THE PUBLIC MIND: ZONING WILL GIVE LANDOWNERS LEGAL MEANS TO STOP UNWELCOME DEVELOPMENT NEXT DOOR

Dear voters:

Cape Girardeau County voters were looking forward 20 years ago when they voted for planning and zoning. Let's not go backward! Our county is growing faster than we ever dreamed possible 20 years ago, and if we ever needed planning and zoning, it is now.

The Planning and Zoning Commission, with the staff of Southeast Missouri Regional Planning, working many long hours drafting what we feel is the most effective zoning order. It provides a guide for the growth that is quickly enveloping our county and at the same time will protect the land owners of the county.

Just take a drive in Cape Girardeau County and look at the problems cropping up. There are businesses and industries, junk yards, billboards, and trailer parks encroaching on nice residential homes. Some structures are built so near the road that in order to widen the road the building would have to be purchased by the county (with your tax dollars) to get the job done.

Planning and zoning creates continuity and protects your property value from such haphazard development. What do you suppose happens to your property value when a landfill, a junk yard, an industry, or a hazardous waste recycling center buys next door?

It can't happen here. Right?? Wrong!! It's happening all over the U.S. today and without zoning laws in place it can happen here. The largest investment you'll ever make is at risk without planning and zoning. Wouldn't you like to see your property value increase or at least remain stable in the years to come? I would.

There are many misconceptions about the zoning order. Trying to answer all of them here would take pages, so my advice to you is to get a copy of the order and read it yourself. If you have a specific question, call the planning office and get the answer. Don't rely on what someone else thinks it says or wants you to believe it says.

The planning and zoning commission is made up of 10 private citizens (one volunteer for each political township) and one county commissioner. When an opening becomes available, anyone who has a desire to serve on this board may make his wishes known to the county commissioners.

Progress has a price and I too would like to live in a world with less regulation and less government. But we must be realistic and learn to protect ourselves by the most legal means available. With rights we also have regulations and responsibility. That's how we live in harmony together. Please vote "yes" to continue county planning and zoning.

Glenda Quinn

Cape Girardeau