Countywide 911 dispatch tax passes, Mt’neer Strong fails in election

Mt. Vernon school improvement proposition fails by seven votes, may return to future ballot
Lawrence County voters approved a sales tax to fund 911 dispatch services in the county during the April 2 election. The tax will replace a landline tariff which currently funds the services, and is estimated to generate $1.5 million per year in revenue.
Bonnie Witt-Schulte, emergency management director of Monett-Lawrence County 911, said the tax will go into effect once it’s certified.
“There will be a process by which merchants are notified and will start the implementation process on their end of things to collect and remit the tax,” she said.
Witt-Schulte also said a new 911 Emergency Services board will be appointed, and they will “become the authority for 911 Emergency Services in Lawrence County.”
“There is not a set timeframe for construction of a new facility as it will be incumbent upon the newly established board to develop a budget and plan to implement the county-wide system,” she said. “The main stipulation of the statute is that 911 emergency services must be provided within 36 months of the implementation of the new sales tax.”
A number of factors will determine when a new 911 dispatch building will be built, though Witt Schulte said she has seen “most projects completed within 24 (to) 36 months.”
“There are many other considerations in addition to the new facility that the board will have to consider,” she said. “Some of these include things such as GIS mapping of the county, radio system infrastructure, staffing, redundancy of communications and power, 911 telecommunication equipment, training, etc.”
Witt-Schulte also said the passing of the tax showed that Lawrence County voters understand the importance of having an E911 center.
“Knowing that Lawrence County will have the means to ensure that when there is an emergency a citizen will receive the expected level of care needed, and that first responders will have adequate communications and support is something we do not think about until we are ‘having our worst day,’” she said. “It is truly my hope that a person never needs to call 911, but it is reassuring to know that if they do there will be a dispatcher who can provide life-saving instructions and dispatch first responders to them or their family.”
Mt’Neer Strong Proposition narrowly fails
While the E911 sales tax passed, the Mt’neer Strong proposal, a $0.35 tax levy which would have funded a $10 million loan to pay for several improvements to district facilities, fell short of passing by seven votes. While the proposal received a majority of the votes cast, a supermajority of 57.14-percent of votes was needed for it to pass.
“We are obviously disappointed in the result,” said Scott Cook, superintendent of the Mt. Vernon School District. “This is especially true because we were so close to having enough support for approval. The board felt strongly that protecting our buildings would find widespread support despite the large financial price tag but clearly there was something about this issue that failed to inspire the patrons of Mt. Vernon to rally behind us.”
Cook also said the district will still need to find a way to deal with the needed improvements to its facilities.
“Unfortunately, the large number of critical facility issues which have been well-documented remain and will require attention in the near future,” he said. “The expense to address them will only increase with time and the district will certainly need financial assistance from our patrons to help stabilize our buildings. The board plans to look at several options moving forward as we consider what kind of ballot initiative to put before voters in the future. Part of that decision process is engaging our community to find out why the initiative was unsuccessful and what we might need to change.”
Miller Waterworks
Another issue on the ballot was the Miller Waterworks Question. Voters in Miller chose to pass a $3.3 million bond to pay for upgrades to the city’s aging water and sewer system and bring it into compliance with DNR regulations.
Mt. Vernon
The election also saw some contested races at the municipal level. In Mt. Vernon, Scott Beckley defeated incumbent Dr. James Greene to become the new Ward One alderman. However, in the contested race for alderman of Ward Four, incumbent Jason Haymes defeated challenger Paula Brockwell to retain his seat at the board.
Aurora
In Aurora, current mayor Dawn Oplinger won the open seat on the city council, defeating contenders Lisa Rentfro and Steve Ramirez.
Miller
In Miller, Stacy Daniels defeated Dennis Harris and Garry Baker to win her first full-term as mayor, while Christa Adams and Amy Johnson won the two seats on the Miller Board of Aldermen, defeating contenders Glenn Shearer and Robert Campbell.
In the contested Miller R-2 School Board race, Barbara Wagner and Lynn Andrews won the two seats on the board, defeating contenders Isaac Hulbert and Jared “Bo” Stockton.
Overall
In the election, 3,904 people voted, or 16.55-percent of the registered voters in Lawrence County.

Lawrence County election results April 2, 2019
Total ballots - 3,904: 16.55 percent

Lawrence County 911 Central Dispatch
Yes - 2,318 (60 percent)
No - 1,518 (40 percent)

Mt. Vernon Proposition Mt’Neer Strong
Yes - 704 (56 percent)
No - 542 (44 percent)

Mt. Vernon Board of Education (vote for 2)
Nathan Schoen - 871 (53 percent)
Kerry Hodgson - 746 (45 percent)
Write in - 26 (2 percent)

Mt. Vernon Alderman Ward 1
Scott Beckley - 80 (68 percent)
James Greene - 36 (31 percent)
Write in - 2 (2 percent)

Mt. Vernon Alderman Ward 1
Deanna McElveen - 106 (99 percent)
Write in - 1 (1 percent)

Mt. Vernon Alderman Ward 3
Sandy Martin - 90 (100 percent)

Mt. Vernon Alderman Ward 4
Paula Brockwell - 49 (29 percent)
Jason Haymes - 122 (71 percent)

Mt. Vernon Road Commissioner
Write in - 122 (100 percent)

