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Council approves reappointments, plats and SRO agreement; votes at a glance
Summary
At its Aug. 18 meeting the Washington City Council approved the reappointment of officer Ben Hellebusch as a school resource officer, reappointed members to commissions, finalized Cottage Park Plat 6, rezoned 513–515 West 2nd Street, and authorized a school-resource-officer agreement for four parochial schools; the council also voted to enter closed session.
The Washington City Council on Aug. 18 voted on a series of routine and land-use items, approving multiple reappointments, plat actions and an agreement to assign a school resource officer to four parochial schools.
What passed - Reappointment of Officer Ben Hellebusch: The council approved reappointing Officer Ben Hellebusch, one of the city’s school resource officers. A presenter said Hellebusch had done “a great job” and recommended his reappointment; the motion was made and seconded and the council voted in favor.
- Reappointments to committees and commissions: Sandy Lucey was reappointed to the Washington Area Highway Transportation Committee with a term ending August 2028. Andrew Clary, Rick Hopp and Bridget Kelch were reappointed to the Washington Historic Preservation Commission with terms ending August 2030. Each appointment was moved, seconded and approved by the council.
- Rezoning and plats for 513 and 515 West 2nd Street: Planning staff described an application to subdivide a duplex property at 513–515 West 2nd Street and to rezone the parcels from R-2 (two-family residential overlay) to R-1C (single-family attached). The transcript notes a previously approved variance for a nonconforming lot size (5,780 sq ft where 6,000 sq ft is required). Council approved acceptance of the preliminary plat and later adopted the rezoning ordinance on second reading.
- Final plat — Cottage Park Plat 6: The council approved the final plat of Cottage Park Plat 6 in Franklin County on second reading, completing the plat process for that development.
- School resource officer agreement (Ordinance 7b): The council authorized and directed execution of an agreement with Saint Francis Borgia Regional High School, Saint Francis Borgia Grammar School, Our Lady of Lourdes School, and Emmanuel Lutheran School for the assignment of one school resource officer for those schools. The presenter said this would be the second year of the program and that the same officer would serve the parochial schools.
- Vote to hold closed session: By roll call, the council voted to hold a closed meeting to discuss personnel, legal and real estate matters under Section 610.021, RSMo.
Votes at a glance - Minutes approval (08/04/2025): Motion approved (voice vote recorded as 'Aye'). - Agenda adjustment (item 7a tabled): Approved. - Officer Ben Hellebusch reappointment: Motion by Patke, second by Heydrich; approved. - Sandy Lucey reappointment (WAHTC): Approved. - Historic Preservation Commission reappointments (Andrew Clary, Rick Hopp, Bridget Kelch): Approved. - Preliminary and final plats, rezoning (513–515 West 2nd Street): Preliminary plat accepted; final plat and rezoning ordinances adopted on second reading. - Ordinance 7b (SRO agreement): Adopted by roll-call vote. - Motion to hold closed session under Section 610.021, RSMo: Adopted by roll-call vote.
What the record shows and what it does not The public transcript records motions, seconds and roll-call responses (several council members recorded as voting 'Aye') and describes the items approved. The transcript does not include full, itemized vote tallies listing each council member’s recorded vote for every action; where a roll call was recorded, the transcript shows names and 'Aye' responses for some members. Also, no public comment opposing the rezoning or plat actions is recorded in the provided excerpt.
Next steps Approved ordinances and plats move to implementation steps required by planning and administration; staff noted a special meeting will be scheduled to set the tax rate and personnel/staffing changes (new city planner start date) will follow timeline noted in the administration report.
