Officials in Maryville, Mo., will review the progress of Downtown Revitalization and Economic Assistance (DREAM) projects Thursday at the Nodaway County Administration Building’s meeting room.

Downtown building design guidelines also will be discussed at the meeting, set for 5:30 p.m.

Mike Hemmer — of planning consultant Peckham, Guyton, Albers, and Viets, St. Louis — will be the speaker.

Building design concepts will be used by the city of Maryville to determine guidelines for private development and redevelopment within downtown.

The DREAM initiative helps small- and mid-sized Missouri communities access existing assistance programs for revitalization and job creation.

Call Maryville City Manager Matt LeCerf at (660) 562-3271 for more information.

Leaf peeping on tap

The Missouri Department of Conservation will hold the 23rd annual fall driving tour Oct. 18 through the Poosey Conservation Area in rural Livingston County.

The area’s roads and trails will be opened to the public to view examples of the department’s habitat management practices and to see the fall colors.

Prairie grass ecology, noxious weed eradication, forestry and wildlife habitat management will be among the practices described at various points along the route. Stream-side forests and fisheries management also will be highlighted. Resource professionals will be present to explain management techniques and answer questions.

Gates will open at noon and the last cars will be allowed through at 4 p.m. The roads will be graded, but four-wheel drive and high-clearance vehicles are recommended. The tour route will last approximately one hour to complete without any stops along the way.

The conservation area is located on Missouri Route A, one mile west of the Missouri Route W junction. A sign also marks the area on Route A, one mile east of the Missouri Route U junction.

Park sessions set

Two area state parks will hold informational meetings Oct. 3 to allow for public input on facilities and programs.

One of the meetings is set for 3 to 5 p.m. at the open shelter house at Lewis and Clark State Park near Rushville. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources manages the park and is replacing a septic system from the campground’s shower house, which is also receiving new paint and other renovations.

A meeting for the Weston Bend State Park is set for 6 to 8 p.m. at the Bee Creek Shelter House. Public comments were used in replacing the roof on an interpretive tobacco barn and development of a picnic area at the park.

Deputies’ salaries bill upheld

A Cole County circuit judge recently rejected a challenge to a 2008 state law that aims to bring in revenue to raise pay and benefits for deputy sheriffs, according to the Missouri Sheriffs’ Association.

House Bill 2224 created a supplemental fund that strengthened deputy retention and recruitment through increased salaries. The fund consists of money from a $10 increase in the fee charged by sheriffs for services such as summonses, subpoenas and other civil court orders.

Livingston County Sheriff Steve Cox, Clinton County Sheriff Porter Hensen and Grundy County Sheriff Rodney Herring were among the bill’s supporters in Northwest Missouri.

Plaintiffs who brought the challenge have a month to file an appeal, the association said.

Ray Scherer can be reached

at rscherer@npgco.com.