(3:30 p.m.) – A woman was killed Monday in a crash with a farm vehicle near Parnell.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Virgina Burns, 60 of Parnell was driving a 2001 Tahoe southbound on MO 46 and Marlin Meyer, 71 of Ravenwood was driving a 2011 Case IH Steiger northbound.  The patrol said the crash happened around 5:40 a.m. when the farm implement being pulled by the tractor crossed the center line of the roadway and Burns’ vehicle hit the implement.  Burns was pronounced dead at the scene. No injuries were reported for the other driver.

The road was shutdown for several hours while crews worked the scene.  It has since reopened.

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(Update 1:30 p.m. ) – Route 46 south of Parnell has reopened after a crash.

In an announcement shortly before 10 am, MoDOT said the road was closed between Route NN and the south junction with Orion Road, just north of Ravenwood. Crews from MoDOT assisted the Missouri State Highway Patrol with traffic control around the crash scene.

We are currently awaiting further information on the incident from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The 2017 Parties on the Parkway schedule was released Monday by the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce.

According to a news release, thousands of residents participant in the concert series along the parkway system every year. Admission to the series is free. The scheduled is as follows:

May 11 – 5 to 8 p.m.
Soca Jukebox
(rain date May 18)
SW Pkwy & King Hill Drive

June 8 – 5 to 8 p.m.
Kalani
(rain date June 15)
SW Pkwy & 28th Street

July 13 – 5 to 8 p.m.
State Line Drive
(rain date July 20)
SW Noyes & Messanie, Parkway A

August 10 – 5 to 8 p.m.
Heather Newman Band
(rain date Aug 17)
Corby Pond

End summer with a bang! Two bands, food, drinks & fireworks! Casey Brett and Blue Oyster Culture Club.

Rockin’ on the River
Saturday, Aug. 26
4:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Remington Nature Center,
Missouri Riverfront

Work is in progress to replace some century-old water pipes leading to the historic Cracker House, and it won’t cost anything.

Leah Swindler, the President of the Cracker House Project, said they discovered the pipes when they ruptured in January. During restoration work, some of the heavy equipment proved too heavy for where it was parked. The pipes will be replaced at no charge, through a special program offered by Missouri American Water.

“The weight of the lift crushed the lead pipe underneath the ground, because it’s so soft and it’s old.” Swindler said. “A leak started up, so we called the water company out, and they dug up that area, and determined that it was indeed a lead pipe from 1893.”

“So I filled out an application, and they told me that they would replace not just the pipe in front of the house, but add a meter and a line into the house for free.”

Swindler says their efforts to raise money for restoration continue. They had a trivia night at a local bar recently, which raised about $2,500, enough to begin work on repairs on the south wall of the structure. She says they’re also hosting a volunteer tourism group called Adventures in Preservation starting in May.

“People sign up for trips around the U.S., and even internationally, to learn preservation while working at an actual site,” she said. The public is invited to a series of preservation workshops, in which you’ll learn some of the processes, such as tuck pointing and window restoration processes, and they’ll learn the processes while helping fix the house.

It starts May 28 and runs through June 10th. It will cost you a $25 donation per workshop to cover materials cost. You can find out more at the group’s Facebook page here.

They’re also planning a fun fundraiser coming this fall. Swindler says they’re joining forces with the Historic St. Joseph Foundation and the St. Joseph Historical Society (Robidoux Row), to create a coloring book of historical buildings in the area. The Cracker House will collect one-third of the proceeds.

The house, at 914 Main Street, was once the home of Frank L. Sommer, the inventor of the Saltine cracker.

A Celtic Street Faire is coming to downtown St. Joseph this summer.

According to a news release, the Ancient Order of Hibernians is teaming up with the St. Joseph Downtown Association to host the event June 24 from noon to 6 p.m. at Coleman Hawkins Park at Felix Street Square. Wine, liquor, beer and artisans will be served from noon to 6 p.m. Music will be held from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. featuring Bob Reeder and U2 Cover Band Rattle & Hum.

