Issue 70 | December 2022

I would like to talk to you about our beautiful city! Have you ever wanted to be more involved in your local government, get an update on your city, ask questions or talk to someone who will listen? Please join me on Saturday, December 10th for a Meeting with the Mayor at the Ozark Community Center. Bring any questions you have, this is a casual audience-driven event.

This is a casual come-and-go event from 9-10:30 am. Please stop in. I would love to talk with you

McCracken Road at 3^rd St. Intersection Improvements

As a citizen who drives every day in Ozark you certainly recognize our volume of traffic is becoming more not less. The City of Ozark continues to be a highly desirable market for developers, both residential and commercial, because of the many wonderful attributes our community has to offer. As new growth occurs the impact that growth has on our infrastructure system, specifically transportation, creates significant demands for increased capacity. As a river community, bridges are a critical component to the transportation system as well as managing the flood waters that can cause road closures, increase safety risks, and cause property damage.

Knowing growth and economic development is intricately tied to transportation improvements, in 2019 Governor Mike Parsons created the Governor’s Transportation Cost Share Program, specifically focused on funding local transportation improvements that would advance economic development projects in Missouri while also improving capacity and safety. 

The City of Ozark, in partnership with Christian County, Ozark Special Road District, and the Finley Farms Transportation Development District, submitted an application to receive some of these funds for a project in Ozark. We were fortunately successful in our application and in the summer of 2020 received a Governor’s Cost Share Grant with a project scope that included:

1. The reconstruction and rehabilitation of the 95-year old Mill Pond Bridge;
2. The reconstruction of the intersection of North 3^rd Street and McCracken Road;
3. The rising of the roadway elevation to provide new storm water boxes that will decrease the negative impact of frequent flooding events;
4. Improve safety with the addition of new intersection approaches, striped turn lanes, directional islands, and improved signage.  

This project was originally scheduled for late summer 2020, however, due to the COVID pandemic causing supply and labor shortages, increased costs, and funding delays an extension request was necessary and a new “Phased” timeline was developed as outlined below:

Crews will begin construction on the improvements to the 3^rd and McCracken intersection and the Rehabilitation of the McCracken Road Bridge on December 5, 2022.  Work will include the reconstruction of the 3^rd and McCracken intersection to allow a thru north-south traffic movement. Improvements will also include the addition of multi-use pedestrian tunnels below McCracken Road and 3^rd Street. The pedestrian tunnels will serve new trails connecting the Finley River Park, the Ozark Mill site, and the future Garrison Branch trail extension.  Lastly the improvements will include the rehabilitation of the existing McCracken Road Bridge over the Finley River.  The improvements are anticipated to occur in five (5) phases.

We want to keep you updated as best as possible through the PHASES of this project. We will also post all road closure information on our social media accounts. Please see below for information on Phase One(1). Phases TWO-FIVE (2-5) are listed on the website.

Phase One(1) Consists of the installation of the northern pedestrian tunnel crossing under McCracken Road just west of the existing 3rd Street intersection. This phase will require the closure of McCracken Road from 4th Street to 3rd Street. McCracken Road will be closed beginning December 19th. It is anticipated that McCracken Road will be closed until January 16th, 2023 (weather pending)

Please see below for Phase One (1) detour information

To stay up to date on this project, and read more about the phases coming up. visit our website by clicking the button below

Attend meetings in person or virtually!

October was Fire Prevention Month and this year’s theme was “Fire Won’t Wait. Plan Your Escape.” This year was a major success as we took the fire prevention initiative to every Ozark elementary school and presented the children with public safety education material and truck tours. Crews love interacting with community members, especially children, since we are children at heart. This year, we were able to provide educational information to more than 1,200 children. We were also able to distribute more than 78 battery-operated smoke detectors at no cost to citizens through neighborhood smoke detector programs.         

We would like to congratulate Austin Essick on his recent promotion to the rank of Engineer. Engineer Essick has been with the organization since 2019 and excelled as a firefighter.  He will serve as the operator of the district’s apparatus and step-up officer when required. We are extremely happy for Austin and the hard work he put in to achieve this promotion.  

A bittersweet event will occur for the Ozark Fire District in December. Battalion Chief Shawn Martin has announced his retirement, which will be effective December 9, 2022. Chief Martin has been with the district since 2015 when he was hired as one of the initial 3 Battalion Chief Officers. Shawn previously served with the Springfield Fire Department for 20 years, 2 months, and 2 days and was promoted to the rank of Captain before retiring. Shawn served as the International Association of Firefighters Local 152 Secretary for 6 years before becoming the President and serving for 7 Years. We are blessed to have had Chief Martin with the Ozark Fire District. Over the past 7 years, he has been influential in developing the organization’s policies and procedures, collective bargaining negotiations, and working to maintain district equipment and medical supplies. We wish him all the success in his future endeavors, and he will be missed tremendously.  

The holiday season is upon us, and as always, we want to encourage citizens to be fire-safe in all they do. Tis the season to fry a turkey or bake a ham. Please ensure you have conducted the proper research before attempting this for the first time. Visit the linked video for fire prevention tips on how NOT to fry a turkey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFnn9Ab1n9Q. Always remember to check that the stove is off when you’re finished cooking. One of the causes we see when fighting residential fires is combustible material left atop a stove that has been left on. Be safe, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday.  

