Conversations about crime and downtown safety dominated Monday night’s Columbia City Council meeting.
The council met at 7 p.m. at the Daniel Boone City Building, 701 E. Broadway.
Mayor Barbara Buffaloe called a personal point of privilege to open the meeting, asking Columbia Police Chief Jill Schlude to provide context and updates on public safety operations after a fatal Sept. 27 shooting on Broadway.
D’Markus Thomas Brown, administrator of the Office of Violence Prevention, also presented updates on the office’s strategic plan toward the end of the meeting. He applauded Schlude and the work that the Police Department has done, and cited four main objectives for continuing to improve the well-being of Columbia: community engagement, violence disruption, youth engagement and policy advocacy.
“We understand that this affects people deeply,” Brown said. “So we want to make sure we’re able to adequately and efficiently and effectively address root causes so that we can actually solve community violence, not placate it.”
Third Ward councilperson Jacque Sample pushed for increased staffing in the office.
“I’m not sure that I can live with delay on this, and I just want to express a level of urgency that I’m sure everybody already feels,” First Ward councilperson Valerie Carroll said in support of Sample.
Council approves sidewalk improvement project
The council approved the construction of a 2,100-foot sidewalk along the south side of West Broadway between Maplewood Drive and West Boulevard. The over $600,000 project would fill a sidewalk gap, according to a council memo.
Members of the City Council and the public called for numerous changes to the proposed design, citing safety and well-being concerns with the sidewalk’s theoretical 3-foot-wide dimensions. However, many residents spoke in favor of the project’s goal.
“We’re all about making our city more connected,” McKenzie Ortiz, advocacy coordinator at Local Motion, said. “We think that this section of Broadway is long overdue for a sidewalk.”
Shane Creech, director of Public Works, emphasized the priority of the sidewalk’s construction.
“When you have a road with the traffic volume that Broadway has, it makes a lot of sense to us,” Creech said.
Construction of the project is anticipated to begin in fall 2026.
Aquatic center renovations will begin
The council also approved renovations to the Albert-Oakland Family Aquatic Center.
The improvements include an upgraded deck lounge, upgrades to mechanical equipment and a new concrete pool deck, according to a council memo. The $4 million project will also add new features such as diving boards and a zero depth entry area. The facility will be closed until early spring 2027 for construction.
The renovation will be funded from multiple areas, $300,000 will be taken from the Park Sales Tax, $1.2 million from the city’s Designated Loan Fund and $2,500,00 from the city’s Capital Project Interest Account.
Other discussions and council action
Matthew Schacht, a representative of Vidwest Studios, spoke at the council meeting regarding funding for the community media group.
“I can’t help but recognize the public safety circumstances that we find ourselves in while I’m here asking for community media. I’d like to point out that if people are shooting with cameras, they are not shooting with guns,” Schacht said.
In June, Vidwest received notice that half of its funding would be cut from the city of Columbia at the end of 2026. Multiple supporters of the media group were present during the meeting.
Clinton Smith was sworn in as Director of Community Development and William Rataj was sworn in as Director of Housing and Neighborhood Services at the start of the meeting.
Fifth Ward councilperson Don Waterman was not present Monday.
Max Quinn contributed reporting.