ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The ramp from southbound Interstate 229 to 22nd Street will close Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015.
Crews from the Missouri Department of Transportation will close the ramp at approximately 7:30 a.m. for pavement repairs. The ramp will remain closed until approximately 8 a.m. Friday morning, Dec. 4.
Motorists will need to use an alternate route during the closure.
All work is weather permitting and subject to change.
Country music singer Tyler Farr will be taking the stage next year in Atchison, Kan.
The Atchison Chamber of Commerce made the LakeFest 2016 headliner announcement Tuesday. The concert is the annual kick off to the city’s Amelia Earhart Festival.
LakeFest 2016 will take place Friday, July 15th at Warnock Lake. The Atchison Chamber of Commerce is touting $25 gift certificates for LakeFest as stocking stuffers.
Brown County Sheriff John Merchant was recognized as the Kansas Sheriff’s Association “Sheriff of the Year.”
Merchant received the award during a ceremony held at the Kansas Sheriff’s Association annual convention in Wichita on November 12.
“It’s always been a team effort at the Sheriff’s Office, I am fortunate to have a great bunch of guys and gals who take pride in what they do for the citizens of Brown County every day,” Merchant said. “None of this is possible without their hard work and dedication.”
Merchant has served the people of Brown County as Sheriff since March of 2008.
He was selected from a pool of nominees based on his personal and professional accomplishments while holding the office of Sheriff of Brown County. The department said one of those accomplishments is “The Teen Lifesaver Initiative”, a program designed by Sheriff Merchant with the goal of certifying every high school student in Brown County in basic First Aid, CPR, and proper use of the AED (Automated External Defibrillator). To date Merchant and his team comprised of Brown County Deputies, Horton Police Chief John Calhoon, and County Health nurse Karla Harter have certified 481 students, faculty, and others who work closely with the school districts in Brown County.
A burn victim is facing multiple felony drug charges in Andrew County after a house fire in August.
33-year-old Justin Taylor was charged Nov. 25 with a felony for manufacturing/producing or attempting to manufacture/produce more than 5 grams of Marijuana in a residence with a child, a felony for possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, and a felony of possession of a controlled substance.
According to court documents, Investigator Adam Crouch with the Missouri State Fire Marshal’s Office responded Aug. 23 after a fire at 1004 West Chestnut Street in Savannah.
“The residence was occupied by Justin L. Taylor. During the fire, Mr. Taylor sustained severe burns to his body as a result of the fire,” Crouch said. “It is your affiant’s opinion that Justin L. Taylor caused the fire at 1004 West Chestnut Street in Savannah, Missouri, while he was involved in the crime of Manufacturing or Attempted Manufacturing of a Controlled Substance.”
Crouch said while investigating the fire three plastic tubes were found on the floor of the second floor room.
“The tubes were determined to be consistent in appearance with items used during the extraction process of a Butane/Marijuana extraction laboratory,” Crouch said. “The cause of the fire was determined to be a flash fire caused by an ignition of the Butane fumes in the second story. The fire was determined to be incendiary and was classified as a criminal investigation.”
According to court documents a child under the age of 17 also lived in the home.
“During the search of this residence, I seized three (3) PVC pipes used in the THC oil extraction process. I also seized approximately fifteen (15) pounds of marijuana, THC oil, over eighty (80) butane cans, a hot plate where THC oil was being dried and marijuana paraphernalia,”John Huber with the Missouri State Highway Patrol said in court documents.
MARYVILLE, Mo. – More than $6.8 million in improvements are coming to Northwest Missouri State University.
The announcement was made by Gov. Jay Nixon Wednesday during a visit to Northwest.
“We are proud to invest in higher education through Building Affordability so that Missouri colleges and universities can make needed improvements without raising tuition,” Gov. Nixon said. “The bipartisan $200 million Building Affordability initiative will help make sure students are learning in state-of-the-art facilities that prepare them for the jobs of the future, while keeping Missouri a leader in college affordability.”
At Northwest Missouri State University, Building Affordability will provide $6,884,126 to make needed upgrades and improvements to electrical systems in several academic buildings, including Brown Hall, Martindale Hall and the Fine Arts building, as well as at Owens Library and the Rickman Center. To improve energy efficiency and increase safety, windows will also be replaced in the Administration Building, Colden Hall, Brown Hall and the historic Gaunt House, which was built in 1875.
“Here at Northwest Missouri State University, our outstanding faculty and staff provide students with the skills and knowledge they need to be successful in today’s global economy,” said Dr. John Jasinski, Northwest Missouri State University President. “We appreciate Gov. Nixon and the legislature for making this considerable investment in our campus so that we can continue to provide students with an outstanding education at an affordable price.”
