COMMERCE RESIDENT STARTS BOAT RAMP

COMMERCE -- It all started at KD's Tavern.

A group of residents began talking about how the state has promised to build a boat ramp on the banks of the Mississippi River just off Water Street.

But the state has been promising that for 25 years. It has made a yearly promise to build the ramp since the Missouri Conservation Department bought a tract of land to prepare for the construction in 1992, Jim Steel said.

At least one person got tired of the promises and decided to build his own boat ramp. Not only that, he's doing it for considerably less than the state projected the ramp to cost.

Darriel Williams, owner of KD's Tavern, owns a seven-acre parcel of land adjacent to the state's property along the water's edge. He applied for the necessary permits. He had the area inspected by both the U.S. Corps of Engineers and the conservation department. Then he began digging.

Working by himself Thursday afternoon, Williams had cleared a 12-foot-wide track down to the water with is back hoe. He said he's waiting for the river level to drop a little before he begins pouring concrete.

Williams said he has spent about $2,500 in fuel and materials. About 40 people have told him that since he started the project Monday that they would use the ramp once it is constructed. Williams will charge a user fee.

"This is a commercial project," he said.

John McPherson, fishery programs coordinator for the conservation department, estimated the cost of the ramp to be $300,000.

McPherson said the state is in the process of determining the best site for its 16-foot ramp. The cost will include the price of fill to raise the ramp to street level and for lighting and bathroom facilities.

He said there are no plans to begin the project this year and it would be 1998 before the conservation department even considers the ramp.

David Hurlbut, assistant to the conservation department's director, said the ramp could cost as much as $500,000. He said the state owns about 60 accesses that it has not been able to develop yet.

Steel owns The Anderson House Bed and Breakfast that overlooks the land the ramp is supposed to be constructed on.

"This all used to be developed all along this area," Steel said, indicating the broad expanse on the river side of Water Street. "Commerce used to be a thriving town."

Steel said dozens of pleasure boats travel past Commerce on their way up and down river. Many of them would need a place to dock for a night or refuel. He added that many Scott County residents are boat owners who have to travel to the diversion channel ramp near Cape Girardeau to get their boats in the water.

He said it is possible that the ramp could revitalize Commerce's economy. Steel said the city is in line for a $50,000 grant that requires a 20 percent match.

"We have to come up with a way to pay our end of the grant," he said. "This might be one of the ways we can do it."