INTERSECTION DEBATE GOES BACK TO P&Z

After years of debate, at least four plans and a couple too-high bids, the quandary over the New Madrid-Henderson intersection is back with the Planning and Zoning Commission.

And members are looking to a set of plans drawn 10 years ago for answers.

The issue was resurrected most recently by the new Dempster Hall of Business on the Southeast Missouri State University campus. University officials insisted that the nearby intersection be redesigned to accommodate fall-semester traffic.

This spring, Planning and Zoning commissioners looked at three sets of plans from Sverdrup Civil Inc., picked the most acceptable set and recommended changes. Engineers made changes and sent them to the City Council, which approved the plans.

The proposal, which some labeled confusing, allowed free-flowing traffic between Henderson on the south side of the intersection and New Madrid on the east side. It also realigned Greek Drive.

Construction estimates were set at $590,000, but the lowest bid came back at $669,221. In June, the councilmen rescinded their approval and sent the plans back to the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Now commissioners seem to agree on a plan drawn up in 1986 by former City Engineer Kensey Russell. At their Wednesday meeting, they voted to have Commissioner Charlie Haubold meet with city staff to revise the plans and then bring them back at a future meeting.

Under the old plans, the intersection would be a four-way stop with no realigning of Greek Drive. Greek Drive would be a one-way entrance to the business building, exiting further north on New Madrid.

Whether the council eventually accepts those plans or not, it's too late to begin work this year. And the city still owes Sverdrup about $45,000 for its proposals.

"It's like getting an architect to design a house," Commissioner R.J. McKinney said. "You may not build the house, but you still have to pay for the plans."

In other Wednesday action, commissioners discussed setting a policy that would differentiate a manufactured home from a structure that is built from the ground up.

The issue most recently arose when East Cape Rock Drive residents Gordon and Gennettia Galbreath asked for a special use permit for a manufactured home. The neighborhood is a single-family residential district.

At the July 1 council meeting, several upset residents appeared to express their disapproval of such a home. Some hinted it would devalue their property.

Councilmen tabled the matter and asked the Planning and Zoning Commission to develop a policy on manufactured homes. Several residents attended Wednesday's meeting, too.

One was Betty St. Gemme, a longtime insurance agent. She said mobile homes, modular homes and manufactured homes are insured under the same classification.

"You can call them what you want to, but they aren't permanent," St. Gemme said. "They aren't built from the ground up."

Commissioners eventually decided to set four qualifications for a home to be counted suitable for a single-family residential district: It must meet city building codes; it can't have wheels or a hitch; it can receive a conventional mortgage; and it can be insured like a home built from the foundation.

Chairman Harry Rediger said the time has come for the city to have such a policy.

"We've had these discussions many times, and there will be more," Rediger said.