Lesterville school's future hinges on Ameren plant

The future of Lesterville, Mo., is contingent on AmerenUE's hydroelectric plant.

Ameren Corporation officials announced plans to rebuild the upper reservoir of its Taum Sauk Plant near Lesterville in early February but the utility company is awaiting a unified settlement proposal from the state of Missouri.

Earlene Fox, superintendent of the Lesterville School District, said many entities are trying to decide how much to fine Ameren, turning the issue into a political hot button.

Meanwhile the livelihood of Lesterville's residents is in jeopardy as a result of the December 2005 breach at the Taum Sauk Reservoir that caused significant flooding in the Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park.

According to Fox, 53.14 percent of Lesterville school funding comes from AmerenUE's property taxes. The school received $436,738 from Ameren last year. "The school is the hub. Without it here the town will be bleak," she said. She added that the building, which is used for kindergarten through 12th grade, is also used for programs like karate and Relay for Life.

Drew Myers, 11, right, threw the ball while playing "airtips," a game students invented, with Lyndsey Bradshaw, center, and other Lesterville summer school students Thursday in Lesterville, Mo. "There's no one here to fight for the town except for the school," Lesterville superintendent Earlene Fox said about the hope of keeping Ameren in the area. (Kit Doyle)

"There's no one here to fight but the school. The businesses are not as vocal. Sometimes it's the squeaky wheel that gets it done."

Fox said that if Ameren chooses not to rebuild its plant in Lesterville, she'll ask the company to pay taxes for one more year and then cuts will have to be made, which will ultimately lead to the school's demise.

First, the $150,000 for the three-year cycle of maintaining technology and keeping up-to-date computers will be eliminated, she said. Then cuts will have to be made to the purchase of new text books. Fox said she's been preparing for the worst while budgeting, trying to decide whether the three bus routes could be combined to two.

"We have the ideal school here," said Fox. "If Ameren doesn't rebuild, kids are going to lose that."

With 265 students and one teacher per grade, Fox said it's the perfect teacher-to-student ratio and the school meets or exceeds all state standards.

The residents of Lesterville are putting their faith in Ameren since the company has taken an active role in restoring Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park, Fox said. But people are misinformed because of the indecisiveness of state officials.

Mike Lejeune is the owner of S&J Express Gas & Grocery in Lesterville, one of the few convenience stores in the area. He said business is regular with residents and tourists visiting other parts of the Black River.

"Ameren employees are the ones that have done good for this area," he said. "Why penalize someone who's standing up?"

Lejeune also owns the Black River Restaurant Motel in Lesterville, which has a for sale sign on the front doors. He said he had been trying to sell the business before Johnson's Shut-Ins closing.

The owner of Twin Rivers Landing, a family resort in Lesterville with 130 campsites plus three cabins, has gone on an advertising campaign to let people know swimming is still permitted in the Black River.

Rinda Mathes, the manager of the family resort, said that before the breach she used to have to turn people away for Memorial Day weekend because the campgrounds were full. This year, she said, there were about half the customers.

Johnson's Shut-Ins brought 225,000 tourists to the area before it closed, according to Dan Paige, the deputy director of state parks for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

"The water is the veins of the town," said Scott Sanders, 36, who grew up in the Lesterville area but moved west to Fredericktown. "Lesterville would be a ghost town if Ameren didn't exist. The school is reliant on them. Kids will have to go to another town."

The school employs 73 people and the majority live in the district, according to Fox. Lesterville has a population of 661.

Melissa St. Gemme teaches kindergarten at Lesterville and is also the girl's basketball coach. Her husband teaches there, too, and they have a 1-year-old. St. Gemme said her family is looking to buy a bigger house in the area but she won't know what to do if they lose both their incomes.

Lynn Garrison, a resource teacher at Lesterville, said she grew up in the area and recently became a grandmother. "We don't want to leave or else we'd already be gone," she said.

Students from the 4th grade level and up went to Jefferson City to put pressure on the senators last month, Fox said. They've also sent 80 letters to the state Capitol building.

"I don't want to go to another school," said Charlotte Volner, an 11-year-old student. "My dad graduated from Lesterville. I want to have my kids go here. And hopefully their kids will too."

tkrakowiak@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137