SOME SEE PROBLEMS WITHOUT PLANNING

The abolishment of county planning a year ago, which sunk plans for zoning in Cape Girardeau County, hasn't spawned a development nightmare.

But county officials and former planning administrator Charles Engelhart say that since the county no longer has any control over development -- except for federal flood-plain regulations -- it's only a matter of time until a controversial development surfaces.

And they say the county is powerless to put the brakes on any new development.

"Really, things have been pretty quiet, but who knows when the next problem might arise?" said Cape County Associate Commissioner E.C. Younghouse, who believes there's a need for county planning and zoning.

"At this point, I don't know of any way that the county commission can control it," he said. "We have taken the position that if some of the taxpayers want planning and zoning, they'll have to petition us to put it back on the ballot."

Engelhart said he hasn't seen a big move by the public to revisit the issue. But, he said, he's talked to a number of people who are disappointed by last year's vote.

The now-defunct county planning commission had pushed for enacting a zoning ordinance to ensure orderly growth and development in the county. But in November 1992, voters overwhelmingly rejected the idea by voting to abolish county planning. The vote put Engelhart out of a job and shut down the county planning department and the planning commission.

Although the county now has no planning and zoning, building permits are still issued.

Engelhart said substantially fewer permits have been issued this year compared with the two previous years.

From Jan. 1 through Monday, the county issued 63 building permits for homes and structures such as garages and sheds. Of those, 49 were for homes, said Engelhart, citing figures he obtained from county government.

Last year the county issued 191 permits, including 104 for homes. In 1991, the county issued 179 permits, 90 of those for homes.

Engelhart said the reduced number of permits doesn't indicate any downturn in development, but rather that many people aren't bothering to obtain a building permit now that there is no longer any county planning department.

"We do have a proliferation of small businesses in the county and we need them, and we need places for them. But there are places they should not be located, like in the middle of a residential area," he said.

But without any planning or zoning, there's no mechanism for orderly growth, said Engelhart.

"You can do anything you want to next to anybody's house," he said. "We have no control now where mobile home parks are located."

Despite last year's vote, Engelhart said he's not disheartened. He still believes that Cape County will eventually have planning and zoning.

"This is pretty well the history of planning and zoning in many other areas. Many times it is voted out," he said. "Very seldom is it accepted without a lot of controversy."

Younghouse echoed that thought. "I think if you look around you can see examples of counties that vote out planning and zoning and then all of a sudden they vote it back in."

Cape County Associate Commissioner Larry Bock said that Jefferson County has voted in and voted out planning and zoning several times.

"I think the county needs planning and zoning," said Bock. But he said, "I think the plan that was developed last year and voted on needs a lot of changes in it."

Bock said developers told him that many of the proposed zoning regulations weren't workable. "A lot of things were too stringent for subdividers."

For planning and zoning to work, there needs to be widespread support from the public, he said. "It's got to be something that a high majority of citizens think is a workable plan."