The Reporter covers Miller, Morgan and Camden County in Central Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks and is published once per week on Wednesdays.

 

Published June 21, 2017

City may enforce traffic laws on private property

OSAGE BEACH – The city is considering a change in its ordinance that would allow police to enforce traffic laws on private property. City Attorney Ed Rucker explained to the Board of Aldermen last week that the idea was brought to him from an Osage Beach Police officer.

 

The basic idea of the change is to allow police to enforce city traffic laws on private property like the parking lots of businesses.

 

Police Chief Todd Davis confirmed to the aldermen that if someone in the parking lot of the outlet store runs a stop sign the police cannot enforce the city laws regarding running a stop sign because it’s private property.

 

In addition, if there is an accident involving two vehicles in the Walmart parking lot the city cannot enforce any traffic laws because it is private property. The officer can tell the parties involved to go to civil court but can’t issue any tickets.

 

The change would allow the officers to give the offender a ticket for disobeying a city traffic law on private property. The proposed change would add a new section (Section 2) to Section 340.150 of the city code (Manner of Operation of Motor Vehicles – Careful and Prudent)”

 

“A. Every person operating a motor vehicle within this city, and on the streets roads or highways within this City or upon any public or private parking lot or any parking lot open for the use of customers business invitees or employees shall drive the vehicle in a careful and prudent manner and at a rate of speed so as not to endanger the property of another or the life or limb of any person and shall exercise the highest degree of care.

 

“B. It shall be prima facie evidence that a vehicle operator is not exercising the highest degree of care if the operator of a moving vehicle engages in any conduct that causes his or her vision or attention to be obscured, diminished or directed elsewhere than the path of travel or safe operation of the vehicle, including, but not limited to, by using a mirror to engage in grooming; reading anything located in the vehicle other than operation information displayed on vehicle gauges and equipment; writing; drawing; manually inputting information into a GPS, mapping device or any other device; or turning one's head substantially away from the path of travel to observe things in the vehicle or outside the vehicle but contrary to the path of travel.”

 

The idea was immediately opposed by several aldermen including Alderman Jeff Bethurem.

 

Since the wording of the ordinance says “Every person operating a motor vehicle within this city, and on the streets roads or highways within this City…” it would include all property located in the city limits, even private property.

 

Bethurem brought up a hypothetical situation where he was operating a motor vehicle (a car or an ATV) on his six acres, could he be ticketed if an officer saw him and felt he was operating a motor vehicle in a careless manner.

 

Attorney Rucker said it would be up to the judge to decide if the person was guilty or not but that means the person would be ticketed and have to appear in court.

 

Bethurem thought that was an overreach for the city and they should not get involved on what people do on private property (in regards to this ordinance).

 

Attorney Rucker pushed hard for the board to pass this as it was proposed.

 

The board agreed to not address the ordinance until it was written in a way to address their private property concerns.

 

The board was told that the attorney will go back and add exceptions to the ordinance to alleviate the concerns of the Aldermen and bring it back for consideration at a future meeting.

 

In other businesses addressed at last week’s Board of Aldermen meeting:

 

 

(A TIF is a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) which is a mechanism for providing funds in economically depressed areas. TIF programs are designed to use the increased property tax revenues generated by an urban development (the tax increment) to pay for the public costs of that development. TIFs have become a major tool in many developments. Even if the developer has the money to build without using a TIF, the mechanism is in place for them to take advantage of.)

 

(A CID can be either a political subdivision or a nonprofit corporation. The CID is a separate legal entity distinct and apart from the municipality or county that creates the district. As such, the CID can impose real property taxes, business license taxes and special assessments within the district, which go for improvements within the district and to reimburse the developer for the project. A CID must be run by a Board of Directors either elected or appointed by the municipality in which the district resides. Each director must own real property within the district, own or operate a business within the district or be a registered voter residing within the district.)

 

And this brought the only public objection in the hearing. A local business owner objected to the idea of a TIF and a CID being used and if the developer can’t finance it on their own they shouldn’t ask for a special tax to pay for it.

 

He stated that when he opened his business he had to fend for himself (financially) and work harder to make it a success. The city does have several examples of a TIF. If people shop in a TIF area they will pay an extra tax that does not apply outside the TIF area. The same goes for the CID.

 

The objection had no effect on the board who agreed unanimously to the first reading of the request for the TIF.

 

The second reading should be held at the next board meeting.

 

 

The developer is suggesting something unusual in the makeup of the CID Board of Directors.

 

The proposal would place the city in control of the CID and not the developer. The five members of the CID would be:

 

(From the City)

John Olivarri, Mayor (four-year initial term)

Jeana Woods, City Administrator (four-year initial term)

Jeff Bethurem, President of the Board of Aldermen (two-year initial term)

 

(From elsewhere)

Michael Staenberg (two-year initial term)

Tim Lowe (two-year initial term)

 

The second reading should be held at the next board meeting.

 

In other business addresses at last week’s Board of Aldermen meeting:

 

 

The initial request had been for $2,000 but the board agreed to give them only $1,500. The reason for lowering the request is the city only set $10,000 in this year’s budget for requests of this sort.

 

Of that $10,000, the city has so far spent the following amounts:

 

 

This leaves a remaining balance of $4,500.

 

Aldermen Jeff Bethurem suggested lowering the amount to $1,500 because other expected requests might come in and the city would like to still have funds to support them.

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