Posts by Stan Podorski

The City of Salem Board of Aldermen held their regular meeting last Tuesday evening at 6:00 in the Auditorium. After removing the closed session, the Board approved the agenda and consent agenda. During public comments, the Board approved Rob Benowitz’s request to close the roads around the courthouse for the 100 Acre Wood Rally. The City’s audit report for fiscal year 2024 showed total assets for government and business-type activities to be: $34.9 million, total liabilities were $10.7 million with a net position of about $24.9 million. Public Works Director Steve Paine requested, and was approved, to sell the surplus Single Phase Transformer No. 220921-7. He plans to auction the transformer through MPUA to help offset the cost of the new replacement transformer. The Board approved Resolution 4-2025, a change order that will reduce the contract value by $3,600.00, for the Welcome Home Project, and the amendment of the Dent County Hazard Mitigation Plan by adding Action 2.9 for the City of Salem to reduce the risks of service interruption due to flooding events. City Administrator, Sally Burbridge read the first readings of Bill Number 3647, to approved amendments to the Demand Meters and Rates for Commercial Customers Code 700.100 correcting a clerical error and reinstating the original sections A and B; Bill Number 3648, an ordinance to amend the Determination of Usage Code 710.320 clarifying the definition of Owner, bill number 3645 an ordinance that would approve amending the Notices of Meetings Code 122.040, updating references from City Hall to City Administration Offices for posting notices, and bill number 3644, an ordinance to remove the language tying City meetings to cancellations of Salem R-80 Schools. The Board approved several bills, including bill 3643 Task order #20 between the City of Salem and CM Archer Group, PC for the Bonebrake sewer realignment project. The project is estimated to cost around $201,000.00. They also approved Bill Number 3642 Task Order #19, between the City of Salem and CM Archer Group, allowing Archer to assist the Public Works Director with flood disaster response and recovery efforts for the November 2024 flood event. The Board approved the mid-year budget adjustments that were discussed in previous meetings, as well as the bid from Resolve IT in the amount of $47,052.00 to replace the City’s servers. During the City officials’ report, Finance Director Stacy Houston gave an update on the financials, and Mayor Greg Parker stated that AARP will be taking appointments until April 4th, for free tax filing. He encouraged citizens to call 573-729-8163 if they need help. Public Works Director Paine presented the Utility Crew update, and the Parks and Recreation updates were provided by Director Melissa DuBois. With no closed session, the meeting adjourned. 

At the Dent County Commission meeting Monday morning, Beverly Irons with the 42nd Judicial Circuit Court was in attendance to see what progress the commission had made on the conditions of the “formal demand” written by Judge Megan Seay to make the old courthouse ADA compliant. In the letter, Seay gave the commission 90 days to begin the installation of a chairlift to the courthouse on the second floor, but the commissioners stated that they have not yet been able to find a chairlift that is ADA compliant and that will fit in the stairwell. They are still pursuing this but have come up empty so far. The commissioners have been in touch with elevator companies about installing an elevator, but there will have to be engineers to assess where the elevator could be placed on the exterior of the building that would also provide access to the floors. The logical place would be where the treasurer’s office is now, but that would eliminate an office in the building and at this time, there is no other space available. Even with the addition of the elevator, there is still the question of an ADA accessible bathroom which the courthouse would need that would also take space away from an office holder. The commission is continuing to look into the options for the elevator locations and the creation of a bathroom in the old courthouse. There was also some discussion of a new courthouse being built to fit the needs of the county, but the commission feels the estimated costs of somewhere between $4 and $8 million dollars would be prohibitive, but that option has not been taken off the table. The commission will continue to explore all possibilities at this time. In the road report, District 1 Commissioner Keith Green said materials would be added and grading done on Dent County Roads 5070, 6250 and 6660, while brush will be cut on county road 5400. District 2 Commissioner Jimmy Williams said workers would be installing a driveway pipe on Dent County Road 4310 and materials will be added to the road, plus rock will also be added to county road 2330. Williams said brush would be cut on county roads 4300 and 4310, while other workers would be working on the brakes on two of the graders. Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson said all three commissioners attended their annual training last week where they received updates on CERF, held a discussion on the issues pertaining to 3rd class counties, heard a report from Attorney Travis Elliott on Senate Bill 190 which is the Homestead Credit for seniors, and also heard from the Missouri Attorney General, Andrew Bailey. Larson said he was also able to talk with Senator Justin Brown on Senate Bills 57 and 239, and also speak to a number of representatives including John Hewkin and Don Mayhew. He said the tax commission sent a memorandum of understanding to a number of counties to make sure their county assessments are at the required 90% of the assessed valuation, but Dent County is already there so they did not get the MOU. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said the excused absentee voting for the Municipal Election is now available at the courthouse. She also said the last day to register to vote would be March 12th. Dent County Collector Shannon VanKirk brought in the property abatements for the year 2019 and they totaled $8,317.06. Bids were opened for culverts for the county for the year and two bids were received: Roberts-Judson in Salem and Viebrock Sales from Sedalia. Viebrock won the bid with a total cost of $69,900 for 91 culverts of varying sizes. Bids were then opened for grader blades and two bids were received: Viebrock Sales and Woolf Equipment of Salem. Woolf won that bid for 30 blades with a 5/8-inch bolt opening for $142.50 each, and 15 blades with a ¾-inch bolt opening for $142.50 each which came to $6,412.50. The county placed an order for half of the blades immediately to beat any tariff that may be imposed soon. 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.