Ash Grove Board of Education (vote for 2)
Jeana Loraine Scroggins - 17 (29 percent)
Michael Gray - 20 (34 percent)
Jimmy Wheeler - 22 (37 percent)

Aurora City Council
Dawn Marie Oplinger - 348 (58 percent)
Lisa Rentfro - 107 (18 percent)
Steve Ramirez - 143 (24 percent)
Write in - 4

Aurora Rural Question
Yes - 94 (89 percent)
No - 12 (11 percent)

Freistatt Road Commissioner
Brandon Wormington - 91 (100 percent)

Freistatt Road Proposition 1
Yes - 78 (87 percent)
No - 12 (13 percent)
Village of Freistatt Trustee
Brenna Katherine Schroeder - 22 (18 percent)
Susan Senninger - 17 (14 percent)
Larry Howard - 29 (23 percent)
Elmer F. Conway - 29 (23 percent)
Richard Knight - 25 (20 percent)
Write in - 2

Green Benefit Road Commissioner
Jack West - 34 (60 percent)
Wayne Vandergrift - 7 (12 percent)
Write in - 16 (28 percent)

Lockwood Fire Question
Yes - 26 (93 percent)
No - 2 (7 percent)

Marionville Board of Education (vote for 2)
Brandon White - 252 (35 percent)
Carol Brown - 277 (39 percent)
Robert “Bob” Duda Jr. - 186 (26 percent)
Write in - 3 (.5 percent)

Marionville Alderman Ward 1
Tammy Stafford - 22 (32 percent)
Dale Blankenship - 46 (67 percent)

Marionville Alderman Ward 2
Kay Leffingwell - 71 (91 percent)
Write in - 7 (9 percent)

Marionville Alderman Ward 3
Write in - 13 (100 percent)

Miller Board of Education (vote for 2)
Barbara Wagner - 235 (30 percent)
Lynn Andrews - 239 (31 percent)
Isaac Hulbert - 99 (13 percent)
Jared “Bo” Stockton - 197 (25 percent)

Miller Road Commissioner
Write in - 53 (100 percent)

Miller Mayor
Dennis Harris - 32 (23 percent)
Stacy Daniels - 66 (47 percent)
Garry Baker - 40 (28 percent)
Write in - 3 (2 percent)

Miller Alderman at Large
Christa Adams - 80 (33 percent)
Glenn V. Shearer - 57 (23 percent)
Amy Johnson - 62 (25 percent)
Robert L. Campbell - 44 (18 percent)

Miller Waterworks Question
Yes - 107 (74 percent)
No - 37 (26 percent)

Miller Sales Tax Question
Yes - 65 (46 percent)
No - 75 (54 percent)

Monett Road Question
Yes - 108 (63 percent)
No - 64 (37 percent)

Mt. Pleasant Road Commissioner
Glennon Kleiboeker - 46 (41 percent)
Roger Moennig - 66 (59 percent)

Nursing Home Director District 4
Write in - 45 (100 percent)

Pierce City Board of Education (vote for 2)
Carl Younker - 169 (20 percent)
Zachary Carnes - 168 (20 percent)
Kodie J. O’Hara - 227 (27 percent)
Zachary (Zach) Renkoski - 274 (33 percent)
Write in - 1

Pierce City Alderman Ward 1
Janene Johnson - 43 (100 percent)

Pierce City Alderman Ward 2 - 2 year term
Thomas E. Cahalan - 25 (100 percent)

Pierce City Alderman Ward 2, 1-year term
Scott L. Wahl - 29 (100 percent)

Pierce City Alderman Ward 3, 2 year term
Jerrod D. Jarvis - 28 (100 percent)

Pierce City Alderman Ward 3, 1 year term
Jami Lawrimore - 28 (93 percent)
Write in  - 2 (7 percent)

Pierce City Alderman Ward 4
Todd Killingsworth - 21 (95 percent)
Write in - 1 (5 percent)

Red Oak Road Commissioner
Loretta F. Thomas - 41 (98 percent)
Write in - 1 (2 percent)

Sarcoxie Board of Education (vote for 2)
James J.T. Roberson - 7 (37 percent)
Gary Turner - 3 (16 percent)
Stan Garber - 9 (47 percent)

Stotts City Fire Board
Roger Schnake - 101 (21 percent)
Rodney White - 92 (19 percent)
Rick Moenkhoff - 92 (19 percent)
Dustin Schnake - 96 (20 percent)
Tim Blankenship - 93 (20 percent)
Stotts City Fire Question
Yes - 92 (80 percent)
No - 23 (20 percent)

Stotts City Mayor
Write in - 4  (100 percent)

Stotts City Alderman at Large
Timothy Blankenship - 15 (60 percent)
Write in - 10 (40 percent)

Verona Board of Education (vote for 2)
Linda Gates - 89 (32 percent)
Kevin E. Hilton - 120 (43 percent)
Lisa Army - 69 (25 percent)
Write in - 1
Verona Proposition K.I.D.S.
Yes - 110 (62 percent)
No - 68 (38 percent)
Verona Mayor
Joseph Heck - 47 (60 percent)
Sheila Massengill - 31 (40 percent)

Verona Alderman at Large
Claude Carr - 40 (29 percent)
Joseph Heck - 27 (20 percent)
Michael Haynes - 33 (24 percent)
Denise A. White - 36 (26 percent)
Write in - 1 (1 percent)