Proceeds raised from the event will benefit the Second Harvest Community Food Bank and other local charity organizations.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The following is a listing of general highway maintenance and construction work in the Northwest Missouri region planned for the week of April 24 – 30 from the Missouri Department of Transportation. In addition to the work listed below, there may be pothole patching, bridge maintenance, striping, brush cutting, guardrail repairs and other road work conducted throughout the region. Many of these will be moving operations and could include lane closures with delays. All scheduled maintenance and construction projects are subject to change with weather conditions.

Andrew County

• Route Z – CLOSED from Route O to County Road 275 for a culvert replacement, April 25, 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Route A – CLOSED from County Road 50 to County Road 68 for a culvert replacement, April 25, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Atchison County

• U.S. Route 136 – From Route O to Route M for pothole patching, April 24 – 25
• Interstate 29 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, April 24 – 28

Buchanan County

• I- 229 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, April 24 – 27
• U.S. Route 59 (6^th Street) – At Atchison Street in St. Joseph for signal work, April 25, 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m A flagger will direct motorists through the work zone.

Caldwell County

• Route A – From U.S. Route 36 to Route 116 for pothole patching, April 24 – 28
• U.S. Route 36 – Eastbound from Business U.S. 36 to Route 13 for shoulder work, April 25 – 28

Carroll County

• Route 139 – From U.S. Route 24 to Route J for pothole patching, April 24 – 25
• Route Z – From U.S. Route 65 to the Livingston County line for pothole patching, April 26 – 28

Chariton County

• Route 5 – From Route O to the city limits of Keytesville for pothole patching, April 24 – 26
• U.S. Route 24 – From Route 5 to the Randolph County line for a resurfacing project, April 24 – 29
• Route 129 – From Route D to Route O for pothole patching, April 27 – 28

Daviess County

• Route N – One-quarter mile west of I-35 for drainage work, April 24 – 25
• Route CC – CLOSED three miles south of Route 6 for a culvert replacement, April 26, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

DeKalb County

• Route C – From U.S. Route 36 to Route 6 for chip sealing, April 24 – 26, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. A flagger and pilot car will direct traffic through the work zone.
• Route J – From Route 6 to U.S. Route 36 for a resurfacing project, April 24 – 29. A pilot car will direct traffic through the work zone.
• Route O – From Route 33 to Route J for a resurfacing project, April 24 – 29. A pilot car will direct traffic through the work zone.

Gentry County

• Route O – At 460^th Road for drainage work, April 24
• Route T – One-half mile west of the Daviess County line for drainage work, April 26 – 28

Grundy County

• U.S. Route 65 – Shoulder work, April 24 – 28
• Route 6 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, April 24 – 28

Harrison County

• I-35 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, April 24 – 28
• Route 46 – One mile east of Hatfield for culvert repair, April 24 – 28
• Route A – From U.S. Route 69 to Route B for sealing, April 24 – 28
• Route 46 – From Route NN to U.S. Route 69 for sealing, April 25 – 26

Livingston County

• Route Z – From the Carroll County line to U.S. Route 65 for pothole patching, April 24 – 26
• Route 190 – At the Thompson River Bridge for maintenance, April 26 – 28
• Route 139 – From Route RA to the Carroll County line for pothole patching, April 27 – 28

Mercer County

• Route E – CLOSED from Route C to Hawk Road for a culvert replacement, April 24, 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. Access to Route C will be open.
• Route E – CLOSED from Intrepid Street to Innsbruck Road for a culvert replacement, April 24, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.
• Route E – CLOSED from Route J to Keystone Road for a culvert replacement, April 25, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Nodaway County

• Route 113 – CLOSED from 220^th Street to Dragonfly Road (230^th Street) for a culvert replacement, April 24, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• U.S. Route 136 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, April 24 – 25
• U.S. Route 71 – Pothole patching and sweeping and flushing bridges, April 25 – 26

Putnam County

• Route CC – CLOSED at the South Branch Shoal Creek Bridge for a bridge replacement project. The bridge will be closed through May 2017.
• U.S. Route 136 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, April 24 – 25
• Route 5 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, April 25

Sullivan County

• Route DD – CLOSED from Route 6 to Saddle Road for a culvert replacement, April 26, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Route 5 – Just south of Route N for drainage work, April 27
• Route E – Just east of Route 139 for drainage work, April 27
• Route ZZ – Just east of Route E for drainage work, April 28

Worth County

• Route W – Sealing and pothole patching, April 27 – 28

JEFFERSON CITY – The Missouri Department of Transportation’s popular litter prevention program – the Adopt-A-Highway Program – turns 30 this year.

