Author: News-Press NOW

Cameron Montemayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — City officials are laying the groundwork for significant upgrades to a popular Midtown park with the help of a federal grant application approved Monday, one of several measures approved by City Councilmembers.  

Located at 1805 Sylvanie St., John Lucas Complex could see the replacement of its playground and other large renovations if awarded a $500,000 Land and Water Conservation grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. 

Councilmembers voted Monday to file an application for the federal grant that helps support the development and preservation of public outdoor recreation areas. 

John Lucas Park is pictured on a bright and sunny day in St. Joseph.

“They don’t announce the winners until sometime late in 2026,” St. Joseph Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Atkins said. “We know there’s some things we need to address … the building’s been there since the 1970s and it’s time to upgrade.”

The city hopes to pair the grant with $500,000 in local matching funds for design and construction of a new playground and renovation of the restroom/concession area. The current budget for the playground and restroom/concession would allow for a basic design with simple support facilities. If awarded the LWCF grant, it would allow for a more accessible playground and facilities.

“Making sure the bathrooms are updated and ADA compliant, making sure the building gets a new roof on. The deck that’s adjacent to the building. It’s an old wooden deck now that’s 50 years old,” Atkins said.

Residents will also have the chance to offer input on possible improvements as part of a public meeting on Thursday, Oct. 16th from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Parks and Recreation administration building at 1920 Grand Ave.

Located next to the Bartlett Center, John Lucas Park has served the Midtown area since the 1970s, featuring a playground, basketball courts, picnic tables and shelters.  

City to conduct traffic signal study at Frederick, Noyes and Farleigh Terrace

Engineering consultants will take a closer look at the possibility of an improved traffic signal for a busy Frederick Avenue intersection in St. Joseph. 

Monday’s City Council meeting saw the approval of $33,987 in funds to authorize a signal feasibility study for the intersection of Frederick Avenue, Noyes Boulevard and Farleigh Terrace. 

St. Joseph Public Works and Transportation is considering operational and safety improvements to provide better access for those entering and exiting Farleigh Terrace, the fifth leg of the busy intersection and a challenging neighborhood to access at times.

HDR Engineering will be tasked with evaluating the feasibility and costs of installing the traffic signal and potentially adding new turning lights. As part of the project, a new traffic signal layout will be modeled with software to help determine appropriate signal timings to maximize efficiency. 

Data on Intersection turning counts will also be provided by the city to develop models and determine if concepts will be acceptable in the future.

The city intends to hold a follow-up meeting with neighborhood residents once the study is complete around December, allowing residents to track the progress of the project and offer additional input.

City Hall lighting improvement project on tap

St. Joseph’s chief administration building will soon have the ability to display decorative colors akin to historic buildings in Kansas City. 

Monday’s meeting saw the approval of a $29,950 work order with R/S Electric Corp. for the City Hall exterior decorative lighting project. This form of lighting is typically used to mark celebrations, memorials, and special observances. 

Staff will have the opportunity to showcase support for important social causes, including Breast Cancer Awareness, Law Enforcement Memorials, and State and Federal commemorations.

Additionally, the lighting may be utilized to acknowledge major holidays and other significant community events.

Other bills approved by City Council: 

Amendment to the capital projects fund in the amount of $21,925 to provide additional funding to complete the Civic Arena improvements. 

Execution of a Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission maintenance agreement and a sidewalk improvements agreement for the portion of Route 752 at King Hill avenue to Belding Street. 

Purchase of one sulzer dry pit submersible pump for the Candy Creek Pump Station in the amount of $57,000 from FTC Equipment, LLC, for use by the Water Protection Division. 

A resolution authorizing the purchase of a new 2026 Chevy Equinox from Reed Chevrolet for the property maintenance division utilizing marijuana tax funds in the amount of $30,043.30. 

Amendment to the Mass Transit fund budget to allocate additional 5339 Formula Capital Grant funds received in the amount of $4,199.98 for a total grant amount of $108,190 and appropriating the city’s 20% match in the amount of $1,149 for a total match in the amount of $27,047 and execution of a work order with RS Electric Corp for the purchase and installation of one diesel generator in the amount of $135,238 for the transit administration building.

