ENA Meeting Notes - July 14th 2025

Meeting Notes – July 14, 2025: The Ellendale Neighborhood Association held its general meeting at Abbott EMS (2500 Abbott Place).  The meeting announcement and joining/participating information were provided in advance, consistent with the organization’s bylaws (revised July 2015 and adopted November 9, 2015).  Additionally, the meeting was livestreamed & recorded via Facebook Live.  

The full meeting broadcast can be viewed on the Ellendale Neighborhood Association group Facebook page: www.facebook.com/groups/EllendaleNA.StL

Meeting opened at 7:00 pm by President Jacqi Kamp

Welcome & Facebook Live Overview

• Outlined the meeting procedures for the session so that online participants could submit questions via Facebook chat, or by email, or by text.

• Streaming our meetings via Facebook Live remains quite popular and will be continued indefinitely for future meetings.

• Shared the following courtesy rules for those attending the meeting in-person:

• Limit questions to one per person until others have a chance to speak.

• If you have any reporting service requests, please provide the address.

• If you do not have the address, please discuss with President Jacqi Kamp after the meeting so that she can assist.

• No side conversations during the meeting, please step outside the room for any such discussions.

Minutes from meeting May 2025 - President Jacqi Kamp stated that Secretary, Sue Moody will not be in attendance to deliver notes for May, but they would be available at the next meeting in September.

Community Reports

• Alderman Bret Narayan (4^th Ward) gave an update on Storm Recovery at City Hall in St. Louis. He stated that over the last month, the main focus has been on storm response recovery, and we are just over a month out, so things are starting to shift back to normal day to day operations. We know the recovery is going to take months not weeks but even years, but we are getting back into discussions that are not strictly about tornadoes.

• Ellendale Flood response update - Alderman Bret Narayan stated that FEMA and State Emergency Agency recently sent more details to finalize what is needed for legislation and the administration is compiling those details into what the state needs for their buyouts.

• Status of Bill 45 and 46- Registration for Neighborhood Associations will receive correspondence directly from the city. Alderman Bret Narayan reported that there was a lot of concern and consternations about what it was going to take to register, what happens if the city does not recognize your neighborhood association for whatever reason. Alderman Bret Narayan voted against the bill just out of concern as he wanted to make sure all-party voices would be heard. but it did pass, and the mayor is in support of both bills.

• Bill #60-Accessory Dwelling Units (garages that are being turned into mother-in-law units and minimum square feet on a lot to build on it). Alderman Bret Narayan reported that he will be pushing on the sponsor of the floor bill because what he does not want to see happen is a proliferation of these units are then being used as short-term rentals. Alderman Bret Narayan also stated that he will be keeping an eye on this bill.

• Bill to Prohibit Cannabis from being sold outside of a legal dispensary - Alderman Bret Narayan stated there are two strong lobbies and we will see where this goes.

• Ongoing City Sheriff Litigation- Alderman Bret Narayan reported that the State of Missouri seems to be firmly in control of that situation now. Alderman Bret Narayan also stated that he has been asked by a lot of people what happens if the Sheriff is removed. Alderman Bret Narayan stated If we are going off past precedent, the Board of Alderman will select an interim replacement.

• Question -Member, John Yarish asked if Brett could speak about the board bill that passed for reducing lot sizes. Alderman Ryan stated that was something the Building Commissioner has wanted for quite some time. It does not cut it in half. An example is that in Dogtown there are a lot of lots that historically have homes on them that are too small to build now so this would allow owners to build on the lots.

• Member, John Yarish, also asked Brett how this would affect larger parcels and being subdivided into smaller parcels. Brett’s response was that a lot of that would depend on the location of the parcel itself and what is on the parcel on it right now. The Building Division wants to see what the redevelopment is going to be. John Yarish also asked Alderman Narayan if there would be an increase in the number of building inspectors. Brett stated that we did get an influx of inspectors because of the tornado and hopes that we might get some of them to stay in the city.

• Member, Matt Sisul asked if The ENA is already on the City’s website and moving forward, is there anything as an organization we would have to do every couple of years such as re-registering? Alderman Brett stated that he would have to go over the legislation, but he believes there are obligations, such as being active, having meetings. These would go to the Neighborhood Stabilization Department.

• Member, John  wanted to compliment the mayor for cracking down on the illegal shooting of fireworks on July 4^th in our neighborhood.

• Member, Steve Gibson asked if there was any validity for the people affected by the tornado that the City was going to suspend or expunge their property taxes for this year? Alderman Ryan responded that he thought there was something about pro-rating their taxes. When the inspections were done, if your house was given a red classification, meaning you should not be living in it, there would be an adjustment to their property taxes from the beginning of the year to the time that they were not able to live in it due to the tornado.

·        If anyone has any questions relating to any legislation to be considered, please reach out to Alderman Narayn at: (314) 622-3287 or NaraynB@stlouis-mo.gov

Officer Robert Amesquita (2^nd District)

• Officer Amesquita stated that he has tried to stay on top of the long-term issues in the Ellendale Association and will continue to do so.

• 7 Day Statistics: the neighborhood is down 50%, 28 Day Statistics: The neighborhood is down 100% and overall, for the year, down 36%. The city average is 15.5%. Specifically, the issues at Abbot Ambulance have been rectified as they have installed a gate at the entrance.

