Cuba Board of Aldermen on Jan. 20 approved Steven Bridgeman’s proposal with a 6-0 vote to use Hood Park to host the 25th anniversary ceremony of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on Patriot Day.

Though details have yet to be announced, the event is scheduled on Sept. 11, which falls on a Friday this year. Bridgeman suggested food trucks and then setting off some fireworks afterwards.

“It’s basically just to acknowledge our first responders, and let them know we appreciate them and value what they do,” Bridgeman said.

He plans for it to be a Crawford County event, and to invite everyone from Bourbon, Cuba and Steelville.

Another event in Cuba is the Crazed and Caged Promotion LLC demolition derby coming up on May 9 in Hood Park

While a representative wasn’t present, the board approved, with a 6-0 vote, that May 23 will be the rainout date for the demolition derby.

It has come to the attention of the City of Cuba Emergency Management Agency that, with Recklein Auditorium rented out, it is difficult to find other locations in the colder months to shelter those who need help and the homeless.

They recommend that either the cold weather should take priority over the rentals, or that another location be available.

Dan Eidson, a former Cuba Parks and Recreation board member, shared the necessary repairs needed for the city pool.

“I was wondering if we’ve scheduled that or we reached out to a company and had that scheduled,” Eidson said.

Copling replied that, yes, they had been scheduled.

Cindi Mercer, also a former Cuba Parks and Recreation board member, was not happy with how the last park board meeting went under the new leadership. She wanted to bring it to the board of aldermen’s attention that meeting procedures were not properly followed.

“So you don’t have a president. You don’t have a VP. They need to do it again. They need to vote correctly on everything,” Mercer said.

She also alleged Karen Groom, appointed parks board president at their last meeting on Jan. 13, had cursed at community members after the meeting.

Mayor Kevin Copling said he didn’t hear it happen, but Mercer declared otherwise.

“So I’m letting you know, Mr. Mayor, that the person you appointed to the park and rec. board cussed at community members,” Mercer said.

She also made allegations that Groom had prior conversations to get Eidson and herself off the board, a point she brought up on Jan. 13 at the parks and rec. meeting.

“That, too, is not appropriate. It’s retaliatory. It’s targeting,” Mercer said. “And there are laws that are preventative for citizens and volunteer people from that board. So if this board continues to go through and have people target the community, we will then make sure the proper authorities are reported to.”

Copling denied the allegation that Groom asked for Edison and Mercer be removed from the parks and recreation board. 

“She didn’t even know she was going on the park board. I didn’t even know I was going to put her on the park board,” Copling said.

Mercer requested the removal of Groom from the parks board, and Copling denied the request because what Mercer was saying “was not true.”

During the financial review, bookkeeper Jennifer Basham presented the budget revisions as of Dec. 31, 2025, starting with adjustment increases such as the pole user fees and hangar rent revenue.

“We’re going to adjust expenditures to account for some very small expenditures,” Basham said. “Property insurance increase, auto insurance increase, the AC unit that we had done in the council room.”

Budget numbers are, overall, staying positive, and the supervisors of the utility departments are managing the departmental budgets to control the costs, without the quality of services suffering.

A staffing change took place on the Planning and Zoning Committee. Annalee Williams has resigned from the Planning and Zoning Committee, and Tony Hudson was appointed to take her place.

The Tourism Committee gave the board an update on celebrations planned for the 100th anniversary of Route 66, a 2,400-mile U.S. highway that connects Chicago to Santa Monica. 

In celebration of the “Mother Road,” the Tourism Committee has banners that will go across the highway and on poles. The committee proposed the use of the old firehouse to rebuild the three huge cakes that were used in another event and are currently in storage. It was approved with a 6-0 vote.

The committee also asked to use Hood Park on Sept. 10 for Bicycles Across Missouri.

Chief Doug Shelton of the Cuba Police Department said that he received a second bid to replace their small furnace. Both bids were really close in cost, but under Shelton’s recommendation, they went with the slightly higher-priced one from Hartley’s Climate Control at $6,973 because “since that’s who maintains our top one that we have maintenance contracts with.”

Aldermen approved the furnace bid with a 6-0 vote.

In other business, Bill No. 2202, which authorized the mayor to enter into an agreement with Catlett and Associates for audit services, became Special Ordinance No. 95 after it was approved with a 6-0 vote.

Bill No. 2203 was written to approve a bid by Brown’s Tree and Bucket service for tree trimming in the right-of-way for powerlines in the Meadows Subdivision. It became Special Ordinance No. 955 after it was approved with a 6-0 vote.

Bill 2204 accepted and approved the development of the Silo Ridge Subdivision as submitted, and authorized the mayor to execute an acceptance and approval of said plan. It became General Ordinance No. 1245 after a 5-1 vote. Alderman Ward 3 Jeff Bouse was the only one who voted against it.

Bill 2205 outlined the final plat of McBride Homes Silo Ridge Subdivision as submitted, and authorizes the mayor to execute an acceptance and approval of said plat. It became General Ordinance No. 1246 after a 5-1 vote of approval. Bouse, again, was the only one to vote against it.

Bill 2206, if passed, establishes a code of public conduct to be observed at all meetings for the Cuba City Board of Aldermen. Before they read it, Alderman Ward 2 Pitts Lesesne asked if it was changed from the previous ordinance. Even though they could only think about the change of public participation time from two minutes to three, Mayor Copling made the decision to table it for a later date.

Before the meeting adjourned, Copling acknowledged the anonymous donation of $150,000 to be used toward pickleball courts. He wanted to clarify that the money did come through, even though he had heard many rumors that the city hadn’t seen a dime of the donation.