Branson aldermen seek recommendations to address alleged fraud

About 140 people turned out for a three-hour public meeting in Branson on Monday night addressing allegations of fraud related to the construction of Branson Landing.

City interim Planning Director Ruth Denham has contended that the landing project started while the property was still located in a floodplain, which would have required permitting from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to construct basements, according to a city news release. The basements would need to be flood-proofed, according to Denham.

Documents sent to FEMA did not indicate the basements were not flood-proofed, and as a result, the city received FEMA approval based on false information, she said. Denham's department has refused to sign a certificate of occupancy for that reason, according to the release.

City Engineer David Miller, meanwhile, says construction at Branson Landing started with the goal of removing the buildings from the floodplain. When a new FEMA floodplain map went into effect in July 2008, flood-proofing was no longer needed, he said in the release.

Following Monday's meeting, the Branson Board of Aldermen instructed City Administrator Dean Kruithof to come back to the board with recommendations for resolving the issue. One recommendation could be hiring a third-party engineer to investigate the work done on the Branson Landing floodplain as it relates to the buildings in question, which are on the west side of the landing promenade, according to the release.

HCW Development Co. LLC developed Branson Landing and continues to manage the property.[[In-content Ad]]