CHARTER PANEL HEARS CONCERNS

Should the Cape Girardeau mayor be elected by the people or the city council he or she directs?

Should the ward system be used for every city council seat? Or should there be at-large elections? Does the ward system give the people a direct link to voice concerns they have with the city and how it is run? Do the city manager and assistant city manager need to face a retention vote by the people to remain on the job?

Those were some of the issues a handful of citizens addressed in front of the Cape Girardeau Charter Review Committee Monday night. There will be another meeting at 7 p.m. May 10 in the Cape Girardeau Public Library's Hirsch Room.

Brenda Dohogne, who ran for a city council seat in Ward 2, read some concerns before the Charter Review Committee.

"I understand that there have been three recommendations made by the Charter Review Committee," said Dohogne. "The first recommendation is to add two council seats, both of which would be filled by elections at-large. I object to this recommendation," said Dohogne.

Loretta Schneider, who is a member of the Charter Review Committee, indicated there have been no recommendations made thus far. "We're trying to hear the concerns of citizens before any recommendations are made. And any changes to the city charter would go before the vote of the people," said Schneider.

Said Dohogne: "In November 1992, the voters of Cape Girardeau approved the ward system of representation by a 76-24 percent vote. The mandate at the polls was very clear. The residents of Cape prefer ward representation over at-large representation by a margin of three to one. Futhermore, we already have one city council member elected at-large -- our mayor.

"Other than presiding at city council meetings, the mayor wields no more authority over the actions of the council than any other member. We do not want a council comprised of six ward representatives and three at-large members," said Dohogne.

Cecilia Sonderman indicated she prefers to make a city council member who runs for mayor relinquish his or her council seat while running for the new position.

"That's something I heard quite a bit about from people when the campaign was going on," said Sonderman. "A lot of people didn't like the fact that a council member could keep his seat if he lost in the at-large election rather than opening that position up and giving someone else a chance to file."

Said Dohogne: "The second recommendation of concern to me is to revert to pre-1981 laws when the mayor was elected by the council, not by city voters. As I have stated, the mayor wields little power over the council. However, he does set the pace for our city council, determining through his demeanor whether it will be detached or actively involved in the concerns and progress of the city."

Members of the committee indicated a mayor elected by the city council would be a less powerful figure and perhaps more apt to perform as an office manager working with a cohesive unit.

Opal McManus indicated she would like to see a more fervent attempt at enforcing city ordinances. "There has been stagnated water behind City Hall for four years and it's still there," said McManus. "There is broken glass, weeds in some areas and trash that's left."

Said Sonderman, "We needed to have tougher ordinances on the books in the first place."

Said Dohogne: "A third issue of concern to me is that our city manager and assistant city manager should face a retention vote every two years. Our city is not run by the mayor but by the city manager and assistant city manager. They are appointed by our city council, and the people have no direct voice in either who will fill these powerful positions or the length of their term of office."

There was some concern voiced by charter committee members that the retention vote would turn the city manager and assistant manager into politicians rather than "professionals" making recommendations on behalf of the city staff.