Nature Center, Marble Hill conservation office face cuts

The Conservation Campus Nature Center in Cape Girardeau County Park North will operate on shorter hours and the Marble Hill field office of the Missouri Department of Conservation will close due to cost-cutting measures.

The cuts, part of a statewide effort to reduce department spending by $7.5 million annually, will not take place immediately, said Joe Jerek, a spokesman for the conservation agency. Instead, office closings will take place as leases expire and the cuts at nature centers will be implemented after consultation with staff on how to best serve the public, Jerek said.

The department's goal is to have all the cuts implemented by July 1, 2011, the department said in a news release announcing the changes. In all, 13 offices statewide will close and six of the seven nature centers will cut operations to five days a week, the department announced.

The center in Cape Girardeau currently operates five-and-a-half days each week, so the reduction in hours shouldn't be dramatic, Jerek said.

The conservation department relies heavily on receipts from a one-eighth cent sales tax to fund its operations. Another major source of revenue is the fees on hunting and fishing permits. The plan announced Tuesday is part of an attempt to cut $7.5 million from the $145.5 million annual operating budget approved by lawmakers.

Most of the offices slated for closing have six or fewer employees and the staff spends most of their time working in the field, department director John Hoskins said in the news release. "It just makes sense to have them work from other MDC facilities in the region or even from home," he said. "In other locations, it simply will save money in the long run to house staff elsewhere."

The plan is both a reaction to the economic recession, which has reduced sales tax revenue, and part of a long-term goal to balance staffing costs with other expenses.

"Simply put, less revenue means we need to reduce expenses and staffing levels, which means we must adjust the number of facilities we have and the levels of services we can provide," Hoskins said. "We have to live within our means just like our fellow Missourians."

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent addresses:

2289 County Park Drive, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Marble Hill, Mo.