Respectfully;

Aaron S. Heaton

Assistant Chief

aheaton@ozarkfire.org

Ozark Fire Protection District

Station: (417) 581-4436

Fax: (417) 581-4496

Watch the magic unfold as you take a horse-drawn stagecoach to view over a mile of twinkling lights at Finley River Park, or enjoy a nice stroll through the festival of lights at Finley River Park. Reservations for carriage rides (whether a single, couple or full carriage) are able to be made online or at The OC Front Desk.

Prices vary by registration type;

Individual seated riders: $25/person.

Children seated in the laps: $10/child

Couples: $40

Renting a private carriage (fitting four adults and two children):$120.

Enjoy swim lessons all year long in our heated indoor pool!

Classes are run monthly.

Cost:

Registered by the 1st of the month;

$35 a month/ Annual Members

$45 a month/ Non-Members

Registered AFTER the 1st of the month;

$45 a month/ Annual Members

$55 a month/ Non-Members

Register at the OC Front Desk or use the button below.

Call 417-581-7002 for more information!

Private and semi-private swimming lessons

We offer private and semi-private swimming lessons for all ages and skill levels. One-on-one private lessons or two-on-one semi-private lessons are both great options for young swimmers to learn at a pace that’s best for them.

Private lessons are offered in eight 30-minute sessions or four

one-hour-long sessions.

Cost:

Private Lessons

$125 a month/ Annual Members

$135 a month/ Non-Members

Semi-private Lessons

$85 a month/ Annual Members

$90 a month/ Non-Members

Mark your calendars to celebrate "Friday Night Lights" on the Friday evenings in December leading up to Christmas! Christian County, Ozark’s Historic River District, the City of Ozark and the Ozark Chamber of Commerce are all working together to bring this event to the community!

The County and downtown businesses will be "Decking the Halls" with beautiful light displays. Each night will have something special planned, including live music (listed below), local shopping, food trucks, a visit from Santa Claus, horse carriage rides(only 12/9 and 12/16), and MUCH more!

December 2

Emergency Responders Night!

Chadwick Schools performing

December 9

5:00 Clever School Choir

5:30 Sparta School Choir

6:30 OHS Jazz Band

December 16

5:30 OHS Band

6:30 OHS Choir

Santa’s mailbox will be available at the gazebo starting November 19th through December 16th for visitors to submit letters to Santa Claus. Santa will visit briefly at 6:00 pm each Friday night to pick up the letters and wave hello!

Photo opportunities throughout the square!

Finley Farms would like to invite you to visit The Workshop during Ozark’s Friday Night Lights, where you can enjoy a seasonal holiday beverage, stay warm next to the crackling fireplace and treat yourself to some gooey s’mores under the crisp, cool December night’s sky. The Workshop will stay open late with limited offerings on one special night, December 16^th, until 8 PM.

ALL PRESENTING DONORS WILL GET A

$10 AMAZON GIFT CARD!! 

December is a very tough month in the blood world due to the holidays and that really takes a hit on our blood supply due to increased travel, more car accidents, etc. Our blood supply is already very low and it is important that we do all we can to collect as much blood to ensure hospital patients have it around the holiday season. So thanks for doing a drive with us!

Happy Holidays

This holiday season, Republic Services drivers and staff will be celebrating the holidays with their families.

All residential route service days will remain on the normal schedule during the weeks of Christmas and New Year's holiday.

Public Invited to Discuss Priority Unfunded Transportation Needs

Regional Planning Partners Work Together to Determine Next Projects

JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri’s transportation system is a tremendous asset including 33,825 miles of roads and 10,387 bridges. The system ranks among the largest for any state in the nation. The Missouri Department of Transportation working with its statewide regional planning partners have identified $1 billion in annual unfunded needs. From the broader unfunded needs, MoDOT has developed a High Priority Unfunded Needs list to guide the development of projects into funded projects as state and federal transportation funds increase.

The public is invited to a meeting to discuss the draft updated High Priority Unfunded Needs list for transportation in Southwest Missouri. Two meetings will be held in the Southwest region as follows:



Monday, November 28, 9:30 am at the Joplin Public Safety Center, 5102 Swede Lane, Webb City, MO 64870

Monday, December 5, 10 am at The Library Center, Community Room B, 4653 S. Campbell Avenue, Springfield, 65810

The presentation materials and a comment form are also available online at https://www.modot.org/unfundedneeds.

MoDOT staff have worked with metropolitan planning organizations and regional planning commissions throughout the state to develop a list of high priority unfunded road and bridge needs. The draft project-specific lists include $4.6 billion in road and bridge projects in three tiers. Tier one includes $528 million and includes projects we could accomplish in the time of the current five-year STIP as federal and state funding levels increase. These projects have good estimates. Tier two is worth $2 billion and includes projects beyond the current STIP timeframe with broader estimates. Tier three includes $2.1 billion of projects also beyond the current STIP timeframe with broader estimates. In addition, DOT staff worked with the planning partners to identify $1 billion in multimodal needs. 

“Even with additional revenue, transportation needs greatly outweigh funding available, and we are working through the challenges of increasing project costs due to higher inflation,” said MoDOT Director Patrick McKenna. “Across every region of the state, feedback from Missourians has consistently prioritized maintaining the existing system as the highest priority. Other priorities include projects that improve safety, spur economic growth, and provide more transportation choices. We appreciate Missourians input in this new draft as we work to prioritize the projects that provide the greatest value to taxpayers.”

The draft document and comment forms will be available online through December 21 at https://www.modot.org/unfundedneeds. For more information, call MoDOT Southwest at 417-895-7600 or visit www.modot.org. To receive the latest statewide news and text alerts, signup for e-updates.

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(Take the Challenge! Buckle Up/Phone Down)