LAKE PROPOSAL FACES LONG ROAD TO GET VOTERS' NOD

The Cape Girardeau-Bollinger County Lake project has been resuscitated. The project first garnered headlines and public attention a decade ago. In 1990, proponents and opponents come to a standoff that was never resolved. There was no public vote on the proposed 1-cent sales tax to fund the project, because the Bollinger County Commission refused to put the plan on the ballot. As a result, the plan sank.

A group of Bollinger County businessmen and property owners have revived the project. That is as it should be. Much of the opposition came from Bollinger County five years ago, and it is the perfect place to test the waters for support. Again, two of the three county commissioners say they have no interest in putting the lake plan on the ballot.

So many hard feelings existed five years ago that the project would have had a major public relations battle even if a vote had been scheduled in both counties. This time Stan Crader, a Marble Hill businessman who is organizing the petition drive in Bollinger County, wants to take things slow and build support among the doubters. It is a good strategy.

First, proponents should take aim at a state law passed in 1990 that allows the project to be funded by a sales tax and establishes the authority for the two counties to create a lake project. That was a major sticking point last time. Proponents said pass the tax and worry about problems with the state law later. But a number of people had trouble with the far-reaching authority that the law granted to the lake board. If there are problems in the state law, it should be changed before any vote.

Backers of the lake project also would like to see the law changed so that the petition effort would carry some legal weight. Even if Crader and his group collect their goal of 750 signatures -- 10 percent of Bollinger County voters -- by Oct. 8 there is no legal requirement that would force a vote.

Crader wants a full year to debate the issues openly before the project goes on the ballot. That would also allow time to make needed changes in the state law. And he wants to build more consensus with landowners this time around.

Opposition to the lake project remains strong. The Cape-Bollinger Landowners Association, a group of about 150 landowners opposed to the project five years ago, recently resumed meetings. Opponents were concerned that the lake authority had too much power and that the 1-cent sales tax included unlimited 10-year extensions. They worried their land would be taken at rock-bottom prices. These are issues that must be addressed before the project can proceed.

The petition drive received a boost last week when the Bollinger County Chamber of Commerce came out in support of the lake project. Chamber President Bob Clubb said there is enough interest to warrant placing it on the ballot. The Regional Commerce and Growth Association is also working to revive the effort.

Proponents say the new proposal is very similar to the one five years ago. Then, the 7,700 acre lake carried a price tag of $73 million. No doubt the cost would be higher today. The Whitewater River and Little Whitewater River would be dammed to create two bodies of water that connected by a channel. Highway 72 would cross the channel. The lake would straddle the Cape Girardeau and Bollinger county lines near Millersville.

It is good to see the revival of the Cape Girardeau-Bollinger County lake project. Perhaps this time around, the hard feelings can be resolved. If there is interest, a vote should ultimately be taken. Let the people decide the fate of this project, not a handful of opponents or proponents. The lake project is massive in scope. It will require full cooperation in both counties to pull it off.