County ends contentious year with infrastructure improvements

The Cape Girardeau County government found itself in the middle of some contention and big stories in 2004.

It lost a $475,000 judgment over road and bridge taxes to the city of Jackson, then appealed the ruling.

It squabbled with Jackson over whether the city should be allowed to inspect building construction.

Twenty candidates, including the current treasurer who ridiculed the way the county is being run, ran for two available commission seats.

Presiding Commissioner Gerald Jones said he doesn't remember a more quarrelsome year.

But 2004 wasn't all about clashes.

The county moved forward on several projects, although many of them are hardly noticeable to the general public.

The county is as much about assessing, collecting and counting taxes as it is about building streets and sewers.

"So much of what we do is internal," Jones said. "Probably the major thing we did is to continue the financial integrity of Cape Girardeau County. We had a tight budget and we had to be careful. It's not like we had a bond issue and began building water and sewer like cities do. We're a different breed."

The most visible project is the construction of the conservation center being built on Cape County Park North property. The building is being paid for and built by the state's conservation department, but the county played a major role in attracting the facility. It should open some time this spring.

Optical scan voting

Another major improvement carried out by the county in 2004 was its move to optical scan voting equipment. The move was necessitated by the federal Help America Vote Act. The county eliminated the punch-card system. The transition went smoothly and voters generally embraced the new technology.

The county also made headway on improving the 911 system. Some time in 2005, the county will have the technology necessary to locate the origin of an emergency cellular phone call.

County officials also took steps toward improving technology. The assessor's office is nearly finished with a new GIS mapping system. The county also has plans to integrate its computer systems that will eliminate some duplication of work and make the offices more computer-accessible to the public.

The public defenders moved over to a remodeled facility at the old sheriff's department building. The county this week sold the old Main Street building for $50,000 to Strickland Engineering.

As far as behind-the-scenes improvements, Jones said the county is "still very aggressive in the area of industrial recruitment; maybe one of the most aggressive in the state."

Jones points to the just-completed third paper machine at Procter & Gamble that will help produce more Bounty and Charmin products. The county worked out tax breaks in order to help the area's biggest manufacturing employer expand its plant.

"We're getting some diaper lines back, too," Jones said. "So some of that business is coming back from Mexico."

bmiller@semissourian.com

243-6635