Nominations and appointments: 

Mayor John Josendale nominates Leslie Ross, 503 S. 31st St., to serve as a member of the Housing Authority for a term expiring Sept. 21, 2026; she is replacing Larry Douglas, whose term has expired. 

Councilmember Michael Grimm nominates Amber Dydell, 1211 N. 19th St., to serve as a member of the Administrative Violation Review Board for a term expiring Oct. 13, 2028; she is replacing Douglas Brownfield, whose term has expired. 

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Praji Ghosh

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The St. Joseph School District Board of Education held a public hearing at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 13, in the Benton High School auditorium.  

This meeting was part of the district’s ongoing conversation about facility consolidation and reorganization — specifically two models that would impact local schools, including Lafayette, Central, Benton high schools and Hyde Elementary School. 

SJSD Board President LaTonya Williams said she knows the board’s decision regarding reorganization will impact the entire community, and she wanted to hear from residents before a decision is made. 

“I understand that this is our decision but it affects every member of the community,” Williams said ahead of the public hearing. “So, if there’s an opinion or a question or a concern, I want to know it.”   

Community members were allowed up to three minutes each to share their thoughts and opinions on changes being discussed by the board. 

A lot of families filled Benton’s auditorium on Monday. Several residents voiced support for SJSD’s plan B — stating they believe it aligns the best with their children’s educational needs. Ultimately, families said they want the school district to make a decision that keeps students’ best interests in mind, and sets them up for success in the future.

Williams said moving forward with the long-range plan will be a benefit for local families, since it will finally bring closure to a discussion that has been ongoing for some time. 

“It’s a commitment from the board to keep their word. It’s been a problem in the district whether you should make a plan or change it,” Williams said. “I want everyone to know that the board is doing the best to make these long-range goals.”

She also said she wants people to feel comfortable walking up to her and sharing their thoughts on the district’s goals, so the board can take those perspectives into account before making a final decision.  

“It’s legal according to the policy and in all honesty, even if it wasn’t a requirement, I planned on asking people to voice their opinions anyway,” Williams said.

Following the hearing, the board remained at Benton for a work session. The work session was originally set to take place at Troester Media Center but was moved to Benton, according to a social media post from Board Member Whitney Lanning.

The board is expected to make its final decision, after reviewing all of the public input, at its meeting on Monday, Oct. 27. 

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TaMya Bracy

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Missouri Western State University hosted the Western District Missouri Court of Appeals Tuesday.

This is the 24th year the university is hosting the event.

Judges Janet Sutton, Gary Witt and W. Douglas Thomson were the three judges in attendance.

The three-judge panel heard oral arguments on four cases. The four cases presented today have already been tried at a trial court level.

The four cases presented were: a first-degree murder, a termination of parental rights, the ownership and transfer of property and employment rights.

Suzanne Kissock, MoWest dean for the College of Business and Professional Studies said there are multiple reasons why a case could be appealed.

“They get appealed because the lawyers are alleging that misconduct occurred or there was judicial error or some sort of legal error that needed to be reviewed by the next level of court, which is the court of appeals,” she said.

Each lawyer got 15 minutes to talk about why the case should be appealed. The judges are allowed to extend the time if they believe lawyers need additional time or if they have additional questions.

After all arguments were made, the judges discussed the court system and allowed the audience to ask questions.

Kissock said this is an excellent opportunity for the community to experience the law firsthand.

“We really want people to have access to understanding, to knowledge, so that they feel like they are empowered citizens. If you don’t understand how government works, it can be very overwhelming and intimidating,” she said.

The court holds oral arguments outside Kansas City to allow the public to familiarize itself with the internal workings of the judicial system.

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Cameron Montemayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — City officials reported a successful and largely routine week of waste disposal for this year’s Clean Sweep at the Sanitary Landfill, a big rebound for the facility after overcoming a year filled with capacity concerns.

Approximately 148 tons of waste were collected in this year’s event from Oct. 1 to Oct. 7, including 64 appliances and 292 tires, according to St. Joseph Public Works and Transportation.

After the cancellation of this year’s Spring Clean Sweep due to expedited landfill cell construction and waste capacity concerns — a situation that has largely been resolved — city officials were prepared for the possibility of a significant increase in waste.

