Category: kmiz-local-news

Stephi Smith

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Jefferson City Council introduced a bill and approved a resolution related to a new downtown parking garage at its meeting Monday.

The council introduced a bill authorizing the sale of $35 million in bonds to finance a new parking garage at the corner of Madison Street and East Capitol Avenue.

The garage will replace the former Madison Street garage, which closed in 2024 and was demolished in 2025 because of deterioration. The new garage is estimated to be completed in early 2028, according to city documents.

The city is also planning a new conference center and hotel on the same lot as the garage.

The City Council hired Garfield Public/Private LLC to oversee the conference center project. According to developer documents, the garage would have 567 parking spaces. The hotel would have 215 rooms, and the conference center would have about 30,000 square feet of meeting and event space.

The total cost of the conference center, hotel and garage project is estimated at $145 million. Most of the funding will come from bonds repaid through revenue from the new hotel, the city’s 7% lodging tax and public parking, according to documents from the developer.

The council also unanimously approved a resolution reserving 100 of the 567 garage spaces for the state government.

In September, the council accepted $15 million from the state for a new downtown Jefferson City garage through a consent agenda item. The money was conditional on reserving those parking spaces for the state.

The parking spaces would be reserved for the state Office of Administration and could not be sublet to other parties. The $15 million must be spent by June 10, 2027, according to the consent agenda item.

The city could use the 100 spaces “during weekdays outside of normal State business hours and on weekends,” according to the proposed parking agreement with the state.

Jefferson City Ward 3 Councilwoman Julie Allen said the former garage, which held almost 600 spaces, had a similar amount of reserved spaces for state government employees. A parking study from 2024 also indicates the state government held around 100 permits in the old Madison Street garage.

“Those 100 parking spaces is really just an extension of what previously had been done. And obviously with them providing the appropriation, it’s appropriate to give them some spots,” Allen said.

Allen said the $15 million from the state and annual public parking revenue through fines and fees will be sufficient to pay for the new garage.

“And in addition, there will be an annual audit of the funds to make sure that they’re being appropriately collected and used…there’s going to be plenty of checks and balances,” Allen said.

Luke Holtschneider, CEO and president of the Jefferson City Regional Economic Partnership, said in an email that the city is issuing the parking revenue bonds first instead of waiting to finalize all of the bonds at the same time.

“The former garage has already been demolished, so a big priority is maintaining momentum and getting replacement parking back in place downtown as soon as possible,” Holtschneider said.

The Jefferson City Council meets at 6 p.m. at 320 E. McCarty St.

Click here to follow the original article.

ABC 17 News Team

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Click here to follow the original article.

Demetra Alarcon

MEXICO, Mo. (KMIZ)

An appeal hearing in the murder of a snake breeder stalled Monday in Audrain County after an attorney failed to appear.

Michael Humphrey filed the motion seeking to vacate or set aside his sentence in the killing of Ben Renick in Montgomery County, claiming his constitutional rights were violated by ineffective legal representation.

The judge noted that the defense attorney sent an email prior to the 9 a.m. hearing stating she was sick. However, no affidavit validating her absence had been filed, nor had any subpoenas been served before the hearing. When asked, Humphrey offered no comment regarding his attorney’s absence.

Prosecutors argued the post-conviction motion should be dismissed due to the absence. The judge took the state’s request under advisement.

A jury brought in from Cape Girardeau County in southeast Missouri convicted Humphrey in October 2021 of first-degree murder and armed criminal action for killing Renick at his farm in 2017. In exchange for his testimony against Renick’s wife, Lynlee Renick, prosecutors reduced Humphrey’s charge to second-degree murder with a recommendation of life with parole.

Humphrey previously attempted a direct appeal of his sentence following his trial, but the Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District dismissed the appeal in August 2023.

The appellate court ruled that Humphrey had voluntarily waived his right to a direct appeal when he agreed to the state’s post-conviction deal. Under that agreement, prosecutors reduced his original first-degree murder charge to second-degree murder and recommended a life sentence with parole in exchange for his testimony against Lynlee Renick.

