News – Friday, July 18th 2025

The Dent County 4-H & FFA Expo shows start at 7:00 at The Commons this morning with the Hog show, followed by the Sheep and Goat show. The Beef and Dairy shows will start at 2:00 today, followed by the Buyer’s Supper at 6:30. Saturday morning the highlight of the Expo will be the 4-H and FFA Market Sale, which will begin at 9:00. Everyone is invited, but if you can’t make it, the auction will be carried live on KSMO Radio (AM 1340 and FM 95.7) and also live streamed on KSMO Media (ksmoradio.com, KSMO Stream Facebook, and the KSMO YouTube & Twitch Channels.) 

The Dent County Commissioners met Thursday morning at the Dent County Courthouse. Don Moore from Public Water Supply District #1 was in attendance as they are trenching in a new water line on Dent County Road 4180, which caused complaints to Commissioner Keith Green by residents whose yards were tore up. The water district was going to put the new line in the county road easement, but apparently used the state road easement of 25-feet from the center of the road instead of county easement of 15-feet from the center of the road, and also apparently did not contact the residents of this work which upset many people. Commissioner Green said the water district should have contacted him so that he could let them know where to trench the new water line. He does not want the new water line installed against the roadway or in the bottom of the ditch line in the easement. Green, Moore and the contractor met on the road Thursday to discuss any further work on the project. A resident who lives on county road 4180, Kathy Crocker, also came in after Moore had left and discussed the situation with the commission. Cindy Jones from “We the People” gave the commissioners a press release from the Missouri House of Representatives on property tax reform public hearing dates that will help develop solutions promoting fairness, transparency and sustainability. The hearings near our area include July 30th in Lebanon at the Wallace Center at 5:30, August 20th in St. Louis at the Center of Clayton at 5:30, and on Wednesday, September 3rd at 11:00 in the morning at the State Capital, House Hearing Room #3 in Jefferson City. For more information, go to house.mo.gov. In the road report, District 1 Commissioner Green said the crews will be grading in the areas of Dent County Road 4000 and 5500, while brush will be cut on county road 5051. Green said that on Monday, workers will have to replace a large culvert on Dent County Road 4210 which will close that area most of the day. Green said county workers will try to let all those residents who will be affected know about the road closure on Monday. District 2 Commissioner Jimmy Williams stated grading will be done on Dent County Roads 3120, 3130 and 3135. Williams indicated rock will be added to county road 4380 where a culvert is being replaced, and also on county road 5260 where crews are making repairs to the low water crossing. Williams reported debris is being removed from Dent County Road 5240 and if there is enough time, crews will repair the low-water crossing on county road 5310. Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson said he attended the Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management Advisory Council meeting in St. James at the MRPC offices. He reported the district was created in 1991 to help reduce solid waste by 40% in the state, and more of the regions have done that, but the is not the case in the Ozark Rivers region. A lot of the problem is the increased use of plastics in everyday life, and Larson said the district is working on a way to educate people better on the dangers of plastic sand possibly create a better way to recycle plastics. He also said tires are also being recycled to be used in asphalt after the steel is removed because of its flexibility, but the same cannot be said for asphalt shingles which get dried out from the sun and exposure and lose their elasticity. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley attended the 90th Annual NACO Conference in Philadelphia where county officials from all over the country gathered to discuss issues facing rural communities. She said she attended the Missouri Rural Caucus conference, the US Election Associate Commission conference, and also attended the USDA conference.  Jeff Chronister and Bill Budnick from Ollis, Akers and Arney Insurance discussing bidding for the county’s auto, property and liability insurance this year. Sheriff Bob Wells came in and requested a reallocation of Opiod Expenditure Funds, previously approved by the Opiod Settlement Fund board, for the purchase of a Flock Safety License Plate Reader. This is an automated license plate recognition network designed to capture and log vehicle details in real time. The request was approved by the commission. The next meeting of the commission will be Monday morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

This Saturday, July 19th, is shaping up to be a blast! MRPC will be participating in the 10th Annual Kids Safety Day at Lions Club Park in Rolla from 10:00 in the morning until 2:00 in the afternoon. The Rolla Masonic Lodge will be there with their MoCHIP child identification program, and we’ll have a bunch of really cool vehicles, including helicopters, fire trucks, police vehicles, and a couple of boats, as well as a bicycle safety course. It’s rain or shine, so come on down and join the fun!