Deanna Wheeler
deanna.wheeler@lakesunonline.com
The city of Lake Ozark has been sentenced in the case involving a sewage spill that occurred in the fall of 2007.
According to United States District Court documents, the city faces a $50,000 fine and five years probation. The fine will be spread out in annual payments over the course of the next five years.
The city made its first $10,000 payment on the day of the sentencing hearing, April 22, in Jefferson City.
Mayor Johnnie Franzeskos appeared before the judge on behalf of the city.
The Lake Ozark Board of Aldermen unanimously accepted the terms of the U.S. District Attorney’s Office plea agreement during a closed session meeting on Aug. 6, 2008.
The sewage spill was reported in September 2007 after a lift station failed and allowed untreated waste to flow into Lake of the Ozarks.
The spill was investigated by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
DNR notified the city of the bypass, and the city responded and stopped the flow, but conducted no cleanup and provided no written notification of the bypass.
The city was charged with a felony count of “illegality of discharge radiological chemicals” according to court documents.
Besides the fine and the probation, the city is also spending $300,000 on a sewer study in addition to upgrades and improvements to the sewer system, as a result of the spill.
