The Branson Tri-Lakes News is returning to print three weeks after shutting down, purchased by a group of area business owners who say they intend to keep the paper serving the region.
The paper announced the sale on its Facebook page Tuesday, writing that a group of local business folks will continue serving the community as the New Branson Tri-Lakes News and calling it a new venture. The post said the first edition should be out for the weekend. It drew more than 340 reactions and dozens of comments.
KY3 reported Tuesday that Mike Cooper is the publisher of the relaunched paper, and that the first issue is set for delivery Friday, Aug. 7. According to that report, the paper will include a Stone County section.
Cooper told KY3 there are no plans to bring back the other, smaller publications that folded alongside the Tri-Lakes News — a group that included the Crane Chronicle/Stone County Republican.
The previous edition of the paper published July 15 under owner Lancaster Management. KY3 reported the company had fallen behind on Taney County property taxes, owing just under $100,000. Former circulation and mailroom manager Pierce Fahr told Ozarks Dynacom News that former employees had not received final paychecks in the weeks after the closure.
Where the new operation will print remains an open question. Responding to a commenter who asked about printing — alongside a photo of the paper’s Hollister facility with a Taney County delinquent tax posting notice in the yard - the Tri-Lakes News page replied that it definitely will not be in Hollister.
Several commenters asked whether subscriptions paid under the previous owner will be honored. The page had not answered publicly as of Wednesday afternoon.
What it means for Crane
For readers here, the relevant line is the one about the smaller papers. The Crane Chronicle is not coming back. What Stone County gets instead is a section inside a twice-weekly paper based in Taney County — how much of it will be original reporting, and whether it will reach past Reeds Spring and Kimberling City, is not yet known.
Crane.news has contacted Cooper with questions about the Stone County section, including whether a reporter will be assigned to the county, how often the section will run, and whether the purchase included the smaller papers. This story will be updated.
