SIKESTON -- After a long wait, King David's Lodge No. 11 members will soon own their building.
In April 2002, Council members accepted an offer from the Lodge to rehabilitate a commercial structure owned by the city at 203 Luther and lease the building at $100 per month.
The group also asked if the city would deed the property to them at the end of the five-year lease. Chuck Leible, city counselor, advised during Monday's City Council meeting that the agreement documents instead give the Lodge first right of refusal if the city opted to sell the property following the lease.
After some discussion, Council members agreed to go ahead and turn the building over to them.
Leible was directed by council members to draw up documents to sell the building along with small adjacent strips of land to the Lodge at a nominal price of about $10.
In January 2005, a decision on the sale of the property was postponed for six months by council members due to incidents which occurred on Dec. 26, 2004. On this date, the Department of Public Safety responded to a report of armed subjects in the area outside the building followed by a call about an hour later for fight that escalated into an all-call for DPS.
Lodge officers explained the trouble was from someone ejected from the facility when the building was booked for a party to raise money for the building's operation.
Following that incident, Lodge officers decided to not allow any more fundraisers of that type to be held there.
In September 2005, council members again declined to sell the building to the lodge's officers and advised lodge members would have two years to demonstrate there wouldn't be any further problems there. Council members also rejected a request for a consumption of liquor license for the facility.
DPS Director Drew Juden advised council members Monday that no further incidents have been reported there.