Republic City Council considers development issues

A new rule for spacing streets in construction came before the Republic City Council at its March 17 meeting. Previous ordinances, including the revision of escalating water and sewer rates, received final approval. 

A new idea on standardizing the distance between streets came up. Chris Tabor, the city’s principal planner, said there were no guidelines on the books for intersections and driveway spacing on all roadways. The city has four different types of streets: primary arterials, secondary arterials, collectors, and local streets. Assigning a type to each street “helps to define the role a particular road plays within the broader transportation network.” 

Specifically, the existing ordinance did not have rules for local streets. Staff proposed requiring local streets to have 220 feet between intersections. The plan gives the community development director the ability “to use their discretion for spacing between commercial driveways.” 

Alderman Darran Campbell asked about the requirements for connecting city streets with county roads. Tabor responded that the county would have to request permission to connect those roads with city streets. He conceded each situation could represent unique conditions and would have to be reviewed more closely. “It would be an outlier situation,” he said. 

The proposal will likely come up for a final vote when the council next meets on April 7. 

Subdivision considerations

For the second time, a revision in plans for the nearly 18.5 acres in the Frisco Square Planned Development District came up for consideration. Tabor noted the subdivision plan, approved in August 2025, remained essentially unchanged. The developer sold part of the land to another developer, but the plan itself had a couple minor changes. 

Chris Wynn, a civil engineer with CJW Transportation Consultants, representing developer Modern Tractor and Supply, reviewed three proposed changes along what would be Colorado Avenue. The first reduced the number of lots from 75 to 74. Wynn said because of the side yard setbacks against the roads, “it wasn’t feasible” to have that many lots. Dropping one enabled a corner lot to become bigger. 

Secondly, the developer asked to reduce the setbacks on 26 lots from 25 to 20 feet. This prompted Alderman Daniel Harter to question the move. Tabor injected that lots in the area were “narrower than a traditional zoning district.” Wynn followed by noting many builders like to work with five-to-seven floor plans. The lot sizes limited what they could build. By giving more length to the house footprint, developers would have more options on what they could build. 

Wynn further noted that these lots with smaller setbacks would be located in a central area. All the lots around the perimeter of the subdivision, adjacent to other houses with 25-foot setbacks, would also have comparable spacing. 

Another subdivision plan that received immediate action removed drainage easements on two lots within the Hankins Farm subdivision, bordered by Hwy. MM on the east. Tabor explained staff determined that no plans of the developer would result in stormwater drainage along the 3,910 square feet of easement. Vacating the easement would allow for better future development of the land as commercial property. 

Tabor told Alderman Gerke even construction on adjacent property would not create stormwater drainage in the specified area. He noted staff evaluates each project presented for where the stormwater will go. 

Resolution on protests

Council members passed an ordinance that sounded unusual on its face concerning public protests. The resolution called for “adopting and requiring enforcement of a policy prohibiting the use of excessive force by law enforcement agencies against individuals engaged in non-violent civil rights demonstrations; prohibiting the physical barring of entrances to or exits from facilities that are the subject of such demonstrations; declaring the city’s intent to comply with Missouri Department of Economic Development requirements for federal funding eligibility.”

City attorney Justin Rogers said the policy was required to maintain the city’s eligibility for certain types of funding, specifically federal Community Development Block Grants and grants under the Missouri Blue Shield program. The latter has given Republic, along with more than 200 other cities, $50,000 grants for equipment and training. 

Rogers said the policy itself would not change police work regarding peaceful demonstrations or bar police from controlling crowds. It called for “constitutional ‘objective reasonableness’ standard for use of force,” and “reaffirms existing expectations that officers attempt de-escalation when feasible and safe, and intervene and report objectively unreasonable force. These provisions do not create new legal standards or liability.”

Ordinances passed

Four ordinances introduced earlier in March received final passage. 

- An ordinance revising the planned increases in water and sewer rates was approved without further comment. The proposal, put forward by staff, will hold water rates steady for the coming year and increase sewer rates. 

The impact of the utility rate increases again came up in public comment before the meeting when Angela Ramsey, a school teacher, questioned the rate hike. A Republic resident for more than 20 years, Ramsey noted her water and sewer bill two years ago was “always around $100,” but last month jumped to $315, and had grown higher with each preceding month. 

Ramsey offered a specific list of questions that Mayor Eric Franklin said would be answered. Franklin called the situation “a complex problem” stemming from years of not raising water rates, and now it was “all coming to a head at once.” 

- Council members approved applying for a federal Transportation Alternatives Program for funding sidewalk gaps on Hines Street, which runs east to west across the city. The grant would cover engineering only. The city’s match to the grant is expected to be $120,000. 

- Another ordinance amended the city’s contracts policy to align the purchasing and contracting authority with the city’s purchasing policy. This action addressed the standards established for different tiers of spending, expanded totals within the tiers, and synchronized the city code with the purchasing policy. Spending plans would need to align with the approved budget. Items of significant change from the budget would have to come back for council approval. 

- Council members also approved a request from Bob Ford, chief financial officer, to open a $2 million line of credit with Arvest Bank to fund short-term cash flow for water improvements. This was an alternative proposed for funding infrastructure work in lieu of capital from raising water and sewer rates more rapidly. 

Alderman Eric Gerke asked if this money could be spent on any project outside of the approved budget. Ford responded funds could only be spent on water projects. He noted at the previous council meeting that the city council would have to renew the line of credit annually. 

Staff reports

City Administrator Colten Harris expressed excitement over the open house and ribbon cutting for the new city hall on March 18. Harris commended the public comment seeking clarity over utility rate increases. He said staff wanted to “make rates more predictable and more palatable for the community.” 

Harris said the city council is moving away from lunch meetings and will continue having workshops in the early evenings prior to the full council session. 

- Alderman Christopher Updike commended high school wrestler Mabel Rogers for an undefeated season that led to both a state and national championship in her weight class. 

- Mayor Franklin commended Harris for his early weeks on the job, noting Harris is “leading us in our mission, vision, and values.” Franklin advised council members when communicating in their roles to keep in mind what the city charter says about that work, especially in addressing staff, to keep questions “concise and within our mission, vision, and values.” He also cautioned about gathering together and creating a potential quorum situation. 

- Additional upcoming meetings will see the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on April 13, and the next council’s workshop and second monthly session slated for April 21.