LAKE PROJECT IS STILL A LONG WAY FROM BECOMING A REALITY

Week before last, legislation was introduced in the Missouri Senate to modify the original law passed in 1990 that authorized an election and creation of a lake authority by Cape Girardeau and Bollinger counties. After lying dormant for nearly seven years, discussion of a lake is once again heating up.

On both sides, emotions run high. Opponents include landowners whose families have lived in the proposed laker area for five or six generations. These people are adamant that any lake authority with the power of eminent domain will deprive them of irreplaceable property, even with compensation, and is therefore an unjust infringement. They aren't mollified by any sections of the proposed bill that are designed to soften certain harsh features of the original measure.

Against these passionate opponents, lake supporters are claiming this project would be among the best things that ever came to this corner of the state. Proponents say there is a reason why Springfield and other parts of Southwest Missouri have grown so rapidly in recent years, and among them is the abundance of flat-water recreation in nearly every direction. The proposed 7,800-acre lake would be clear, would fill up in one year of average rainfall and would doubtless stimulate some considerable economic development, though exactly how much is hotly disputed.

Sen. Peter Kinder, R-Cape Girardeau, has introduced Senate Bill 363, which contains the following key provisions:

* A public vote could be held on the issue of whether to impose a tax to fund lake improvements by means of an initiative petition effort that gathers 10 percent of the number of signatures of registered voters in the last gubernatorial election.

* The lake landowners association would gain a seat on the lake authority, increasing the number of such commissioners from nine to 10.

* Currently, the lake authority can exercise the power of eminent domain for up to 300 feet from the maximum flood level under current law. This provision is revised to give the lake authority responsibility to negotiate a fair market value purchase of land by use of various incentives. If unsuccessful, the authority is allowed to use eminent domain for 50 feet beyond the erosion control line, defined as that point that is three feet above the normal pool level.

* Provides for creation of a separate planning and zoning board under the lake authority, which shall have zoning power limited to an area within 2,000 feet of the conservation storage area. The initial zoning must reflect current land use and can't be changed for any particular piece of property, unless requested by the landowner, for as long as that property is held by the current landowners and their heirs.

* Allows private pedestrian access to the lake for all adjacent landowners.

Sen. Kinder's position is that the people of Cape Girardeau and Bollinger Counties should be allowed to have the vote they were denied back in 1990. Passage of SB 363, a necessary pre-condition to any such vote, is far from a certainty. Voter approval in both counties is a distinctly iffy proposition, far beyond passage of any bill.