Some area residents in St. Joseph and Buchanan County are being asked for their opinion on community matters by one local agency.

The Community Alliance of St. Joseph is sending out 1,800 surveys to randomly selected households over the next week.  Steve Johnston with the Community Alliance said this is the fourth survey since it started in 2010.  The surveys are sent out every two years.

“We get an amazing response in St. Joseph,” Johnston said. “In 2014 we had a 37-percent response rate.”

Johnston said results from the survey will help give community leaders input in making important decisions.  The results are seen by leaders from the city, school district and businesses.  Results will also be compared to the survey results from 2010, 2012 and 2014 to see how the community has progressed

“We ensure that our residents from north to south, east to west, midtown, and also Buchanan County have the opportunity to participate in the survey,” Johnston said. “That information is conveyed back to council members, city administrators and also two years ago the folks that assisted with the CIP tax.”

Many of the questions are steered toward city issues.

“The survey is probably 55, maybe 60-percent city driven,” Johnston said. “In other words, city services…Those can be things such as our parks and recreation department, our public works department which includes streets and other important elements, it includes information on our public schools; the St. Joseph School District, also Missouri Western State University, economic development. So lots of things go into the survey because we want it to be well rounded.”

The survey can be completed and returned in a postage-paid envelope or online.  Johnston said selected residents can expect to see the surveys in the mailbox Wednesday, Thursday or Friday. Results are expected in late June. The Community Alliance plans to discuss the findings in presentations to the public.

The two men taken to the hospital after a shooting Sunday morning on the north end of town are in stable condition according to police.

The St. Joseph Police Department is still searching for a 32-year-old man as a possible suspect in a shooting investigation that took place Sunday around 9 a.m. in the area of Franklin St. and Prospect Ave.

As we previously reported, police said two other men, ages 43 and 59 were transported to Mosaic Life Care with gunshot wounds.

Capt. Jeff Wilson said Monday morning that at the last check the victims conditions were listed as stable.

He said little other information is being released at this time as the investigation is on-going.

Two men were taken to the hospital after a shooting Sunday morning on the north end of town.

The St. Joseph Police Department is searching for a possible suspect, a 32-year-old man

Sgt. Jill Voltmer said two men ages 43 and 59 were injured in the shooting that took place around 9 a.m. Little other information is being released at this time.

The investigation continues. As we learn more we will update.

The St. Joseph School District offers students the opportunity to keep up with their skills over the summer.

Summer programs, offered throughout the school district, will run from May 17 to June 9. A variety of programs are offered for all students. High school students can earn credit, make up credit, take personal finance classes or get involved in a marketing internship.

According to Charisse Giseburt, Summer Program Coordinator for the St. Joseph School District, they offer a program just for sixth graders called, “Bridge to Middle School.”

“Those sixth graders can come over and get to know the building and procedures,” Giseburt said. “(They) meet some of the teachers and then go over things like study skills and that way they’re just not as nervous in the fall when school starts.”

Giseburt said offering a regular summer program each year helps children keep their skills sharp and gives teachers the opportunity to delve into subjects they might not have time to teach during the regular school year.

“So during the summer there may be more fun activities, but also very educational,” Giseburt said. “So oftentimes the kids will be learning things and not even realize it, because it’s just structured much different than the school year. It’s just important to keep them reading and working on their math facts and things like that, so when they come back in August there doesn’t have to be as much review for those kids.”

Giseburt said it’s not too late to sign up for classes at any of the schools or online.

The St. Joseph Police Department and other local law enforcement will raise awareness for the Special Olympics by running this week.

The annual Law Enforcement Torch Run began May 9th and continues through May 20th to end up at the Opening Ceremonies for the State Games in Springfield, Missouri. The Torch Run will be in St. Joseph on Tuesday, May 17th.

The Law Enforcement Torch Run was established by officers about 30 years ago to help raise awareness for the Special Olympics.

Rita Ketchem is Administrative Assistant at the St. Joseph Police Department and the Region One Coordinator for the Special Olympic Law Enforcement Torch Run.

“(The Torch Run) just kind of caught hold and began to become a fundraiser as well – because we do sell t-shirts to support the cause,” Ketchem said. “All that money does go to our athletes, not just in the state of Missouri, but this is a worldwide movement. The money is used to fund our athletes to send them to competitions, to get health care for them – basically just to help our community that suffers with intellectual disabilities.”

According to Ketchem, they hold other events throughout the year to raise funds including a polar plunge and “Tip a Cop.” The St. Joseph Police Department works as a team with the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Department and the Corrections Facilities in Cameron and Chillicothe to raise money for local athletes.

“We have found that by being involved with our athletes, we just always feel like that we have a lot to learn from them,” Ketchem said. “They have so much love to give and are just so supportive of each other that the rest of the world could really learn a lot from them.”

According to Ketchem, as of 2014, Missouri ranked sixth in the world for the amount of money raised from the Torch Run.
The local route of the Torch Run will depart at 9 a.m. on Tuesday from Maryville and is estimated to arrive and start at 3 p.m. from the Nature Center in St. Joseph. The run is about the distance of a 5K through the River Front Trail and ends at the St. Jo Frontier Casino.

Professional golfer Tom Watson will tee-off the opening of the Watson 9 Hybrid Golf Course at Mozingo Lake Recreation Park.

