Maplewood Racks Up Legal Bills in Discrimination, Eminent Domain Cases

Two discrimination lawsuits are still ongoing as city spends $250,000 and counting on court cases.

A pair of discrimination lawsuits involving two former Maplewood police officers have cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars, and the city's legal bills are only expected to rise. The two suits, along with two other cases, have cost Maplewood at least $250,000 this fiscal year. Maplewood City Council members authorized a city staff request during last Tuesday's meeting to spend another $100,000 before the fiscal year ends this month. "We've had court cases that involved litigation, so that runs up legal bills that you don't anticipate," City Manager Marty Corcoran said after the meeting. Two female former Maplewood police officers have sued the city for gender discrimination. Both cases are still ongoing. One was originally filed …

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TP

5:05 pm on Tuesday, July 26, 2011

I interacted with Officer Peoples a number of times when she was the Resource Officer. She was professional, courteous and respectful. She treated the students with respect and worked with several of them to better respect themselves so they didn't fall pray to some of the teenage angst they were dealing with at the time.   more ›

Downtown Surveillance Cameras, Increased Pool Fees Approved by City Council

Cameras will be added to five locations in Maplewood.

A new surveillance camera system in Maplewood will give police officers the ability to monitor activity at five public locations from their office desks, police cars or smart phones. The $125,000 system is connected wirelessly to a server at city hall, letting police officers use different devices to view live footage. The system is portable too, so city staff could move cameras to new locations without incurring additional costs. Maplewood City Council approved the cameras at a meeting on Tuesday night. Second Ward Councilman Timothy Dunn the only dissenting vote. Council members asked police chief Steve Kruse several questions about how the cameras function but offered no debate on whether cameras should be used for policing or not. …

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Maplewood Plans to Expand Public Parking Lot

A house on Marietta Avenue will be razed to make room for more public parking.

An expansion of the main public parking lot on Marietta Avenue in Maplewood will give shoppers and diners an extra 63 parking spaces to choose from. The city hopes to expand the parking lot from 115 spaces to 178 by spring. The expansion includes a brick wall that will separate the lot from residential street running behind it. A demolition company will raze the house at 7359 Marietta Avenue to make room for the parking lot expansion, which the Maplewood City Council approved at its meeting last Tuesday. The project is still in its early stages, so no costs have been attached to the project yet. City Manager Marty Corcoran said he expects to ask for special budget appropriations to tackle the project in January or February, which would …

Council Incumbents File For Reelection in Maplewood

No challengers filed for candidacy.

No challengers filed to run for a seat on the Maplewood City Council, leaving three incumbents without opposition on the April 2011 ballot. First Ward Councilwoman Karen Wood, Second Ward Councilman Tim Dunn and Third Ward Councilman Barry Greenberg—all incumbents in their respective wards—filed for reelection. Today was the deadline to file. "When things are running smoothly, you'll find less interest ... in a municipal election," City Manager Marty Corcoran said. He said more people want to run for office when they disagree with their councilperson. Wood was first elected in 2003 and is seeking her third term in the First Ward. The First Ward, which stretches from Hanley Road to Big Bend Boulevard, is the largest ward geographically. …

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Green Restaurant Program Draws Heated Council Debate

The Maplewood City Council discussed a potential grant application to create a green restaurant program during a work session Tuesday night.

A disagreement over whether the city should pursue recycling grants drew a heated exchange between Mayor James White and Third Ward Councilman Barry Greenberg at the Maplewood City Council work session last night. Greenberg asked the council to consider pursuing a recycling grant through the St. Louis-Jefferson Solid Waste Management District, something the council originally discussed at its Oct. 26 meeting. He wants to request grant money for two projects: to establish a recycling center on Marietta Avenue behind most of the restaurants in downtown Maplewood, and to start a green restaurant program in the special business district. White was uncomfortable asking for grant money when the city doesn't have a firm agreement from …

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Recycling Grant Stirs Council Disagreement

The Maplewood City Council briefly debated applying for recycling grants at its meeting Tuesday night, then decided to continue the discussion at a Nov. 9 work session.

The Maplewood City Council is divided about how—and if—the city should apply for recycling grants through the St. Louis-Jefferson Solid Waste Management District, but the council scheduled a work session for Nov. 9 to discuss potential applications. The waste management district is offering $1.8 million in grants to tackle issues like waste reduction, recycling and composting, according to the district's 2011 application. At the council's meeting tonight, Third Ward Councilman Barry Greenberg asked the council to pursue potential grant money, but other council members said they preferred to wait until after the Sustainability Commission is functional. In an e-mail sent to the council and city staff last Wednesday, Greenberg said he wanted …

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New Sustainability Commission Lacks Definition

The Maplewood City Council hasn't agreed on a focus for the new commission.

A new advisory board in Maplewood aims to push the city toward greener policies, but the city doesn't know what its powers are yet. A resolution to create the board—called the Sustainability Commission—has appeared on the last three Maplewood City Council meeting agendas. While the council agreed to create the commission at Tuesday's meeting, its purpose and function remains unclear at this point. "Everyone agreed that there's more things that we can do, and I like that we're not being complacent," Third Ward Councilman Barry Greenberg said. "Not everyone is in agreement on what we should do, and how we should do it, but that's natural." In a Sept. 28 work session, some council members indicated they were concerned about the power the new …