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by Bill O'Malley
Contributing writer
If things persist, Monday nights
in Dearborn might be relegated to the historical
ash heaps as an alternative source of Platte County
entertainment.
The more cordial interactions
at the recent board of aldermen meetings may just
be a testament to the leadership skills of its
25-year-old newly-appointed mayor, Josh Linville.
Since Linville took the reigns
of the city just two short months ago, Dearborn’s
board meetings have seen more than a bit of a
transformation. Gone may be the days of expletive-filled,
decibel-piercing congregations. And, if Linville
continues to have his way, as he did at Monday
night’s meeting, Dearborn may soon return
to the more friendly and folksy reputation that
better befits this once quiet northern Platte
County town.
The city’s most recent hullabaloo
ensued when Alderman Bill Edwards successfully
initiated a petition drive to mandate a state
audit of the city’s finances, prompting the
then-mayor and one alderman to resign amid questions
about financial matters and employment contracts
at city hall. While contentious debate is nothing
new to Dearborn, the petition drive triggered
added controversy at the city’s recent board
meetings.
Among its at-odds residents and
council members, the board’s last two meetings
have witnessed more disgruntled yet polite abstentions
than the volatility that once accompanied its
dissensions.
And as this month’s meeting
commenced, Linville announced the implementation
of two new rules of order. First, he announced
that the board would discuss new business and
then open matters for public discussion at a later
time. Second, people who wish to address the council
are now expected to stand, state his or her name,
and declare how the statement pertains to the
city limits of Dearborn.
Linville explained that he was
not trying to limit discussion but renewed the
need for order after the turbulence that transpired
in past meetings. He decried the demeanor of recent
meetings in justifying the new rules.
When the board resumed discussion
of the city’s unkempt properties, some residents
did not relish the inflexible employment of the
more formalized rules, causing Linville to retreat
from their rigid application. At Linville’s
continued insistence, one Dearborn citizen finally
rose to address the council in brief adherence
to the new rules but quickly returned to his seat
for the duration of his address. As in recent
months, this same resident lectured the council
on its response to properties that failed to conform
to city ordinances.
There was yet again confusion
regarding the applicability of city ordinances
to the resident’s complaints. When one person
declared that he could list at least six specific
ordinances of which one property was in violation,
Linville asked him to outline the violations and
relevant ordinances in a letter to the council.
The request sparked this reply from the resident
as he chided: “Mr. Mayor, I’m not going
to send you a letter to enforce your own ordinances.”
Linville retorted that he was
newly appointed and that his job is not to drive
around Dearborn in a voluntary capacity to inspect
properties. He again pleaded with residents to
do their best to help the council on these matters.
The mayor additionally volunteered to join with
the resident to assist in painting one of the
city’s rundown homes if the owners would
help in bringing it into conformance with city
ordinances.
The city attorney announced that
information letters and summonses had already
been issued to residents who failed to heed the
city’s demands to bring their properties
up to code. He stated that a new round of information
letters and summons would be sent at the council’s
direction.
Dearborn’s former mayor,
Delba McAuley, who resigned her mayoral seat this
June, was unanimously approved to oversee the
city’s parks at the board’s August meeting.
She gave an update to the council on the city’s
progress with its new parks and parks grant.
McAuley reported that she was
still collecting bids for the lighting in the
new park but informed the council that it must
act before the end of the month, which precedes
its next regularly scheduled meeting. The board
awarded a contract to JC Construction & Co.,
LLC to pour the mesh-reinforced concrete for the
park’s new basketball court. The bid, in
the amount of $10,080, was the only one received
by the city for construction of the four inch
thick 50’ X 84’ court. The new park
facility is being constructed with a partnership
grant from Platte County.
McAuley said that the drain tiles
at the new park had been installed and the ground
appeared to be draining well.
In other business, while the council
is still awaiting the results of a state inquiry
into its finances, it awarded a bid, in the amount
of $3,000, to Karlin & Unger for the city’s
end-of-year audit. The Platte City firm has conducted
the city’s yearly audit for the past eight
years.
Dearborn’s next regular board
of aldermen meeting is scheduled for Tuesday,
Nov. 8 at 7 p.m..
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