Head Golf Pro, Kyle Easter with Mozingo Lake said the nine hole Hybrid Course was designed by Watson and was named No. 12 by Golf Digest Magazine as one of the top 15 Hybrid Courses in the Nation.

“What’s unique is just the style of course that it is,” Easter said. “It’s just kind of a little smaller version of a championship style course.  It has all of the same features that a large golf course just a little smaller and less intimating.  So beginners, kids, new players to the game can get out and play and have fun with it and not get intimidated by the course.”

The grand opening starts Saturday at the course located just east of Maryville on Highway 136.  From 9 a.m. to 12 free short game clinics will be held then grand opening ceremonies will take place from 1 to 2 p.m.  Five-time British Open Champion Watson will take part in an inaugural round starting at 2:30 p.m.  Then at 4:30 p.m. the first annual Watson youth golf tournament begins.  There’s no entry free and its open to all youth ages 7-17.

“Tom Watson came on board when he heard the plan for it and what we wanted to do up here,” Easter said. “Once his playing career is over kind of one of his goals is to keep growing the game of golf and getting as many kids and beginner golfers into the game as possible.  It kind of just went hand-in-hand in that way.”

After the grand opening on Saturday the course will officially be open for use.

“There’s minimal green fees involved but the nice thing is that every green fee that’s paid to play it 10-percent of that money will go back into our youth golf program,” Easter said.

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(Update) – A St. Joseph man has been charged in connection with the murder of his 81-year-old grandmother.

Michael Ray Courter, 40 was charged Friday with a felony for second-degree murder in connection with Clyda Spurgeon’s death.

According to court documents, sometime between 8 p.m. April 28 and 8 a.m. April 29 Courter is accused of hitting Spurgeon repeatedly with a hammer he borrowed from her. The Buchanan County Prosecuting Attorney’s office said she died after being hit in the head multiple times with a blunt object. As we previously reported, Spurgeon was found dead at 108 East Highland Ave. late in the morning of April 29th.

Det. Frank Till with the St. Joseph Police Dept. said evidence collected includes reports, statements of witnesses, video and forensic.

“The defendant struck the victim with the intent to kill or cause serious physical injury to the victim,” Till said. “The defendant then fled the State of Missouri in a vehicle owned by the victim and was arrested several days later in northern Michigan with clothes for the journey.”

Till describes Courter as a violent and brutal man in court documents.

“He previously assaulted his mother and received a felony conviction,” Till said. “Witnesses interviewed are afraid of the defendant.”

In an update the prosecutor’s office said an arraignment is set for Monday at 1 p.m. in Div. 6.  The office said bond has not been determined at this time.

If convicted the charge of second-degree murder carries a punishment range of 10-30 years or life.

A man is accused of trying to run from officers in St. Joseph earlier this week after allegedly trying to sell a stolen scooter.

James Galen Pace, 28 listed as homeless is charged in Buchanan County with a felony for first-degree tampering with a motor vehicle.

According to court documents, on Tuesday police responded to the 2500 block of South 16th in reference to a man and a woman trying to sell a scooter that appeared to be stolen.

“According to the witness statement, the defendant tried to sell him the scooter for $150. Upon police arrival they made contact with the defendant and a female,” said Det. Chase Cotter with the St. Joseph Police Department. “The defendant claimed to own the scooter and advised he had purchased it and had the title. The ignition to the scooter was tampered and the defendant did not have proof of ownership.”

Det. Cotter said when the officer learned the vehicle had been reported stolen out of Atchison, Kan. he tried to arrest Pace.

“He fled on foot. He was taken into custody after a short foot pursuit,” Det. Chase said. “The defendant has a history of possessing stolen vehicles, having been arrested with one less than one week ago.”

Pace was reportedly arrested May 5 for tampering and has convictions for theft, assault, two for possession of a controlled substance and two for domestic assault.

Bond has been set at $25,000 an arraignment is set for Tuesday.

An icon of St Joseph history is slated to return to downtown St. Joe next year.

Restaurateurs Erik Borger and Dustin Smith have bought the former Goetz barrel factory and hope to reintroduce Goetz’s German-style beer to a whole new generation.

According to the lifestyle magazine “Feast,” the pair announced purchase of the building at 601 N. 4th St. The pair plan to remodel and reopen the 12,000 square foot facility “…as a working brewery, taproom, restaurant, event space and beer garden.”

Borger and Smith reportedly received permission from Pabst Brewing Co. for the rights to brew under the Goetz brand name and for use of the original logo, label art and branding. They’ve worked out a royalty and distribution agreement, with Pabst asking for the opportunity to review the future head brewer for Goetz Brewing Co. to ensure he or she meets their expectations for a leading beer company.

“Although, it is 100 percent my decision as to who I hire as my head brewer at Goetz, I agreed to allow Pabst the opportunity to review my choice to ensure that person meets their professional standards – which should, hopefully, be no different than my standards,” Borger tells the magazine.

Borger explains that the new brewery will be large enough to distribute regionally, but ready to scale as needed. Goetz Brewing Co. will open with a 30-barrel system with the capacity to add fermenters as needed to ramp up production based on demand. The pair anticipates a lot of pent-up demand for this much-loved local brew.