Our History
The Truman Council was created in 1962 and was originally named the Ozark Gateway Council of Government. Around the 1970s, our name changed and we became the Harry S Truman Coordinating Council. Beginning with only four communities, the Truman Council grew to encompass four counties and sixty-seven municipalities within those counties. The original Truman Council building was on Stones Corner in Airport Drive, then we moved to Carl Junction, then Joplin, but most recently our Executive Board voted to purchase a building in downtown Neosho.
What We Do
There are nineteen regional planning commissions (RPCs) in Missouri, all operating under the Missouri Association of Councils of Government (MACOG). All RPCs in Missouri operate on a not-for-profit basis.
Each RPC is assigned to different jurisdictions within the state and their goal is to be of service to their counties and municipalities while bringing an organized approach to addressing areawide problems. The Truman Council is available to assist our members in coordinating the needs of their area with other state and federal agencies, offer a technical staff capable of providing sound advice for said members, and provide aid for various planning and infrastructure needs.
RPCs conduct a considerable amount of research in their day-to-day operations and often have a large amount of data and information available for use by our communities. Please contact us and we will help in any way that we can to provide assistance.
Services
We have a numerous ways to assist our communities. When we apply or write a grant on a community's behalf, we also take care of all administration of the grant, which includes communication with the governmental agencies that fund the project. We know all of the ins and outs of grant writing which allows us to help the cities within our counties as much as possible. All projects are done with the desire of creating growth for the community. Example projects for community and economic development would be aid with waste water treatment, obtaining city-wide emergency backup generators, infrastructure projects, installation of a community park or trail, and downtown revitalization—just to name a few.
We offer Comprehension Plans, which are designed to guide the future actions of a community. It explains the future vision of a community with long-term goals and objectives for all activities that affect the local government and help with zoning. We also write Hazard Mitigation plans, which reduce loss of life and property by minimizing the impact of disasters. The local municipalities identify natural disaster risks and vulnerabilities that are common in their area and we create a plan to get funding for various prevention tactics, such as tornado sirens or storm shelters.
We also provide an array of environmental services, such as water testing and environmental reviews. Reviews are required for federally funded projects and allows our communities to make sure that their natural resources are protected from damage.
