Government

By Chris Fortune Buchanan County officially has guidelines for any future development of solar farms on its land. The Buchanan County commissioners unanimously approved solar farm regulations last week after receiving the final draft in July. It took two years working in tandem with the planning and zoning commission to establish guidelines for large developers

By Cameron Montemayor St. Joseph’s growing mountain bike landscape will see a new and enhanced attraction in the future following approval from city council on Monday. Council members authorized an agreement with American Ramp Company for design-build services for a new pump track at Huston-Wyeth Park using $347,395 in transient guest tax funds. The project

By Chris Fortune City officials are seeking input from the community for the future development of Coleman Hawkins Park. The St. Joseph Parks, Recreation and Civic Facilities department is hosting a community engagement open house at the Felix Street Square concessions building at Felix and Seventh streets on Friday during the Sounds of Summer concert

By NewsPress Now A city official’s interim leadership position has become permanent. Dawn Lanning has been named director of the city’s finance department. A St. Joseph native, she has been with the city since 2000 and served as interim finance director since March 2023. The department has enhanced analysis and reporting, improved the annual budget

By Chris Fortune A recent settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency will help clear the way for the city of St. Joseph to redevelop a Downtown building. The Midwest region of the EPA entered into a settlement agreement on Wednesday with the city of St. Joseph to move forward with the cleanup and demolition of

By NewsPress Now Bryan Carter has announced his resignation as St. Joseph’s city manager, effective Sept. 6, 2024. Carter has served in the city manager role since January 2021, when he was initially named interim city manager following the resignation of then-city manager Gary Edwards. Carter previously served in the city’s legal department beginning in

By Cameron Montemayor City leaders took steps to prepare for the future of the Aquatic Park lap pool should they decide to replace it with a new one or move forward with a YMCA partnership for a new facility up north. On Monday, council members approved a $23,500 work order with Snyder & Associates to

By Chris Fortune Before deciding to put water back in Lake Contrary, a path must be cleared for a dredge to do its work. Buchanan County held its second public meeting for Lake Contrary at the Remington Nature Center on Thursday night as a potential dredging project continues to gain traction. A representative with Opterra

By Cameron Montemayor City leaders and elected officials began the process of mapping out how to distribute the last remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds dispersed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The City of St. Joseph has around $1.6 million remaining in ARPA funds that must be obligated by Dec. 31 and spent by Dec. 31,

By NewsPress Now Extensive window replacement work at St. Joseph’s chief administration building continued in the sweltering summer heat on Monday. Large scaffolding could be seen blanketing the front of City Hall on Monday part of a large window replacement project that began in June and is expected to last until the fall. Access through

By Chris Fortune An engineering report yielded positive results for the county as it continues working toward acquiring a permit to dredge Lake Contrary. Terracon, an engineering consultant based out of Lenexa, Kansas, collected soil samples around Lake Contrary in June. It was a seepage analysis to assess the risk of undermining the nearby levee,

By Chris Fortune St. Joseph residents will have one less outlet to beat the summer heat after Friday. The City of St. Joseph shared a reminder across its social media accounts this week that Krug Pool will close for the season on July 26. As News-Press NOW previously reported, this is Krug Pool’s final season

By NewsPress Now St. Joseph’s animal control and rescue shelter will see new hours of operation starting in August, the St. Joseph Health Department announced Wednesday. The shelter currently runs Monday through Saturday, closing anywhere between 4:30 and 6:30 p.m. depending on the day. Starting Aug. 18, the shelter will now be open to the

By Cameron Montemayor It was a busy evening at City Hall on Monday as city leaders engaged in key discussions with museum officials about strengthening development of business and funding plans to improve its long-term financial sustainability.  St. Joseph Museums — which includes four museums and other attractions — had a $50,000 operating deficit last fiscal year

By NewsPress Now Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt said he sent letters Monday to cabinet secretaries in the Biden Administration calling for them to invoke the 25th Amendment and demanded the president’s immediate resignation. The move comes a day after Joe Biden announced he would not seek reelection and endorsed his vice president, Kamala Harris, as

By Cameron Montemayor Buchanan County Commissioners are poised to develop an ordinance for senior property tax relief following approval of amended legislation by Missouri Gov. Mike Parson last week. Senate Bill 756, sponsored by Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, R-Parkville, clarifies language and definitions that grant real property tax credits to senior citizens ages 62 and older.

By Kendra Simpson With Joe Biden dropping out of the presidential race, St. Joseph residents say they are unsure what impact the move will have at the polls come November. ”It’s going to be interesting,” St. Joseph resident Peter Cecil said. “Whereas the Chinese say, ‘We live in interesting times,’ both sides are going to