Bids OK'd to print planning booklet

BENTON -- Even the best of plans is no good unless all the players know what it is.

Scott County commissioners approved a bid to print 64 unbound copies of the county's Local Emergency Operation Plan during their regular meeting Tuesday.

"They're going to be in a three-ring binder so if changes are made, it will be more economical to just change that page," County Developer Joel Evans said.

The UPS Store and OfficeMax tied for the low bid at $375 for 50 copies and $750 for 100 copies.

Commissioners agreed to award the bid to The UPS Store. "Being the same price, we ought to keep it in Scott County," said Commissioner Dennis Ziegenhorn.

Also bidding were Meeks Printing which offered 50 copies for $598 or 100 for $1,197 and Moll Printing which bid 50 for $668 and 100 for $1,335.

The suggested distribution list includes county office holders, the health department, fire departments, emergency management, the Sikeston Department of Public Safety and other police departments, mayors, the county highway department, school districts, ambulance districts, Missouri Delta Medical Center, fire and rescue squads, special road districts and the State Emergency Management Agency.

County Clerk Rita Milam said the purchase should be paid for from the county's emergency management funds.

In other business Tuesday:

* County Emergency Director Joe Burton said he would like to activate the county's Emergency Operations Center sometime in the first or second week of November.

"An exact date hasn't been set yet," Burton said.

He said he would like to bring in all those who have a part in disaster response "and go over their responsibilities and what role they would play."

* Commissioners agreed to wait until hearing the recommendation from Barb Smith, court administrator for the juvenile office, before awarding a bid for the purchase of a 15-passenger van for the juvenile office.

Smith applied for a juvenile block grant from the Missouri Department of Public Safety and was approved for a total of $28,571 of which 10 percent must be local matching funds.

The grant funds will also pay for a cage insert for the van.

* Evans said he plans to discuss a historic preservation grant with U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson's office.

County officials are hoping the grant or some other assistance will cover the cost of replacing the courthouse's windows.

* An hurricane evacuee can keep his chicken here for 90 days.

Burton said reports that a chicken had been transported across state lines elicited an immediate response from state officials due to concerns of bird flu.

"They jumped right on it," Burton said.

When the blood test came back clean, the owner received a 90-day permit.