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Tuesday, April 7, 2020
REPUBLICAN-TIMES TRENTON
Established Sept. 4, 1864 - 156th Year - No. 62
Trenton, MO 64683 COVID-19
Confirmed Cases Remain At Zero
FINANCE COMMITTEE
residence. • All individuals in the state of Missouri shall avoid social gatherings of more than 10 people. • All public and charter schools must remain closed for the duration of the order. • Any entity that does not employ individuals to perform essential worker functions, as set forth in guidance provided by the federal government, shall adhere to the limitations on social gatherings and social distancing. • Any entity that employs individuals to perform essential worker functions, and that is engaged in retail sales to the public, shall limit the number of individuals in any particular retail location as follows: 25 percent or less of the entity’s authorized fire or building code occupancy, as set by local authorities, for a retail location with square footage of less than 10,000-square feet; 10 percent or less of the entity’s authorized fire or building code occupancy, as set by local authorities, for a retail location with square footage of 10,000-square feet or more. Trenton Mayor Linda Crooks has also signed an executive order for the city of Trenton, similar to what is contained in the statewide order. She encourages everyone to continue practicing social distancing and stay home, traveling only to access essential services. She said persons who want more information about the Centers for Disease Control guidelines
City Pa ark Arreas Clo osed The Trenton Park Department is encouraging social distancing by closing additional areas within the city park system until further notice. Now closed are all shelterhouses, the disc golf course at Moberly Park, the skate park at Eastside Park, all basketball courts and tennis courts and the horseshoe pits. The walking trail will remain open. In addition, trash cans at Eastside Park will be removed and a dumpster will be placed in the parking lot for public use.
should check the CDC website, www.cdc.gov. Additional information is also available on the Missouri COVID-19 website, www.health.mo.gov. The CDC has also issued new guidance for cloth face coverings. Because the virus can be spread before infected people show symptoms, a cloth face mask is now recommended in public places, like grocery stores, where social distancing measures may be difficult to maintain. The symptoms of COVID-19 are cough, fever and shortness of breath. If you have symptoms or believe you have been exposed, stay home except to seek medical care. Persons should call ahead before going See COVID-19, Page 3
Briefs...
Sales Tax Revenue Concerns Expressed
City Budgets Headed To Council For OK After much discussion, members of the Finance Committee of Trenton Trenton City Council on Thursday night voted to recommend that the city council approve the 2020-21 budgets for the city and TMU. Much of the discussion involved the city budget, which originally showed a projected deficit of $219,019. Councilman Brad Chumbley voiced his concern regarding sales tax revenues, which fund a large portion of services on the city side, and said he was uncomfortable with having a deficit as large as what was presented. It was noted that the committee had projected sales tax receipts for next year on the low side with hopes that monies would actually come in at a higher rate. Tax revenues (both
Drive-Thrrough h Ch hang ge
sales tax and property tax) are estimated at $1,923,400 in the proposed budget. One of the expenses contributing to the deficit was a $61,074 transfer from the general revenue fund to the capital budget for payment on the city’s new asphalt plant. It was decided that those funds would be moved back into the general fund, reducing the projected general fund deficit to $158,018. The asphalt plant payment would then be made out of the capital fund. In addition, City Administrator Ron Urton indicated he would be talking with department heads about projects and/or purchases that See Budgets, Page 3
Additional information regarding requirements to use the Wright Memorial Hospital/Hedrick Medical Center temporary COVID-19 drive-through testing site has been announced. Testing can only be done to those individuals who have a physician referral. The referrals must come from providers based in either Grundy, Livingston or Mercer counties. The testing site is located at the former Washington Street Food and Drink location at 1100 Washington St. in Chillicothe, with testing taking place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday. Patients experiencing COVID-19-related symptoms are asked to call their provider to receive further direction. As patients arrive, they wil be asked to follow the traffic flow, stay in their vehicle and be prepared to provide proof of identity and provide their date of birth. Tests will only be administered to those who arrive after receiving qualified physician referral.
TIF He earing Se et The Tax Increment Financing Commission of the city of Trenton will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. on Monday, April 13 to consider a TIF plan from Orscheln Farm and Home to redevelop land at 1840 E. 28th St. and build a new store at that site. Due to COVID-19 concerns, the hearing will be available to the public online. Information regarding how to participate in the meeting will be available on the city’s website, www.trentonmo.com, under “public notices,” closer to the time of the hearing. The plan calls for construction of a 37,026-square-foot building to house the business, along with associated site work and infrastructure. Other areas of the property are being platted for future development. According to state statute, once this plan is initially approved and future redevelopment projects are proposed, such projects may be approved by an amendment to the plan.
