At the tail end of Tuesday night's Stillwater City Council meeting, rookie Councilman Jim Roush flexed his newfound political muscle to strengthen a push for stop signs in the city's Liberty on the Lake neighborhood.

Roush made a motion to place seven stop signs at four intersections in the western Stillwater neighborhood, going further than a similar proposal rejected by the council last month. (Tuesday night marked the first meeting for new council members Roush and Micky Cook.)

Though Roush's motion failed by a 3-2 vote - Mayor Ken Harycki was his lone supporter - he succeeded in setting off a raucous debate that brought out passions from all parities involved.

"I am here to represent the people and change the way things are done," Roush said. "Residents are adamant that stop signs are needed."

According to Roush, residents of the neighborhood - which has 350 homes and 750 adult residents - have agreed to pay for half of the costs of the stop signs. He said that the city could find them online for around $80 apiece, which includes the post and hardware, much lower than estimates provided by the Stillwater Public Works Department in November.

Councilmember Mike Polehna, whose ward includes the neighborhood, seemed to be caught off guard by Roush's motion.

"This is all news to me. Where is all this coming from?" Polehna asked at the meeting.

But the strongest opponent of the motion was Councilman Rob Gag, who questioned many aspects of the proposal, including whether the homeowners association had the power to charge people for stop signs.

Todd Remely, president of one of the neighborhood's homeowners associations, has long been an advocate for permanent stop signs. He told the council that stop signs are one the most important issues the neighborhood has encountered in recent years.

Gag remained skeptical. He asked Remely for signed documents from the residents agreeing to pay for the stop signs. Further, he asked what evidence Remely had to prove stop signs worked to improve traffic conditions.

"I am very uncomfortable with this," Gag said.

Remely didn't have any signed documents and said the data was anecdotal.

"I can't imagine there is a single resident against this," Remely said. "I can assure you I am not speaking alone on this."

Gag recounted information from city staff that the stop signs are unwarranted. Traffic counts of the intersections did not meet standards set by a state agency that sets guidelines for stop signs.

Meanwhile, Polehna wondered why the city spent money sending Police Chief John Gannaway to a traffic school in Madison, Wis., yet isn't following his recommendation that stop signs sometimes don't work to calm traffic. Shawn Sanders, the city's public works supervisor, also agreed that stop signs aren't needed in the area.

When the discussion seemed to be spinning its wheels with no end it sight, Gag called for a vote.

Mickey Cook - who didn't speak on the matter during the discussion -stuttered some before voting no. However, Cook did add that she wasn't necessarily against the proposal.

Although Roush's motion failed Tuesday, the council agreed to discuss the matter further at its next meeting.

In the meantime, Remely said he will likely return with a formal letter from a homeowners association requesting the stop signs, while Polehna will meet residents in the area to discuss the issues raised at the meeting.

PD equipment

The city council on Tuesday approved $9,000 for the purchase of 28 new .40-caliber Glock handguns for the police department.

Gannaway said the department's current handguns are nearly 15 years old and are requiring more maintenance. The cost includes money from a buyback of the old weapons.

The council also approved the replacement of holsters and magazine holders, and flashlights that attach to gun barrels.

The city also approved the purchase of three $33,000 Dodge Chargers that will serve as marked police cars. The council delayed the approval of an unmarked Dodge Caravan, which would cost about $19,000.

In other business, the council...

designated Polehna vice mayor.

approved the sale of $1.4 million in General Obligation Capital Outlay Bonds.