MoDOT officials noted the milestone Thursday with a celebration in Jefferson City featuring area Adopt-A-Highway volunteers.

Texas started the program in the mid-1980s as an effort to involve citizens to help clean state highways. Missouri followed suit in 1987. Today in Missouri, more than 5,200 groups and 50,000 volunteers participate in the program, and more than 6,200 miles of roadway have been adopted.

Adopter groups include commercial and private enterprises, civic and non-profit organizations, families and individuals. Adopters perform about $1 million a year in litter cleanup and beautification efforts.

“This extra help allows us to devote resources to other much needed tasks,” said MoDOT Chief Engineer Ed Hassinger.

Participants in the program have four options: clean up litter; mow; beautify through landscaping or plant native Missouri wildflowers and grasses. MoDOT provides adopters with a certificate of appreciation, safety training and materials, and a sign with the group’s name posted on each end of the adopted highway section. MoDOT also provides trash bags and pick up and disposal.

Adopters must agree to adopt at least a half-mile of urban roadside or two miles of rural roadside; collect litter at least four times a year; sign a three-year agreement; submit an activity report to MoDOT and follow all safety procedures.

(News Release) – Mo-Kan Regional Council in collaboration with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) will be hosting the second meeting in a series of public meetings to share information and gather input on the Independence-Sugar Watershed. All watershed residents from urban to rural landowners to city and county officials are encouraged to attend. The goal of the April 24 meeting is to learn about local watershed priorities, help to identify resources to achieve these goals and build important partnerships between all watershed residents.

Monday, April 24, 2017
9 to 11 a.m. Platte County YMCA, 8875 Clark Avenue, Parkville, MO 64152
6 to 8 p.m. Remington Nature Center, 1502 McArthur Drive, St. Joseph, MO 64501

Residents can visit the Independence-Sugar website (IndependenceSugar.com) or Facebook page to learn more about the watershed and complete a brief survey about their local water quality and quantity issues.
Contact (816) 233-3144 to RSVP or for more information. RSVP is not required but suggested.

Buchanan County paid off courthouse renovation loans early, saving the county about $13,000.

According to Buchanan County Presiding Commissioner Harry Roberts, the courthouse renovations started in 2012 and were completed toward the end of 2013. The county borrowed the money needed for the $10 million project from one of the local banks and had been paying it off by $135,000 per quarter. Roberts said they knew this year they were going to only have to make three payments to complete the loan and decided that, since the budget allowed, they would pay it off early to save interest.

Roberts said when they called to get the payoff to pay it off early, it came in even less as it was written up similar to a construction loan.

“When the county was doing the project, they didn’t draw the whole $2 million at one time, they only drew to pay the bills as the renovation took place,” Roberts said.

He said the renovations on the courthouse included mostly exterior work on tuckpointing, columns and approximately 240 windows.

“It’s an old building, a lot of history there, but it’s in good shape and we’ll keep taking care of it,” Roberts said.

He said there’s a grant program offered by the state to help with upkeep of historic courthouses and they plan to apply to help with replacing the east elevator. Roberts said also up next is work on the heating and cooling system and that will most likely be a project for 2018.

A program on frogs in peril will be held next weekend at the Remington Nature Center.

According to the City of St. Joseph the Save the Frogs program will be held Saturday, April 29, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the nature center.

Frogs are in peril throughout the world according to a news release from the city. Participants in the program will be able to learn why frogs may be the most important animal in the ecosystem, walk around the Nature Center and along the river listening for frogs, tour the center and participate in a scavenger hunt.

The event is $3 for adults, $1 for children age four to 15 and $2 for seniors 60+. Children three and under are free.

The froggy event is sponsored by the Remington Nature Center, Missouri Western State University, and Loess Bluffs NWR. For more information, call Shelly Cox at 816-596-8211 or email [email protected].