Cape Girardeau City Council member hopes Tuesday hearing will allay fears about peripheral zoning

Cape Girardeau City Council member Mark Lanzotti hopes to combat what he says are misconceptions about the city's request for peripheral zoning at Tuesday's public hearing.

The city will make a 10-minute presentation.

Lanzotti said peripheral zoning will not raise taxes, nor will the peripheral zone automatically grow as the city grows. Also, it is not the city's first step to "total control" of property outside of its borders, he said.

"We have no interest in regulating barns, farms," he said.

For Lanzotti, peripheral zoning is a good way to protect the city as well as residents within two miles of Cape Girardeau. He said it safeguards against substandard development and anything that would be an economic detriment to neighbors, such as quarries or hog farms.

Lanzotti said that at the hearing the city will distribute handouts explaining peripheral zoning and its benefits to residents along the periphery. He said he hopes the information will help allay some of the fear.

The city also plans to use the public hearing as the start of a dialogue. Lanzotti said he wants feedback on ways to make the proposal better. The Cape Girardeau County Commission can approve the city's request contingent on specified changes.

Opponents of the request have been vocal about their concerns. They have said while the city would have control in county areas, property owners would not have representation on the city council. Lanzotti has said he would not be opposed to placing peripheral zone representatives on the city's planning and zoning board.

There have also been concerns that peripheral zoning would bring too much government interference, change school districts, lower property value and hinder property owners who wish to build additions or expand.

The city needs the support of two of the three county commissioners for the request to pass. Commissioners Paul Koeper and Jay Purcell have publicly stated they are not in favor of peripheral zoning.

State law requires the county to sponsor at least one public hearing before voting on the request. While the commission has not said when it plans to vote on the matter, a decision could come as early as Thursday's commission meeting.

If approved by the county, the two-mile radius around Cape Girardeau would become AG-1, a less-restrictive agricultural designation that allows farming, single-family houses and small businesses.

The peripheral zoning public hearing will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Osage Community Centre in Cape Girardeau.

cbartholomew@semissourian.com

243-8600

Pertinent Address: 1625 N. Kingshighway, Cape Girardeau, MO