Laura Wallace, owner of Cuba Bakery & Deli, asked the Cuba Board of Aldermen on April 21 to run a market study and take action on its findings.

Even though her business is in a high-traffic area, they have had to cut hours from a six-day week to four.

“We are grossly oversaturated in the food market segment in this city,” Wallace said. “We have 29 food establishments. We have a permanent residency of 3,200 people. If you count in tourism, which I’m estimating about 1,500 a month.”

She said that there should be a minimum of 500 people per restaurant, and that Cuba is well below that.

Wallace has a separate issue with food trucks within Cuba.

“They’re basically taking the revenue out of the city, and not only that, but they’re hurting those of us who have these brick and mortars to try to sustain,” Wallace said. “They’re not paying the property taxes that those brick and mortars are paying. They’re not paying the utilities on the buildings that those brick and mortars are sustaining.”

She found an ordinance from Owensville that provides one-day permits for food trucks to be in the city for events only.

Mayor Pitts Lesesne tabled the discussion until the next board meeting, giving time for other businesses to reach out if they have a similar problem, and giving Wallace time to do more research into other cities’ ordinances.

Cameron Schweiss, engineer at Archer-Elgin Engineering, updated the board on the McBride development.

“As of today, the underground water and sewer mains are installed by the developer at the developer’s cost. The stormwater piping structures have been installed at the developer’s cost,” Schweiss said.

As part of the city’s responsibilities, Electric Supervisor Andy Simpson and his crews have installed all of the primary electric road crossings, several of the bug junction cabinets, most of the conduit for all the primary electric that serves the first 36 lots of the development and have started pulling wire through those conduits.

Hanson Professional Services is the city’s engineering consultant for the airport. Barry Stolz was present on their behalf to talk about the new hangar project they were contracted to design.

“That is intended to be funded through MoDOT using FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) Airport Improvement Grant,” Stolz said.

There were four bids for the new hangar project, and awarding of the project was based on demolishing the old hangar, constructing Hanson Professional Services hangar design and the available funding. CSE Enterprises in Rolla was the only bidder that fit within the available funding.

Through coordinating with MoDOT, additional funding was found, left over from previous projects.

CSE Enterprises bid $1,288,901, and there is $1,213,324 in estimated federal funding. The city would have to cover an estimated $75,577 in total.

A motion was approved to accept the bid and to authorize Hanson Professional Services to apply for the grant with a 6-0 vote.

Other bids were from Alexander Construction LLC in Rolla for about $1.31 million, Wright Construction Services, Inc., in St. Peters for about $1.36 million and BuildTec Construction LLC. in St. James for about $1.40 million.

Comptroller Jennifer Basham asked the board to approve the fiscal year 2026 budget revisions that were made for various small revenue increases, including transfers out, increased gas tax and vehicle revenue, additional donation money for the pickleball courts and the increase in natural gas charges for services.

There will also be adjustments for expenditures, including workman’s comp increase overtime in the police, water, treatment plans and natural gas departments.

The public works supervisor position affects the budget with added salary, including overtime expenses and social security.

Money will be transferred to cover the increase for inventory supplies and repairs in the electric and water works departments, and an increase was made for repairs in the natural gas department. For salaries in the street department due to recent retirements and hiring changes, and the increase in small tools in the natural gas department, they will see some budget increases.

Repairs in the transportation trust will decrease by $10,000, and will be added to the construction in the transportation trust.

Basham made the point that while their funds look good right now, they are already on their third revision.

“I have stressed to the (board) that utilizing reserves is not a good practice. We only have a couple funds that are continually using those reserves to achieve a balanced budget,” Basham said.

Revisions to the budget were approved with a 6-0 vote.

When the aldermen were appointed to committees on April 16, Alderman Ward 3 Joyce Hartzell was appointed to the Animal Control and Police Committee. Alderman Ward 3 Jeff Bouse said that she shouldn’t be on the committee because she lied on a police report.

Citizen Jackie Hunt agreed with his statement, citing her recent court case with citizen Dan Eidson.

“This is the case in which the alderwoman failed to obtain an order of protection against Mr. Eidson,” Hunt said.

Hunt explained that Eidson didn’t even need to call any of his witnesses after Hartzell was ruled against after she and three of her witnesses testified.

Hunt asked that Hartzell be removed from that committee.

No action was taken.

In other business, Lesesne reported that the annual natural gas report was due in January, but they have gotten the problem straightened out and the report has been sent off.

He talked with the city administrator at St. James Public Works, where they are currently working on a municipal support agreement for all areas in the future, so that they can work together if necessary.

“We had a large commercial (natural gas) leak. I gave the public works director a call there, and they immediately came up and helped us resolve the leak situation,” Lesesne said.

Approving the Utility Safety & Design Inc. (USDI) with a 6-0 vote, it will track the training of the natural gas department technicians as they are working on their tasks.

A motion to enter into a contract with the Missouri Public Utility Alliance (MPUA) for natural gas evaluations was approved with a 6-0 vote.

With a 6-0 vote, a motion to go out for advertising to hire a water department labor operator was added to the agenda and then approved.

Cuba Public Works Director and Supervisor job descriptions were approved with a 5-1 vote, with Bouse voting against it.

There was only one bid for the annual hay contract for the airport, Barnett Industrial and treatment plant, which was approved with a 6-0 vote. 

Two new appointments were made to the Cuba Parks and Recreation Board: Ashley Wells and Roslind Reiner, and were approved with a 5-1 vote, Bouse voting against.

All 10 recommendations for hire at the pool, made on April 20, by the parks and recreation board, were approved with a 6-0 vote.

With a 6-0 vote, the motion to accept the Cuba Soccer Association and Cuba Ball Program’s sports field agreement were approved.

A road closure for southwest Main Street in front of Riveria Maya from 5 p.m. to close on May 8 and 9 was approved with a 6-0 vote.