PDF PAGES FOR WEBISTE.qxp_Layout 1 4/18/19 1:45 PM Page 1
Friday, April 19, 2019
TRENTON
REPUBLICAN-TIMES
Trenton, MO 64683
75¢ per copy Check out the Republican-Times on the Internet: www.republican-times.com ©W.B. Rogers Printing Co., Inc.
Twelve Pages & 1 Insert
Established Sept. 4, 1864 - 155th Year - No. 65
WRITING GROUP Submissions Sought
SPICKARD CITY COUNCIL Funds Needed For Sewer Operations
Publication To Include Authors From Area
Residents Question Rate Hike A public hearing on Wednesday to address a proposed increase in sewer charges to help pay for system operations turned into a session in which residents also asked questions regarding other recent actions taken by the Spickard City Council. Over 75 individuals attended the hearing at the Wise Community Center, which was called by the city council to answer questions about the proposed sewer rate increase which, according to a letter sent to customers, would take effect on May 25. The rates have not yet been approved by the council, which was required to hold a public hearing before adopting the new rates. A member of the city council, Margaret George, said the rates are to be considered by the council at its meeting on May 14. While it was never mentioned what the current rate structure is, several residents stated their bills under the new rate plan would be jumping as much as 250 percent. The letter sent to residents stated that there would be a base fee of $32 with persons using between 0 and 1,000 gallons of water a month being assessed $44.50 in sewer charges (the sewer rates are based on water usage). The rate would then go up $10 per 1,000 gallons of water used. The council recently adopted new water rates, which were also listed on the letter. Those rates start
R-T Photo/Diane Lowrey
Scott Adams, an environmental engineer with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, explained issues involving the city of Spickard’s sewer system during a public meeting on Wednesday night. The meeting was held by members of the Spickard City Council to discuss and answer questions regarding a proposed sewer rate increase. Also pictured are, from left, Joe McLiney of McLiney and Company, which works with communities on bond issues; Liz Grove, management circuit rider with the Missouri Rural Water Association; councilmember Janice Vandevender; and City Clerk Kristie Martin.
at $42 for 0 to 1,000 gallons of water usage and increase by $28 for each additional 1,000 gallons of water used. Late fees for account payments for water, sewer and trash, along with hang tag and reconnect fees, were also recently increased and approved by the council. According to statements made by several speakers at the meeting, the rate hike is the result of needing funds to continue operation of the city sewer system, which was put in place in the early 1990s and is now in need of repairs to meet Department of Natural Re-
GRAND RIVER VALLEY CHOIR AND ORCHESTRA
sources/Environmental Protection Agency regulations. The recent cost to the city to repair a pump is currently being paid for over time and, according to DNR Environmental Engineer Scott Adams, testing on the city lagoon last August shows that the city is not meeting requirements of its current permit regarding ammonia and effluent treatment. It was noted that the city has until 2023 to figure out a way to address the effluent situation, which could include See Spickard, Page 7
Summer Program Is June 15
Concert Rehearsals To Begin On Tuesday The Grand River Valley Choir and Orchestra will begin rehearsals on Tuesday, April 23 at Hodge Presbyterian Church in Trenton for its 2019 spring concert. Registration begins at 6 p.m. and rehearsal starts at 6:30. There is no registration fee for choir or orchestra members this year as music costs have been covered by the GRVCO Donor’s Club. The summer concert is scheduled for Saturday, June 15. Rehearsals will be held on Tuesdays at 6:30
p.m. at Hodge Presbyterian Church. The choir is directed by Tyler Busick and the orchestra is directed by Buddy Hannaford. Choir selections include “How Can I Keep from Singing,” “I Hear America Singing,” and “Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal,” while orchestra pieces include “American Folk Rhapsody,” “Variations on a Shaker Melody,” and “Jupiter, Bringer of Jollity.” The Grand River Valley Choir and Orchestra always welcomes new talent. The choir is open to all
community members with a passion for singing while the orchestra is especially in need of strings and oboe. Individuals interested in auditioning for the orchestra should call Buddy Hannaford at 660-359-2762. For more information about the GRVCO, persons can call Dennis Browning at 654-0855 or contact him by email at grvchoirandorch@gmail.com. For additional information or to check out past concerts, persons can go to the website, www.grvco.com/.
Briefs... License Bureau Opens
Nuisance Board
City Council Meeting
The Trenton License Bureau will be open for business on Monday, April 22. The license bureau office will open in its new location at 611 E. Ninth St. at 8 a.m. and will be open on Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., including during the lunch hour. The telephone number remains the same, 660-3594324. The license bureau has been closed since Feb. 18, when a fire extensively damaged the building at 617 Main St. in which both the license bureau and Trenton Area Chamber of Commerce offices were located. The chamber office has also relocated to 611 E. Ninth St. and is currently open for business. Two other buildings in the 600 block of Main Street housing This and That Pawn Shop and Antiques and Cut and Curls Beauty Shop were also destroyed in the Feb. 18 blaze. Trenton Fire Chief Brandon Gibler said the investigation into the fire by the State Fire Marshal’s office remains ongoing.