Building Affordability is a component of Build Missouri, a capital improvements initiative that will fund nearly 500 projects in every corner of the state through bond proceeds and other sources. Build Missouri includes bond proceeds for repairs and renovations at state facilities, veterans homes, state parks and higher education campuses, and for the completion of a new state-of-the-art mental hospital in Fulton, as well as non-bonding sources for other projects, including conservation areas, highway patrol facilities, and other facilities.
Through Building Affordability, Missouri is investing $200 million in higher education campuses throughout the state. These additional investments by the state will help colleges and universities make needed renovations and improvements to their campuses without raising tuition to cover the costs of these projects.
Over the past six years, the Governor’s administration has paid down hundreds of millions of dollars in state debt. Based on current projections, after the implementation of Build Missouri, state government will still have lower levels of state-issued bonding debt than when the Governor first took office.
Earlier this year, as a result of a strong record of fiscally responsible budget management, Missouri’s AAA credit rating was reaffirmed by the rating agencies. This allows the state to benefit from low interest rates, and makes long-term capital investments more affordable.
The most recent report on pricing trends by The College Board found Missouri once again leading all 50 states in holding down tuition increases at public universities over the last six years. In September, Gov. Nixon and the leaders of the state’s public four-year universities and two-year colleges announced an agreement to freeze tuition for Missouri undergraduates for the 2016-2017 school year.
In addition, Gov. Nixon’s Fiscal Year 2017 budget will include an additional $55.7 million – a six percent increase – in performance funding for higher education, which will bring total state funding for higher education to a record $985 million next year.
The St Joseph Convention and Visitors Bureau will take over the site of the former Hardee’s restaurant at 911 Frederick.
Officials say the restaurant will be torn down and a new facility will be built on the site.
The new facility will also function as a tourism information center. The Buchanan County Tourism Board announced the purchase of the building Tuesday. The property sold for $190,000.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Route DD will close tomorrow, Dec. 2, for pavement repairs at the bridge over Interstate 29.
Crews from the Missouri Department of Transportation will close the bridge on Route DD from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to complete repairs to the overpass. Motorists will need to find an alternate route during this time.
Northbound I-29 has been narrowed to one lane since yesterday afternoon. The passing lane will remain closed until the repairs to the Route DD overpass are complete. Both Route DD and the passing lane of northbound I-29 should reopen tomorrow evening. All work is weather permitting and schedules are subject to change.
A letter to Santa is giving one family a chance to see Santa Claus himself.
East Hills Shopping Center announced Tuesday that Santa will surprise one child with a home visit on Sunday, Dec. 20th.
Children can enter to win by filling out a letter to Santa at Guest Services located at East Hills Shopping Center. Once their letter is complete, they can place it in Santa’s mailbox to the North Pole. Then, one child will be surprised with a visit from Santa Claus with a bag full of gifts on Dec. 20th.
Entry forms will be accepted through Wednesday, December 16th.
It’s the second year East Hills has offered the chance to see Santa at home. On Christmas Eve last year, a family of six was surprised. After seeing the shocked look and excitement on the children’s faces, East Hills management said they knew they had to continue the contest.
“It’s exciting to be able to give back to the community and make a childhood dream come true for one lucky family,” said Regan Lyons, Marketing Director at East Hills Shopping Center.
For more information visit www.shopeasthills.com or call 816-279-5667.
A Weston woman was taken to the hospital after a crash Tuesday morning north of Savannah.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Katy Hershley, 35 was driving a 2006 Dodge Dakota around 7:30 trying to merge onto I-29 southbound in Andrew County when she lost control of the vehicle on the icy roadway and it went off the west side of the road and hit a concrete bridge.
Hershley was taken by private vehicle to Mosaic Life Care with minor injuries. She was reported to have been wearing a safety belt. The vehicle received moderate damage.
(Note: The MSHP had accidentally listed Katy as a male on its initial report. We called to confirm the error.)
The St. Joseph Police Department said residents should continue to be on the lookout for an IRS scam.
“This past week numerous citizens have reported calls from the IRS demanding payment of back taxes,” the department warned Tuesday on Facebook. “The caller is stating that if the money is not paid quickly property will be seized. This scam has been ongoing for some time but has become more frequent recently.”
Police said the IRS does not operate this way.
“The phone calls could be coming from anywhere in the world and most of the numbers are disabled the same day,” SJPD said.
The best advice, if you receive one of these calls just hang up the phone and do not talk any further to the caller.
For more information visit the IRS website CLICK HERE.
