GATELEY, SCHNEIDER EYE COUNCIL; SCHNEIDER CITES IDEAS, EXPERIENCE

Editor's note: The Southeast Missourian today offers the second installment of reports on candidates for the Cape Girardeau City Council. The final installment will be published Wednesday.

Cape Girardeau City Council candidate Loretta Schneider says she wants to combine her fresh perspective on issues with her previous council experience to nurture economic growth in the city.

Schneider will seek one of three four-year terms on the council. She joins incumbent Al Spradling III, Lawrence Godfrey, Melvin Kasten and Melvin Gateley on the ballot April 7.

Schneider was the first woman elected to the city council in 1981. She was re-elected in 1982 to a four-year term, and in 1986 ran an unsuccessful campaign for mayor.

Mayor Gene Rhodes subsequently won the 1986 election against former councilman Donald Strohmeyer.

Schneider said her past experience gives her a personal knowledge of such matters as the city's recycling program, the Cape LaCroix-Walker creeks flood-control project, and proposals for use of the city's tourism funds. Schneider said that experience uniquely qualifies her to serve on the council again.

"I feel like I have experience for the job," Schneider said. "There are still some projects convention and tourism and some other streets and infrastructure projects that were in the planning stages when I was on the council that still need work, and I feel like I have a great deal to contribute.

"Cape Girardeau is my home, and if there is something of value that I can contribute to this community, I want to do that."

Schneider said the key issue the city will face in the next four years is declining tax revenues and stagnant economic and population growth.

"There are quite a few interesting things going on in the city right now, and certainly the problem is not a lack of resources," she said. "There are so many things that we have that we could build on.

"What I think we need to do is set some goals for the city so that we can bring about some unity in the projects that we think are important and will bring about some growth and economic development."

One aspect of economic development that Schneider said she's particularly interested in is the use of the city's tourism funds that are generated by a sales tax on motels and restaurants.

"I was in on the planning for convention and tourism when we passed the tax," she said. "I think we need to look seriously at the way the Convention and Visitors Bureau is operating and see how that money is being spent so that we can assure that we are developing economically as a result of that tax."

Schneider said she also would like the city to conduct a "community attitudes survey" to help the city in short- and long-range planning. She said she'd favor conducting the surveys every two years.

"I think it's a valuable tool to anyone in a decision-making position," she said. "It's certainly important that we do the will of the citizens of Cape Girardeau, and we have to have some way of knowing what the will of the people is."

Another issue Schneider said she'd revive is the city charter not to change the document, but to better comply with it.

"I think we need constantly to be in touch with our city charter," she said. "I think that from time to time we need to look at the city charter and make certain we know what it says and that we're operating within its guidelines.

"I think some of the problems of the past could have been alleviated if we would have spent some time studying the city charter."

A lifetime resident of Cape Girardeau, Schneider works in Southeast Missouri State University's career planning and placement services department. She also teaches a career and life planning course at the university.

She earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in education at Southeast, and her husband, John, formerly was chairman of the health, physical education and recreation department at the university.

They live at 3249 Lakewood and have four children: Ann, 34, John, 33, Joe, 31, and James, 27.

Prior to becoming assistant director of placement services at Southeast, Schneider was a sales counselor with Century 21 Key Realty for three years. Before that she was a high school teacher for 10 years, including eight years at Notre Dame High School in Cape Girardeau.