06/11/2025
The City of Waynesville would have you believe that there is a budget shortfall of approx. $860,000.00 because of an increase in city services due to growth. This is only partially true. City Administrator John Doyle and Finance Officer Amber Box explained that the only option available to remedy the situation is to add a 1% Emergency Service Tax (although Mayor Sean Wilson continues to call it a 1 cent tax). Watch the Tiger TV 12 YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eho6hE-bEp4&t=728s to get the cities side of the story. The financial presentation starts at 45:43. Not mentioned in any presentation is the fact that the City of Waynesville has questionable spending practices which include (but not limited to) the creation of the little used Roubidoux Park Streatery, the constant maintenance of the Roubidoux Spring Campground & RV Park which is built in an active flood zone and is evacuated and repaired multiple times each year due to high water events, the purchase of the Boggs Automotive building at 1107 West Historic Route 66 for $526,000 as the new Waynesville firehouse, replacing the contracted Waynesville Rural Fire Department which had their own firehouse with St. Robert fire protection services. This purchase price did not include the renovations to bring the Boggs building to firehouse code. The Waynesville dispatch center was moved from the Waynesville Police Department to City Hall (why?) and renovated. No cost to the taxpayers was ever disclosed. Why not utilize the Pulaski County Sheriff or 911 dispatch centers? How many dispatch centers do we need? The city owns and maintains 72 parcels of land. In comparison, the City of St. Robert only owns 48, Crocker has 19 and Dixon has 14. The Waynesville stump dump on F Highway has $85,000 earmarked for some fence and a gate...at a stump dump. At the March 2024 city council meeting, Tiger TV 12 was blacked out and the taxpayer funded Mayoral salary was raised from $300/month, $3600/year to $533.33/month, $6400/year and the eight city council member salaries from (volunteering your time) to $200/month, $2400/year. That's $25,600 annually. The WSR airport relationship is a financial toxic black hole and all requests to release the debt amount associated with the airport have fallen on deaf ears. Apparently nobody enforces State of Missouri Sunshine Law requests. No mention of any city cost saving reduction attempts or efficiency plans. The city has no financial accountability beyond a yearly city audit, paid for by the city (taxes), with an audit firm of the cities choosing to satisfy state regulations. Lastly, according to the 2025 City of Waynesville published budget, the annual city combined salaries are approx. $3,575.000.00. The city administrator position pays 6 figures plus benefits yet no one at the city level dares mention a salary reduction of 1% but an increase of a 1% taxpayer sales tax is the only option...
The City of Waynesville, Missouri holds its monthly city council meeting on the third Thursday of every month. Meetings air live on Cable America Local 12 an...
