The City of Fayette is one month away from their new city administrator starting the job.

The board of aldermen voted Tuesday, Feb. 25 in closed session to hire Deanna Cooper as the city’s new administrator. Mayor Greg Stidham tells KMMO News that Cooper has been involved in the community for years, serving as president of Fayette Main Street since 2020. Until last year, Cooper was the Director of Development for Advancement and Alumni Relations at Central Methodist University. Her start date is April 1.

Also Tuesday night, aldermen continued review of potential changes to the city’s sign ordinance. Stidham says residents and groups including Main Street and the Fayette Community Improvement District continue to provide input, and aldermen will continue discussion on the proposal at their next meeting March 11.

Aldermen also began discussion on whether to increase Fayette’s sewer rates. Stidham says the city’s water rates already increased by five percent at the beginning of the year based upon an ordinance already in place, but no similar mechanism is in place to adjust sewer rates. He adds that a public hearing on a proposed increase of three to five percent will take place prior to a future board meeting.