News – Friday, October 10th 2024

The Dent County Commissioners met for their regular meeting Thursday morning in the courthouse. In the road report, District One Commissioner Wes Mobray stated rock would be added and grading done on Dent County Road 5020 while only grading would be done on county roads 5460 and 6575. District 2 Commissioner Gary Polk was not in attendance, so Mobray gave the report for District 2 as well. He said rock would be added and grading done on Dent County Road 4030. Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson reported on the Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District Board meeting when grant applications received for recycling or the reduction of waste came to just over $238,262. The total amount of funds available came to just over $143,700. Larson said all but the Community Outreach grant application received partial funding. The outreach still had money from last year. Larson and possibly Commissioner Mobray will be attending the South Central County Commissioners Association meeting today in Houston. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said citizens can pick up a sample ballot for the November election at her office or they can find one on the clerk’s Facebook page. She said “excused” absentee voting is going on now and “no excuse” absentee voting will begin October 22nd with all absentee voting ending November 4th. She said the last day to apply for a mail-out a ballot will be Wednesday, October 23rd. Curley said her office will be open November 2nd from 8:00 in the morning until noon for absentee voting or to update your voter registration which you can also do now in her office. The next commission meeting will be Monday morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and it will be open to the public.

The Utility Committee held their regular meeting on Wednesday evening at 6:15 in the Old Auditorium. After approving the agenda and the minutes from the September 11th meeting, Finance Director, Stacey Houston gave a financial update on the Water, Sewer, and Electrical Funds. Other than interest and grant fund revenue, there have not been any major expenditures in either account. Billing updates were provided by City Administrator, Sally Burbridge. Sally stated that they plan to begin implementing budget billing as early as next week. They have also been sending out old, unpaid notices to customers, and receiving payments on those bills, in an attempt to avoid having to send people to collections. She stated that she will be submitting a collections report next month. Public Works Director, Steve Paine, then provided the Utility Report. He stated they continue to conduct service line repairs, and that they have opened the pre-bids for the construction of the new water tower. The electric crew has submitted an order for 28 new transformers, and has repaired 18 street lights with faulty dawn to dusk sensors. He stated that if any citizens notice any street lights on during the day, to please contact the administration office at 573-729-4811 to put in a work order, and they will repair the lights as quickly as they can. He also wanted to clarify that the City has completed their portion of the Al Brown Field Project, they are currently waiting for the contractor, who is aiding those affected by Hurricane Helene, to return and complete their portion of the project. The Committee then opened the floor to hear questions and comments from the community. A citizen approached the podium asking if the new equipment purchased from Nexgrid would fix the metering issues experienced at his personal residence. Sally explained she did not have an answer for that, at this time, but she has been working with Nexgrid on ideas, though they are not yet ready to bring any information to the public. Committee member, Kyle Williams made a motion to change meeting times to the Wednesday after the second Tuesday of every other month, rather than every month. The motion carried, as a result the next meeting will be in December. A second citizen asked if the city had submitted an insurance claim for the water pump that was destroyed in July, Sally said yes. With no further comments or questions from the public, the meeting was adjourned.

This year’s 2024 Heroes Marathon will include a new feature to honor a veteran family member or friend who was a veteran that has passed by making a donation of $20 or more in their memory. That veteran will then become part of the “Ghost Runners Brigade.” Each of the “ghost runners” will be listed in the Honoring our Heroes Official Race Program under the “Ghost Runners Brigade” and their name will be read by a combat veteran during the event. These veterans may be gone but they are not forgotten. There are several locations in Salem where you can pick up a signup sheet that asks for the veteran’s name, their branch of service and rank if known. Those sign-up locations include the KSMO Radio studios, VIP Realty, Riverways Insurance, Regine’s Kitchen, Southtown Furniture, The Salem News, the American Legion Post #99, B & B Motors, Ridge Runner Pump, Wells Packaging, C&E Auto and the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce. Fill out the form and mail it to Heroes, P.O. Box 194, Salem, MO  65560 with your check of $20 or more. Signups will be accepted until October 15th. For more information, call 573-729-1394.