Humphrey and Lynlee Renick were convicted of killing Ben Renick on his New Florence property shortly after the two had started their own relationship.

Click here to follow the original article.

Madison Stuerman

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man has been charged after a woman died following a crash in Jefferson City.

Damon L. Crocker, 57, of Centertown, was charged with one count of DWI resulting in the death of another.

Court documents state that Crocker was seen on surveillance footage leaving the Office Bar around 3:54 p.m. Friday. Police said he was seen getting into a Ford F-150, starting the truck and backing up from a parking spot when he hit a 67-year-old woman standing behind the back passenger corner.

Jefferson City Police said she fell to the ground and the truck ran over her legs and torso. Crocker then pulled forward about 20 feet with the victim still under the truck, according to court documents.

Documents state Crocker “realized something was not right and he stopped” and found the victim on the ground.

Investigators said in court documents he was investigated at the scene due to his breath smelling like alcohol. He admitted to having two beers and a shot of liquor, according to the probable cause statement.

Crocker refused a preliminary breath test at the scene and requested an attorney before he was arrested at 4:12 p.m., according to court documents. After failing to contact his lawyer, he agreed to the breath test at the jail. Police said his sample was .099 BrAC on the Intox DMT breath tool.

He has four previous DWI arrests with two convictions in 1998 and 2001, according to police.

The woman died at University Hospital around 5:20 p.m.

Crocker is being held at the Cole County jail without bond. As of Monday morning, no court hearing had been set.

Click here to follow the original article.

Jazsmin Halliburton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Columbia City Council leaders shot down a rezoning plan for a potential apartment complex on the south side of town.

The rezoning request was for 32.7 acres off Rock Quarry Road and Grindstone Parkway for a development called “The Retreat at Columbia.” The project is expected to be a 194-unit multifamily development for students located 350 feet north of Gray Oak Drive in south Columbia, according to the meeting agenda.

If the rezoning were approved, the site would be accessed using a new road named “Retreat Way,” connecting to Grindstone Plaza and Rock Quarry Road. Access to Rock Quarry Road is proposed as a right-turn-only lane.

The measure failed 5-1, with Ward 1 Councilwoman Valerie Carroll being the lone “yes” vote and Ward 6 Councilwoman Betsy Peters not voting.

Columbia’s Planning and Zoning Commission did not have enough “yes” votes in June to recommend the complex to the council, following strong pushback from residents.

The council also gave a first read on Monday night to proposed construction improvements to the Rainbow Softball Complex at Cosmo Park, estimated to cost $750,000.

Click here to follow the original article.

Melissa Houston

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Save Katy Station announced plans to move the Katy Station building from its current spot in an effort to save it from demolition.

Katy Station originally served as a depot for the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad. The building is located at 402 E. Broadway and was added to the Columbia Historic Register on Jan. 29, 1979.

The property is currently known as Shiloh Bar and Grill, and the owner, Nic Parks, confirmed to ABC 17 News that the bar will officially close in December and implied that the landlord plans to sell the property, with a potential buyer planning to redevelop the building, according to previous reporting.

James Roark-Gruender, Organizer of Save Katy Station, said he and other preservation advocates met with the anonymous developers Thursday where they were told “everything is on the table, but the station cannot stay in its spot.”

Roark-Gruender proposed two possible new locations: Flat Branch Park or in front off the gateway to downtown. He added it is possible for the entire building to be moved, but it would be about $400,000 just to move the structure along with other costs.

Proposed Katy Station in front of gateway Proposed Katy station at Flat Branch Park

The group plans to involve the community in all decisions about Katy Station’s future.

“When I say community, I’m talking all of us together are going to have to work together and we’re going to come up with a solution,” said Roark-Gruender. “And it’s not going to be a solution that everybody’s happy with.”

For now, donations will be made through the community, and Roark-Gruender said because the community will be giving to the building, he plans on asking for imput about what they want the building to be.

