Cape council sets April 4 as election date for charter changes

~ The board also approved a measure to make it easier to establish local historic districts.

Cape Girardeau voters will decide the fate of three proposed charter amendments on April 4.

The city council Monday night unanimously approved placing the three measures on the ballot after months of debate.

The measures would allow the council to fill vacancies on the legislative board by appointment until the next special or regular election, allow the city to raise user fees without voter approval and revamp how ethics complaints are handled.

In other action, the council voted to lower the percentage of property owners required to establish a local historic district from 75 percent to 51 percent. The measure had the support of the Old Town Cape redevelopment organization, the city's historic preservation commission and the planning and zoning commission.

As for the charter amendment on user fees, it wouldn't apply to water, sewer and trash fees. The council still would have to seek voter approval to raise water, sewer or trash fees more than 5 percent in any year.

But city officials said the amendment would allow the city to raise user fees for such services as the city pools and the municipal golf course as needed to meet expenses.

Mayor Jay Knudtson said it would allow city officials to better run the city "as a business."

The ethics measure would eliminate a permanent ethics commission that has little to do but take roll call. In its place, the council could appoint a temporary committee to deal with a specific, written complaint or immediately forward the issue to the state ethics commission.

Tom M. Meyer, who chaired a charter review committee that recommended the changes, said he and other committee members would be willing to campaign for passage of the measures.

Knudtson expressed concern recently about whether voters would approve what he has termed as largely administrative measures. But the mayor voted with the rest of the council in putting the issues before the voters.

Each measure will be voted on separately. All three require simple majorities for approval.