The final bill for the petition state audit of the Village of Ferrelview is in, with the board of trustees working to figure out how to pay it.
The Ferrelview board of trustees held two meetings last month, with the first delayed due to board members unavailable during the Independence Day holiday. At the July 13 meeting, trustee chair Phil Gilliam announced that the bill from the Missouri State Auditor’s Office is $40,512.86. The village’s city clerk was asked to discuss payment arrangements with the auditor’s office.
The audit was initiated after citizens used the petition process to request an audit of the village. The effort was organized by Theresa Wilson, who now serves on the board of trustees.
The final audit report, which was released by auditor Nicole Galloway in March, found significant financial concerns, failure to complete long-range planning in critical areas of need and lack of oversight over village operations.
In the wake of a lawsuit filed by the management of Ferrelwoods Mobile Home Park against the village and Gilliam, the board continued to discuss problems at the trailer park and complaints from residents.
The lawsuit, in which Ferrelwoods management claims the village is in violation of a 2003 agreement regarding the maintenance and replacement of water lines and meters, is still in the courts. Judge James Van Amburg has been assigned to the case, in which Gilliam’s attorney recently filed a request to dismiss. A docket call has been scheduled for Friday, Sept. 6.
Residents have told trustees they were told by Ferrelwoods management they were not responsible for the water bill and other contradictory information. Water leaks in the trailer park and other problems were also reported.
The village’s research into requirements for storm shelters in trailer parks revealed that only Michigan requires them. Earlier this summer, residents expressed concerns about the condition of a building they believed was a storm shelter, only to discover it was intended to be a shower facility, not a storm shelter.