Archive for 2019

The Dent County Commissioners met Thursday morning at the Dent County Courthouse. District 1 Commissioner Dennis Purcell was not in attendance due to a prior commitment. Road Supervisor Rodney Atkinson gave the road report and stated materials would be added and grading done on Dent County Roads 2440, 5015 and 5080 while only grading would be done to roads 5085, 5520 and 5530. He also stated that brush would be cut on county road 6410. District 2 Commissioner Gary Larson indicated materials would be added and grading done on Dent County Roads 2550 and 3200 while only grading would be done on county road 3190. Larson went to say brush would be cut on county roads 2200 and 5330. Presiding Commissioner Darrell Skiles attended the Transportation Advisory Committee meeting Thursday that prioritized the transportation needs in the MRPC region. Skiles also attended the regular MRPC Board meeting that evening. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley reported that she balanced with the Dent County Treasurer on all accounts. Curley said her office received a $2,627.65 Election Efficiency Grant from the state for equipment maintenance, poll pads and other items. She also said she was working on the county 2020 budget. Dent County Collector Shannon Vankirk said the Collector’s office in the courthouse would have extended hours on December 26th, 27th, 30th and 31st from 8:00 in the morning until 5:30 each evening. Vankirk wanted to remind those paying their taxes that they can do so in person at the Dent County Collector’s Office, drop them off in the drop box at the southwestern corner of the courthouse lawn, by mailing them as long as they are postmarked by December 31st, or pay them online through the use of a credit or debit device. Be aware there is an additional charge to use a credit or debit device. If anyone has a question about the payment of their taxes, contact the Dent County Collectors office at 729-3911. The next meeting of the commissioners will be Monday morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

As the Christmas Holiday rapidly approaches, so do the cutoff dates established by the US Postal Service about the mailing dates for expected delivery before December 25th. Domestic mailing deadlines for First-Class Packages is December 20th, Priority Mail December 21st and Priority Mail Express is December 23rd. If you have packages going to service men and women outside the United States your package mailing deadlines are this Saturday for Priority Mail Express International and December 19th for Global Express Guaranteed. For costs and more information about the dates and deadlines, contact the Salem Post Office at 729-3442.

The Salem FFA Chapter has beautiful red and white poinsettias for sale from their greenhouse. The cost of each poinsettia is $8.00. For more information, call the Salem FFA Department at 739-2016 or call the Salem High School Office at 729-6641 and leave a message.

Dillard Mill State Historic Site invites visitors to meet Santa and Mrs. Claus from noon to 2:00, Saturday, December 14th. Santa Claus is gearing up for his Christmas deliveries and has once again contacted Dillard Mill to grind special oats for his reindeer. This free event will be at the mill where Santa and Mrs. Claus will hand out ornaments and candy to children. Bring your camera and dress for the weather. Hot cocoa and cookies will be served. Dillard Mill State Historic Site is one of Missouri’s best-preserved water-powered gristmills. This mill, which has been restored to operational order, was built around 1900 and continued to grind grain until the 1960s. In case of inclement weather, the event will be moved to the park office building. Dillard Mill State Historic Site State Park is located at 1142 Dillard Mill Road in Davisville. For more information about the event, call the historic site at 573-244-3120. For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit the web at mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

A Winter ’19 Art Party Sponsored by the Salem Area Arts Council will be Friday night, December 20th, from 6:30-9:00 in the Creative Arts Center (Formerly the Teachers’ Closet) Bring yourself, your bestie, or a hot date to the Creative Arts Center in Salem and paint a matching (or complementary) picture. You can paint a fun scene and put your own special creative spin to it, then take it home. The cost is $25 per single or $40 per couple, and all supplies are included–acrylic paints, aprons, brushes, canvas, and easels. Led by artist Danielle Norris, this event for adults does NOT require any talent or previous experience, just a happy spirit and willingness to try. Reservations are required and can be made by calling or texting (573) 247-0279 and arranging to pay your fee to reserve your spot.