• Magnolia Street issue: Officer Amesquita stated that this issue has been going on for the last 5-6 years.  Members in attendance who live on Magnolia stated that this issue has been occurring for at least 15 years. Member Tina Crumpton stated that the woman is gone, and the situation has gotten better but the homeowner’s son is the real issue. After a lengthy discussion, Officer Amesquita stated that he would personally get a solution for this issue, but it would take a fair amount of time so please be patient.

Brian Kolde (Citizens Service Bureau, Neighborhood Laison)

·        Requests for service (such as streetlights out, potholes, etc.) can be made directly to Brian Kolde (NIS, Ellendale).

• “24^th Ward Citizen Services” on Facebook facebook.com/groups/3216322345310811

• Handouts outlining what to report & the CSB process are brought to every meeting.

·        Brian Kolde shared information that if you live in the City or St Louis County and were impacted by the severe storms on May 16th, the deadline to apply for FEMA assistance is August 11th. You can call FEMA at 800-621-3362 or apply for assistance at https://www.disasterassistance.gov. Their website also has contact information for disaster relief centers and resources.

·        Brian also clarified that nuisance property ordinance is for property and buildings. He will check to see if there is tow sticker on the black van. Brian also reiterated that towing is no longer conducted by the police department. The City of St Louis does city towing. Brian reiterated that he would continue to watch the specific property but phone calls need to be made daily to the 911 non-emergency number when issues arise.

·        Member Steve Gibson stated that a new service line is being replaced at 2754 Hermitage and the job site seems to never get cleaned up. Quite a mess and dumping job materials on to the property across the street.   Brian stated he will look in to this issue to get it resolved.

·        Member Maria Gray asked the question regarding old telephone poles that are taken down on Southwest Avenue, the ATT wires are just hanging in the air and are not removed along with the poles. Her concern is that children and cars can get hurt.

·        Brian suggested that she call Ameren with the pole number or the website and report this issue.

·        National Night Out is Tuesday 10/7/25 from 4-9pm. The deadline to register is September 12, 2025.

Guest Speakers(s)

Nick Kimble (MO State Representative for the 82^nd District)

• Nick stated the Budget will be a priority, Amendment #3 passed, and the SLMPD has been taken over by the State Board of Commissioners, Chief Tracy and the city mayor because of city mayoral poor management, and poor morale. The Governor appointed these people a few weeks ago.

• Amendment on Abortion issue will be back on the November 2025 ballot as it was overturned.  Voters who voted for it earlier will need to vote again as the super majority did not feel that the voters knew what they were voting on.

• Proposition A -Paid sick time off.

• The KC Chiefs Stadium Proposition did not pass but the relief funds for tornado victims were also a part of this proposition. No one from St Louis wanted to take a chance on not getting the relief funds, so the bill passed. The State of MO gave twenty-five million dollars to the tornado victims.

Sophia Ibrahim with the Missouri Coalition for the Environment. She shared a survey for city residents regarding excessive heat. This survey is designed so that City residents' needs drive our forthcoming extreme heat policy plan. Please only participate if you are a current City resident. For those who could not attend the meeting or did not scan the QR code, here is a link to the survey:  There is a deadline to complete this survey.

[https://docs.google.com/.../1FAIpQLScj1gkhf9.../viewform

Gina Mitten stated that she is running for MO State Senate in District 4, our district previously represented by Karla May. She left some of her business cards for distribution.

Treasurer’s Report (Joe Nea)

• Balance as of 7-14-2025: $1305.00

• Deposits: None

• Expenses: None

• Balance as of Current Date: $1305.00

·        Member, Maria Gray asked how many members were in the ENA and the Treasurer stated he did not know. President Jacqui Kamp stated that she would get a listing to see which members were current and those that did not renew their ENA membership. Annual dues are $6 per person, per household; $3 per person 65+; Business dues are $24. 2024 ENA Membership Application forms are available on our ENA web page. ENA accepts Venmo @Joey-Nea and be sure to specify “ENA dues” in transaction note.

·        Member, Matt Sisul made a motion to pay $20.00 to renew our non-profit status to the State of Missouri and it was seconded by Steve Gibson.

Housing Committee Report (John Yarish) None

Beautification Committee Report (Kimberly Hanvy)

• Kimberly reported that a little lending library will be installed in the next couple of weeks at the Ellendale Pollinator Garden located at the dead end of Ellendale Avenue.  She also stated she will be coordinating with Kelli and Harrison Stanford, James Hanvy along with Jacqi and Maria for the date and time.

• The Southwest Mural will be cleaned in the next couple of weeks due to a little graffiti by the steps.

• A new mural is being planned at “El Porto” Restaurant on Manchester Road and will be created by Ben Hanvy.

• Kimberly asked where she would get new additional property rezoned and remodeled. Brian suggested that she contact the zoning division for that information.

SLACO Report (Neal Gilb) No Report, not in attendance

New Business

·       President Jacqui Kamp stated she had a list of previous Block Captains and wanted to confirm or add anyone who wished to become block captains.

• Miscellaneous

• Check Ellendale website (https://ellendalena.wixsite.com/ellendale) and Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/groups/EllendaleNA.StL) for communication and neighborhood updates.

• Please contact Torrie Dahmen to sign up for our online email list.

Motion to adjourn made by President Jacqi Kamp and seconded by Nathaniel Kamp. Approved by those in attendance (24) with a voice vote.

Meeting adjourned at 8:25pm.