The Missouri Department of Transportation has announced general highway maintenance and construction work planned for the week. Route H brush cutting is scheduled through the week. One lane will remain open, and crews will flag traffic through the work zone. Route 19 roadside work continues at Standing Rock Creek, south of Route N, as part of a bridge replacement project.

The Opening Day of catch-and-keep trout season began Saturday morning at 6:30 at Montauk State Park. There were 1,857 adult trout tags and another 310 youth tags sold as of 4:00 Saturday afternoon. This is up from last year’s number by 134 tags. Thirty-eight lunkers were caught during the day with the largest being a 6-pound, 4-ounce rainbow trout by Garrett Wilfong of Des Arc, Missouri. The catch-and-keep season will be in effect until October 31st. 

With catch-and-keep trout fishing at Missouri’s four trout parks now underway you can enjoy fishing at: Bennett Spring State Park near Lebanon, Montauk State Park near Salem, Roaring River State Park near Cassville, and Maramec Spring Park near St. James. The daily limit is four trout, and the possession limit is eight for all four parks. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) operates trout hatcheries at all four parks and will stock about 20,000 trout among the four parks for opening day. MDC will continue to stock the trout parks daily during the catch-and-keep season, totaling more than 600,000 trout annually at the four trout parks and about 1 million trout annually statewide. There was some concern about trout production with the historic flooding, but MDC Hatcheries Systems Manager Clint Hale expects to have a successful trout season with ample fishing opportunities for anglers. Trout anglers need a daily trout tag to fish in Missouri’s trout parks during the catch-and-keep season. The cost of a daily trout tag is $5 for adults and $3 for those 15-years-old and younger. Daily trout tags can only be purchased at each of the four trout parks. The Department of Conservation encourages trout anglers to have the correct amount of cash for daily tags, if possible. Missouri residents ages 16 to 64 and nonresidents ages 16 and older also need a fishing permit in addition to the daily trout tag. A daily fishing permit is $9. The department also encourages trout anglers to buy fishing permits ahead of time from numerous vendors around the state, online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, or through MDC’s free MO Fishing app, available for download on the App Store or Google Play. Thousands of anglers from Missouri and beyond flock to Missouri’s four trout parks each year. While many leave with some trout, they all leave more than $100 million in spending along the way, which supports thousands of jobs and helps local economies.

The Salem Public Library Board of trustees held their regular meeting on Thursday evening at 5pm in the Library conference room. Before the meeting officially began, Salem Police Officer John Brown and Building Inspector Jarred Brown shared concerns about visibility issues with the library sign at the Fourth Street entrance. The Board voted and approved lowering the sign to improve driver visibility. After approving the previous meeting’s minutes, Library Director Kate McBride presented the librarian’s and treasurer’s reports noting increased attendance in children’s programs, positive newspaper coverage, and over $400 in book sales in the month of December, several donations and the receipt of local library taxes. The Board discussed several ongoing maintenance issues during old business, and  McBride stated all new computers and software, that were purchased using funds provided by LSTA Tech Grant, have been installed. The Library has recently received a new telescope and is working to establish a protocol for patron use. The Board approved a bid from Coverdell Auto Glass in the amount of $635.31 to repair a broken window pane in the North Basement, and the decision to maintain the current closing policy due to inclement weather, as written in the bylaws. The meeting then adjourned with the next scheduled meeting to take place on March 13th at 5:00 in the evening in the Library’s conference room.

The Missouri Department of Conservation reminds Missouri hunters and anglers that related annual permits expire at the end of February, including 2024 permits for small game, fishing, trout fishing, and combination hunting and fishing. You can buy Missouri hunting and fishing permits from one of many vendors around the state, online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, or through MDC’s free mobile apps, MO Hunting and MO Fishing, available for download through Google Play for Android devices or the App Store for Apple devices. Save time by buying hunting and fishing permits for multiple people in a single transaction. Select the “Additional Customer” option during the permit purchase. Avoid having to manually renew permits each year by using MDC’s Permit Auto-Renewal Service. It allows customers to enroll eligible permits in a service that will automatically renew their permits prior to the start of the next season or permit year. The process was designed to ensure customers never have expired permits when they need them most. Learn more about this service at mdc.mo.gov/permits/permit-auto-renewal. Commercial and lifetime permits can be purchased only through the MDC Permit Services Unit by calling 573-522-0107. Contact them for an application.

The Missouri Department of Conservation has confirmed that trout will be ready for anglers at the March 1st trout opener at Montauk State Park on Saturday, despite extensive flood damage to the fish hatchery last November. Fishing begins at 6:30 Saturday morning at the popular Dent County park. Department of Conservation officials are assuring visitors that trout will be available throughout the summer catch-and-keep season, which runs from March 1st through October 31st. The severity of the November flooding was significant as several Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Department buildings were underwater. The trout raceways near the Old Mill within the park were nearly 15 feet underwater at the flood’s peak. Clean-up and repair work has continued throughout winter, but recovery efforts are still ongoing. Repairs at the hatchery will likely continue throughout the summer season. The park’s fish-cleaning station will remain out of service until repairs can be completed. The Missouri Department of Conservation’s connected cold-water hatchery system has been crucial to Montauk’s recovery. Staff from multiple hatcheries assisted with clean-up efforts, and several thousand trout were temporarily relocated to warm-water fish hatcheries. Approximately 20,000 trout will be stocked across all four state trout parks on opening day, including Montauk State Park, Roaring River State Park in Barry County, Bennett Spring State Park in Laclede and Dallas counties, and Maramec Spring Park in Phelps County. Daily stocking at these parks will continue throughout the summer season with a total of more than 600,000 being stocked at the four trout parks.