Cole County residents outside Jefferson City will join their neighbors this summer in getting new, digital outdoor warning sirens.
After several years of debate, the county's three-member commission voted 2-1 Wednesday to authorize the installation of up to 15 sirens "outside the boundaries of Jefferson City," with the incorporated municipalities paying "$5,000 apiece for the sirens, plus their proportionate share of assessment value" for any sirens placed inside their corporate limits.
Commissioners said communities that want sirens "should have some skin in the game," while the county government will cover all costs for adding sirens in the unincorporated areas of the county.