News – Monday, October 14th 2024

The Salem Marching Blue had another successful competition at Mountain Grove this Saturday where they earned 2nd in class! In addition to their placement, the band earned the Superior Award, Outstanding Drum Major, 2nd in Percussion, 2nd in General Effect, 2nd in Visual, and 2nd in Music. For their efforts and accomplishment, the Salem Marching Blue received an EMS escort through town Saturday night. Congratulations to Band Instructor Gannon Craig and all the band members for their outstanding effort. The Salem Marching Blue will wrap up their competitive season Saturday at the Reeds Spring Marching Festival!

An accident occurred Wednesday afternoon at 2:15 on Highway 63 near county road 6220 that took the life of a Steelville man. According to the Highway Patrol report a southbound 2008 Honda, driven by 22-year-old Gabriel Peak, crossed the centerline and struck a northbound 2020 Peterbilt, operated by 42-year-old Rajan Taylor of Potosi, Missouri. Peak was pronounced dead at the scene by Phelps County Coroner Ernie Coverdell and was transported to the Hutson Funeral Home in Cuba by Coverdell. The report stated that it was unknown if Peak was wearing a safety restraint, while Taylor was. The Honda was totaled and removed from the scene by Lucas Garage, while the Peterbilt was also totaled and towed from the scene by D & D Towing. The Highway Patrol was assisted by the Phelps County Sheriff’s Office and the Edgar Springs Fire Department.

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources’ Division of State Parks is pleased to announce that the 2025 grant round for the Land and Water Conservation Fund is now open. LWCF grants are available to cities, counties and public-school districts to be used for outdoor recreation projects. For more information about this program, to download the grant application and to register for a grant application WebEx, visit mostateparks.com and search for LWCF Grants. For questions, contact grants management staff at mspgrants@dnr.mo.gov. Deadline to apply is Nov. 15, 2024. For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

The Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) is hosting the third meeting in a series of open-forum public workshops to receive input on a regional safety action plan for all road users in the Meramec Region. The third workshop will focus on Dent County and is planned on October 16th from 1:00 to 3:00 in the afternoon at the Salem Community Center@The Armory Event Center located at 1200 West Rolla Road in Salem. The upcoming workshop will provide Dent County residents a chance to give input on how to make streets and roadways safer in their county. The MRPC wants to hear from residents on their experiences as road users and possibilities for enhancing safety for all users. In 2023, the MRPC was awarded a Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant from the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT). Established in 2022, the SS4A program funds planning and implementation activities to prevent deaths and serious injuries on roadways. There is an online survey available at mrpcsurveys.typeform.com/SS4ADent. The safety action plan is being developed for the Meramec Region, which includes Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Osage, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington counties. The plan is anticipated to be completed by March 2025. For more information, please contact MRPC Planning Manager Anne Freand at afreand@meramecregion.org or Senior Community Development Specialist Orin Pogue at opogue@meramecregion.org, or call 573-265-2993. 

On Friday October 18th from 6:00 to 9:00 in the evening the Creative Arts Center invites you to come and paint your very own Fall Front Porch sign with Danielle Norris! They have tons of stencils to choose from or bring your own ideas from home! The artist will walk you through the steps and work with you one on one to help create your piece. The cost is $30 and all supplies are provided. Make sure to choose the sign style you would like at check out. Class registrations are on a first come, first serve basis with online registrations. Interested persons can sign up under “Programs” at the salemcommunitybetterment.com website for activities at the Creative Arts Center. 

Between September 21st and October 4th there were a total of 233 calls to the Salem Police Department for service. Officers conducted 15 traffic stops for various traffic violations with four resulting in a summons or arrest. Officers conducted 11 traffic accident investigations along with 4 informational reports.  As a result of the calls for service a number of reports were generated. During this time there were numerous reports of construction trailers and equipment broken into and stolen items totaling approximately $17,000. Investigators worked leads and completed an investigation into the thefts successfully obtaining a suspect. At the conclusion of the investigation the suspect was arrested and questioned about the thefts. The suspect later admitted to the thefts. As a result, probable cause statements were forwarded to the Prosecutor’s office where ultimately charges were filed and a 29-year-old male from Salem was arrested and incarcerated on the warrants in reference to the above incidents.