The Edwardsville City Council met Monday, Mar. 23 at 6:00 p.m. with Mayor Carolyn Caiharr presiding. Councilmembers Camila Adcox, Garrett Mellott, Christy Everhart, Michael Moulin and Margaret Shriver were present.
Regional resource sharing agreement tabled
The council deferred a decision on joining the Kansas City Regional Resource Sharing Agreement, a voluntary mutual aid framework coordinated by the Mid-America Regional Council. The agreement is designed to allow jurisdictions across the Kansas City metropolitan area to share resources, including personnel, equipment and services, in situations where existing mutual aid agreements do not apply.
Fire Department Captain David Mellen, who oversees the city’s EMS operation, explained that the agreement would expand on existing automatic aid arrangements already in place between Edwardsville and neighboring departments. He noted the agreement carries no direct financial obligation and said the upcoming FIFA World Cup was one reason regional partners are pushing for adoption now.
“This expands for public works and other resources that aren’t specifically lined out by those already existing agreements,” Mellen said. He described scenarios such as large-scale storm cleanup or blizzard response where the city’s public works department could receive help from neighboring jurisdictions, or vice versa.
Despite no concerns about the substance of the agreement, Adcox moved to table the item so council members could review the full agreement document, which was not included in the agenda packet. “I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. I just would feel better about reading everything before I do it,” she said. Everhart seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.
Ambulance financing approved
The council unanimously adopted a resolution authorizing a three-year tax-exempt lease-purchase agreement with for a new fire department ambulance.
The ambulance was originally approved for purchase in July 2023 from Road Rescue, for a total cost of $327,611, including $53,001 for associated equipment. Among four potential lenders, REV Financial Services submitted the lowest bid at 4.75% interest with annual payments of $119,738.44.
Mellen said the new ambulance is expected to be delivered by midsummer. The current ambulance, a 2014 unit with a remounted box dating to 2008, will be sold. Mellen estimated it could bring $30,000 to $40,000 through a surplus sale or direct purchase by a neighboring department.
Council approves $86,311 in salary adjustments
In the most extensive discussion of the evening, City Manager Mark Mathies presented recommendations from a pay study recommendations to increase pay for employees identified as underpaid. The pay benchmarks were established by a salary.com study presented in April 2025.
Mathies explained that conditions had changed significantly since the original study. A three percent cost-of-living adjustment was applied to all employees during the 2026 budget process, but the salary ranges recommended by salary.com were never formally adopted. Personnel changes, promotions, and turnover further shifted the landscape. Staff also discovered that three fire department employees hired around 2024 had been placed on an outdated pay scale and were not progressing through step increases as intended. Those errors were already corrected.
The presentation identified 15 positions requiring adjustment across the fire department, police department and city administration. The fire department accounts for the bulk of the cost, with $82,000 in recommended pay increases. In addition there was a $2,600 recommended adjustment for a police sergeant, and one administrative position with a $771 change.
The council approved a budget amendment of $86,311 to implement the salary adjustments on a motion by Shriver, seconded by Adcox.
Two additional items from the pay study were deferred for discussion at the next meeting with the full council present: a $1,500 one-time stipend for all employees planned for December 2026, and an optional 2% market adjustment that would cost approximately $192,000 in total.
Everhart emphasized the need for a more comprehensive compensation framework. “Our staff should know what to count on. They should know when I’m here for one, three years, this is what my salary is going to be, five years, 10 years,” she said. She called for a future study that accounts for not just salary comparisons but also benefits, vacation time, quality-of-life factors and longevity incentives, using cities comparable in population, assessed valuation and proximity to a metropolitan area.
Economic development presentations planned
Mathies announced he plans to invite two presenters to the next council meeting as part of the city’s economic development priority. Baker Tilly, a national consulting firm, will present its capabilities to create an economic development plan that focuses on Edwardsville’s particular strengths.
“If you think we need an Applebee’s here, it’s probably going to be an ill pursuit,” said Mathies. “Quite frankly, it’s not going to work. So we need to know what it is that we have to offer, and who we could offer to.”
In addition to the consulting firm, Mathies will bring in Rob Richardson, a former 17-year UG official, who could potentially work with the city to implement its plan as a contract economic development coordinator.
The council agreed the presentations will be informational rather than action items, giving members time to review proposals before making any commitment.
Public comment and other business
During public comment, Edwardsville resident Eric Barnhart praised the work of the fire department training crews and public works staff in cleaning up Riverfront Park. “I cannot believe the amount of work that the firefighter trainers have done in the last month,” he said. Barnhart offered to help fund a replacement tree at the park and said he would like to connect city staff with national nonprofit organizations that provide grants for community music festivals in partnership with municipalities.
The consent agenda, including approval of the Mar. 9 meeting minutes and a statement of bills paid totaling $36,836.69, passed unanimously.
In closing remarks, Shriver thanked Barnhart and city staff for the positive feedback and congratulated Caiharr for organizing a Harvesters mobile food pantry event the previous week. Caiharr noted the event served 531 people and distributed 17,886 pounds of groceries.