Archive for 2022

The Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) is working on updating the hazard mitigation plan for Dent County. The next meeting, which is open to the public, is scheduled for this afternoon at 1:00 at the Salem Community Center @ the Armory at 1200 W. Rolla Road in Salem. Hazard mitigation planning is focused on reducing risk before disasters strike. Activities such as burying electric lines, reduces damage during tornadoes, and elevating homes in the floodplain help reduce damage and loss of life during natural disasters. Public input is necessary to truly understand the risks that could be facing the county. Additionally, the county must have a current, updated plan to be eligible for some hazard mitigation grants. The first draft of the revised plan must be submitted to State Emergency Management Agency by March 17th, 2023. The County-level hazard mitigation plans cover a five-year time frame. Dent County’s last plan was approved in October 2018. Jurisdictions within the county, such as cities, the county itself, schools, fire departments and others, are asked to participate in the planning process, complete the questionnaire, review the revised plan and adopt the new plan. It was also discussed that a survey on hazard mitigation would be promoted throughout the county to get public input into the plan. That survey can be found at meramecregion.org/surveys. If you have questions, please contact Tammy Snodgrass at MRPC at 573-265-2993 or by email at tsnodgrass@meramecregion.org.

The Salem Board of Aldermen will meet this evening at 6:00 at the City Hall Council Chambers. At the meeting following the consent agenda, the board will discuss Bill #3500 to establish an ordinance to extend the project time period to allow for the completion of the work for the design and construction of taxi lanes for T-Hangers in Phase 1 of airport improvements from an agreement originally signed on August 13th, 2019. The board will then approve Resolution 4-2022 that authorizes the Mayor to enter into affordable housing program subsidy agreement for owner occupied projects between the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines, Riverways Federal Credit Union, and the City of Salem, Missouri Office of Economic Development as part of the Welcome Home Project. They will also hear reports from City Administrator Ray Walden, Salem and Dent County Economic Development Director Sally Burbridge, Mayor Kim Steelman, Public Works Director Mark Nash, Parks and Recreation Director Melissa Dubois, and from the Aldermen. The board may then vote to go into closed session. The Board of Aldermen meeting is open to the public.

The Dent County Sheriff’s office has released reports for the week of February 12th. On Saturday, February 12th, a deputy conducted a traffic stop on West Highway 32. During the course of the stop, a 22-year-old Salem man was arrested for driving while their license revoked or suspended. The man was transported to the Dent County Jail where he was fingerprinted, issued a summons and released. Then on Wednesday, February 16th, a deputy investigated a suspicious subject in the 200 block of South Warfel Street. During the investigation, a 22-year-old Salem woman was arrested for the possession of a controlled substance and the possession of drug paraphernalia. The subject was transported to the Dent County Jail where she was placed on a 24- hour hold pending the issuance of a warrant. Later that day, a deputy conducted a traffic stop on West Highway 32. During the course of the stop, a 24-year-old Salem woman was arrested for an having active Dent County warrant. Upon arrival at the Dent County Jail, the subject was found to be in possession of a controlled substance and was in possession of drug paraphernalia. The woman was incarcerated for her warrant and placed on a 24-hour hold pending the issuance of a warrant for the additional charges. On Friday, February 18th, a deputy conducted a traffic stop on East Highway 32. During the course of the vehicle search, a controlled substance was located in the vehicle. A 19-year-old Licking man was arrested for the possession of a controlled substance and transported to the Dent County Sheriff’s Office. Upon further investigation, the man was released, and charges will be sought at a later date. If you have any information on any ongoing investigation, contact the Dent County Sheriff’s Department at 729-3241.

A beginners-stained glass class with Jennifer Curry will be every Thursday in March at the Creative Arts Center. The 4-week class will hold two evening sessions each Thursday at 3:30-5:30 or 5:30 to 7:30. Learn the art of Stained Glass and create a suncatcher choosing from 8 to 10 patterns that will be provided. All supplies and safety equipment will be provided and the fee for all 4 weeks is $150. For more info or to register, call 247-0651 or 247-5306 or you can e-mail salemartscouncil@outlook.com.

The Salem R-80 Board of Education met Thursday evening in the regular monthly meeting. The board heard from Nicky Stringer about the school’s SRCSP policy hoping the school board would consider requiring the CDC guidelines concerning close contact and quarantine. She would prefer to see the quarantine period and mask mandate be reinstated to keep children safe. The board heard from Chris Salzman and Doug Adams from ESP about the Tin Gym renovation where the main reasons to make the change was the appearance of the building, the odor from all the years of kids working out and the indoor air quality. The renovation would include a new HVAC system, rubberized floor and new Astro turf, but would not include water, restrooms, ice machine, coach’s office or interior equipment. ESP provided three options to the board that include an expansion that ranged for $187.50 per square foot that would come to just under 1.5 million dollars, up to $238 per square foot that would come over budget. They also talked about the locker room renovation that would come to about $300,000. This would gut the locker rooms and would recreate them using basically the same footprint. They would like to be able to squeeze in a training room within the locker room proper. The board approved them moving forward to getting material hard quotes on both projects. Superintendent Lynne Reed said three companies attended the mandatory walk through to bid on the food service contract. She also said she will bring health insurance numbers to the March meeting for the board to review. On the next agenda, the board will vote to change the policy on the number of days before a parent or person can request to be put on the agenda from five to three days, and they will discuss streaming meetings. After the principal’s report, the board voted to approve changing insurance payments to be paid “the month of” instead of a month ahead, approved the 2022-2023 school calendar, and approved the revised technology support staff job description. The board selected Toth and Associates from Springfield to be the management firm for the FEMA grant safe room at the Upper Elementary as they were the only ones to submit a request for qualification for that purpose, and the board approved to use HTK Architects from Kansas City as the architectural firm for the project. The board approved the multi-step bid process recommended by Assistant Athletic Director Clay Moody for sponsorship of the new High School Gym Floor. Each sponsorship element will be bid separately. Bids on the floor must be submitted by March 14th. The board approved the resignations of Lisa Elliott in food service, Erin Wilson as a 3rd grade teacher at the upper elementary, and Elizabeth Hogan as the basketball cheerleader coach. The board then went into closed session.