Dent County Prosecuting Attorney Andrew Curley has released reports from a couple of court appearances last week. On Thursday, December 5th in front of Judge Nathan Kelsaw in Dent County, Daniel Rictor of Salem pled guilty to first degree harassment for threatening his sister and spitting in her face. Previously he had been convicted of felony stealing and the unlawful use of a weapon. Kelsaw sentenced Rictor to three years in the Department of Corrections as requested by the state. On Friday, December 6th in front of Judge Megan Seay, Curley reports that Stephen Mock of Salem pled guilty to charges of felony driving while having his license revoked, the unlawful possession of a firearm and the possession of methamphetamine. Judge Seay sentenced him to five years in the Department of Corrections. That same day, William Hatcher of Salem pled guilty to the possession of methamphetamine. Judge Seay sentenced him to seven years in the Department of Corrections with a long-term drug treatment plan under the Revised Missouri State Statute 217.362. Also on Friday, Macaulay Boschen of Salem pled guilty to attempting to escape from confinement. He was sentenced to seven years in the Department of Corrections under the Revised Missouri State Statute 559.115. Another case heard by Judge Seay Friday was a guilty plea by Andrew Steelman of Salem. He pled guilty to the possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute and he was also in possession of alproazolam. Judge Seay sentenced him to 14 years in the Department of Corrections under the Revised Missouri State Statute 217.362. The last case heard Friday was for Austin Carter of Salem who pled guilty to the possession of a controlled substance which was methamphetamine. He had two prior felony convictions of possession of a controlled substance and was sentenced to seven years in the Department of Corrections.

The Salem Police Department has released some reports for early December. Early on the morning of Friday, December 1st, shortly before 2:00, an officer drove up on an accident scene at Roosevelt and Wines. The investigation of the accident led to the arrest of a 23-year-old male of Salem for driving while being intoxicated. The suspect was treated at the Salem Memorial District Hospital and released on summonses to appear in court for driving while being intoxicated. Later that night around 11:16, a vehicle was stopped for a traffic violation which led to the arrest of a 44-year-old male of Columbia, Missouri for driving while being intoxicated and the possession of drug paraphernalia. The suspect was issued summonses to appear in court and released. On Tuesday afternoon, December 3rd, near 6:00, an officer was dispatched to a residence in the 800 block of East Fourth Street in reference to a disturbance. That investigation revealed a 30- year-old male of Salem had assaulted a 36- year-old female also of Salem with his hands and a by hitting her with a landscaping brick. That investigation led to the arrest of the suspect for assault. The suspect was incarcerated pending the application for a warrant. Later that same evening at approximately 7:47, an officer was dispatched to a residence in the 200 block of South Warfel Street in reference to a theft. An investigation revealed a female suspect took $660.00 cash from the residence. That report is under investigation. If you have information regarding any investigations, please contact the Salem Police Department at 729-4242.

Elephant Rocks State Park hosts Mother Nature’s Christmas lights viewing from 5:00 this Friday evening, December 13th, to sunrise, on Saturday, December 14th. To mark this year’s most spectacular meteor shower, the Geminids Meteor shower, Elephant Rocks State Park will be open to the public for a rare after-dark event. Park staff will be available to direct you to the best and safest areas to view the shower. If you like star gazing, light shows and are able to brave the cold, come out and create a lifetime memory at Elephant Rocks State Park. It is December, so dress for very cold winter conditions. It is often colder on the rocks than the average local temperature, so you can become chilled sitting for long periods in the park even on a mild night. You are welcome to bring portable chairs and blankets to keep warm. Please remember to bring in only what you will be able to carry out when you leave. Trash receptacles are provided at the park’s parking lot. Please be respectful of other visitors’ experience and avoid excessive use of artificial lights and excessive noise during the event. This shower can be viewed with the naked eye, and telescopes or binoculars are welcome but not needed. No tents, propane heaters, lanterns or campfires will be allowed. Elephant Rocks State Park is located at 7406 Highway 21 in Belleview. For more information about the event, call the site at 573-546-3454. For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

