News – Thursday, January 16th 2025

The Dent County Fire Protection District Board of Directors held their meeting Tuesday evening, January 14th, Jeff Stokes took the Oath of Office to fill a board vacancy till the next scheduled election. The consent agenda and minutes from the previous meeting were reviewed and approved. The financial report was reviewed with an ending balance of $206, 908.38. All bills, payments, and statements were reviewed and approved. The budget was also approved. The monthly reimbursement report was presented with a total of 19 calls for the month and for the year. Eight of the calls were for various types of fires other calls included medical assists, accidents, and HazMat. In old business after a presentation and discussion by Tom Pisarkiewicz and Courtney Wegman a resolution calling for a special bond election to be held on Tuesday April 8th was voted for. Papers were signed with the bonding company and recorded. The tower lease with Fidelity/Sparklight was discussed and the check was signed for the 2023 – 2024 rent of the tower. There was no new business. In the Chief’s report Chief Floyd reported that the ladder truck was in St. Louis for repair. He also stated 4 people will be attending fire training school. Before adjourning the next meeting was set for Tuesday February 11th at 6:00 in the evening.

The City of Salem Board of Aldermen held a public meeting yesterday evening at 6:00 in the Old Auditorium to discuss the City’s submission of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program for the storm warning system, City administrator Sally Burbridge read some questions she had received in advance from the community, and Chief of Police Joe Chase addressed many of them. The total cost of the project is estimated at $133,532 with a proposed contribution from the City of $27,500 in cash to be paid out of the Capital Improvement Funds and approximately $6,032 for in-kind work to be paid to the electrical crew. The new system from Whelen Mass Notification will replace the existing eight sirens around town with two siren systems strategically placed to cover more area, with the sound concentrated in the areas with the highest population. If this grant is awarded, and the new system is installed, the City plans to surplus and sell the old siren components to offset the cost and reduce the financial impact on the community. The Whelen system is an industry-leading system in emergency notification, and works on both high and low frequencies allowing sound to travel farther and be heard and felt indoors. 

The City of Salem Board of Aldermen held their regular meeting on yesterday evening at 6:30 in the Old Auditorium. After approving the agenda and consent agenda, local business owner Scott Radford brought up an issue with his utility rates. After a brief explanation from City Administrator Sally Burbridge, and no further questions from the Board, the Board approved Resolution No. 1-2025 a resolution stating intent to seek funding through the Community Development Block Grant Program. The Board also approved Resolution 2-2025, authorizing the Mayor to execute a  Contract Change Order between Gray Construction LLC, The City of Salem, and James Headrick for property located at 102 South Washington, and Resolution 3-2025: a resolution between the City of Salem and the Meramec Regional Planning Commission allowing MRPC to administer the Community Development Block Grant Mitigation Program for the storm siren system if the City is awarded the grant funds. The administration fees of $10,000 will be paid from the grant if it is awarded. Mayor Parker recommended appointing Kala Sisco and Lauren Toman to the finance committee, and the Board approved. During the reports of city officials, Sally Burbridge stated she attended a FEMA meeting along with Public Works Director Steve Paine and Parks and Recreation Director Melissa DuBois. This was an informational meeting on how to go about submitting a formal request for reimbursement from the flooding that occurred in November 2024. She also stated that in order for sidewalk construction to continue downtown, there needs to be at least three days of warmer temperatures. Mayor Parker stated that the Salem Fireworks Committee is hosting a Trivia Night in February. For more information on that, citizens should call 573-247-7847. Public Works Director Steve Paine gave an update on the utility crews and reminded citizens to please try to keep their trash cans and vehicles off the streets to keep the area cleared for the snow plows. With no other reports, the meeting went into closed session before adjourning. 

The Missouri State Highway Patrol would like to remind the public that all driver examination stations throughout the state will be closed on Monday, January 20th in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Normal operations will resume on Tuesday. The Missouri State Highway Patrol is hiring! The Patrol offers over 60 career paths. For current openings, visit bit.ly/MSHPCareers to apply today. For more news, follow the Missouri State Highway Patrol on X @MSHPTrooperGHQ, Facebook, and Instagram.