Public Hearing March 12: Doniphan Special Road Commissioners Resign, County Commission Poised To Take Over District

Road commissioners Ron Barnett, Chris Lowery and John Leroux of the Doniphan Special Road District have each tendered their resignations.

Dissolution of the district is pending the outcome of a March 12 public hearing of the Ripley County Commission. The hearing is set for 8:30 a.m., and afterward the commission will decide whether to add the Doniphan district and its crew to the 13 districts the county already maintains.

Should the commission decide to assume control, the process is expected to take at least 60 days from the date of dissolution, according to Presiding Commissioner Jesse Roy.

Ripley County Road Crew Foreman Dale Beston was appointed acting supervisor of the Doniphan district’s two road crew operators during a Feb. 5 meeting of the commission. The district also employs a bookkeeper. There is no plan at this time for a layoff of the Doniphan district’s employees.

Beston will keep separate invoices for all labor and materials used by Doniphan Special until such time as its leadership is established.

In accordance with Missouri statute 233.290, five public notices have been placed in “conspicuous” locations. Those include: Ripley County Courthouse, Munch-N-Pumps in the West Doniphan area and (near Quality Rental), and at Harp’s Grocery.

The three road commissioners stated their decision was made “in the best interest of the citizens of the Doniphan Special Road District, which is one of six districts which has operated independently from the county.

If the commission chooses to accept the Doniphan district, all assets and debts will be turned over, and it will keep the DSRD’s CART allocations. Alternatively, the commission could appoint new road commissioners.

Commissioner Roy said, it is vital that anyone in the district that wants to weigh in on the matter attend the public meeting.

“We will hear from the public, to find out what they want, and then decide what to do,” said Roy.

Roads are a concern to everyone, and there are 425 miles of gravel/dirt roads in Ripley County.

To put things in perspective, the Doniphan Special Road District encompasses the 85 miles of gravel which surround the city of Doniphan.

Commissioner Gary Emmons pointed out, “Part of the problem for crews is that no two roads are the same. Every one grades differently.”

Further complicating road maintenance, there is no controlling the weather. (“It rains on the just as well as the unjust”). Weather conditions dictate the grading schedule and, therefore, also road workers’ ability to keep up with the demands for maintenance and gravel.

Some roads have ditches, some do not, and water will go wherever it can. Even after a road is graded or gravel is laid, a hard rain before the road gets “packed in” by traffic more often than not results in wash off and worse, clogged culverts.

It’s a never ending cycle, and it is the responsibility of road commissioners to take complaints, inspect the problems and prioritize daily. The longer the list of complaints, the longer the wait.

The county crews commit to grading each road at least five times throughout the year, and Beston says many of the higher trafficked roads get attention more often than that.

Beston says if the county assumes the Doniphan district, he will hire and train whatever personnel he deems necessary to add its 85 miles to his maintenance schedule.

In other business, Ripley County Sheriff Rad Talburt and office manager Sara Davis were present at the meeting to hear and share updates relative to their department.

Sheriff Talburt reported that there are no grants currently available to help with the purchase of body cameras for deputies. “The cameras are relatively inexpensive, but you have to have the cloud, for storage, which is costly,” he said.

He presented a quote for “right at $9,000,” which he said includes a first-time discount of 35 percent.

“This has always been a high priority item, because they protect the officers and citizens. Prosecutors also support them, because they also protect the county from lawsuits. When you have cameras you know what’s going on,” said Talburt.

Another high priority for the sheriff has been to get full time law enforcement protection for Naylor.

The sheriff said he is still working with the city of Naylor and Naylor R-II to try and come up with a shared cost arrangement for placing an officer there.

He reported that within his first month in office several drug busts have been made, through cooperation with SEMO Drug Task Force.

The department now has two of the three patrol cars that were purchased through the Missouri Highway Patrol, and the third one is to be picked up this week. “This will make our fleet complete,” he said.

Davis commented, “It’s so nice to have vehicles that function. Morale in the office is awesome.”

Talburt reported that he is within days of having the evidence catalogued.

His intention is to determine which cases have been resolved and return property to their rightful owners. Anything confiscated that isn’t returned will become part of a sheriff’s auction in the Spring. Evidence that are part of a murder must be kept.

Treasurer Terry Slayton brought up an issue with drug testing fees which are being collected at the detention center, but no receipts have been submitted. Roy said he and the sheriff would meet with the jail administrator to determine what paperwork exists and make sure the staff knows how the fees need to be processed for accounting.

Roy said he believes the fees charged are intended to cover actual costs, and not for profit.

Slayton said he would like for an auditor to be consulted before the money gets recorded.

The commission meetings for February are at 9 a.m., each Wednesday. However, there will be no meeting Feb. 26 due to commissioners’ mandatory meeting in Jefferson City.