City Hall Sprawl

The work session for the Board of Aldermen scheduled for tonight contains only three agenda items and a "special" executive session meeting. Neither of the regular work session items are overly exciting and I can only guess what's in the executive session but I expect there could be a press release put out immediately following. On the work session, a discussion about the retreat agenda and another regarding the work session topic list. It's difficult to get moist about any of this but if you dissect them, there are some questions that need to be asked, which I will probably comment on after the meeting.

One of the items on the work session topic list is the new City Hall. It pisses me off that every time the Board of Aldermen have a discussion about the new City Hall, they always seem to schedule it at a retreat and even though it's a public meeting, most of those who attend regular meetings will not go because it's usually out of town. This topic needs to be discussed where the most citizens will attend. I asked Mayor Lambi why they have these retreats and he answered by saying that it's a meeting where we can get away from the press and a crowd of citizens listening. As far as I'm concerned, that's a crock of shit, in my thinking it's one way of not worrying about the things they say and do and having their opinions reported.

For the past sixteen years there's been a pattern formed to expand City Hall. Not in a conventional way but to acquire more property and buildings to spread out the departments all over the city. Mayor Vickie Boedeker's dream was to put City Hall out on the Wentzville Parkway. Her first mistake was building that horrendous police department building. It has cost the City more money in roof repairs than than most people spend on their homes. Her plan was to put a new City Hall right in front of it but alas, her dreams were dashed when she lost her re-election bid to Mayor Lambi. Lambi continued the tradition by leasing the old Commerce Bank building on Pearce Blvd. and Linn Avenue in which he placed the Finance, Purchasing, and IT departments. Not counting the Water and Waste Water departments, Wentzville's City Hall consists of four buildings ranging in age from 10 to 60 years old. Compared to having a central City Hall I'd like to see the cost differential of, utilities, maintenance, grounds, communications, duplication of office equipment, personnel, and others every year.

The building and placement of a central city hall has been my focus for the past decade. It is my feeling and that of many others that they should flatten the old Commerce Bank building, acquire the four blocks around it (which is mainly parking lots), and build the new City Hall that has been on the drawing board for the better part of 10 years.

I know that Mayor Guccione wants to revisit Boedeker's dream of putting City Hall on the Parkway, and Aldermen Chris Gard and "Bulldog" Stokes are on board with the downtown location. Alderman Cheryl Kross has me wondering because I've heard other thoughts from her and I haven't had the opportunity to speak with the new Aldermen, Forrest Gossett and Sonya Shyrock about a location, but I will.

I've written numerous times in another life about the building and location of Wentzville's City Hall and will continue to press for the location downtown. I will be watching these discussions very closely to see who opposes or offers anything that will defer the economic engine of a new City Hall from a downtown location.