“We’re not saying we’re not going to go out to large donations, but we need the community’s buy in to make it happen, we need the community’s input, so it is what the community wants,” said Roark-Gruender. “We don’t want to do something that the community at large hates.”

Because the developers are able to move the building, Roark-Gruender said now it is just a matter of thinking outside the box to what the next steps could be.

“There’s so much wealth of knowledge in this community and so many people who think outside the box. That’s what we’re looking at. This whole thing is going to have to be an outside-the-box thinking,” said Roark-Gruender.

One Columbia resident, Lukin Murphy, said he hopes saving Katy Station will bring awareness to other historical buildings in Columbia that need preservation.

“There’s not a lot of the, like, old Columbia left. So I think it’s really important, the parts that we have that we get to keep,” said Murphy. “I also hope that  the community realizes that there are probably other properties like this that  are at risk of being sold and demolished and we start looking ahead and being more proactive so that we can be more protective of our resources in the future and not as reactive as this particular situation.”

Murphy said the building is better used as a space for the community, like a convention, visitors bureau, or museum, rather than more student housing.

Roark-Gruender said the property has been purchased by a student housing project, but he has not heard confirmation on what the space will be.

Pat Zenner with the city of Columbia told ABC 17 News that there has been no official application submitted for new development.

Roark-Gruender said the group has until between July and October of 2027 to figure out where and how the building will be moved.

Save Katy Station has received over 1,200 people signing up to support the efforts, according to the press release.

Click here to follow the original article.

Olivia Hayes

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 73-year-old man is dead after a plane crash in Pettis County Saturday.

The Pettis County Sheriff Brad Anders shared to social media Sunday that Pettis County Deputies, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Pettis County Fire and other agencies responded to the 10000 block of State Highway B around 6 p.m. Saturday.

Upon arrival law enforcement observed an Ultralite aircraft downed near a pond in the front yard of a residence. Bystanders had removed the pilot prior to first responder arrival and started CPR in an attempt to revive the man. The pilot was later declared deceased.

He was from Arkansas and his spouse was nearby. Officials made contact with the spouse and immediate family.

MSHP took the initial report and contacted the FAA and NTSB per protocol.

Click here to follow the original article.

Alison Patton

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A group of Missouri activists gathered in Jefferson City Sunday to protest the use of Flock cameras, calling for the surveillance technology to be removed.

Show Me Resistance organizers said they hope Sunday’s protest is a step toward getting Flock cameras removed from the city.

The group gathered at 11 a.m. at the Community Park before marching through Greenway. Protesters also made stops along Lafayette Street, where several Flock cameras are installed.

Organizers said they are concerned about how Flock cameras collect, store and share automated license plate reader data.

Show Me Resistance co-organizer Kaytlin Tingle said the technology has been misused.

“They been caught stalking women and harming people or minorities. So we just feel like they’re obviously more sinister than they’re trying to lead us to believe,” Tingle said.

Local news reports have documented allegations involving the misuse of Flock systems in Joplin, St. Charles County and Brentwood.

Organizers also raised concerns about where Flock cameras are located in Jefferson City. They said some cameras are placed in areas with large populations of people experiencing homelessness and in predominantly Black neighborhoods.

“I think it’s normal for our government, but it unacceptable,” Show Me Resistance co-organizer Summer Williams said. “I think it’s racist.”

The group also questioned who could eventually access or purchase surveillance data, raising concerns about privacy. Organizers said Missouri had been among states without statewide regulations governing the use of these surveillance systems.

Last month, Gov. Mike Kehoe has also put temporary restrictions in place to limit how data is used until Missouri lawmakers can meet in the next legislative session to create laws. The restrictions require Flock data to be deleted within 30 days, prohibit the sale of the data, limit its use to legitimate law enforcement purposes and prohibit the use of facial recognition technology.

The Jefferson City Police Department said Flock cameras have helped solve three homicides.

While Show Me Resistance opposes the cameras, organizers said they understand the technology can be useful to law enforcement. However, they believe crimes can be solved using other tools.

