A new committee is coalescing in the city of Cassville, spearheaded by Mayor Jon Horner and City Administrator Richard Asbill in an effort to better-engage residents in planning future city goals.

Asbill said the committee idea came up when he and Horner were visiting about a variety of Cassville topics, namely the incoming 7th Street bridge, incoming pedestrian bridge and future possibilities with the Hall Theatre property.

“We talked about engaging community members in a committee to ask what’s next for Cassville regarding our needs?” Asbill said. “We found the timing on the Hall Theatre to be correct to see what’s important to Cassville. We want to seek ideas and have them reviewed, not by one or two people, but by a group of people.”

The Hall Theatre property, which sits empty on the courthouse square after the structure burned down in March 2022, will be auctioned off on Thursday in a trustee’s sale, and the city intends to buy it.

“We are bringing in different demographics to see how we can engage in completing these projects appropriately for everyone,” Asbill said.

The 10-person committee, selected by Horner and Asbill by invite, includes: Horner; Asbill; Don Cupps, city attorney; Sarah Olson, Roaring River Health and Rehab administrator; Phil Hutchens, former president of Hutchens Construction; Annette Henderson, with Willis Insurance; Cameron Koehler, systems manager at Barry County E9-1-1; Ethan Bohmke, 2024 Cassville graduate; Traci Mitchell, Cassville schools assistant superintendent; and Rachael Freeman, founder of FullCourt Media and Consulting.

“We started at about five or six people, then we looked at the demographics and added more,” Asbill said. “We like what Cameron brings to the table, and Ethan is the youngest in the group but has a lot of perspective. Traci has a background in chambers and schools, so we felt she carries a lot of hats.” Asbill said the goal for the group is to weigh ideas and considerations with the intent to advise the city council. While no council members are on the committee, Asbill said they are welcome to attend the meetings.

“The goal is to have this group of people to advise council, thinking from the perspective of where we’ve been, where we’re at and where we want to be, from tourism to economics and using city resources wisely,” Asbill said.

The initial meeting has yet to be called, as Asbill said the result of the Hall Theatre auction will be a factor in the meeting’s agenda.

Asbill said meetings will be open to the public.