Aldermen discuss annexing subdivision north of Jackson

The potential annexation of a sizable subdivision just north of Jackson’s city limits was a major discussion topic at Monday night’s meeting of the Jackson Board of Aldermen.

Annexation of the Savers Farm subdivision just south of Clover Hill Road would allow access and development of two parcels of land just north of Bent Creek Golf Course, which are within the city limits but have no access to city streets. Annexation of the Savers Farm development would provide that access via existing streets and utilities in the subdivision, which are now privately maintained.

Of the two undeveloped parcels of property is a 45.25 acre tract — 42 of which are within the current city limits, owned by Randy Drum and his brother-in-law, Steve Curtis of Mexico, Missouri. The second parcel is approximately 27.5 acres and is owned by Rob and Mike Litzelfelner.

Development of both properties would require either their deannexation or the annexation of the adjoining Savers Farm subdivision, thereby allowing the Litzelfelner and Drum/Curtis tracts to be connected by city streets, utilities and services such as street maintenance, trash collection and police and fire protection.

“We’ve been working on this for quite a while,” according to Jackson building and planning manager Janet Sanders, who said she and her staff have met several times on the subject and have “wrangled” with several issues, including whether the city should accept, as part of an annexation plan, privately-developed streets and utilities in the Savers Farm subdivision for city maintenance.

It was noted at the meeting Brandon Williams, the Savers Farm developer, ended one of the subdivison’s main streets, Fraser Ridge, at the Jackson city limit, apparently in anticipation of connecting it to future development within the city limits.

Megan Andrews, an attorney representing the Drum/Curtis property owners, said they would prefer to be deannexed if the city does not move forward with Savers Farm annexation.

“Deannexation would make it easier to develop,” she said.

Several aldermen expressed the opinion annexation would be the preferred course of action, rather than deannexation of the property currently inside the city limits. The consensus of the board was the city staff should begin contacting property owners in the subdivision about the potential of annexation.

Other business

Other items discussed during the aldermen’s study session included:

• The Jackson School District’s donation of two dugouts at Field 5 in Jackson City Park;
• A proposal for upgrades to the Jackson power plant’s SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) system that controls and monitors the overall performance of Jackson’s electric grid; and
• An update on upcoming road and street closures, including temporary closures related to Uptown Jackson Revitalization Organization’s Oktoberfest on Oct. 4 and 5, which will require the closure of several streets near the Cape Girardeau County Courthouse beginning on the afternoon of Oct. 3.

Prior to the study session, during the aldermen’s regular business meeting, they:

• Approved a three-year agreement with Lite Designs & Guttering LLC of Benton, Missouri, relative to Jackson’s holiday lighting program; the agreement calls for payments not to exceed $9,330 in 2019, $9,703.20 in 2020 and $10,091.33 in 2021;
• Approved a motion to accept a proposal from The Labor Management Advisory Group Inc. of Lee’s Summit, Missouri, in the amount of $11,000 plus expenses for services related to the city’s 2019 employee wage, salary and benefits survey;
• Accepted a bid from Boulder Construction LLC of Cape Girardeau in the amount of $36,952 for a repair project at the city’s power plant maintenance building;
• Set 6 p.m. Oct. 7 for a public hearing on a special use permit for a new property owner for an existing communications tower in a C-2 general commercial district at 2705 Hilltop Drive, as submitted by Wicks Properties LLC;
• Accepted a bid from Mike Light Cement Finishing of Perryville, Missouri, in the amount of $284,835.30, which was approximately $50,000 lower than the estimated project cost of $337,822, and approved an ordinance authorizing a contract with the company as part of the city’s 2019 concrete pavement improvement program;
• Approved a change in the city’s code or ordinances to allow approval of liquor licenses to be handled by the city clerk rather than the aldermen and approved a liquor permit for a concert event Oct. 6 at Leist Memorial Band Shell in Jackson City Park;
• Approved an ordinance approving the record plat of a replat of a portion of Russell Heights Cemetery; and
• Approved an ordinance accepting a deed of dedication from Roy D. and Carolyn J. Bullinger, Patricia Tollison, Mary Ann Hartje, Joe David and Darlene R. Bullinger, Albert J. and Nancy Priest, William J. Hawthorne, George R. Hawthorne and John V. and Ethel Priest, relative to the city’s roundabout project at the intersection of East Main Street and South Shawnee Boulevard.