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City Receives Blue Shield Designation: The City of Lake Ozark and Lake Ozark Police Department are honored to have been named a Missouri Blue Shield City by Missouri Department of Public Safety.Of this designation for our agency and community, Police Chief James Boren says "I'm honored to accept this Blue Shield City designation, which reflects the outstanding work of our Board of Aldermen, city staff, and police department working in partnership. This recognition from Governor Kehoe and the Missouri Department of Public Safety validates what I've observed throughout my 20-year career here—our community's growing commitment to public safety. During my tenure as chief, I've seen firsthand how the dedication of our officers, combined with incredible community support, creates the foundation for this kind of recognition. This achievement belongs to everyone who has contributed to making our city safer."The Missouri Blue Shield Program, created by Governor Kehoe in January 2025 through Executive Order 25-03, recognizes local governments that make significant efforts to reduce crime, foster law enforcement collaboration, and build strong community partnerships for public safety. “Public safety is the foundation of a thriving community and state. It affects everything from families feeling secure to businesses having the confidence to invest and grow,” said Governor Kehoe. “We designed the Missouri Blue Shield Program to recognize communities that go above and beyond in creating a place where people want to live, work, and build their futures. A Missouri Blue Shield designation is a testament to the hard work and dedication of local governments across Missouri who are leading the way in making public safety a priority.”“The Department of Public Safety is proud to work alongside communities like Lake Ozark, that have shown exceptional dedication to enhancing public safety,” said Mark James, Director of the Missouri Department of Public Safety (DPS). “This program is about fostering collaboration between local law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve. Our goal is to support these efforts, providing resources and guidance to help communities build sustainable, long-term solutions for crime reduction and public safety.”Communities are eligible for a Missouri Blue Shield designation based on their dedication to reducing crime, making substantial investments in public safety, and developing strong collaboration with law enforcement agencies and community stakeholders. Each participating community’s commitment will be reviewed annually to ensure continued alignment with the program’s goals. Communities that earn a Missouri Blue Shield designation will receive grant funding for law enforcement training and equipment as part of Governor Kehoe’s Recommended Budget for the State Fiscal Year 2026. Communities will also be featured on Governor Kehoe’s social media pages as well as the DPS website to highlight their participation in the program. The City of Lake Ozark earned a Missouri Blue Shield designation due to its exceptional commitment to public safety. Through officer recruitment and retention efforts, introduction of our K9 program, increased funding to public safety, and an enhanced approach to community policing, we have demonstrated a strong and ongoing commitment to protecting our residents and visitors.

TEST TW WEATHER

Posted on by dan

Comprehensive Plan process to include input from public

A series of meetings to garner public input on the wants and needs for the City of Lake Ozark are scheduled to begin soon as part of the city’s upgrade of its Comprehensive Plan.

The plan, which is long-term guide for the community, hasn’t been updated since 2006. While the city’s economic base and infrastructure have evolved in the last decade, the city’s master development plan has remained unchanged for some 15 years. The Lake of the Ozarks Council of Local Governments is crafting the new document at no cost to the city with input from the city and its residents.

“The plan gives the city a vision as to how it wants development in the future,” LOCOLG Executive Director Linda Connor explained when the board voted last year to move ahead with the process. “We want to make sure we put in the plan what the city wants to look like in the next 10-15 years.”

An updated Comprehensive Plan is important when the city applies for state and federal funds.

 

Meetings

As part of the process, three engagements meetings are planned over the summer, allowing the public to sit down with city staff and Council of Government personnel to offer their vision on targeted topics for Lake Ozark over the next decade and beyond. Topics could include housing, zoning, infrastructure needs, residential and commercial growth, etc.

Harrison Fry, the city’s community development director and assistant city administrator, said the Comprehensive Plan will serve as a resource for decisions affecting the city’s development and economic growth.

“The new Comprehensive Plan will serve as the guiding force for the city as we continue to grow in the near future,” Fry said. “This document will provide a rationale for decision-making for our boards and commissions, and will also show the world what the priorities and direction are for the City of Lake Ozark.”

Once the plan is completed by LOCOLG, city staff will present it to the Planning & Zoning Commission for its review and input. It will then go before the board of aldermen for additional review before final adoption. That should happen later this fall so the city would have a revitalized plan for its future by the start of 2022.

 

Engagement meetings

No specific dates have been set for the public meetings, but the anticipated topics of each includes:

•Land Use Planning & Goals Meeting. 

Staff will facilitate this meeting to discuss possible future land use scenarios and build consensus among the committee to develop a future land use map. This meeting will also begin the process of setting simple and concise goals for the community based on the survey results and gathered information. 

•Objectives and Strategies Meeting. 

The LOCLG staff will provide suggestions to the committee for establishing objectives and strategies for each goal building off the previous meeting. 

•Objectives and Strategies Meeting. 

This will provide an opportunity to continue discussion of any remaining topics not covered in the previous meeting and fine tune all of the objectives and strategies.

The LOCLG staff will write the full and complete document. City staff will review and make comments and suggest edits as needed.