Marble Hill mayor promises results on dog pound issue

Marble Hill Mayor Russell Masterson promised the Board of Aldermen at a special meeting Friday evening that the issue of the dog pound will be settled by the next regular board meeting March 9.

Earlier the aldermen considered a contract with the Humane Society of Southeast Missouri in Cape Girardeau to take stray dogs at a cost to the city of $1,200, plus transportation and possible overtime costs. The vote on that proposal was delayed because Alderman Clint Lacy had asked for the full board to be present before a vote is taken; at that time Masterson and Alderman Joel Southwick were absent.

Friday Masterson said the U.S. Department of Agriculture has specific requirements for having a dog pound and a person to oversee it. Those requirements are being sent to the city, he said, and when they arrive the board can then decide whether or not to apply for the required license and make the necessary improvements to the existing pound. The only doubt Masterson said he has about the issue is whether the USDA will change the requirements for compliance after Marble Hill meets the current ones.

In anticipation of the decision, Councilman Tim McCain presented a rough sketch he made that could possibly bring the current pound into compliance. McCain's sketch shows that the city could isolate the building from the nearby lagoon with fencing -- which he said might be donated to the city, and volunteers have said they will help install it. New fencing would surround the pound building, and a new gate and a relocated old gate would improve traffic flow around the property.

"If we can adapt to the requirements for a permit and put a fence around it, it would work out very well," said Alderman James Sear.

Sear, Masterson and McCain appear to be in favor of applying for the USDA permit and keeping the care and adoption of the dogs local.

"I don't feel the citizens of the town are going to feel like it's feasible to pick up dogs and run them over to Cape," McCain said.

Lacy, who supports the city paying $1,200 a year for the Humane Society of Southeast Missouri to take stray and abandoned dogs, cautioned that without the contract with the Humane Society, it will not accept any animals from Marble Hill.

Southwick was not present Friday.

Until a decision is made, Masterson said the city will continue to operate by the ordinance currently in place. He said he hopes to end the discussion on this subject at the next meeting. He said residents of Marble Hill have been critical of the amount of time and discussion spent on dogs.

"Hopefully we can get this thing resolved," he said. "Enough is enough."

In other action, aldermen approved the purchase of a new fire truck to replace the 20-year-old Engine No. 1, which will be sold. The aldermen agreed further that the old fire truck will be advertised locally first, to save having to pay a seller's fee to an agent who would offer it for sale nationwide. If it doesn't sell locally, then the city will enlist the help of an agent. Captain Calvin Troxel said fire departments in Essex, Mo., and Morehouse, Mo., have expressed interest in the truck.

The board also approved an ordinance that will allow a property encroachment for James Johnson.