Changes to be made to Poplar Bluff budget

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- New city manager Mark Massingham of Poplar Bluff warned council members Monday to expect budget amendments in the coming months as he continues to go through spending proposals left by former city manager Heath Kaplan.

Among the first will be a change in the city's plans to buy police cars.

Kaplan had arranged a lease-purchase agreement for four vehicles at an interest rate of 7.5 percent, Massingham told the council in a city manager's report.

This would cost the city $15,000 in interest over four years, after which the city would buy the vehicles.

"With millions of dollars in reserves, I can't see paying $15,000 in interest," said Massingham, adding he plans to bring other budget amendments to the council as well.

The cost to purchase the vehicles outright will be about $130,000, Massingham said after the meeting.

About $32,000 was built into the current year's capital improvement budget for police-car leases, he said.

The remaining cost to buy the vehicles will be split between the capital-improvement fund and the crime-reduction fund, Massingham said.

Another proposed change would be to increase the mosquito-abatement program's budget for chemicals from $5,000 to $25,000.

The city has switched to a different chemical this year, permethrin, which is more costly but seems to be more effective, Massingham said.

The city's sprayers also were calibrated this year, he said. The chemical salesperson told workers the spray deployed by the vehicles before the calibration was mostly water, with little chemical, Massingham said. A higher quantity of chemical may need to be bought this year while using the correct calibration.

Pertinent address:

Poplar Bluff, Mo.