“We really did think that we might get some more tonnage, but it was about average, about normal, just over 600 loads and around 150 tons,” St. Joseph Deputy Director of Operations Keven Schneider said. “We didn’t have any problems. I think everybody was glad to see it.”

By comparison, the landfill received 150 tons of waste during the Fall Clean Sweep in 2024 and 139 tons in 2023. A total of 619 loads were delivered during the latest event, compared with 668 loads in 2024 and 613 in 2023.

“A lot of those vehicles coming to Clean Sweep are passenger vehicles, maybe pickups, and a few small trailers,” he said.

Clean Sweep is designed to assist St. Joseph residents with maintaining their property, allowing them two full days — either in the spring or fall — to dispose of yard waste, trash, and appliances free of charge at the landfill. Residents are allowed to make multiple trips each of those two days.

The St. Joseph Sanitary Landfill is one of the few city-owned landfills operating in the state, with nearly all other facilities being privately owned.

“It’s been pretty successful. It’s good for the citizens and it’s good overall because sometimes that stuff might end up somewhere it’s not supposed to,” Schneider said.

Beyond the event, Schneider said operations have been running smoothly at the landfill following new equipment purchases and the opening of cell 8 in July, a project that had to be expedited due to capacity concerns that threatened a potential soft closure.

City officials worked closely with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in the wake of the situation that escalated last November, a problem caused by trash intake skyrocketing between 2019 and 2024, doubling from an average of 110,000 tons per year to upwards of 220,000 tons.

The situation was further compounded by cell construction delays and staff resources.

“We’re operating well now. We’re getting a lot of traction and we’re getting work on cell nine, so we’ll have it ready in more than enough time,” Schneider said.

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Alec Pascuzzi

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The Continuum of Care for Homeless Services (CoC) is calling for new 2026 general membership members and board members.

The CoC is a group of individuals and agencies working to end and reduce homelessness in Buchanan, Andrew and DeKalb Counties.

Meetings are held at 10 a.m. on the last Wednesday of the month at United Way, located at 118 South 5th St.

The CoC engages in information-sharing, policy-making, resource allocation, training and other similar activities.

The CoC encourages individuals and organizations in the community to get involved.

“We would encourage people to join the Continuum of Care for homeless services, to have a say and a voice, and the solutions and strategies around addressing homelessness and housing in our community,” said Jodi Flurry, the director of community investments at United Way of Greater St. Joseph.

Membership and agency information can be found at www.stjosephmo.gov/854/continuum-of-care.

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Payton Counts

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Soybean farmers are once again feeling the impact of U.S.-China trade tensions.

Back in 2018, soybeans were at the center of a major tariff dispute during the U.S.-China trade war, when China imposed a 25% tariff on American soybeans. The move led to a drop in soybean prices and a decline in export values.

Fast forward to 2025, when a 34% tariff was imposed on soybeans in April.

President Donald Trump has warned he may revive trade measures with additional levies of up to 100% on China-bound U.S. exports, though not specifically on soybeans.

With it being harvest season for Missouri — the nation’s seventh largest soybean producer — and Kansas, ranked tenth, farmers could be facing financial hardships as China continues to boycott this year’s U.S. soybeans.

China remains the largest customer for American soybeans, but if this retaliation continues, the country is expected to purchase $10 billion fewer soybeans than last year.

Missouri has been finding alternative markets to trade with.

University of Missouri Extension agriculture economist Ben Brown said, “China isn’t buying U.S. soybeans, but we are finding, you know, some alternative uses to use product, whether that’s shipping to other countries, whether that’s more domestic uses here in the United States. But it’s not making up for what we lost to China.”

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, China purchased $12.6 billion worth of soybeans in 2024.

Last month, sources indicated that President Trump is considering using tariff revenue to fund a $10 billion aid package for U.S. farmers. This move could offer short-term relief but might not provide long-term stability.

A local farmer from Everest, Kansas, described what farmers are looking for when it comes to the market.

“In the long term, what we really need is we need for good trade negotiations. We need good trading partners. We need to look at a new market development,” said Scott Gigstad, a local farmer. “Agriculture also operates differently than most industries in agriculture, where price takers, not price makers. If something isn’t profitable, doesn’t mean that that might be the best price we get for yield.”

Looking ahead to 2026, one of the major concerns is the rising cost of phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizers, key chemicals needed for the planting cycle.

