Eight counties | 36 cities | one region

ST. JAMES—Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) elected a new slate of officers at its May 11 board meeting. For the 2023-2024 year, Representative for the Unemployed Mary Heywood of Bourbon was elected chairman. Osage County Presiding Commissioner Darryl Griffin was elected Vice Chairman, Phelps County Presiding Commissioner Joey Auxier was elected secretary and Waynesville Mayor Sean Wilson was elected treasurer. Heywood, previously vice chairman, replaces Steve Vogt, representative of Belle, who had served two consecutive terms as chairman. New officers assume their duties with the June 8 meeting. 

The board all approved the Fiscal Year 2023-2024 budget as presented by MRPC Fiscal Officer Linda Loughridge. MRPC expects to bring in $3,651,699 in revenue and expend $3,637,800 for a profit of $13,899. Loughridge provided a breakdown of the budget, major expenses and changes by department to the board. Approximately 63 percent of funds come from federal source, 23 percent come from local contractual sources, 11 percent from state sources and 3 percent from MRPC membership dues. The 2023-2024 budget supports 26 full-time employees and seven part-time employees. 

In other business, the MRPC board:

• Held a moment of silence for Board Member Gary Brown, who served as the for-profit representative for Dent County and passed unexpectedly on May 1, 2023;
• Heard an update on Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District’s Trashasaurus and Earth Day efforts. Trashasaurus is a new illegal dump mascot used to bring about awareness to environmental issues addressed by Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District;
• Approved the purchase of an unbudgeted plotter through an EDA CARES grant; and
• Heard a report on MRPC’s business loans programs, how the programs work and dollars available for lending.

Formed in 1969, MRPC is a voluntary council of governments serving Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Osage, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington counties and their respective cities. Steve Vogt, representing the city of Belle, serves as chairman of the board. A professional staff of 33 offers technical assistance and services, such as grant preparation and administration, housing assistance, transportation planning, environmental planning, ordinance codification, business loans and other services to member communities.

To keep up with the latest MRPC news and events, visit the MRPC website at www.meramecregion.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/meramecregion/.

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