The Building and Nuisance Board of the Trenton City Council will meet in regular session at 6 p.m. on Monday, April 22 at city hall. Items on the announced agenda include declaration of nuisance on properties at 607 W. Crowder Road owned by John Danks and 1618 Mable St. owned by Joseph Buckner; public hearings on properties at 409 E. 19th St. owned by Altoff/Matlage, 812 Grant St. owned by Michael and Ruth Smith, 813 Olive St. owned by Denise Jones and others and 2002 Chicago Street owned by Samuel Southers; findings of fact on properties at 302 E. Seventh St. owned by Gary and Susan Jacobs, 1011 Custer St. owned by Colbi and Andrew Riley and 1312 Gilmore St. owned by Marvin Knapp; a certificate of existence of a dangerous building on property at 1802 Carnes St. owned by Dwayne Couch; discussion of the 2018-19 demolition program; and updates on current structures and nuisances.
The Trenton City Council will meet in regular session at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 22 at city hall. Items on the announced agenda include an ordinance officially accepting the contract with Rapid Removal for residential trash hauling services, an ordinance authorizing an agreement with M&M Utilities LLC for the Normal Street Sewer Rehabilitation Project, seven ordinances updating city codes to comply with changes in state law (topics include open records, health care records, prostitution, loitering near a child care facility, traffic code amendments, emergency sirens and flashing lights and operation of autocycles), discussion of the wastewater headworks project, discussion of animal license fees (requested by Councilman Larry Crawford), discussion and approval of the 17th Street demolition project bid contingent upon MoDOT approval, discussion and approval of SCADA services and appointments of committee members and liaisons to various boards.
Main Street Meeting Persons interested in learning about the Main Street Trenton program are invited to a “town hall” meeting on Thursday, May 16. Executive Director Megan Derry said those attending will be asked to share their opinions about the downtown district as well as give suggestions as to what they would like to see happen in the downtown area. The meeting, which is open to the public, will be at 5:30 p.m. in the Sugg Room of the Ketcham Community Center on the North Central Missouri College campus. For more information, persons can contact Ms. Derry at 654-3716.
Bids Approved
NCMC Board Meeting
The Grundy County Commission has awarded a bid for the replacement of the lower level air conditioning and heating system at the Grundy County Law Enforcement Center. Wilson’s Heating and Cooling was awarded the bid, which at $9,207.89 was the lowest one received. Grundy County Presiding Commissioner Phil Ray said the work is scheduled to be complete by May 1. The commission is scheduled to hold its regular weekly meeting on Tuesday, April 23 at the Grundy County Courthouse. The only item on the agenda is a 10 a.m. meeting with Ambulance Supervisor Steve Tracy.
The North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees will meet in regular session at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 23 in the Frey Administrative Building. Items on the announced agenda include a presentation by the Ellison-Auxier architectural firm, a resignation and request for emeritus status, a change in early college tuition and fees, the first reading of proposed board policy changes, bids, a request for a special meeting on May 17 with the NCMC Foundation Board, a health sciences job description change, employment of an adjunct instructor and clinical instructor and administrative reports.
National Weather Service Sunny skies through the weekend before a chance of rain on Sunday night and Monday. HIghs will be in the 70s over the weekend with lows in the 50s. The high at Trenton on Monday was 76, Tuesday’s high was 82, Wednesday’s high was 76 and the low was 60. Rain totalled .05 of an inch on Wednesday. Wednesday’s high at the Government Weather Station near Spickard was 75, the low was 45. Rain was .03 of an inch
What’s Inside... A former THS wrestler and retired high school wrestling coach was recently inducted into the Missouri Wrestling Hall of Fame. See page 2 of today’s Republican-Times for information about 1976 THS graduate Ethan Hauck.
Trenton Republican-Times “News Every Day...When YOU Want It”
THE SUN IS BACK
www.republican-times.com
The Community Writing Group of Grundy County is seeking submissions for an anthology the group hopes to publish this summer. The writing group is looking to include work from the community and North Central Missouri College students as well as from the group itself. Fiction and non-fiction pieces, along with poetry, will be included in the publication. According to writing group member Pam Johnston, there will be a 60-page limit for the anthology, which means there will be a word limit for all prose submissions. However, poetry of all lengths and types will be accepted. Fiction submissions are limited to 500 words. The story should be extremely brief, but still offer characters and plot developments. Non-fiction pieces may be about any topic, subject or theme, with the writing style being up to the author. Personal essays, memoirs, lyrics and more are welcomed for submission. General guidelines include: Prose (fiction, 500-word limit; non-fiction, 1,000-word limit) - items must be singlespaced (no line between paragraphs); first line indent set to .3 (not spaces); no page numbers; no headers or footers; 12 point Times New Roman font; standard document margins of one inch; left justify paragraphs. Poetry - lines should be single-spaced, with a doublespace between verses (a line width in the book is approximately 4.3 inches. If a line is wider than 4.3 inches in a 12 point font, it will be wrapped to the next line and may not appear as expected); 12 point Times New Roman font; each poem on separate pages. Previously published stories or poems may be submitted, however, writers are asked to include information as to where and when the item was published. Writers are also asked to make sure they have retained the rights to their piece before it is included in the group’s anthology. All rights to work published in this anthology will revert back to the author. The deadline to submit items for publication is Friday, April 26. When submitting the work, persons should include on a separate sheet of paper the author’s name, word count, email address, mailing address and telephone number with area code. Persons are asked not to put that information on the submitted manuscript. The anthology editors (members of the Community Writing Group) reserve the right to edit and make suggestions to entrants on their subSee Writing, Page 7
What’s Inside Sports .....................page 2 & 3 Op/Ed ............................page 4 Community ...................page 5 Agriculture....................page 6 Local News.............page 7 & 8 NASCAR .......................page 8 Comics ...........................page 9 Dear Annie...................page 11 Crosswords..................page 11