GROUP HIRES CONSULTANTS FOR CAMPAIGN

A group of Cape Girardeau business people have hired the St. Louis public relations firm of Tretter-Gorman, Inc. to help promote the school district's April ballot measure.

Boatmen's Bank president Jim Limbaugh is spearheading the citizen's group, which is in its formative stage.

Superintendent Neyland Clark said, "We are very, very fortunate to have the support of these key business people who represent a diversity of leaders."

Limbaugh said, "I would call it a group of interested business people. We have lots of different organizations and industries represented."

Between 20 and 30 individuals are involved, he said. "I'm convinced this number will grow.

"I'm in the fold; I'm a believer," Limbaugh said. "Things wear out. If you look at the two schools that will be replaced by one, it's the right thing to do. It makes sense. Just walk through May Greene and Washington schools. They are worn out. It's kind of like a car. Sometimes you need a new one. There was a time when it served the needs tremendously, but now it needs to be replaced.

"We are talking about basic, fundamental needs for the school system," Limbaugh said. "The needs are there. We don't have any choice; we have to do it."

Limbaugh said the group was originally formed to help educate business people about the needs of the district and plans surrounding the bond issue.

"It is critical to the basic needs of Cape Girardeau," he said. "The educational process is such an integral part of the city. We consider this to be a tremendous investment in the city. It will pay immediate dividends and will continue to pay dividends in the future."

In addition, the group has been raising funds.

"We're also trying to raise money to fund some of the research necessary on how best approach the campaign," Limbaugh said. He declined to say how much money the group has raised.

"This is such an important issue that we wanted some professional assistance as opposed to striking out on our own," Limbaugh said. "The people involved in our group were novices at this. We needed some professional input on how best to approach the effort.

"As part of that, we have hired a marketing research consulting firm. They are well known and have tremendous credentials."

Leah Christopher, account executive for Tretter-Gorman, explained that the citizen's committee has hired the firm to provide campaign counseling.

As far as what that consultation will include, Christopher said, it's too early to tell.

"We don't even know the final figures yet," she said. "What those figures turn out to be will impact what services we provide."

Representatives of the public relations firm have met with school officials and the district's design architect.

"We understand there are a lot of basic needs down there. You know, some of the classrooms just have one outlet. In today's world that's just not practical.

"We are just waiting for the final figures to be worked out and we're ready to jump right in," she said.

The St. Louis firm was employed by Peter Kinder's campaign for the state senate. Tretter-Gorman also represents Sabreliner Corp. in Perryville.

"We have some close contacts in Cape Girardeau and consider ourselves to know the area to some degree," Christopher said.