If conditions continue, it will keep affecting farmers’ profits — and quite possibly wallets as well.

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News-Press NOW

By: Lucas Geisler

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) –

A Missouri judge’s decision to strike down numerous state laws that restricted abortion access can stand, a panel of judges ruled Tuesday morning.

Three judges with the Western District Court of Appeals released their unanimous ruling on Tuesday, upholding a Jackson County judge’s decision to strike the laws following a voter-approved measure on abortion. The attorney general’s office asked the court to reverse Judge Jerri Zhang’s preliminary injunction in September.

Planned Parenthood and the state have been in court since late 2024, just a month after voters passed Amendment 3. The measure enshrined reproductive rights in the state constitution, including access to abortion. Planned Parenthood sued in December 2024, and won a preliminary injunction striking several state laws that restricted when and under what circumstances people could get abortions.

The court said Judge Zhang’s preliminary ruling “does not reflect a ruling that is so arbitrary and unreasonable as to shock the sense of justice or otherwise indicate a lack of careful consideration.”

“Missouri voters approved Section 36 of the Missouri Constitution through the democratic process, demonstrating a clear intent to establish ‘a fundamental right to reproductive freedom’ that ‘shall not [be] den[ied] or infringe[d]’ by the Government,” the judges wrote. “It is in the public interest to prevent violation of those constitutional rights.”

Planned Parenthood and the ACLU are both still asking Judge Zhang to roll back rules restricting medication abortion in the state. The groups said in an emailed statement on Tuesday that they would continue that fight.

“The court rejected this attempt by the Attorney General,  and is continuing to allow Missourians  to exercise their constitutional right to access abortion care where they live,” the statement said. “We will continue fighting for the full implementation of the Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative, including medication abortion.” 

Both sides of the abortion debate are preparing for another ballot issue battle in 2026. The state legislature passed a joint resolution in May asking voters to roll back the 2024 measure.

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News-Press NOW

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce will host a Small Business Summit to provide small business owners and employees with different resources for success.

The Summit will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 29, at Missouri Western State University’s Fulkerson Center.

The event will feature breakout sessions, a Cup of Joe session, a resource fair and a keynote presentation by Jon McGraw, co-founder of Vision Pursue and former professional athlete.

Breakout sessions will include topics about the World Cup’s impact on business and community engagement, IT tools and cyber security, marketing strategies to reach new customers and finance essentials to help businesses grow and thrive.

The event is open to the public, includes lunch and costs $25 to attend.

For more information, call 816-232-4461 or email masters@saintjoseph.com.

The Summit is held annually with the MoWest Steven L. Craig School of Business. SJC Marketing, St. Joe Petroleum and Fastgas are presenting sponsors.

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News-Press NOW

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — A crash between an electric bicycle and a car Thursday afternoon sent one person to the hospital and temporarily blocked off one lane of traffic on King Hill Avenue.

The crash occurred around 3 p.m. Thursday as a person on an electric bicycle was traveling north in the southbound lane of King Hill Avenue and was struck by a vehicle, according to Sgt. Patrick Zeamer with the St. Joseph Police Department.

The bicycle rider’s shoe and front wheel are pictured in the road.

The driver of the bicycle was transported to Mosaic Life Care in St. Joseph for serious injuries. As of Thursday night, the biker remains in critical condition at the hospital, according to a sergeant with the St. Joseph Police Department.

The collision is currently under investigation.

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Alec Pascuzzi

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Downtown St. Joseph will be lively with fans of one well-known country singer.

Parker McCollum is performing on Thursday, Oct. 9, at the St. Joseph Civic Arena.

For those planning to attend, there are a few things to be aware of when it comes to parking.

The west side parking lot is closed off, but the east side parking garage is open to the public, as well as general parking in Downtown.

Attendees are encouraged to arrive around 6 p.m. or before to secure a parking spot.

News-Press NOW caught up with a country music fan outside of Civic Arena on Thursday afternoon to get his perspective on when he thinks fans will show up.

“For a big name like parker, I’m sure there’ll be people here that are probably already here around the corner.” Alex Wisecup said. “If not, I’m sure they’ll be here pretty soon in a couple hours. So, six or seven hours before doors open, you got some fans that’ll come up for him.”

The doors open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m.

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