Author: News-Press NOW

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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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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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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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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Rebecca Evans

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — A piece of Downtown St. Joseph’s history is getting a modern makeover.

The city’s first designer apartments and retail spaces are set to open soon at 716-718 Felix Street, across from Coleman Hawkins Park in Downtown.

Developed by Juniper Lane and Fox Creek Design LLC, the project is transforming a 150-year-old building into a blend of high-end residential living and retail opportunity. The redevelopment will preserve much of the building’s historic character, while adding modern design elements and upscale finishes.

“This building has been vacant my whole life. We could use some more retail spaces just to bring people Downtown and get people shopping,” Jamie Donaldson, a developer, said.

Once complete, the space will feature eight luxury apartments on the upper floors and retail suites on the street level, bringing new energy and investment to the area of town.

Developers said the goal is to create a destination supporting both stylish, urban living and the growth of small businesses in the city’s historic core.

“It’s right on the square to get more traction…,” Donaldson said. “And also have some more housing available for people Downtown.”

Construction is well underway on the long-standing property. Retail spaces are currently being preleased and preleasing for the apartment spaces will begin in the spring.

The estimated cost for a unit is $1,975 a month. Leasing terms are flexible and a free rent promotion is offered with an early lease agreement. For more information or to apply call 816-617-8797.

The team hopes the mix of retail and residential will not only bring new life to Felix Street but also inspire others to invest in Downtown.

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Carter Ostermiller

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office’s new ‘Seek Then Speak‘ program has just been announced as a new online resource for sexual assault victims.

The program can be accessed through an application, which provides survivors with steps to seek help and create a report.

News-Press NOW reached out to the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office to discuss the goal of the new program.

“If we can increase the reporting of sexual assault and, you know, the removal of suspects from the street, then obviously we’re making our community a safer place,” Sheriff Bill Puett said.

According to a Facebook post from the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office, “SEEK helps survivors and supports people gathering information and exploring options, while SPEAK provides a way for survivors to begin the process of reporting to law enforcement by completing a self-guided interview and generating a report.”

More information about the app and program can be found at www.evawintl.org/seek-then-speak-resources/.

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Cameron Montemayor

BUCHANAN COUNTY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The Missouri Department of Conservation confirmed a rare sighting of a mountain lion this September in Northwest Missouri near St. Joseph, one of just four confirmed sightings in the last four years of the elusive and shy cat in the region.

Department officials confirmed to News-Press NOW the authenticity of trail camera footage of a mountain lion captured just before 10 p.m. on Sept. 22 in northeast Buchanan County.

“Mountain lion sightings are not very common in northwestern Missouri, but they do happen on rare occasions. Our last confirmed sighting in the region was in February, and there have only been about three in the northwest in the last four years,” said Erin Woodiel, media specialist with MDC’s Kansas City and Northwestern regions.

The owner of the trail camera told News-Press NOW the images were captured in Buchanan County, following earlier sightings of the large feline making its way through Andrew County, coming as close as Amazonia.

The camera was located just 15 miles northeast of St. Joseph — just west of Clarksdale, Missouri — when it captured footage of the mountain lion, also known as a cougar. Photos posted on Facebook earlier this week by another Northwest Missouri resident appear to show a mountain lion near Savannah on Sept. 19, a sighting unconfirmed by the department.

This trail camera screenshot shows a mountain lion walking through a field west of Clarksdale, Missouri, just before 10 p.m. on Sept. 22, roughly 15 miles northeast of St. Joseph.

“Mountain lions don’t tend to linger in one spot for too long, and they have a fairly large range of movement, so it is much more likely that other sightings in the area would be of the same cat moving through as opposed to multiple individuals,” Woodiel said. “As with any wild animal sighting, we remind the public to Keep Wildlife Wild and to not approach or attempt to interact with or feed the animal. If it doesn’t feel threatened or cornered, it won’t bother the public and will continue on its way.” 

She said a majority of sightings statewide have been single male mountain lions likely grown up and traveling along the Missouri River corridor in search of their own territory. Genetic samples in the past from cougars found traveling through Missouri suggest many are coming from western states, according to the department’s website.

Measuring up to 8 feet long and weighing between 64 and 265 pounds, depending on whether it’s male or female, mountain lions are solitary animals and attacks on humans are rare. Missouri does not have an established breeding population, and no evidence has been recorded of reproduction.

“Mountain lions are naturally shy of people and seldom cause problems, even in states with thriving populations,” a page on MDC’s website reads. “The danger of a mountain lion attack is highly unlikely compared to many other familiar dangers we encounter every day. Fatal mountain lion attacks have averaged one every seven years since 1980.”

As of late 2024, the Missouri Department of Conservation had confirmed roughly 120 mountain lion sightings and reports since 1996. More than a dozen official sightings have occurred statewide in 2025.

Each year, MDC’s Large Carnivore Response Team investigates hundreds of mountain lion reports.

Of the thousands of reports received since 1994, less than 1% have yielded enough physical evidence to clearly confirm the presence of a mountain lion, although sightings have increased since 2006, in large part due to the popularity of trail cameras.

Woodiel said the public is encouraged to report sightings to a local conservation agent, particularly if physical evidence or photo/video evidence is available. Residents can also email the LCRT team at mountain.lion@mdc.mo.gov to contact the Response Team directly.

More information on mountain lions can be found on the department’s website at mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/mountain-lion.

State game agencies estimate mountain lion populations in the U.S. to be between 20,000 and 40,000.

This undated photo provided by the U.S. National Park Service shows a mountain lion photographed in the Santa Monica Mountain range in California.

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