CANDIDATES FILE FOR SC COUNCIL, SCHOOL BOARD

SCOTT CITY -- Four people, including two incumbents, have filed for open seats on the Scott City Council for the April 5 election.

Rodney Holloway, owner of K&R Estates in Scott City, has filed for the Ward 1 seat held by Ladonna Phelps.

After running an unsuccessful campaign for mayor two years ago, Holloway said he decided to try his hand at local politics once again.

"I want to be elected to ensure that we get some fair representation around here," said Holloway. "There's a lot that needs to be changed."

Holloway has lived in Scott City for the past 10 years with his wife Karen and children Stephen, Michelle and Daniel. He is a member of the First Baptist Church of Scott City and the Elks Lodge in Cape Girardeau.

Incumbent Ron Oller has filed for his Ward 3 seat seeking a third term on the council.

"There are a lot of things that have not been accomplished yet that I would like to see through," Oller said.

Oller serves as chairman of the city's park committee and serves on the public works, cemetery and cable television committees.

"Cable television has been the major issue in the city this past year," Oller said. "We had some area residents get involved and they've really done a super job.

"We made the cable company do pretty well what we wanted them to do," he said. "We worked on it for almost a year, and I think we've finally got things ironed out."

Oller, who works for Genex in Cape Girardeau, said he has enjoyed serving on the council.

"It has its ups and downs," he said. "I look forward to seeing this community grow in the future. I really think it will. With what Scott City has to offer in its Industrial Park area, I can't see it not growing."

Oller's wife is Darlene and their children Barry, Ryan and Robyn.

Another incumbent, Terry Johnston, has refiled for a chance to serve a second term as Ward 4 councilman.

Johnston, who serves as chairman of the city's fire committee and sits on the cemetery and planning and zoning committees, was able to help the city achieve one of its goals in 1993 -- the purchase of a new fire truck.

"The fire department did most of the work -- especially Les and Bill Crump," he said. "It was no one person who got the fire truck; it was the effort of the whole city."

One of Johnston's pet peeves while serving on the council has been the poor condition of many city streets.

"We need to budget a lot of money in the next couple of years for street repairs," said Johnston. "I think the city is spending way too much money in places where the money doesn't need to be spent and is ignoring things like the deteriorating condition of the city streets."

Johnston has lived in Scott City all his life. His wife is Darlene and they have two children.

H.M. "Bud" Bader has also filed for Johnston's Ward 4 seat. Bader could not be reached for this report.

No one has filed for the Ward 2 seat of John Rogers Jr.

A fourth candidate has filed in the race for two open seats on the Scott City Board of Education.

Incumbent Robert "Pete" Wadlington is seeking a fifth term on the school board.

"The school is progressing along well," said Wadlington. "I would like to serve at least one more term. There are a few things I would like to see carried out."

One of the things Wadlington would like to have happen in the school district is to have drug-sniffing dogs brought in to check the lockers of junior-high and high-school students.

"We have kicked this notion around for about two years; now we know how to go about doing it," he said.

"I think having the dogs come in is a win-win kind of situation," he said. "If we don't find anything, it eliminates all suspicion; if we do, then we can rid the school of it."

Wadlington, whose daughter Shana is in the second grade of Scott City Elementary and daughter Nichole graduated last year, feels that the school board has an obligation to the tax-paying citizens of the district to properly use that money to provide the best education for their children.

"That's why we try and solicit all the help we can from citizens within the community," Wadlington said. "(Budgeting is) a responsibility every member of the board takes very seriously."

Wadlington has worked as an engineer with the railroad in Scott City for 25 years. He has also served as safety coordinator and an Operation Lifesaver instructor for the past 11 years.

He lives in Scott City with his wife Diana.