Residents press aldermen on culvert, animal control and parking at Laddonia meeting

Laddonia — Residents used the public-comment period at the June 18 Laddonia Board of Aldermen meeting to press the board on local infrastructure, animal control response and parking enforcement.

Donald Furlong asked whether a culvert on Barton Street would be replaced and raised concern about an Ameren UE utility pole located in the ditch on Barton Street. He also requested that the city install a "Children at Play" sign at the corner of Hwy K and 7th Street. The minutes record his inquiries but show no formal vote or direction to staff on those items.

Other patrons raised neighborhood maintenance and safety issues: Brittney Shamblin asked about debris at 507 E 5th Street; Crystal Larabee said animal control did not respond to a call about dogs at large; Larry Myers reported a parking complaint at 7th and Locust streets; and Sabrina Matheis asked about employee parking in the City Hall handicap space. Tori Snyder inquired about a livestock-permit warning (the board later approved a livestock permit for Rick Chism during new business).

Attorney Tom Ellis read a proposed parking ordinance for 7th and Locust Streets (first reading noted earlier in the meeting and a second reading occurred in new business), but the minutes show no final vote to adopt the ordinance at this meeting. Several of the public concerns recorded in the minutes — culvert replacement, Ameren pole location, animal control response and parking enforcement — remain without recorded board action in these minutes.

The board approved other routine items by unanimous votes later in the meeting, including a street-sealing and repair bid and cemetery tree removal, and scheduled a budget meeting for June 23, 2026. The minutes do not record any explicit follow-up commitments tied to the public comments above.