FREEBURG — Freeburg trustees, at their Sept. 9 meeting, approved an additional $12,646.05 for Black Roads Group to add sealer to the streets. The board approved the same company to seal a number of streets in August, but Mayor Darryl Haller wanted Utilities Supervisor Doug Hamacher to seal additional streets since the cost hadn’t exceeded the budget of $200,000. Black Roads Group will surface-seal and apply crack-seal to the street around the park. The firm will also apply crack and seal to CR 522, East Walker Street, Parkway Street, Pine Street, North Chestnut Street, Olive Street, Ash Street, West Gilbert, and Oak Street. Black Roads Group will also apply a special “Gator Aid Magic Patch” to two areas. Haller reiterated that he thought it was vital to continue sealing the streets to keep them in good shape.

Trustees also approved $2,928 to Superior Opening Systems to fix the metal door jamb and door for the park’s bathroom.

“That’s the only bid I got, but I didn’t know who else to talk to about metal doors,” Hamacher explained. “We’ve got to fix the door. People can’t use the bathroom.”

The door to the men’s room at the park is falling off its hinges, and the metal frame is damaged, making it impossible to use. The estimate includes removing the existing metal door and frame, installing a new frame and door, and replacing all the doorknobs for the other metal doors. The door and jamb will be primed, and then Hamacher will paint both to match. The cost to fix the door will exceed the budgeted amount for park repairs. Hamacher was concerned since he had planned additional park projects.

Haller noted that Freeburg had not used park funds for several years, adding, “I don’t have a problem taking out of the general fund for the repairs.”

• Water Clerk Cindy Struemph worked up an estimate for the water used during the fire by Hilke’s Ice. Owner Laren Hilke was not happy with the estimate and wanted an exact water usage number. Struemph and Hamacher were able to read the meters, and the actual cost of the water used during the Hilke Ice fire was $2,580.87, an additional $543.36 over the original estimate. That includes water the fire departments needed to fight the fire.

Hilke questioned the bill, especially the water used by the fire trucks.

“We billed him for the water the fire trucks used,” Haller said. “They needed like 300,000 gallons of water that day. He wanted to know if we billed everyone for that. I don’t know if we’ve had a house fire in the last 20 years.”

Haller said the village would bill any other individual or business the same way for the water used during a fire.

“We have to pay for the electricity, the pumps, and everything else,” Haller said. “He wants to know if we want to put that in writing, and I don’t know that we have to; it is just the way it is. To me, it is a no-brainer. The water was used to put out the fire.”

Haller and several other trustees thought the insurance would pay for the water.

Struemph is planning to send another bill to Hilke’s Ice with the new amount by the middle of the month and delete the bill containing the estimated amount.

• Haller continues to negotiate with Utilities Services, which plans to offer the village a year of free services for both water towers to help offset the water department’s revenue loss following the fire at Hilke’s Ice.

“It is a really, really good deal and today they had verbally committed over the phone to not charging us for a full year for either water tower,” Haller explained.

The new agreement should save the village nearly $20,000.

“They are also going to adjust the cost down for the next three years to offset the revenue loss,” Haller added. “It’s what we really needed.”

• Resident Carol Pryor addressed trustees regarding stormwater getting into her basement. Pryor showed them videos she had taken of the water as it ran around the side of her yard and the water that was in her basement following a recent rain.

“We’ve had some brutal storms lately,” Haller said.

“This happens regardless of the size of the rain because of the ditch and the water running off of the road,” Pryor said. “The water runs down the side of the house. We even have a sump pump in the basement. There is a stream through there because of how the road has been built up over the years.”

Haller said that a ditch once ran along the street, and it filled up over the years. He also explained that basements look that way in older houses built before drainage tile was used during construction.

“I don’t know why there can’t be a ditch along the street, but people don’t like ditches because then they have to weed eat and maintain them, but if that’s what we have to do to fix the problem, then that’s what we’ll do,” Haller said.

