Lowering rental fees at the Neosho Civic and outsourcing collection of a new city property tax are both on Tuesday night’s agenda of the Neosho city council.
The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at the city hall council chambers, 203 E. Main.
Pending council adoption of a proposed fee schedule Tuesday, using the Civic for private functions would not be as costly as it is currently. Under the schedule to be submitted by city parks and recreation director Todd Banes, rental rates for the Civic would be divided into two separate categories. According to the proposed plan, current fees would remain mostly unchanged for public shows and meetings where admission will be charged or products sold. However, another, lower, rate schedule would apply for private events and meetings that aren’t open to the general public, such as banquets and receptions.
Separate from both schedules, civic clubs and other charitable organizations that meet regularly at the Civic would be charged a flat rate of $25 a month (for up to one meeting a week), instead of $25 per meeting as is the current arrangement.
The fee schedule for the Civic, apart from the arrangement for the civic clubs, will be proposed to the council as follows:
Public shows and meetings (charges admission or sells product)
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Full facility — $750 (full deposit)
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West or East Wing — $125 (full deposit)
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Main flood/stage/balcony — $450 (full deposit)
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Full kitchen use — $250 ($125 refundable deposit)
Private events and meetings (not open to the general public)
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Full facility — $375 ($100 deposit)
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West or East Wing — $100 ($100 deposit)
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Main flood (not stage and balcony) — $250 ($100 deposit)
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Full kitchen use — free.
There would be additional, non-refundable charge of $125 for alcohol usage. Also, the deposit would be upped to $250 to use any part of the facility if alcohol is present.
One example of a private event might include a wedding reception, Banes had previously told the council when he first broached the idea of lowering the rates. At that time he said the Lampo Center is renting out well — it was booked for 28 of the 30 days in June — but the same couldn’t be said for the Civic under the current rental fees. He said the high cost of holding a private event there scares people away. He provided a rate table showing cheaper facility rental rates in other cities, such as Joplin.
“People leave our town and go somewhere else to rent facilities,” Banes had said. “And we really don’t want that...We feel the Civic is a very unique place to rent and we want people to use it, but we have to get it where the fees are workable.”
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Also on Tuesday the council will consider an agreement with the Newton County Collector’s Office wherein the county would collect on behalf of the city a new 42-cent ad valorem tax on real property within the city limits that was recently imposed by the council.
Under the arrangement, if approved by council, the city would pay a one time set up fee of $2,000 for the county to add the city tax as a line item on its tax bill, which is due to be mailed out in November and payable before Dec. 31. For its services, the county would also keep four percent of all city taxes collected.
The Newton County Commission OK’d the contract last week.
Neosho officials have previously stated that outsourcing collection of its property tax to the county is more economical, as Neosho doesn’t have the software or personnel to handle its own collection services. The city hasn’t levied a property tax since 1997.
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Also on Tuesday, the council is scheduled to:
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Consider a contract with the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission providing for federal non-primary entitlement funds in the amount of $150,000 for construction of T-hangar taxilanes at the Neosho Hugh Robinson Memorial Airport. The grant stipulates a local match of $7,895;
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Consider a contract with the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission providing for State Aviation Trust funds in the amount of $88,295 for construction of T-hangar taxilanes at the Neosho Hugh Robinson Memorial Airport. The grant stipulates a local match of $9,810;
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Consider a change order for the additional amount of $28,355.25 related to the construction of taxilanes at the Neosho Hugh Robinson Memorial Airport. According to the change order document, the extra cost is for remediation of unsuitable subgrade conditions and removal of discovered unmapped utility lines and is to be paid for out of the State Aviation Trust aid agreement noted above;
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Consider a request by Jon Walker to lease two hangars at the Neosho Hugh Robinson Memorial Airport at an annual rate of $2,880 for both lots. The lease would be for 30 years. Walker also requests permission to put in temporary living quarters, as defined in the lease agreement;
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Consider a request by Mid-America Turbine, LLC to lease a hangar at the Neosho Hugh Robinson Memorial Airport at an annual rate of $1,751.54. The lease would be for 30 years;
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Consider an offer by Wayne House, owner of Spee Dee Lube, to provide free oil changes for the Neosho Police Department for a period of one year and not to exceed 10 per month;
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Consider an offer by John Dorman of Route 66 Corvette Club has offered to assist the city police and fire departments by hosting fundraisers;
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Consider a support agreement with Freeman Neosho Hospital to provide medications to low income families through federal funding. There would no cost to the city;
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Consider an amendment to an electric service agreement with Empire District Electric to remove and install one streetlight at the intersection of Southard and LaQuesta;
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Consider granting an easement to Empire District Electric to set a pole and 80 feet of overhead line to serve the Crowder College on-site wastewater treatment system test site located on the east side of the Crowder wastewater treatment plant on Radio Rd.;
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Announce vacancies and consider appointments to the Ethics Commission, Airport Industrial Zone Board, Enhanced Enterprise Zone, Planning and Zoning Commission, and TIF Commission.
A portion of the agenda is set aside for visitors’ business. Anyone who would like to address the council is asked to please sign up before the meeting on the provided sheet at the speaker’s podium.
