McCord Bend voters pass use and sales taxes,
money will help improve roads
Village leaders say McCord Bend needs more funding in order to repave roads and have a drainage system installed.
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McCord Bend is in the process of applying for a Community Development Block Grant in order to make road improvements.
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The village is raffling off this hand-crafted wildlife themed quilt.
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April 15, 2021
Kadee Brosseau DeCourley
The Village of McCord Bend will soon have more money to help improve roads in the community. During the election earlier this month, voters said “yes” to imposing a sales tax and a use tax within the Stone County village.
Chairwoman of the Village of McCord Bend Board of Trustees Mandi Carr said while the village does not currently have retail businesses, in order to have a use tax, they had to have a sales tax.
“The sales tax, at this point, is rather moot. We don’t have any retail or anything here. It’s just basically all residential, but hopefully at some point somebody will put a business down here,” Carr explained. “Without a sales tax, you can’t have a use tax.”
A use tax will allow the village to collect taxes on online and mail-in orders made within the community. Carr said this is the first time the village has had a sales tax or a use tax.
“It’s unknown [how much money the taxes will generate]. We will find out a year from now really what it’s going to mean,” Carr said.
Village leaders say McCord Bend needs more funding in order to repave roads and have a drainage system installed.
“The nature of where we are, there are lots of very hilly areas, very steep inclines. There is a lot of water runoff. So, we need to be able to effectively manage that, which would be able to protect the roads in the future,” Carr said.
Carr said they’re in the process of applying for a Community Development Block Grant in order to make the road improvements.
“[When we apply for the grant], we have to show that we, as a community, are willing to put some of our own funds in there, so we have to have a means of doing that. We are showing that we are doing everything on our part. We are not just asking for money without putting any effort, on our part, in,” Carr said.
Carr said, first, the village needs to hire professionals to assess the needs of the road system within the community.
“We have to come up with the cost of a preliminary engineering study which is going to be $10,000 to 15,000, which we don’t have. So, this is a means of paying for that,” Carr said.
Without the sales and use taxes, McCord Bend relied on real estate taxes.
“Our budget comes off of real estate taxes and we bring in just under $3,000 a year in real estate taxes. So, we need to look for any source of income,” Carr said.
It also receives funding from the Road and Fuel Tax through the State of Missouri, which equates to about $12,000 per year.
“[We don’t have] a lot of money to work with,” Carr said.
Village leaders plan to have the engineering study performed this year.
“We’ve got some funds set aside and some savings. We are hoping that this year we will be able to get the engineering study done and proceed with the Block Grant process,” Carr said.
Carr said improving the roads is a part of the Board’s overall mission of making McCord Bend a better place to live.
“This is a great little spot that just needs some work. We need some help. So, every little bit counts. One step at a time. I really do believe that in the next few years, you’re going to really see McCord Bend blossom,” Carr said,
Two seats on the Board of Trustees were also filled during the April election. Mandi Carr and Melissa Turner both ran unopposed and will serve another two years on the Board. Also on the ballot in McCord Bend was an initiative about being able to forgo elections if the only issues on the ballot were unopposed positions. That issue failed.
The Village is hosting a community garage sale on April 16, 17, and 18 at the Top of the Hill Café on Hwy 248. McCord Bend is also holding a gun and quilt raffle. The gun is a Taurus .380 pistol. The quilt is a hand-crafted wildlife-themed quilt. The drawing will be held on May 1.
Carr and the Board of Trustees invite the public to come to the garage sale and participate in the raffles. All proceeds will go toward the road improvement project.
Kadee Brosseau DeCourley
The Village of McCord Bend will soon have more money to help improve roads in the community. During the election earlier this month, voters said “yes” to imposing a sales tax and a use tax within the Stone County village.
Chairwoman of the Village of McCord Bend Board of Trustees Mandi Carr said while the village does not currently have retail businesses, in order to have a use tax, they had to have a sales tax.
“The sales tax, at this point, is rather moot. We don’t have any retail or anything here. It’s just basically all residential, but hopefully at some point somebody will put a business down here,” Carr explained. “Without a sales tax, you can’t have a use tax.”
A use tax will allow the village to collect taxes on online and mail-in orders made within the community. Carr said this is the first time the village has had a sales tax or a use tax.
“It’s unknown [how much money the taxes will generate]. We will find out a year from now really what it’s going to mean,” Carr said.
Village leaders say McCord Bend needs more funding in order to repave roads and have a drainage system installed.
“The nature of where we are, there are lots of very hilly areas, very steep inclines. There is a lot of water runoff. So, we need to be able to effectively manage that, which would be able to protect the roads in the future,” Carr said.
Carr said they’re in the process of applying for a Community Development Block Grant in order to make the road improvements.
“[When we apply for the grant], we have to show that we, as a community, are willing to put some of our own funds in there, so we have to have a means of doing that. We are showing that we are doing everything on our part. We are not just asking for money without putting any effort, on our part, in,” Carr said.
Carr said, first, the village needs to hire professionals to assess the needs of the road system within the community.
“We have to come up with the cost of a preliminary engineering study which is going to be $10,000 to 15,000, which we don’t have. So, this is a means of paying for that,” Carr said.
Without the sales and use taxes, McCord Bend relied on real estate taxes.
“Our budget comes off of real estate taxes and we bring in just under $3,000 a year in real estate taxes. So, we need to look for any source of income,” Carr said.
It also receives funding from the Road and Fuel Tax through the State of Missouri, which equates to about $12,000 per year.
“[We don’t have] a lot of money to work with,” Carr said.
Village leaders plan to have the engineering study performed this year.
“We’ve got some funds set aside and some savings. We are hoping that this year we will be able to get the engineering study done and proceed with the Block Grant process,” Carr said.
Carr said improving the roads is a part of the Board’s overall mission of making McCord Bend a better place to live.
“This is a great little spot that just needs some work. We need some help. So, every little bit counts. One step at a time. I really do believe that in the next few years, you’re going to really see McCord Bend blossom,” Carr said,
Two seats on the Board of Trustees were also filled during the April election. Mandi Carr and Melissa Turner both ran unopposed and will serve another two years on the Board. Also on the ballot in McCord Bend was an initiative about being able to forgo elections if the only issues on the ballot were unopposed positions. That issue failed.
The Village is hosting a community garage sale on April 16, 17, and 18 at the Top of the Hill Café on Hwy 248. McCord Bend is also holding a gun and quilt raffle. The gun is a Taurus .380 pistol. The quilt is a hand-crafted wildlife-themed quilt. The drawing will be held on May 1.
Carr and the Board of Trustees invite the public to come to the garage sale and participate in the raffles. All proceeds will go toward the road improvement project.