A couples or singles paint-n-sip with Danielle Norris will be this Friday from 6:30 until 8:30 @ the Creative Arts Center as a makeup from the February 11th date that was postponed. Let Danielle lead you step-by-step through a dreamy painting. Bring a beverage and a friend or family member to enjoy and evening away from the stresses of the day or week! All the supplies for the class are provided and the cost is $25. For more information or to register, call 247-0651 or 247-5306 or you can e-mail salemartscouncil@outlook.com.

The Salem Memorial District Hospital Board of Directors will conduct their February meeting Tuesday night at 6:00 in the hospital library. Hospital Interim Administrator Bill May will report on the summary of the operations and statistics for the month of January as well as hear the Chief Nursing Officer report from Ashley Sullins and auxiliary report. The board will also hear a report on the hospital foundation, as well as the marketing and community perception report. In old business, the board will hear how COVID-19 is affecting the hospital, a report on the Cerner conversion, and a lab update. In new business, the board will discuss any purchases. The board may vote to go into closed session. The SMDH Board meeting Tuesday night at the hospital library is open to the public.

The Dent County Commissioners met for the regular Thursday morning meeting at the courthouse. During public comments, John McIntyre was in to discuss road conditions in the Adams Subdivision on county road 4170. He said the people living on the road are being flooded and talked about the previous problems with the flooding on a number of properties on the road. He noted the ditches being deeper than the culverts and a culvert that was improperly installed. Commissioner Mobray said he would check out the road after the meeting. In the road report, both commissioners said crews would be out checking roads for washouts and clogged culverts as well as any limbs or trees downed by the winds the past couple of days. Commissioner Gary Larson said District 2 crews received a report of a tree down on Wednesday and have taken care of the problem. Presiding Commissioner Darrell Skiles reported on a broadband meeting held at the City Hall Council Chambers on Tuesday with the Economic Development Director Sally Burbridge, City Administrator Ray Walden, all three commissioners and Zack Robinson with Wave Internet Technologies. They said the meeting was informative. Skiles also said the county invites the public to a Dent County Mitigation Plan meeting to be held Tuesday at 1:00 at the Salem Community Center@The Armory. This being done to update the plan which is required every five years. All three commissioners are expected to be there as are representatives from the schools, the city and fire departments. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said she and the Dent County Treasurer balanced on all accounts for January and that public voting for the artwork for the new county “I Voted” sticker is still going on in her office. You can vote for your favorite through Wednesday, February 23rd. Only one vote per person. She stated absentee voting for the April 5th election will begin on Tuesday and that will also be the day people can file for county or state offices in the county clerk’s office starting at 8:00 that morning. Filing will be done on a first come, first served basis. Curley said the courthouse will be closed Monday for President’s Day and there will be no commission meeting. She went on to report she will be attending a Missouri Association of County meeting Wednesday afternoon in Jefferson City. Curley also said she is looking for poll workers for the upcoming elections. If you would be interested, please contact her office at 729-4144. The next meeting of the Dent County Commission will be Thursday morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

A Private Pesticide Applicator Training will be held in Dent County on Thursday, February 24th from 6:00 until 8:30 in the evening at the Dent County Extension Office in the Judicial Building at 112 East 5th Street. The private pesticide applicator license issued by the Missouri Dept of Agriculture is required for producers who want to purchase and apply restricted use pesticides. Application by unlicensed workers under the supervision of licensed applicators will no longer be allowed. Agricultural producers needing to obtain or renew certification of this license must take this pesticide safety training every five years. You must be 18 years of age and directly involved in the production of agricultural commodities to obtain this license. Each person participating in the training is required to have a copy of the Private Pesticide Applicator Manual on their farm. There is a $25 to cover the cost of the manual and you may purchase it at the training with either cash or a check, no credit cards are accepted. In response to COVID-19, the extension in-person training sessions will have masks and sanitizer available for those who wish to use them. They plan to offer both virtual and in-person events this season to better meet your needs. You can register online or contact Dent County Extension Center at 573-729-3196. There is no charge to attend the training. If you have any questions about the training, please contact Gatlin Bunton, 573-775-2135.

An accident happened Thursday morning at 11:00 in Texas County on Highway 32 about three miles east of Licking that left a Salem man with injuries. According to the highway patrol report, a 2003 Pontiac Vide being driven by 64-year- old Stanley Ray of Salem, traveled off the right side of the roadway and overturned. Ray suffered moderate injuries and was transported to the Texas County Memorial Hospital. He was not wearing a seat restraint according to the report. The Pontiac was totaled in the accident and removed from the scene by Whitaker’s Towing of Salem.