Wright City aldermen voted to contribute $5,000 to the Wright City Memorial Society, a group that is responsible for maintenance at the city cemetery. Alderman Tom Black was the lone board member who voted against approving the donation during the Dec. 30 aldermanic meeting. "They got plenty of money," Black told The Record. "They have more money than the city of Wright City has to work with." Though the $5,000 had been set aside in the 2009 budget, a decision on the donation was postponed twice during the past year as aldermen waited for a more accurate economic picture. Aldermen said they wanted to wait to see if the funds were needed elsewhere before the end of the year. The board wanted to wait until the Dec. 30 meeting, the final meeting of the year, to review final budget numbers. In 2008, alderman declined to make the contribution due to budget constraints. The Memorial Society expects to receive around $12,000 annually from the city from interest it receives through an endowment fund. However, city treasurer Karen Girondo said falling interest rates will lower the figure to around $9,000. The extra $5,000 received by the group helps cover expenses associated with mowing and cleanup in the cemetery. Loretta Bierer, a member of the Memorial Society, said the city's contribution is needed. She pointed out that the $5,000 doesn't cover half of the annual expense to have the cemetery mowed. "I don't think they realize the cost to mow and the time spent cleaning up the cemetery," she said. "It takes a lot of time to do that." Tree on Easement Won't Be Removed by City City officials decided against removing a tree that a resident was concerned could fall on his house. The tree in question is located at 115 S. Locust. Mayor Roy White stated that the homeowner is responsible for maintaining the easement. He said if the tree is believed to be a safety hazard, then the city should send a letter to the property owner requesting it be removed. "If we remove that tree from that property, it will open up a can of worms and everybody will want their easement maintained by the city," White said. "It will end up being more problems than what it is." A motion to not remove the tree upon the recommendation of the mayor was approved by a 4-0 vote. In Other Action * The city approved the minutes from the Dec. 10 meeting, but not without objection from Alderman Black. Though acknowledging the minutes were correct, he reiterated his opposition to the board's decision to approve the 2010 budget. At the Dec. 10 meeting, Black was the lone board member to oppose approving the budget because it included raises for some city employees. He didn't have any other problems with the minutes. "You voted no at the meeting and in the minutes you voted no so the minutes are correct," Alderman Jim Schuchmann said. "So I guess you're emphasizing that you voted against it?" Black responded, "Right. I wasn't saying the whole thing. I said the minutes are correct up until that point." *A variance request from Vision Building Company LLC to have a 4-foot building line at 113 Bryan Ridge was unanimously denied because it didn't meet city standards requiring a 10-foot difference according to aldermen. The developer had a permit to build a house with a one-car garage, but Carter Canyon subdivision bylaws state all houses must have a two-car garage, according to Alderman Jim Schuchmann. He noted that the mistake was due to an error by the developer and was not considered a hardship case. Since the developer owns the neighboring parcel, a new plat of the properties should resolve the issue. * A business license for CJ's Vehicle Sales was unanimously approved by the board on Dec. 30. The business, owned by Charles Blackburn, is located at 277 East North Service Road. North Star Auto Sales formerly occupied the property. At the same meeting, a conditional use permit was granted. The only permit stipulation was for any material to be stored inside the building located there.