County seeks grant for traffic control
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In a very brief County Commission meeting, February 11, the Commission gave permission for the Sheriff’s Department to seek a grant for traffic control.
Mike Ryan, of the department, informed the commission about the purpose of the request for the HMV grant. “HMV is Hazardous Movement Violation. It’s a traffic safety grant and what it will do is obviously pay the overtime wages for deputies enforcing traffic laws. We’ll probably set up five-hour blocks for deputies to work in certain areas of the county for highway safety and to try to lower the number of fatality accidents in St. Francois County. Over the course of the last five, six years, St. Francois County is ranked number one or number two.” The ranking was for southeast Missouri. (The Daily Journal can not confirm these statistics)
When asked if there were any required number of stops required to qualify for the grant, Ryan replied, “No, you don’t have to make a certain percentage.” The deputies will be operating during their off-duty hours, and the grant will pay their wages and benefits. Sheriff Crites added, “The only cost to the county is going to be fuel and tires.” The grant would begin in September and continue until October of 2026. The commission gave permission to apply for the grant. The grant is a non-matching grant, meaning it would cost the county nothing. The total grant would be $24,010, equaling payment for 300 hours of traffic enforcement.
Road and Bridge Commissioner, Clay Copeland addressed the Commission over the need to buy and install a guard rail on the north side of the Sand Creek bridge. The cost of the guardrail would be $7,100. The Commission and Copeland agreed that this met the requirements for the need for an emergency purchase. Commission Kater made the motion to approve the purchase which passed unanimously.
Sheriff Crites introduced the new Jail Navigator, Anna Denny, who has been on the job for two weeks. He also gave a brief update on calls made by the department. The department has answered 2070 calls to this point this year. Currently, the jail population stands at 123 with 105 males and 18 females.
Commissioner Kater moved for adjournment which was approved.
The St. Francois County Commission meets every Tuesday, at 10 a.m., in the Commission meeting room, located on the third floor of the Courthouse Annex. Meetings are open to the public.
Dan Schunks is a staff writer for the Daily Journal. He can be reached at dschunks@dailyjournalonline.com.
