Local News – Tuesday, August 3rd, 2021

The Dent County Commissioners met Monday morning at the Dent County Courthouse for their regular meeting. Dent County and the City of Salem Economic Development Director Sally Burbridge gave her report to the commissioners for the month of July. She mentioned there would be a general housing meeting Wednesday and the “Love Thy Neighbor” volunteer group Mission Week will be next week. She also said there would be a social mixer at Echo Bluff State Park on September 14th from 6:00 to 8:00 in the evening to pull interested agencies and individuals together for economic development. She went on to say the annual meeting of the Enhanced Enterprise Zone board will be Thursday. In the road report, District 1 commissioner Wes Mobray said materials would be added and grading done on Dent County Road 4210 while only grading would be done on county roads 5420 and 6500. Mobray stated brush would be cut on county roads 6400 and 6410, and tires would be put on truck #125. District 2 Commissioner Gary Larson said materials would be added and grading done on Dent County Road 3220. He went on to report that the county was going to work on the road at the end of county road 2300 where the low water crossing is to prepare it for chip and seal. He said another crew would be checking for washouts in the Lecoma and Boss areas. Commissioner Mobray had the amendment from Great Rivers Engineering for the supplemental survey work needed by MoDOT for the Cooley Bridge Project to qualify it for the FLAP project. The cost up to $3,000 would be paid from the FLAP monies. The amendment was signed by Commissioner Darrell Skiles who then said he would be in Jefferson City today to help interview candidates for the Executive Director position for the Missouri Association of Counties. The new person will replace long time director Dick Burke. Skiles said the prosecutor had prepared a Quit-Claim Deed on property owned by Dennis and Sandra Parks to remove an easement for a county road that the county has no intention of building. The Commissioners agreed to sign the Quit-Claim Deed. Bids were opened on two vehicles owned by the sheriff’s department: a 1998 Dodge Van and a 2009 Chevrolet Trailblazer. There was one bid on the van and it came from Schwartz Sales in Salem for $677, and there were three bids on the Trailblazer and the high bid came from Chafin Auto Sales for $1,675. The bids were accepted. Commissioners Larson and Mobray wanted to let people know that chip and seal will be going on this week in both districts so people should be aware when encountering those work crews on the roads. They also wanted to remind people there are a number of surplus county items at the County Road and Bridge Department shed on Highway 32-72 West on display that can be bid on. To get specifics on the equipment and vehicles that are available, stop by the Dent County Clerk’ office in the courthouse. Bids MUST be in by 10:00 Monday morning, August 9th at the clerk’s office, and please mark on the envelope “county equipment bid.” Sheriff Bob Wells was in to update the commissioners on the federal prisoners that are now being housed at the Dent County Jail. Wells said he has 20 male prisoners that came from St. Charles which is in the Eastern District which also includes St. Louis. He said the county gets paid $65 a day for each prisoner. He said this will bring in about an additional $9,000 per week to the jail operation. He also said that when a prisoner has to be taken back to the Eastern Court system for trial or sentencing, two armed deputies are paid $23.46 each per hour and the county gets 56 cents per mile. Wells said there are also 55 local prisoners in the jail from Dent, Shannon and Phelps counties. The county also receives payment from those other counties to house their prisoners, but less than the $65 payment they get for federal prisoners. Wells said the price of meals has gone down from $3.33 per meal to $2.71 per meal which consists of two hot meals and one cold meal for each prisoner. The next meeting of the Dent County Commission will be Monday morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

The Mid-Missouri Addiction Awareness Group in partnership with the MRPC Rural Opioid Initiative is inviting everyone to participate in the Opioid and Substance Use Disorder Awareness Walk going on this Saturday starting at 10:00 at the Dent County Courthouse Square. People will be walking “to end the stigma” and provide opioid use disorder education, increase awareness and identify prevention strategies in the Meramec Region. For more information about the walk, send an e-mail to maagwecare@gmail.com or to charmon@meramecregion.org. You can also learn more at maagwecare.com.