Hannibal City Council prepares for upcoming public hearings

HANNIBAL, Mo. — Tuesday’s meeting was short, but the Hannibal City Council set itself up for a longer meeting in two weeks.

Council members hold three public hearings before the August 16 meeting with the first set for 6:15 pm. That meeting was requested by Corey Mehaffy, the Executive Director of Northeast Missouri Economic Development Council.

During the meeting, Mehaffy will bring information about a proposal designated “Project Stay.” “Project Stay” involves renovating the former Best Way Inn at 612 Mark Twain Avenue using the incentives provided under Missouri’s  “Urban Redevelopment Corporations Law.” The incentive involves a grant of partial real property tax abatement on 50% of the property’s assessed valuation for a maximum of 15 years. The public hearing will allow residents to comment on the proposal.

The second public hearing is scheduled immediately following that at 6:30 p.m. and will give the public a chance to comment on the Ad Velorum property tax rates for 2022. The city has received the aggregated assessed valuations from both Marion and Ralls Counties and now must hold a public hearing to allow public comment.  The proposed rates for the city’s General Fund, the LIbrary Fund and the Police and Fire Retirement Fund are unchanged from 2021 under the proposal.

The third and final public hearing of the night will be held at 6:45 to allow comment on a proposal from the Planning and Zoning Commission to amend the city charter. The amendment will add daycares as an allowed use to each zoning district in Hannibal.

In other action Tuesday night, the city sold a vacant lot at 629 Willow Street to a nearby resident. Central Services Director Andy Dorian told council that the city has sold 45 properties since 2020.

Council also accepted the donation of property at 419 North 7th. The property is in an extreme state of disrepair and has been determined by the city to be a nuisance or dangerous building. The owners of the property have agreed to donate the property to the City of Hannibal.