Florissant Council Holds 3 Public Hearings,

Passes Several Business-Related Bills

By Carol Arnettt

The Florissant City Council met last week with a full agenda. There were three public hearings and several bills on the agenda, but most of the discussion was about how the city will spend $3.3 million in grant funds from the American Rescue Plan (ARP).

The council read the bill to approve ARP pending. Councilwoman Jackie Pagano moved to postpone the bill until Oct. 25. She said she would like to take a more conservative approach to the funds and would like to see what next year’s budget will look like. The motion to postpone was defeated.

Assistant Finance Director Ed Cooper spoke to the council. Pagano asked him to go over some of the expenses. Pagano noted that the funds do not need to be immediately allocated or spent.

Councilman Andrew Harris moved to postpone until Sept. 13. The motion was defeated.

Joyce Walker spoke to the council. She is the executive director of federal programs for the Ferguson Florissant School District. She writes and manages grants resources for District.

Walker said the stimulus bill that created the ARP was signed to speed up the U.S. recovery from the economic effects of the pandemic. She asked if a needs assessment was completed to see what citizens and businesses need.

“I’m questioning how we chose to spend these funds,” she said. She noted that the funds were to be spent in one of three ways: to support public health expenditures, to address

negative economic impacts of the pandemic, or to invest in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure.

She questioned how some of the things Florissant wants to spend the funds are fit into those categories. The city is planning on using funds to repair the Weise house, repair playgrounds, fix sidewalks, upgrade the JJE center theater, buy more police cameras, and renovate the police locker rooms. While Walker said that all those things may be needed, she was not sure they should be taken care of with ARP funds.

She said there were several things that could be brought forward to support families and businesses. She suggested investments in mental and physical health, social workers, public health initiatives, and others. She also suggested determining what businesses were impacted by the pandemic and how they can be helped.

“We are rushing things that don’t have to be rushed,” she said. She asked the council to ask residents and businesses what they need instead of going from a list of items the city needs.

The council passed the bill appropriating the APR funds.

Public Hearings

The first public hearing was about a request to amend a special use ordinance to allow for changes to the development plan for the property at 1790 N. Hwy 67 and 1646 N. Florissant Road. This is the Olympic Auto property.

Richard Hill spoke for the business. The developer wants to change the landscape strip to match the adjoining landscape strips and to remove some curb cuts.

No one spoke in opposition at the hearing and the council held a first reading on the bill that would authorize the change.

The second public hearing was about a request to change the development plan to allow for a customer pick-up area at 2341 N. Highway 67. This is the Target store.

Natalie Moore spoke on behalf of Target. The store currently has eight pull-up spots and would like to expand to 24.

No one spoke in opposition at the hearing and the council held a first reading on the bill that would authorize the change.

The third public hearing was about a request by staff to amend the city code to remove “assembly halls not associated with a church or school” as a special use.

City Building Commissioner Phil Lum spoke to the council about the hearing. “We have a rather innocuous term in our zoning code called assembly hall,” he said.

Without a specific definition, the term in the zoning code has led to confusion among staff and businesses, he added. The council held a first reading on the bill that would authorize the change.

In other matters, the council:

• Passed a bill authorizing an amendment to a special use ordinance to allow for the expansion of an auto detailing and vehicle storage establishment at 2420Rear N. Hwy. 67.
• Passed a bill that would change the zoning code to allow Electric Vehicle Charging stations as a permitted use in certain zoning codes.
• Passed a bill authorizing an increase in the sewer lateral from $28 to $50.
• Passed a bill moving funds for the renovation of the police department locker rooms.
• Approved a request for a beer and wine package liquor license with tasting permit for Dooley’s Florist and Gifts at 690 rue St. Francois. Patty Sosa, the owner of Dooley’s, said she had a state and county license, but not a Florissant one. She would like to host wine tastings on her patio on Saturday afternoons.
• Passed a resolution supporting a grant application for the purchase of a new bus for senior services.

* Passed a bill authorizing appropriations from the Park Improvement Fund for park facilities, pool maintenance and tree removal.

• Passed a bill authorizing the mayor to accept ownership on behalf of the city of real estate property at 900 rue St. Francois and 980 rue St. Francois, as gifted to the city.
• Passed a bill moving money from one city account to another for gasoline expenses form the Public Works Department.

The council voted to cancel the Sept. 27 meeting.

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