FEW ATTEND STREET PROJECT FORUM

While Vision 2000 is out collecting ideas from residents for new street projects, the Cape Girardeau City Council gave the initial nod to three projects on the Transportation Trust Fund Program.

The ordinances, which need a second and third reading before they go into effect, reaffirm the council's decision to do the projects and establish the scope of the work. All three were approved on first reading Monday night.

Only two people attended the meeting Monday and arrived three minutes after it began.

About that many people have attended the open meetings to talk about road improvements. Vision 2000 and city staff members have sponsored the meetings around town as a way for residents to offer suggestions on what roads need improvements and repairs for a proposed extension of the Transportation Trust Fund. The final two meetings are planned for 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Salvation Army and 7 p.m. Thursday at Red Star Baptist Church.

The city attributes the lack of attendance to satisfaction with the existing program.

The Transportation Trust Fund projects, of which there are 20, were funded through a half-cent sales tax collected by the city. The tax will expire Dec. 31, but voters will likely be asked to extend the tax for another five years so other projects could be funded. The council has to act in May to put the measure on the August ballot.

"When the hearings were held last time the streets were in sorry shape," said City Manager Michael Miller. Once the city began working on them, people offered less input.

"Basically, people are aware we are doing a lot and carrying out the promises that were established in the first trust fund," Miller said.

Because there is that sort of satisfaction, few people have attended the public meetings.

Few attend the public hearings held by the council when the projects are proposed as people with questions contact the staff to get answers, he said.

Even without attendance at the meetings, it doesn't mean the public hasn't offered input on what projects are needed.

Some suggested projects were listed at past meetings or are streets "that have been receiving the most concern" and complaints from residents over time. And perhaps the city planners have a better feeling for what the road and traffic needs are and what has been expressed by residents in the past, Miller said.

In the proposed extension, there are five overall categories and eight specific projects. The overall categories include street paving, repairs of streets, sidewalks and gutters, sidewalk repairs and new construction and installation of new street lights.

Nothing specific is set on those projects because they might change over a period of years, Miller said.

The city has a process for evaluating what streets are in most need of repair; those are the streets that will be included in the overlay and paving part of the proposed extension.

The Public Works Department also has a list of streets that need repairs. The engineering department then evaluates those streets "and picks the worst ones" for the paving program, said City Engineer Mark Lester.

Some of the general projects will help "fill in the gaps" around the city where sidewalks end abruptly or need repairs, he said.

Early on, the city engineering staff drove through town looking for sidewalks in disrepair and then scheduling them for repair work. Now most of those projects are done on a case-by-case basis, Lester said. "

If there is a problem then we'll go out and look at it and then fix it," he said.

Street lights will be another integral part of the proposed street projects. The city plans to spend $300,000 a year over five years to install or upgrade street lights at every major street intersection and cul-de-sac in the city.

Questions arose about having enough money to pay for all the projects. City staff members say not to worry.

"Yes, there is enough money," Miller said. Estimates show revenue up 13 percent over the original amount and expenditures up only 11 percent from original figures. The Planning and Zoning Commission built a contingency into the estimated costs for any unforeseen price increases. The proposed contingency fund is nearly $3 million.