MEETING ON LAKE SHOULD CLARIFY STATUS OF PROJECT

Do residents of Cape Girardeau and Bollinger counties want to see a large recreational lake built in their environs? The question, one bandied about in recent years, seemed close to finding an answer in 1990; however, it stands today unaddressed. A meeting has been called for next week to again bring the item to the table for discussion. While we detect no groundswell for additional sales tax here, supporters and opponents of the lake proposal deserve an appropriate hearing of their views. Let those who believe they have a case to make step forward and make it.

Advocates of the proposed 7,700-acre recreational lake were in high spirits just a year ago this month: Gov. John Ashcroft was about to sign a piece of legislation creating a lake authority and giving voters of Cape Girardeau and Bollinger counties a chance to decide a sales tax issue that would fund the $73 million project. Within a month, the matter vanished. Ten days after the governor made the measure law, the Bollinger County Commission decided it wouldn't submit the sales tax to a vote of its citizens. For all practical and immediate purposes, that was that. The project could not go forward without funding in place and the funding would not be in place without a vote in that county.

After years of study and a significant expenditure of public money, the lake proposal is an unlikely candidate to die quickly and quietly, yet that is what seemingly happened. A lake committee formed four years ago to investigate the pros and cons of such a venture and met on a fairly regular basis before a dormancy the last eight months. Issues ranging from costs of construction to potential economic benefits were discussed. Legislation was fashioned and passed by the General Assembly to pave the way for the project. A public that had followed these efforts stood ready to debate the merits of funding the proposition, but the chance to do so never came.

To be sure, strong arguments exist on both sides of this issue. On one side, the lake could prove an economic boon to the region, drawing people in from a wide area for its recreational value. On the other side, an additional tax on the people of these two counties sounds neither desirable nor economically beneficial.

The fact remains that these arguments and issues are out there and got an insufficient chance for debate with the proposal's abrupt disappearance last year. The meeting next week can set some things straight on the lake's status. Those who want the project to proceed should step forward with a workable plan.