Pryor asked if there could be culverts put in instead of the ditch.

Haller repeated that he thought the answer to fixing the problem was to put ditches on each side of the street.

“We could eliminate the water problem, in my opinion, by digging the ditch out,” Haller said.

Pryor asked if the village could put concrete in the ditch so that it didn’t erode.

“What we keep seeing with concrete is that it just moves the water down to the next property faster,” Haller said. “If there is some grass, it will soak in.”

Haller also expressed concern that, regardless of what was done, the village needed to ensure that improvements didn’t impact adjoining properties.

The mayor added that the village would probably need to have a survey done to determine the exact property lines before ditches were dug. Haller asked each trustee to look at the issues Pryor has been having and invited her back to the October meeting to discuss options.

• Trustee Scott Knoll spoke with resident Jamie Wiles, who hopes to install a culvert to extend his driveway and address stormwater issues. He would like the village to share the cost. He hopes to extend his driveway 20 feet and that the culvert will take care of the issues.

“The ditch is there to handle the stormwater,” Hamacher said. “Everyone keeps sending pictures of a ditch full of water, and that is what is supposed to be happening.”

Haller agreed and was skeptical of the project.

“I think what he is talking about is on the village street,” Haller said.

Knoll will contact Wiles and let him know that trustees discussed the issue and that he needs to attend the October meeting in person to present his request.

• A car recently ran over a shut-off valve and broke off the pipe. Haller noted that the village was contacted immediately, and the issue had already been repaired. The family is planning on paying the village for the repairs directly instead of going through insurance.

• Trustees approved hiring Feeler Tree Service to cut down several dead trees and trim limbs where needed.

• The board approved the annual membership fee for the Meramec Regional Planning Committee (MRPC). The Basic Membership includes 15 membership hours. Bax noted that the annual membership fee has gone up, from $350 last year to $400.

Freeburg will pay for any trustee who wants to attend MRPC’s annual dinner and award on Oct. 24 at Osage View. Annie’s Station will cater the event, and trustees can bring a guest at their own expense.

• Constitution Week was observed from Sept. 17-23, and Freeburg celebrated by displaying the American flag throughout the village. Haller also had a copy of the 203rd anniversary of the drafting of the Constitution framed for the village of Argyle.

“We are always supportive of Constitution week,” Haller said.

• The mayor expects that All Clear Plumbing will start the lead line survey in the next couple of weeks. The firm has been in Freeburg recently marking lines.

• Haller went to the 20th Judicial Court at the beginning of the month on behalf of Freeburg.

“Three years ago, we wanted to have something set up so that if we only had two people running for a seat on the Board of Trustees, we wouldn’t have to have an election,” Haller explained. “That needs to be redone every three to four years.”

Haller said that the court would dismiss the order because all of the paperwork had not been completed. The matter was approved by a vote of village residents in 2022.

“It would save us $1,500 to $1,800 per election if we could do this,” Haller said. “Now we are going to have to vote on it again.”

Haller would like to have the matter put on the ballot in the April 2025 election. “Next month, we have to get it in the system, or otherwise, we’re just shooting ourselves in the foot again,” he added.

• Trustees approved the following bills: general ($4,652.84), sewer ($8,877.27), and water ($3,512.55).

Trustees agreed to pay $1,925, which had been held back from Verslues Construction’s total bill for the recent project on the Reinkemeyer property.

Trustees approved additional funding for Struemph and Bax to purchase envelopes for billing.

• The village had the following ending account balances: purchasing ($422.06), sewer checking ($12,770.04), general revenue checking ($57,297.24), sewer money market ($297,365.18), general revenue money market ($463,469.90), water ($27,679.88), water-replacement ($657.26), water money market account ($875,985.09) and lead service line ($300,697.47).

• Freeburg’s July water loss was only 3%. The village pumped 1,333,696 gallons of water and billed 1,262,739 gallons.

• The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 7, at 6:30 p.m.