News – Tuesday, March 17th 2026

The Dent County Commission met for its regular meeting Monday morning at the courthouse. Both First District Commissioner Keith Green and Second District Commissioner Jimmy Williams reported crew members would be out checking for storm damages. Williams also reported crew members would be out checking the roads used for the 100 Acre Wood Rally. Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson shared that he attended several meetings last week, including for the Phelps County Housing Authority; External Relations; and the South Central County Commissioner Association. Larson will be attending a meeting with the Dent County Tourism Commission tonight and a meeting for the Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District tomorrow. At the South Central County Commissioner Association meeting held on Friday, commissioners reported it was a constructive meeting with plenty of legislative updates. Dent County Collector Shannon VanKirk has finished the annual settlement and sent it into the state. The total distribution to the districts was reported at $10,805,635.30. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley reported that bills are to be approved and that absentee voting continues. March 24th is the first day for “no excuse absentee” voting which will continue through April 6th. From 8:00 in the morning until 12:00 noon Saturday, April 4th, the courthouse will be open for absentee voting in the county clerk’s office. On April 7th, voting will be open from 6:00 in the morning to 7:00 in the evening. The commissioners also held a closed session meeting from 9:30 to 10:00. No action was taken. The next meeting of the commission will be Thursday morning at 9:00 in the courthouse, and the meeting is open to the public.

The following is a list of general highway maintenance and construction work planned in the mid–Missouri area March 16th through the 22nd. Weather conditions may postpone scheduled work. Many projects will include lane closures which could cause delays. For all counties, in addition to the work listed below, other moving operations such as pothole patching, brush cutting, and pavement repairs continue in various locations. Motorists should travel with care and be alert for slow-moving equipment. All work is weather permitting, and schedules are subject to change. For Dent County, the following road work is planned: Route B is closed over Dry Creek bridge due to inspectors finding a sinkhole developing near one of the supporting structures. Motorists during the bridge closure can use Missouri Routes 19, 32 and 72 as detoured routes around the closure. Culvert replacement is planned on Route 19 from March 17th through March 19th at 7th street in the city limits of Salem. One lane will remain open, and crews will flag traffic through the work zone. For Route EE, pothole patching is planned March 17th through March 19th. One lane will remain open, and crews will flag traffic through the work zone. For Route F, culvert replacement is planned March 17th through March 19th from Missouri Route 32 to County Road 6400. One lane will remain open, and crews will flag traffic through the work zone. 

The Salem Public Library Board of Trustees held its regular meeting Thursday evening at 5:00 in the library’s conference room. After approving the minutes from the previous meeting, Library Director Kate McBride presented her reports, highlighting a decrease in paperback trades and internet usage during the month of February, along with an increase in passive programs and in e-book and e-audio circulation. Circulation of books and periodicals, as well as items received from and provided to the Missouri Evergreen Consortium, remained consistent. The board also discussed books members had recently read and ongoing maintenance work in the library’s south basement. Board President Angie Hamons read correspondence from two patrons. In new business, the board discussed the Trustee Handbook and reviewed several upcoming library events. The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Salem Public Library Board of Trustees will be held April 9 at 5:00 in the library’s conference room and is open to the public.

The Phelps County Public Housing Agency (PHA) will re-open its wait list and begin accepting applications for housing assistance on April 6th, after having been closed since November of 2024. The closure of the waitlist came as a recommendation from the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, the federal agency that provides the rental assistance funding, to head off a projected funding shortfall in 2025. Applications are accepted online at phelpsco.housingmanager.com or in-person Monday through Friday 8:00 to 4:00 at the Phelps County PHA office. Applicants must provide social security numbers and birth dates for every household member and are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Individuals with a drug arrest in the last three years may be ineligible for assistance. The Phelps County PHA provides HUD Section 8 rental assistance to about 609 families in Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Phelps (outside the city of Rolla) and Washington counties at a cost of $2.3 million annually. Persons needing more information should contact Tammy Rigsby at 573-265-4200 or via email at trigsby@meramecregion.org. The Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) provides staffing to the Phelps County PHA.