City Beat: Health-claims company may create 300 jobs

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In the Oct. 23 City Council meeting, council heard a first-reading bill that would amend a special ordinance to allow establishments primarily engaged in underwriting and processing property and preparation services to participate in enterprise zone benefits. United Health Group, a claims processing company that is looking to expand, would be included under these terms. The company currently employs about 170 at its Corporate Centre location.|ret||ret||tab|

According to Greg Williams, Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce vice president of economic development, approval would lead to a United Health expansion in Springfield's enterprise zone and create a projected 300 new jobs in a two to three year period that would potentially equate to $7 million per year in additional payroll to Springfield. |ret||ret||tab|

Council will vote on the bill in the Nov. 6 meeting.|bold_on||bold_on||ret||ret||tab|

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|bold_on|Council sides with store managers|ret||ret||tab|

Council voted 7-2 to approve a second-reading bill to permit on-site storage containers in the general retail, highway commercial, and industrial commercial districts. |ret||ret||tab|

Councilmen Bob Vanaman, Ralph Manley, Russell Rhodes, Gary Gibson, Mayor Lee Gannaway and Councilwomen Shelia Wright and Teri Hacker sided with the local retail store managers who spoke in defense of the trailer use in the Sept. 18 public hearing. Councilmen Bob Chancellor and Tom Carlson voted against the bill.|ret||ret||tab|

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|bold_on|Jordan Valley Park moves forward|ret||ret||tab|

Council voted unanimously to approve and designate downtown redevelopment project No. 1, which comprises Jordan Valley Park, as part of the city's tax increment financing plan and to approve and designate project No. 9, which comprises the existing commercial and retail uses of the TIF plan. |ret||ret||tab|

Other Jordan Valley Park bills that designate specific projects for the park will be voted on in November.|ret||ret||tab|

Council also approved an amended bill to annex more than 111 acres of private property on the west side of the 1500 to 2100 blocks of North Westgate Avenue and add it to the ward and precinct assigned by the county clerk.|bold_on||bold_on||ret||ret||tab|

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|bold_on|P&Z code changes proposed|ret||ret||tab|

The Planning and Zoning Commission and city staff recommended to council a first-reading bill that calls for four changes in the Subdivisions Land Development Code. The proposed changes are as follows:|ret||ret||tab|

To extend the effective period of a preliminary plat from one year to two years; |ret||ret||tab|

To require the floodplain locations be shown on preliminary plats; |ret||ret||tab|

To require plats to be referenced to the Missouri State Plain Coordinate System; |ret||ret||tab|

To require digital submissions of final plats unless waived by the Director of Planning and Development. |ret||ret||tab|

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|bold_on|Council calls for special elections|ret||ret||tab|

Two first-reading bills called for a special election to be held Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2001 to test the sense of voters on a proposition to continue the quater-cent capital improvement sales tax for a period of three years and declaring an emergency and to continue the current level of property tax, which is 27 cents per $100 assessed evaluation, excluding the special levy for parks, public health and the art museum, by levying a property tax for municipal purposes not to exceed 27 cents per $100 assessed valuation and declaring an emergency. |ret||ret||tab|

The proposal would allow $15 million for stormwater improvements, $3 million for fire station replacement, $2.5 million for city facilities improvements and $2 million for property acquisition to implement the Vision 20/20 recommendations.|bold_on||bold_on||ret||ret||tab|

Other first readings included a council bill that would authorize the city manager to enter into an agreement with the Battlefield Fire Protection District for the acquisition of property and joint construction of a fire station on the west side of town. |ret||ret||tab|

Another would authorize the city manager to enter into a cost sharing agreement with Jean A. Gwin for a grading and resurfacing project to alleviate surface water ponding on the city alley immediately south of 840 South Glenstone Avenue.|ret||ret||tab|

The final first-reading bill was special ordinance declaring the necessity of condemning property generally located at 2620 West Battlefield Road for the purpose of relocating a fire station.|ret||ret||tab|

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|bold_on|Rezoning bills approved|ret||ret||tab|

Council voted unanimously to approve three second-reading rezoning bills. The first bill rezoned about one-third acre of land located on the southwest corner of Battlefield Road and Parkview Avenue from a single-family residential district to an office district. |ret||ret||tab|

The second bill rezoned about one-quarter acre of land located on the west side of North Benton Avenue north of Central Street from a medium density multi-family district to a government and institutional use district. |ret||ret||tab|

The third bill rezoned about three-quarters of an acre of land located on the north side of East Redrex Street east of Fremont Avenue from a single-family residential district to a medium density multifamily residential district. |ret||ret||tab|

A third second-reading bill to rezone less than an acre of land located at the southeast corner of National Avenue and Brower Street from a residential townhouse district to an office district was amended and was tabled until the Nov. 6 meeting. |ret||ret||tab|

A final second-reading bill to rezone about five acres of land located at the southeast corner of Lone Pine Avenue and Southern Hills Boulevard from a single-family residential district to a planned development district failed 6-1-2, with Manley, Carlson, Gibson, Wright and Hacker voting against. Vanaman voted for the bill while Gannaway and Chancellor abstained from the vote. |ret||ret||tab|

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