ballot language will be made at the October meeting. The commission aims to finalize proposed amendments by November, present to the Board of Aldermen in December, conduct a public education campaign (newsletters, postcards, social media) from January through March, and place the amendments on the April 2026 ballot.
• No formal votes on the charter changes were taken at this meeting; the discussion focused on consensus and next steps.