County Commission gets organized

Cape Girardeau County commissioners have been busy lately. Four closed meetings in recent weeks aside, the board has made some public decisions at Thursday's meeting.

The commissioners approved Jackson's assistant fire chief, Randy Davis, to replace the recently retired Les Crump on the county's 911 advisory board.

County Collector Diane Diebold's recommendation to use Ward Title Insurance Agency of Cape Girardeau for lien searches for parcels with delinquent taxes was also approved. Ward's $30-per-parcel bid was lower than Metro Title Inc.'s $35, Guardian Land Title's $75 and United Land Title's $48.

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During Thursday's meeting, Presiding Commissioner Gerald Jones asked County Clerk Kara Clark to act as the board's meeting parliamentarian, a fancy word I had to look up. It basically means she'll be the person who makes sure the board follows proper meeting rules.

Jones said the move comes at the suggestion of the county's prosecuting attorney, Morley Swingle.

"Sometimes we become a little lax," Jones said in a phone interview Friday.

The commissioners have agreed to be more organized, devoting the first 30 minutes of the meetings to signing papers for the administrative part of the commission's job.

"We'll move into business at 9:30," Jones said, adding that the agenda will be expanded to include a public comment segment, the way the cities of Cape Girardeau and Jackson do. From now on, Jones said, the board is going to operate by the book, as a first-class county should.

"Is that something we should have been doing more conscientiously? Absolutely. We'll just do it more conscientiously now," he said.

The commissioners also agreed to follow Scott County in developing a tire recycling program. The county is paying $6,000 of the program's $24,000 budget. The remaining $18,000 is a grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

This free one-day program is from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 20. People who live in the county can bring as many as 20 tires — as big as 17-inch rim size from cars or trucks and including four farm tractor tires — to the county's highway maintenance facility on Highway 34, near the Highway 72 intersection. County workers will check drivers' licenses to verify residency. Call 204-2499 for details.

Scott County Presiding Commissioner Jamie Burger, in Jackson to attend FEMA's public assistance briefing, stopped by the Cape Girardeau commissioners' chambers Thursday just as the tire discussion was being finalized. He said the tire program was so popular, his county expanded it to two Saturdays each year.

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Speaking of FEMA, in his recent appearance before Cape Girardeau's city council, Ronnie Stillwagon, FEMA's intergovernmental affairs specialist, reported that 289 of the 458 people who registered for federal help live in the city.

Today, the former FEMA Disaster Recovery Center in Jackson, at 502 W. Main St., Suite E, converts to a Small Business Administration Disaster Loan Outreach Center. Hours will be 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays.

The strongest message from FEMA, for local governments and individuals, is that it can't hurt to ask for help twice. If you were affected by the floods, even if the mess has been cleaned up — call FEMA's toll-free line, 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585) or www.fema.gov. You may be eligible for aid, Stillwagon said.

In Southeast Missouri, there are two ways to connect with community agencies that may be able to help (and not just for a flood-related disaster). Dial United Way's First Call for Help, 334-4357, or the statewide number, 211.

Questions, suggestions or tips for Lost on Main Street? E-mail pmcnichol@semissourian.com or call 335-6611, extension 127.