SCOTT CITY SEEKS TO PURGE `WALL OF SHAME'

SCOTT CITY -- While muralists in Cape Girardeau paint a "Wall of Fame," Scott City officials have compiled photographs of crumbling city streets and mounted them on a "Wall of Shame."

The Scott City Council in August unanimously approved a special election Nov. 7 on a half-cent transportation sales tax. The tax, which is expected to bring in $110,000 annually, will be used to repair and pave city streets.

The 36 pictures on the "Wall of Shame," show potholes and eroded streets throughout the town. At tonight's meeting, the Scott City Council will appoint several residents to help rank the streets needing repairs.

The council meets at 8 p.m. at City Hall, 618 Main St.

The "Wall of Shame," photos were selected to show the different types of repairs needed on city streets.

"We could have gone down any street and done this," said Ward 4 Councilman Norman Brant, who heads the public works committee. He and City Administrator John Saxton took the pictures last week.

About 15 people attended an informational meeting on the transportation sales tax Saturday morning. Earlier in the week, Saxton met with the Sunny Village Garden Club and Ministerial Alliance to explain the tax issue.

Money generated by the tax will be used to supplement the current budget. Collection will begin on July 1, 1996.

It took the city two years to find enough money to fund two paving projects, Mayor Larry Forhan said.

The projects -- Lincoln and Cherry streets will be repaved at an estimated cost of $50,000 -- recently were bid to Apex Paving Co.

The city has no money in the budget earmarked for street improvements other than for emergency repairs.

"It's difficult to pinpoint the money that goes to these projects now, because public works covers so many areas," Forhan said, adding that the city accountant is studying a detailed spending analysis.

The city hopes to salvage many of the streets needing only minor repairs so that driving conditions don't worsen, said Ward 1 Council member Brenda Moyers.

Scott City residents rejected a similar transportation tax in the past. But council members and civic leaders are optimistic about next month's vote.

"The street situation is desperate in this town," said former mayor Shirley Young. "This is the perfect solution."

Several years ago, the federal government ended revenue sharing, and the city never recovered from the $114,000 loss, Young said.

The cities of Cape Girardeau and Sikeston recently approved similar transportation taxes to improve city streets.

"The sales tax spreads the cost to all who use the roads," Saxton said, adding that a bond issue would be similar to borrowing money on a credit card.

If the tax doesn't pass in November, it will just mean a longer delay for fixing the streets that need repairs, said Ward 2 Councilman John Rogers.