“I think we can also use traffic cams to do that. We have historically been able to catch people like that using just traffic cameras, and those require warrants for all the data that’s collected,” Show Me Resistance co-organizer Hadley McNeill said.

Jefferson City renewed its contract with Flock in August. The contract runs through May 2027.

Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office has stopped using Flock cameras, and Columbia city leaders are considering whether to renew their contract with the company in March.

U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced a bill in Congress to restrict how data from these AI-powered cameras is used. He proposes that data be encrypted and not shared with non-governmental agencies; searches be approved; a search log be kept; data be deleted within 10 days; hardware or software from foreign adversaries not be used; and facial recognition not be used.

Click here to follow the original article.

Haley Swaino

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

An Eldon woman was killed in a motorcycle crash Saturday afternoon in Callaway County.

According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report, the 31-year-old was driving a 2025 Kawasaki Ninja northbound on U.S. 63 and went off the left side of the road in the 12200 block around 1:45 p.m.

The bike struck the cable barrier, and the woman was thrown off it. The release says she was pronounced dead on scene.

She was not wearing a helmet, according to the report. The motorcycle was totaled.

This is Troop F’s first death reported in October and the 50th in 2026. MSHP does not name victims in its reports.

Click here to follow the original article.

Melissa Houston

KINGDOM CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Missouri firefighters gathered in Kingdom City at the Fire fighters Memorial Foundation to honor all firefighters who died while serving their communities for the 24th annual candlelight service.

The candlelight service will be hosted on Saturday at 7 p.m. and on Sunday, another service will be held at 10:30 a.m.

Saturday’s service was a personal gathering to honor all fallen firefighters and gave families a chance to reflect on their community.

Sunday’s service will be a more formal ceremony with full protocols, inviting firefighters from across Missouri.

Tracy Gray on the Board of Directors for the Fire Fighter Memorial Foundation said Saturday’s ceremony is special because of it’s candlelight vigil.

“Under the lights and then the candles, it just kind of lets you reflect a little bit,” said Gray. “The granite wall with the line-of-duty deaths, the kneeling firefighter, it just looks so special at nighttime with the candles reflecting off of it.”

Gray said 105 firefighters were honored on Saturday. Five died in the line of duty, and 100 firefighters will be placed on the Legends Wall. He said members who have worked in the field for 10 or more years have an opportunity to have their names on the wall.

According to the Fire Fighters Memorial Foundation of Missouri, the event is two days long to allow time to honor all firefighters whom community members submit.

Being an active firefighter for over 30 years, Gray said he feels lucky to have retired and gets to attend the annual memorial to honor his brothers and sisters in service.

“I just kind of feel like I’m one of the lucky ones,” said Gray. “And it just means so much that I could do that. And my brothers and sisters, I want to make sure that their families understand that we will never forget their part of the fire service family, and they always will be.”

On Friday, Governor Mike Kehoe proclaimed October 4 to be Fire Service Memorial day, to honor all firefighters who risk their lives everyday to protect the citizens of Missouri.

Gray said it means a lot to the fire community that the Missouri Governor understands the sacrifices of their jobs.

“We have a governor in place that understands our jobs and how we do and how it affects our families,” said Gray. “And he’s always willing to take his time out of his busy schedule to talk to us and to listen to what we have to say.”

Kehoe has ordered the Missouri State Capitol dome to turn red at sunset on Saturday till sunrise on Monday, October 5.

In a press release from Kehoe’s office, Acting State Fire Marshal Matt Luetkemeyer said that lighting the dome red will expand awareness and give appreciation for those in the fire service who risk their lives and run towards danger.

Gray said lighting the Capitol dome not only lets the community know they support them, but also reminds them of the sacrifices fallen firefighters have made.

“It lets the community understand that are the fire service is always here for them,” said Gray. “But also it lets them know that there are those that do the ultimate sacrifice and we want to make sure that they’re never forgotten.”

Both services will be located at 5550 Dunn Drive in Kingdom City. Services will be held regardless of the weather, but if needed, the location will change to the gym at Auzxvasse Middle School.

Click here to follow the original article.