BY Buck Collier

special correspondent

HERMANN — Sarah Rothermich has been named as a Gasconade County representative to the Scenic Regional Library District Board of Directors.

The appointment was made Thursday morning. Rothermich, the wife of Dr. Michael Rothermich, chief of staff at Hermann Area District Hospital, assumes the seat held by Michele Fehlings, who died recently.

Sarah Rothermich was named to the post by Associate Commissioners Jerry Lairmore, R-Owensville, and Jim Holland, R-Hermann. Lairmore, acting as the top administrator in the absence of Presiding Commissioner Larry Miskel, R-Hermann, recommended the appointment.

In other matters during the less-than-30-minute meeting, the Commission delayed discussion on the latest proposal from consulting engineer Archer-Elgin regarding a possible elevator study until Miskel is in attendance. Engineering work might also be needed as part of the repair project on a portion of the floor in the Circuit Clerk & Recorder of Deeds Office.

All intergovernmental agreements with the five municipalities participating in the revenue-sharing plan for the county’s half-cent sales tax for law enforcement are in hand, said County Clerk Lesa Lietzow. 

“Everything’s turned in and we’re good to go,” Lietzow told the Commission.

Under the program, Owensville, Hermann, Rosebud, Bland and Gasconade will receive a portion of a 25-percent set-aside of the revenue raised by the half-cent sales tax. Set to begin Oct. 1, the tax is projected to raise about $1 million a year, based on funds generated by the county’s other sales taxes. Each city will receive a share based on its population. The remainder of the amount raised by the tax (75 percent) remains with the Gasconade County Sheriff’s Department.

The city of Morrison is not receiving a share of the funds because it does not have its own certified law enforcement officer, as do the other cities.

Meanwhile, even though October has yet to begin, county administrators are looking at some possibly busy November sessions. On Thursday, Nov. 10, the Commission will hold its annual meeting with Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) Executive Director Bonnie Prigge and Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) Regional Engineer Preston Kramer to consider the county’s updated list of priority transportation projects.

The countywide Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP) that comes out of the session is forwarded to MRPC to be considered by that agency’s Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC).

The TAC, which includes Lairmore as one of Gasconade County’s representatives, will consider the TIPS crafted by all eight counties within the Meramec Region and come up with recommended list of possible projects throughout the region. That list will be reviewed and accepted or modified by the MRPC Board of Directors.

The final version of the TIP then will be forwarded for consideration by MoDOT officials, who will craft the statewide TIP. The transportation plan is a 5-year program and is updated each year with completed projects coming off, new projects going on and some others being dropped from consideration.

Agreement up for renewal with Ameren

On Thursday, Nov. 17, the administrators are scheduled to meet with John Bassford of Ameren Missouri to discuss renewal of the letter of agreement between the county and the utility regarding the Callaway Nuclear Power Plant. The agreement, which is scheduled to be renewed every two years, is the basis for financial support from Ameren to the county’s Emergency Management Agency (EMA). 

Gasconade County is one of four counties in the nuclear plant’s so-called “radiation zone” and has in place plans for dealing with emergencies that might arise at the nuclear power generating facility. Regular drills are conducted by the county, which now are being overseen by Emergency Management Director Clyde Zelch, and those drills historically have received high marks from state and federal government observers who monitor the drills.

Inventory lists submitted

Lietzow reported that all county government departments have submitted their inventory lists as part of county government’s regular effort to obtain liability insurance quotes. 

“That’s been quite a project, getting all of that (information) entered” onto a spreadsheet for insurers to review, Lietzow said.