Jefferson City Ward 3 Councilman Scott Spencer will reintroduce a resolution Monday night to recognize a Civil War event.
On a 5-5 vote in January, the council voted down doing a resolution recognizing the historical significance of Oct. 7, 1864, for the city.
Spencer proposed the resolution in January after Mayor Carrie Tergin had two pavers removed Dec. 23 from an Adrian's Island plaza for concern they too closely resemble a Civil War monument the City Council removed in 2020 after weeks of contentious debate.
In March, former Councilwoman Edith Vogel filed a federal lawsuit against Tergin and the city over the removal of the pavers that Vogel had paid to have engraved. Last month, a settlement was reached in the lawsuit, and Jefferson City will have to reinstall the pavers engraved with a message about Confederate Gen. Sterling Price.
Vogel's pavers had been engraved with part of the language on the marker that was removed which stated: "Deciding against attack the confederate army under Gen. Sterling Price turned from Jefferson City Oct. 7, 1864."
The original marker was donated by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, which has ties to the Ku Klux Klan -- which the city's resolution to remove the marker specifically cites as the reason for removal.
Vogel sued over the paver removal, saying her constitutional free speech rights were violated because the city did not adopt or publish content guidelines for the pavers. The city admitted no wrongdoing and said they settled so they could move on from the matter.
In other business Monday night, the council will look at moving forward with a plan unveiled last month by city staff to re-evaluate the structural integrity of several properties in the Capitol Avenue Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District.
Approved unanimously by the council, the plan states city staff would seek a third-party structural assessment on more than a dozen properties in the Capitol Avenue area that were recently declared dangerous and should be demolished or repaired.
As part of the council's consent agenda Monday night, the council could approve authorizing a $33,600 contract with Allstate Consultants LLC for structural evaluations of seven dangerous structures in the area.
The structures are at: 109 Adams St.; 113 Adams St.; 401 E. Capitol Ave.; 407 E. Capitol Ave.; 409 E. Capitol Ave.; 410 E. Capitol Ave. and 415 Commercial Way. All the properties are owned by Barbara Buescher.
These were listed last month among several dangerous buildings city staff recommended should be demolished. They were listed because the city must demolish a structure if it costs the city more than 50 percent of the structure's fair market value to repair the building, according to city code.
Also Monday night, a bill will be introduced to the council for rezoning of 101 Jackson St. and 504 State St., from MU-1 Mixed Use to PUD Planned Unit Development. The two properties are located on the southeast corner of the East State and Jackson streets intersection.
The request, filed by the Jefferson City Housing Authority on behalf of Transformational Housing which is the applicant for the rezoning, is being done to house five apartment units within an existing three-story residential structure at 101 Jackson St. This would also accommodate a parking lot to provide off-street parking to be placed on the lot at 504 E. State St.
Transformational Housing is an organization that was formed by local churches to provide affordable housing within the community. Their first building opportunity was at 203 Cherry St. which has recently been renovated.
According to the application, the exterior building envelope at 101 Jackson St. will be repaired to keep it within the historic nature of the neighborhood. Lighting fixtures and other features for the new parking lot will be sensitive to the historic neighborhood.
Also Monday night, the council could give final approval to a $141,140 contract with Engineering Surveys and Services to design a replacement Ohio Street bridge, located in Washington Park between Louisiana Avenue and South Boulevard, which crosses Wears Creek.
At the March Jefferson City Public Works and Planning Committee, city staff said the estimated construction cost for the bridge is $750,000.
The Ohio Street Bridge has been closed to vehicular traffic since 2018 when a Missouri Department of Transportation inspection found it was continuing to deteriorate, leading to the bridge's load rating being reduced.
If approved, the city would use sale tax money to fund the project.