City Administrator Ray Walden has announced that utility billing is running a couple of weeks later than normal due to an unexpected one-time need for manual data entry as part of the swap out of electric and water meters for all customers. Customers will have until January 20, 2020 to pay their December utility bill without penalty. In addition, the mailing of the next bill will be delayed until the week of February 3rd. City officials apologize for the delay and appreciate the customers who contacted the Utility Office after not receiving their bills. City of Salem Utilities regrets any inconvenience to our customers. Once the installation of the new meters is completed utility billing will return to even monthly cycles. The following dates will be effective for the December City of Salem utility bills ONLY: a 1% discount for utility bills paid by December 31st, 2019; a 10% penalty if the bills are not paid by January 20th, 2020; bills automatically paid from a customer bank account will be withdrawn on December 23rd, 2019; and the mailing of the next utility bill will be delayed until the week of February 3rd. The City of Salem apologizes for any inconvenience to their customers.

The Salem Memorial District Hospital Board of Directors met Tuesday afternoon at the hospital library. At the meeting, the board accepted the resignation of Sue Terry from District 4 and interviewed candidate Willie Strader to fill the position until the municipal election in April. After the interview was completed, the board voted unanimously to appoint Strader to the board and he was then sworn in by Hospital Attorney Mark Weaver. Once the election filing window opens, Strader will have to sign up for the municipal election if he wishes to be elected to the board to finish out the unexpired term. Home Health Director Ashley Sullins also updated the board on her department at the meeting. For the month of November, CFO Monica Stogsdil reported inpatient admissions stayed strong as 131 patients were admitted with 449 inpatient census days. The acute care average amount of patients per day in November was 14. Outpatient registrations came in at 1,513 while there were 1,883 cardiopulmonary procedures, 7,628 laboratory tests, 1,271 radiological procedures, 739 emergency department visits, 734 rehab treatments and 276 Home Health visits. A total of 255 ambulance runs were made in the November with 184 patents transported with 71 dry runs. For the month, the hospital had a loss from operations of $25,664 with an excess of expenses over revenues of $24,155 after tax receipts. The expenses in November were driven by other contractual services that included those for nursing and also for billing and medical records. Even though there was loss from operations, there was cash increase during the month of $5,750 leaving the days cash on hand at 46. Days in net receivable continues to rise during this time of transition and now stands at 82 days with over 14 million dollars of total receivables. CNO Debbie Hines said there have been four reported cases of flu in Dent County since December 1st. Hospital CEO Kasey Lucas said the hospital auxiliary had the Christmas lunch at J.B. Malone’s with their next meeting to be held January 7th at the Salem Community Center@The Armory. COO Jason Edwards reported on the hospital foundation and they have 13 couples for this year’s “Dancing with the Salem Stars” to be held January 25th at the Salem High School Gym. They have sponsor tables available for $300 each and individual tickets for $20 each. Contact Edwards at the hospital for more information. Edwards also talked about the $80,604 Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program Grant the hospital received to reach low income students in rural South-Central Missouri schools. The money would be used for telemedicine carts to be used at schools in the area including Bunker, Winona, Eminence, and also some Dent County Schools. Lucas said construction work on three areas in the Long-Term Care unit are nearly finished, while the window replacement will be done in the spring. He said the hospital is still working with Todd Van Deventer of Piper Jaffray on revised Request for Proposal letters and a meeting is to be set up next week with local banks. Lucas said the election filing will begin at 8:00 Tuesday morning, December 17th for a six-year term for District #1 currently held by Judy Thompson, and the unexpired three year term for District #4 currently held by appointee Willie Strader. The election filing will end at 4:00 on Tuesday, January 21st. The board was presented a list of the board meeting dates scheduled for 2020 for each board member to review to make sure that a quorum would be present at each meeting. They were to bring back any meeting dates that they would not be able to attend. The meeting then went into closed session.

Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation shows that deer hunters in Missouri harvested 10,543 deer during the antlerless portion of the fall firearms deer season which ran December 6th, 7th, and 8th. Top harvest counties were Callaway with 396 deer harvested, Pike with 303, and Osage with 301. Dent County came in with 88 deer checked. Last year’s antlerless harvest total was 6,645. Archery season continues through Jan. 15, 2020. The alternative methods portion will run Dec. 28 through Jan. 7, 2020.