Shooting In Be ethany
LIBERTY UTILITIES
Project To Begin This Month
Gas Main Replacement Set Liberty Utilities is planning to replace around 25,000 feet of gas mains within the city of Trenton, beginning later this month. The new plastic mains will replace steel mains that were installed during the 1950s and 1960s. According to information provided by Liberty Utilities, the plastic mains will lessen the chance of corrosion and damage as well as improve the flow and reliability of natural gas to customers. The project will also improve the
system’s mapping capability for safe and quicker accessibility for the natural gas crews. Most of the work is scheduled west of the railroad tracks between 18th Street on the North and Sixth Street to the south. Work on the east side of the tracks will run north of Ninth Street, beginning just west of Harris Avenue to Highland Street, and then continue south of Ninth See Gas, Page 3
National Weather Service
Sunny skies this week with highs in the mid-70s on Wednesday before dropping into the mid-50s on Thursday. The high at Trenton on Wednesday, April 1 was 69, Thursday’s high was 60 with .22 of an inch rain. Friday’s high was 59 with .19 of an inch of rain. The high on Saturday was 45. Sunday’s high reached 61 with a low of 35. The high on Sunday at the Government Weather Station near Spickard was 59, the low was 40.
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Eight Pages CITY COUNCIL Late Fees Suspended
Stay At Home Order Issued
Grundy County continues to be COVID-19 free, according to the Grundy County Health Department, which reports no confirmed local cases of the virus. As of Monday morning, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has reported 2,367 positive cases in Missouri, including 34 deaths. Cases in Caldwell and Linn counties were added over the weekend, with area case counts including Adair with 10, Clinton with seven, Chariton with four, Harrison with two and one each in Caldwell, Linn and Livingston counties. There have been no cases reported in Mercer, Sullivan or Putnam counties. Gov. Mike Parson has implemented a statewide “stay at home” order through Friday, April 24. The order requires all Missourians to remain in their homes except to go to work, access medical care or get basic necessities, such as groceries. Individuals may engage in outdoor activities if proper social distancing is maintained. Social gatherings are still limited to 10 or fewer people. Businesses that provide essential functions are to remain open with additional restrictions on the number of customers that may be inside. The essential business categories are defined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The governor’s order requires the following: • Individuals currently residing within the state of Missouri shall avoid leaving their homes or places of
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A Texas man is facing felony charges after a shooting in Bethany on Sunday. According to online court records, 21-year-old Jackson M. Miesse of Dallas, TX is charged in Harrison County with first degree assault-serious physical injury or special victim, a class A felony, and armed criminal action, an unclassified felony. He is accused of shooting William C. Philley in the chest multiple times in the parking lot of the Super 8 Motel in Bethany. Miesse then fled the scene on foot and was apprehended with the firearm in his possession as well as a pipe that contained residue that it believed to be from methamphetamine. The probable cause statement indicates that Philley was taken to a hospital by air ambulance for emergency surgery. His condition was not available as of press time on Monday morning. In addition to the felony charges, Miesse is charged with a class D misdemeanor of unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.
What’s Inside... While we are restricted in many activities due to COVID-19, getting outside for exercises is not one. R-T Sports Editor Seth Herrold talks about his day of fishing on Sunday in a story appearing on page 2 of today’s Republican-Times.
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SUNNY SKIES
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Water Rate Hike Delayed Stating concerns for Trenton Municipal Utilities customers who may experience financial issues regarding the COVID-19 situation, members of the Trenton City Council voted on Thursday night to postpone a scheduled water rate increase as well as suspend late fees on utility bills. On a 5-3 vote, council members agreed to delay implementing the water rate hike for two months. The increase was scheduled to take effect on April 1 and appear on the May utility bill. The increase has now been pushed back to June and will be reflected on bills received in July. The council will review the increase prior to that time to determine whether to extend the delay. TMU Comptroller Rosetta Marsh said the rate increase had not yet been added to the computer program that calculates the bills, allowing the council to move forward. According to Mrs. Marsh, the planned increase would have raised the average water bill for a residential customer between $4.50 and $4.85 a month (business/industrial increases would be higher). By waiting to implement the increase, the city will not receive around $30,000 of water revenues from residential, business/industrial and water district users that have been included in the 2020-21 budget, recommended earlier in the evening by the Finance Committee for approval by the council. The budget will need to be amended before final approval is given. Voting in favor of postponing the increase were Briggs, Lou Fisher, Danny Brewer, Brad Chumbley and David Mlika. Opposed were Cathie Smith, John Dolan and Larry Crawford, who participated in the meeting via Zoom, along with Mayor Linda Crooks. The council also unanimously voted to suspend late fees on all unpaid utility bills for the next three months. Mrs. Marsh said late fees usually average around $15,000 a month, with the majority of those fees coming from the electric side. That means the city would lose around $45,000 by not assessing the late fee charges. As part of the motion, an emergency plan is to be put together for the Administrative Committee and/or city council to consider if economic conditions don’t improve during the next few months. The council approved a bid of $154,957.50 from Rodriguez Mechanical Contractors of Kansas City to make repairs to the city force main, located on Muddy Creek at See Council, Page 3
What’s Inside
Sports.............................page 2 Local News ....................page 3 Calendars ......................page 3 Across Missouri ............page 4 Comics ...........................page 5 Crosswords....................page 6 Dear Annie ....................page 6 Classifieds .....................page 7 Area News .....................page 8